It will be Penticton United and Kelowna Marketplace IGA in the Capri Insurance Men’s 45+ Soccer League final.
The championship game goes the week after the Thanksgiving weekend, venue to be announced later.
Penticton, who won the league at 20-1-1, doubled fourth-place Lake Country 4-2 Monday night at Dale Meadows Park in Summerland, while second-place IGA smothered third-place Leko Precast Camels 4-0 at Beasley Park.
The wind in Lake Country played a big part in the IGA-Humpbacks game, blowing strongly for the entire 80 minutes. IGA faced the wind in the first half, but pressured the Camels’ defence, with Rich Woodhouse converting from a scramble at 30 minutes to make it 1-0 at the half.
“For the first 15 minutes, we were all over them and then they took it to us,” said Camels’ defender Ron Krause. “They outplayed us, they deserved to win. (Keeper Dave) Dutcher kept us in it. He robbed those guys. It could have easily been seven or eight.”
With the wind at IGA’s backs in the second half, a 30-yard screamer for Dante Zanatta at 60 minutes deflated the Camels. Super-sub Steve Heiss entered the game at 70 minutes and converted two chances. His first came on a nicely squared ball by Tony Gonzales, allowing him to shoot top corner past the helpless Dutcher. Heiss’s second was a simple six-yard tap-in after a Jimmy Kruiper run.
IGA’s Donny Brown stood out as the Man of the Match with an incredible workhorse display in the centre midfield. Steve Nader played a solid game in net for IGA.
In Summerland, Lake Country received a yellow card in the first half but the referee wrote down the wrong number of the offender. Mike Ley, who scored once, got a yellow in the second half, and the ref gave him a red card for a second yellow.
“But it was not Mike that got the yellow in the first half so we got a red card when we should not have,” said Lake Country veteran Greg Kilmartin.
Steve Cox also scored for the Lakers, while Zeke Peschada connected on a free kick around the Lake Country wall for the prettiest Penticton goal. Other United scorers were not reported.
