We head out on the road! Join us at Ken Woods Park at UBC for our first League away game of the season.
This week’s opponent
Saturday, May 27
- TSS Rovers Women (0-3-1, 7th) v Whitecaps FC Women (3-0-0, 2nd) @ Ken Woods at 12:00 noon
- TSS Rovers Men (2-1-1, 1st) v Whitecaps FC Men (1-2-0, 4th) @ Ken Woods at 2:30 pm.
Location: Ken Woods Field, UBC.
TV: Streamed as the League 1 BC match of the week
Tickets: Admission is free at Ken Woods Park.
This is always a tasty matchup. Many of our players, at one point or another, trained in the Whitecaps Academy on the men’s side or the REX on the women’s side. Last year, two of our spiciest matches were played on Ken Woods field, and our players will be up for the challenge.
The Whitecaps women’s team are the reigning League1 BC champions and, as of Monday, are currently undefeated. They will be coming off a midweek match against Harbourside. They will be missing some key players who are away on national team duty with the Canada U-20 National Team at the CONCACAF W-Championship. With our women’s team growing stronger with the additions of more NCAA players, we might see this as a marquee game to turn our season around.
On the men’s side, former TSS Rover Nik White has made two appearances for the ‘Caps. Michael Hennessy leads the Whitecaps in scoring on the strength of a hat trick last week against Altitude FC. Our men will look to continue their scintillating form as we set sail for the first away day of the League1 BC season.
Last week’s recap
Check out the match report from the Pirate Cove with James Siddall covering the matches vs. Unity.
Women’s Team
Rovers 0 Unity 4
No doubt about it, this was a tough loss. After four weeks of squad rotation and gradually adding our summer core from USPORTS and NCAA rosters, our women took to the field to put the undefeated Unity FC to the test. We struggled in the first half but had our chances as play moved quickly back and forth. Unity scored at 28’ and then again at 42’ on a cross that Kirsten Tynan just got fingertips to, but her save arced back into the goal behind her.
We came out stronger and more cohesive in the second half, but a defensive error in minute 50’ led to Unity’s third goal, and they capped it with a penalty in the 85’ that Tynan guessed right on. A tough loss, but we built some chemistry in the second half, and we will go again against the ‘Caps.
We welcomed Molly Quarry, Emma Pascoe and Joanna Vervoza-Dolezal back into the squad this week. New keeper signing Camellia Xu of the University of Minnesota was on the bench for this one.
Men’s Team
Rovers 4 Unity FC 0
It was a completely different story on the men’s side last week as we continued our dominant form in the League with our second 4-0 win in a row. Our men’s side dedicated the game to Devin O’Hea, whose mother, Triona O’Hea, sadly passed after a battle with cancer earlier in the week.
Ivan Meija scored the first two goals with a header at 30,’ and then two minutes later, he received a ball from Erik Edwardson, cut inside and slid his second goal home. We played some beautiful football and defended well. The domination of the midfield paid off at 61’ when a turnover generated a run from Edwardson, who fed Massoud Habibullah for his first goal of the year. Five minutes later, Massoud got on the end of a gorgeous cross from Kyle Jones as he scored his second. We never took our foot off the gas and Ivan missed his hat trick in the 75’ with a shot that rang off the post.
The men are just clicking at the moment, playing free-flowing football with a strong defensive line led by Danylo Smychenko, who is having an outstanding season at centre-back. Our recent run of form has taken us to first place in the table where we hope to stay.
News shorts
Last Week to Become an Owner
Challenge – Bring One More Owner to the Community
In response to huge levels of interest, the club has reopened share sales to the community. Spread the word. If everybody brings one more owner, the power of the community grows exponentially. Only a few days left!
Investor link: https://www.frontfundr.com/tssrovers
Rovers Community Giving Fund
Prideraiser 2023
This year our Swanguardians will once again be participating in the North America-wide PrideRaiser fundraising for 2SLGTBTQ+ organizations. Rainbow Refugee will be the recipient this year and through a matching donation, every dollar pledged per goal scored in June will be doubled.
Prideraiser 2023 – you can pledge here.
Our Club in Kenya! The Awasi Rovers
New kit, building a new field, creating new offices, and supporting a generation of young children play the beautiful game. Teaching Excellence has just crossed the border.
Support here: https://my.charitableimpact.com/groups/awasi-rovers-football-academy
We are playing a lot of football at home this month as Swangard will be under renovation for much of July. This is your chance to come out and see your club in our iconic home. So come cheer on your Rovers….
The club and its supporters send our love and condolences to the O’Hea family on the passing of Triona O’Hea. Our Rovers family joins Devin in mourning her loss.
Share sales are open until May 31. This may be your last chance to buy shares in the club, so jump on the chance.
Forza Rovers!#WeAreRovers
#TogetherStandingStrong
#TogetherOne
Goal of the Week – Check out and absolutely fantastic play as the men take a 3-0 lead vs Unity FC this past weekend. Smychenko tackles, penetrates into the opponent’s half, plays in Edwardson, who then lays it on a plate for Habibullah to finish. Must see. Watch now.
TSS Rovers Street Wear
Check out the t-shirts, ball caps and hoodies as Rovers begin to produce top quality gear to show yiu are cool and reprsent the best pirates on the planet.
See the whole lineup here.
