2022-09-14

Chester United boys claim provincial title

by KEVIN MCBAIN

  • <p>CONTRIBUTED PHOTO</p><p>Members of the Chester United U13B provincial championship team are shown here beginning in front with goaltender Evan Nauss. Kneeling from left to right: Hayden Rafuse , Alex Hill, Logan MacLean, Caillum Burgess, Sebby Hatt, Finn Murphy. Back row: Ben Snair (head coach), Tessa Fudge (assistant coach), Liam Hill, Odin Jollymore, Aaden Corkum, Owen Gwynne-Timothy, Hunter Evans, Alex Mueller, Alistair Bates, Amanda Gwynne-Timothy (manger), Callum Bates, Reese Molloy, Thomas Jeffery.</p>

CHESTER – Provincial champions!

The Chester United U13 boys' team are provincial champions.

The team went undefeated in four straight games at the U13B provincial tournament, held in Bridgewater and Chester Sept. 3-4, to claim the title.

The team capped the weekend off with a 3-1 overtime win over another South Shore team, West Nova.

To get to the final, they defeated Yarmouth 2-0 and Halifax Ignite 2-1 in pool play to finish first.Playoff day, Sunday, they defeated Kings West 3-2 to claim their spot in the championship final.

"The team consisted of such a great group of kids," said Coach Ben Snair, who added there were just three second-year players on the team. "It was quite the win. We certainly did not expect, going into the weekend, that we'd be there at the end of it. But the kids really stepped up their game."

The team was not scheduled to compete at the provincials, however, a team from Cape Breton decided not to attend, giving the Chester squad and opportunity to compete.

The team had a successful season, finishing second in the South Shore U13 league. During their regular season, they racked up a record of five wins, two losses and three no-decisions. United had played West Nova Fuels twice during the regular season, and in the provincial qualifier. Snair said they were all close games, including the qualifier which also went into overtime.

He said the team placed an emphasis on "effort over what the ultimate result was," and "we just got them to continue to work hard. It all came together over the weekend."

The U13B Girls provincial championships were also held on the South Shore on the Sept. 3-4 weekend at the former Centre school field and in Lunenburg.

The Queens County Pirates finished in second place after competing against Valley United in the final.

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