Huskies men’s soccer team hopes to secure playoff spot
For the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s soccer team, job one this weekend is locking up a playoff spot.
"We really have to get back to just being us and focusing on our job," said coach Bryce Chapman following a team practice Tuesday.
The Huskies are preparing for their final two games of the regular season, both against the University of Alberta Golden Bears.
“Right now we're just worrying about making sure were in the best form and best version of ourselves. And then we'll take everything in account as the week goes on,” said Chapman.
The Huskies find themselves occupying the final playoff spot in the Canada-West Central division, just three points back of their opponents this weekend.
But the green and white are only two points up on the MacEwan University Griffins. So the message this week is keep the focus on Alberta to get a win, and not have to rely on other teams for help.
"Honestly, we're just trying to focus on ourselves. And control what we can control. Our performance against Alberta is all that we can really control. So we’re working hard to improve ourselves and work on ourselves, rather than rely on other teams to help us out," said midfielder and captain Kwame Opoku-addai.
As a team, the Huskies are tied for second in Canada-west in goals scored. Meanwhile, the Golden Bears have been tough to crack, allowing only four goals all season.
“We'll stick to our DNA. I think over the last number of years, we have really set a standard with our program playing on the front foot. We don't want to sit and absorb and be dictated to," Chapman said.
Both goalkeepers, Henry Bremer and Marcus Baxter, have seen significant time on the field this season.
"When you start getting into the final weekends and into playoffs, you really want to make sure you have both goalkeepers going. And that was our goal from the beginning," Chapman said.
"In case one of us gets injured, the other guy wasn't like just on the bench the whole time. So we’re both always in action and I think it’s actually quite a good system,” Bernier said.
The Huskies will face Alberta in Edmonton on Friday before returning to Griffiths Stadium on Sunday for their final regular season game, hoping they will lock up a spot in the post season along the way.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.