Saturday July 31, 2021 | LANGFORD, BC
by Mary P Brooke, Editor | Island Social Trends
After 29 months and 12 days, the Langford-based Pacific FC pro soccer team got to play on home turf on July 30. And for the fans on Friday night at Starlight Stadium it was super show.
The weather was heat-wave warm (still 30°C in the parking lot after the game) and the skies clear. Most people in the crowd did not wear masks when seated (or cheering), but many put them on when they mingled at half time and as they left the stadium afterward.
The eager Pacific FC team delivered a 2-0 win against Calgary’s Cavalry FC team, with one goal early in the game and another quite close to the end. Well-scripted for maintaining crowd attention throughout. Not that it was hard to keep the crowd on the edge of their seats. The enthusiasm for just being back in a normal crowd situation after the long year-and-a-half without team sports was palpable. Fans loved it, and so did the organizers who were pleased at a turnout of 2,661 ticket holders.
With the addition of the West Stand and temporary game seating under ‘the hydro pole’, the Starlight Stadium can evidently now hold 7,500. So under current BC public health restrictions (during the ongoing COVID pandemic) 5,000 will be the maximum allowed. Given the continuing pandemic, organizers were pretty sure everyone who was there really wanted to be there.
New media digs:
Media enjoyed the new media room above centre field that was constructed during the pandemic. Back in 2019 media were holed up in a separate building within the Westhills Arena building, separate and apart from the action.
TV cameras operate from the north side of the field (Langford Parkway side).
Afterward is when media do their interviews about the game itself, and now there’s a room set up for that under the west stand.
Cavalry coach on artificial turf:
First off speaking to media both in Calgary (by Zoom) and in the room, was Cavalry FC Coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr, who took his team’s loss with good sportsmanship.
In responding to the first reporter’s question, Wheeldon did say “we have to make sure it doesn’t happen too often” and “we have to stop giving away soft goals”.
He noted that his players found the artificial turf at Starlight Stadium to be a “grippy field”, that he expects they will perform better when they “get back to grass on our field”. Calgary’s next game is on Tuesday night after the long weekend.
A long time waiting for sports:
Pacific FC Coach Pa-Modou Kah opened his remarks to media saying that “it’s been a long time waiting for sports” during the pandemic. The last game for Pacific FC at home was in October 2019. Kah has been counting: 29 months and 12 days it’s been since then.
About the July 30 game: “Overall we controlled the game,” said Kah. “We’ve gone a while without fans,” he said, recounting how there were two bubbles (last year in Prince Edward Island, and earlier this season in Winnipeg).
The Pacific FC team wanted to “give our fans a win in the first game”, said Kah, adding that “at home you always want to win”.
“It’s been a long time waiting. This wonderful atmosphere was fantastic,” said Coach Kah after last night’s game. Waiting during the pandemic has been “a rough two years on everybody,” he said. Musing on that: “It’s easy to get lost because you’re not doing what you love. We are privileged (on this team) to do what we love,” Kah said in a response to a question from Island Social Trends.
As did Langford Mayor Stew Young in his opening pre-game speech to the crowd, Kah thanked Island Health for their support. The Mayor said front-line health-care workers were the heroes. Kah said the Island Health team “helped them train” (referring to safety and health protocols during the ongoing COVID pandemic). He commended the team players for their dedication and commitment, and noted that attacker Marco Bustos (wearing the 10 jersey) is a “great leader”.
“The guys do the work, my job is easy, working with them is a pleasure,” said Kah.
“There are still some minor details that we can do better,” Kah said, adding: “We’ll take it a game at a time.”
Great home-turf start:
But a win in the first game upon reopening from the pandemic was “a great way to start the stretch of home games that we have here,” the coach told media.
Bustos wowed the crowd throughout the game. “There’s nothing better than getting an early goal,” he said after the game. “It’s about using everyone on the team.” He liked that half-time showed a 1-0 score. As well: “Ending a game defensively is good” as it obviously puts the edge out ahead of the next game.
One of the team’s secrets? “We worry about what we do, not about others,” said Coach Kah. And Bustos said they do a lot of work on attacking during training. But Kah had high praise for the Cavalry FC team that they beat last night: “Cavalry is a good team and will stay strong throughout the season.”
“To hear the fans was awesome. To hear everyone loud is something I missed,” said Bustos. “Every time we play at home we want to make a fortress.”
Island Health on site:
Island Health was on-site for the July 30 game. About 15 of their staff were operating the Vax Van alongside the field, where people could get a first shot without an appointment (and some people got a second shot). No one was turned away, despite a range of complications in registering (ID, public health number, etc).
About 10 shots were administered between 4 and 6 pm, and then a steady stream of more “COVID jab” recipients continued to game time.
The Vax Van remained on site to 8 pm, with that scene managed by Island Health’s Westshore Public Health Manager Kathy Easton. Nurses on site said that most of the time people’s questions had to do with side effects of the vaccine and wanting to understand the difference between Moderna and Pfizer (both utilize mRNA vaccine technology).
Island Health’s Dr Mike Benusic (Medical Health Officer for central Vancouver Island) was there for the Vax Van and the game. He told Island Social Trends that the mass immunization clinics will wrap up at some point, that mobile and targeted opportunities for people to be vaccinated will be the next direction for getting as many people vaccinated as possible.
He said that the Island Health immunization clinic within the Eagle Ridge Arena was closed out of additional caution for this weekend, due to the heat; people who had already made appointments had their same dates/times (for July 30, July 31 and August 1 at Eagle Ridge) relocated to the Victoria Conference Centre downtown.
Some July 30, 2021 game stats:
- Pacific FC – 2 goals, 14 shots, 7 shots on target, 11 shots from inside the box, 3 shots from outside the box, 2 headed shots.
- There were 406 total passes by Pacific FC, with 86.5% passing accuracy. By the players: Josh Heard, Liie Bassett and Gianni Dos Santos (all 100%), Kadin Chung (93.8%), Alessandro Hojabrpour (92.5%), Abboulaye Samake (91.9%), Lukas MacNaughton (89.6%), Marco Buston (88.9%).
- Goalkeeper Callum Irving made 4 saves (100%).
Next game:
Pacific FC next plays Winnipeg’s Valour FC, here on home turf in Langford on Wednesday August 4.
