PORT ORCHARD, WA—Port Orchard Football Club completed a 10-0-0 season on Sunday night July 23 at Tumwater Stadium with a 9-0 throttling of Thurston County. It’s the first time a Cascadia Premier League team has gone unbeaten and untied in a 10-match season.
Michael Divano scored his 19th and 20th goals of the season and seven other players joined the goal barrage.
Port Orchard FC advances to the CPL2 Promotion Playoffs starting Friday July 28 in Puyallup.
Gaffer Says Players Delivered
“I thought the guys came out an executed everything we asked of them,” says POFC Gaffer Pat Leonard. “Defensively we were very disciplined. I would say that’s been a priority of ours the second half of the season. The players were creative in their attacking play and patient to create and take real quality opportunities.”
Along with Divano’s brace POFC got goals from Connor Louden, Kolby Juarez, Aidan Harvey, Ryan Anderson, Dominik Pajimola, Nick Riders and Jeffrey Pickering. The goals saw assists from Jake MacKenzie, Riders, Pickering, Jonathan Mendoza and Graham Hunt.
No Drop-Off
“It was a very complete performance from the players, and I was very happy with how things went,” Leonard says. “It was also a great opportunity for rotation. Everyone in the squad got good minutes which was really good to be able to do, and more importantly, to see the levels on the field stay in a good spot throughout.”
Under The Lights
It was the first night game of the season for POFC, kicking off at 7:30 PM and ending under the lights before a crowd made up almost completely of Port Orchard supporters. The visiting team scored 4 in the first half and 5 in the second for the rout. POFC finished the CPL2 Pacific Division season with 59 goals, averaging a 6-1 win over all matches.
Supporters, players and staff lingered on the pitch aftwerwards, celebrating the moment, posing for photos, and chatting about the season. During the match flags flew in the stands. The DOM-inators led chants of “PO-FC!” and announced the names of players as goals were scored. They followed with first-name, last-name chants that crossed the pitch to the ears of appreciative guys on the POFC bench and players in the field.
A full match replay is available thanks to DaveSPN. Watch it in the video below.
Staying Sharp
“The last few weeks could’ve been a tricky situation as we prepared for the promotion playoffs but the reality is, we have done an excellent job at staying sharp and getting ready for a tough weekend coming up,” Leonard believes. “Everyone in the squad recognizes the opportunity and wants to see this inaugural season over the line. Everyone who has supported us deserves that.”
Facebook Match Gallery: Action Shots By Jesse MacKenzie
Facebook Match Gallery: Supporters and Scene
