Image Credit: TRU WolfPack Athletics/Andrew Snucins

By Adam Donnelly

TRU WOLFPACK SOCCER

WolfPack soccer gets ready for home weekend away from its regular turf

Sep 22, 2023 | 11:30 AM

KAMLOOPS — The turf at Hillside Stadium is the normal hunting ground for the TRU WolfPack soccer teams. However, on Saturday (Sept. 23) both the men and the women will stalk their prey on a different pitch at McArthur Island Park.

“I think the boys are ready to play out here,” Jonathan Rinaldi, midfielder for the men’s soccer team, says. “The pitch can only be an excuse for so much. If we show up to play, we’ll be good.”

The men’s side only plays one match this weekend — Saturday at 5:15 pm. The women play a pair of games — 7:00 pm on Friday at Hillside Stadium against Lethbridge on the artificial surface and 7:30 pm on Saturday against Calgary on the grass at Mac Island.

“Going from one to the other is definitely going to be something we’re not used to,” WolfPack goalkeeper Cassandra De Amaral explains. “We all adjust really well, and we trained on that field for preseason. We’ve been playing on grass for the last couple of training sessions, as well, so we should be go to go.”

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The move is being made in part to accommodate the final touches on the track resurfacing project. The Kamloops Broncos also play at home that night.

Some of the WolfPack players are slightly disappointed they won’t get to play on their home turf.

“It’s not ideal,” first-year forward Kat Stewart says. “Beautiful stadium here, and then going down there — it’s still a nice field but I think it’s harder. [We’ve] got to focus on our passes, the pace on them. And I heard Calgary has a grass field. They’re going to be used to that, so we have to adjust.”

While neither team expects to change tactics when they move to the grass surface, fifth-year midfielder Marques Scott knows they’ll have to be mindful of the details on the grass.

“The way the ball moves and travels — we’re going to have to put a little more extra zip on it, compared to playing at TCC where it’s a little bit flatter, and a lot harder,” Scott says. “Here it’s going to get a little bit stuck on the grass, so we’ve just got to make sure we’re zipping it around. Extra zip on there.”

As a goalkeeper, De Amaral prefers the turf just because of the consistency of the surface, but knows that both teams will be facing the same conditions come Saturday night.

Image Credit: TRU WolfPack Athletics/Andrew Snucins

“For me, it’s just a little bit easier. The ball just kind of bounces better instead of how it skips on the grass,” De Amaral says. “It’s a little bit easier for getting down and getting at the ball. Either way, you’ve got to deal with the environment you’re given.”

For KYSA alumni Rinaldi, playing at Mac Island is a bit of a throwback to his younger years.

“Played here for years as a kid, down on the smaller pitches, even this one a few times,” Rinaldi recalls. “High school, youth soccer, everything. It’ll be a good throwback for sure.”