Brentwood College School dominated the Independent Schools boys soccer championships in late September, taking both the senior and junior titles in the tournaments at St. George’s in Vancouver.
The seniors claimed their first ISA title in recent memory — the last such win is believed to have come in the 1980s — while the junior team won gold at the ISAs for the third time in as many years. Most of this year’s senior players were continuing their success at the tournament after winning the two previous junior titles.
“At the junior level, we’ve been pretty competitive for quite a few years,” Brentwood coach Wes Barrett said. “The seniors are super tight every year. I don’t think we expected either result.”
The senior team blazed through pool play with three wins, outscoring their opponents 10-2. They faced West Point Grey Academy in the final, and despite beating that same team 3-0 the day before, Brentwood trailed 1-0 at halftime. The team rallied in the second half, tying the game in the 75th minute, then scoring the winner with three minutes left in regulation.
Brentwood scored 12 times over the tournament, with nine different goal-scorers contributing and demonstrating the team’s depth.
“In a tournament like this, you often have one or two who each score four or five of your goals,” Barrett said. “It’s pretty promising from an attacking standpoint.”
Brentwood’s junior team wasn’t as dominant in pool play, but won when it counted most, capping the tournament off with a 3-1 victory over St. George’s in the final. Brentwood had actually split its junior team in two, with the A team winning their division and the B team taking silver in theirs.
The ISA tournament is supposed to prepare players for the upcoming season, Barrett explained, and give the coaches a chance to evaluate their talent.
“To pull off two wins at the same time when we’re really focused on developing them is probably the most exciting,” Barrett said.
The junior team will host the Island championships on Oct. 28 and 29, which is the farthest they can go. That same week, the seniors will play in the North Island tournament, where the top five teams will qualify for Islands. The top three from Islands will go on to the provincial tournament, something Brentwood has accomplished the last three years.
“It’s tough,” Barrett said. “It’s definitely doable, but it’s hard to get off the Island. It’s definitely something we’re trying to achieve, to make provincials at least.
“We have as good a chance as anyone. It’s super-competitive at the AA division, which is nice.”
