[templatic_contentbox type=”normal” title=”Team Photo”]Back row: Robert Howell, Erin Van Dam, Miriam Bhamjee, Holly MacLean, Holly Fairweather, Lisa Karsay, Sarah Grady, Trish Daamen, Lisa Gartley, Victoria Clark, Karen Stone, Mike Cinicolo Front row: Nuala Marshall, Christina Bonasia, Pauline Tsprailis, Mag Haglitt, Sherri Castrilli, Julie Cybulski, Annette Darby Absent: Melissa Piercy and Antonietta Cinicolo (manager) [/templatic_contentbox]
The London Marconi Azzurri Women’s soccer team recently travelled to Vancouver, B.C. to represent Ontario in the Women’s Classic National Championships. Each province holds its own Classics tournament for over 30 women’s teams. Marconi Azzurri earned their spot at Nationals after beating Ottawa in September to win the Ontario Cup finals.
At Nationals, Marconi Azzurri faced off against provincial champions from Manitoba and British Columbia. Despite exhaustion due to a missed flight the night before, the team started off strong with a 7-0 win against Manitoba. Next it was British Columbia, the hometown crowd favourite, at the Empire Fields in Burnaby, B.C., which is also the practice site of the Vancouver Whitecaps. The game remained scoreless until the final 10 minutes when B.C. scored on Azzurri to win the game.
In the bronze medal match up, Ontario’s Marconi Azzurri played team Quebec, who quickly revealed themselves to be a much stronger side than B.C. Down 2-0 after 45 minutes, Marconi Azzurri came back in the second half to tie up the game. Penalty shots were the deciding factor that awarded Quebec the bronze medal.
Regardless of the fact they did not come home with a medal, Marconi Azzurri are proud to have represented Ontario at Nationals. The team is truly a representation of women’s competitive soccer in Southwestern, Ontario, as it is comprised of players from the London Marconi Club, the German Canadian Club and the Sarnia Wildcats. Competitors during the LAWSL Premier and Division 1 summer soccer season, the players come together as teammates to compete in the provincial and national Classics Tournament series.
The ladies of Marconi Azzurri and their coaches, Mike Cinicolo and Robert Howell, have their sights set on a return to Nationals in 2016!
Story and photo submitted by London Marconi Soccer
