LAC LA BICHE - On Aug. 24, two weeks before the Portage College Voyageurs soccer squads begin their regular season, the men’s team dropped a 2-0 decision to the visiting Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks in an afternoon exhibition match at the Bold Center stadium.
Macky Singh, head coach of the Voyageurs men’s and women’s soccer programs, said despite the loss, the team played good in its first exhibition game of the 2024 season. Singh said his players showed a lot of understanding about how they are expected to play on the pitch.
“They did well in terms of how I wanted them to play tactically,” he told Lakeland This Week. “Overall, I was happy with our performance.”
This game, Singh continued, prepared the team for the upcoming season by helping players work on their tactics on the field, but also provided an opportunity for him as head coach to gauge each individual player on their level of performance and ability to play.
With the regular season approaching, Singh says things are moving along in the right direction. Both the men’s and women’s squads began their daily training practices earlier in August, and the coach said the sessions have been going very well.
Regarding the men’s squad, he said things are looking good. He said the recruiting and scouting process over the last year has collected a good selection of student-athletes. And while there is still work to do in preparation of the season, the team is getting increasingly better, as is the chemistry between players.
“Team bonding has been great with them,” he said.
As for the Voyageurs women, Singh says right now the squad is at a building level. With a strong foundation, he expects the team and coaching staff to field a strong team that will continue to learn and grow with every game.
Next games
Both the men’s and women’s teams will have their first game of the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference regular season against the Concordia University Thunder in Edmonton on Sept. 7. The Portage teams will be on home turf for a double-header against the NAIT Ooks on Sept. 8, with the women playing at noon followed by the men at 2 p.m.