The 2008 outdoor edition of the Oshawa Kicks Raiders 94 Girls soccer team will cover a lot of geographical ground in 2008, but it didn’t need to travel very far to capture a championship in the early spring season.  In what has become a ritual in Oshawa now for many years, the Oshawa Kicks Soccer Club hosted its popular Frank Sobil Spring Classic tournament on May 3-4, named after the club founder Frank Sobil.   Since 2005 the Raiders have taken part, but not until now has the team emerged as Elite Division Champions.  The Raiders coaches and players alike were eager to finally test their outdoor brand of soccer and as always, the Spring Classic provided the opportunity to do so.   Some say there is just no substitute for true outdoor 11 v 11 soccer - the results at the Spring Classic suggest that the progress and development of the Raiders continues to move in a positive direction.

The girls have worked long and hard over the winter months and have welcomed some important new faces to the fold, to accompany the returning cast for 2008.  The 2007/2008 winter training regimen consisted of a variety of things, including a Futsal league, weekly DISC training sessions, three trips to Buffalo for 11 v 11 indoor play, Ontario Indoor Cup action, several  indoor friendlies , and of course their ever-valuable strength and conditioning work with Heather Pereira.    

With the Frank Sobil Spring Classic Championship having been achieved, the all-important debut in the Ontario Youth Soccer League (OYSL) once again becomes the focus of attention.   Considered the most prestigious youth league in the province, the OYSL allows the Raiders to go head to head against the finest teams in the province.  It will require a significant and ongoing level of dedication and commitment to be able to compete at this new provincial level, and the Raiders are looking forward to the challenge.    

The Oshawa Kicks Raiders have achieved the team goal set out at the beginning of the 2007 CGSL season.   All along the stated goal has been to secure a birth in the Ontario Youth Soccer League (OYSL) for 2008, which is the first opportunity of eligibility for the 1994 age group.   What makes this accomplishment even more significant is that it has come about in only the third year of existence of the Kicks Raiders team.   The OYSL is traditionally a league that consists of the top 10 teams in Ontario for a given age group.   Teams must qualify for entry into the OYSL, and the road can be long and difficult.   

The fact that 2007 was the third consecutive year in which the team has achieved its stated goal is by no means a fluke.  Much has gone into the planning, provisioning and evaluation of the Raiders operation.  Nevertheless, there would be no success of any kind without the girls themselves to carry out this well-planned execution on the pitch.  The 2007 Kicks Raiders girls really came through when the chips were down, and can be very proud of this OYSL 2008 accomplishment.    Soccer is very much a team sport and the Raider girls have come together as a team in a relatively short period of time and excelled as a group.   

Congratulations Raiders;   be sure to savour the moment – it is an accomplishment to be proud of for sure, and one which each of you have worked very hard to achieve.