There is something special on the pitch this year for Muskoka United Football Club (MUFC).
MUFC or “United” as it’s known, is the combined efforts of the Bracebridge and Huntsville Soccer Club’s competitive teams. The Club offers competitive soccer for players in the region from U13+ with Boys and Girls teams. This year, the oldest age division is MUFC’s U16 team competing in the Huronia District Soccer League’s U16 Boys division. What makes this team special is that it is not only a combination of Huntsville and Bracebridge players, but it is also coed.
Head Coach Dave Caplan runs the coed team with his Assistant Andrew Paterson and Team Manager Chris Allen. Coach Dave has been coaching some of the players for over 7 years and notes he is especially proud of the team. “These players have come a long way in their development and this year they’ve really come into their own. They are playing attractive soccer and competing in every game.”
The team is competing against all boys’ teams from very strong centers such as North Bay, Orillia, and Sudbury. Currently, they are 4th in their division with three games remaining in the season. Their offense is led by central midfielder Zachary Caplan who has 19 goals in 9 games and is currently 2nd on the goal-scoring leaders’ list. Originally the team’s striker, Zach was converted to play as a box-to-box midfielder to help find balance for the team’s shape. Coach Dave notes this has had a dramatic impact on how the team transitions between attack and defense.
Team Captain Isabelle Lefebvre leads the attack and is often flanked by fellow strikers, Andrew Walisser, Ebrahim Tatarshaow and Franziska Füth. They are the focal point of the team’s attack and their hard work up front has allowed the team’s midfielders Finlay Paterson, Elsie Moore, Rowan Simpson, Ava Hayes, Jacob Oliver, and Noah Bell to flourish and contribute by scoring many important goals.
To back up the offense, stellar play in the defensive end has come through Riley Smith and Maeve Young’s pairing as the center backs. They are flanked by Abby Allen and Kiela McPherson, both of whom are tough, nonsense left and right back defenders. Holden Vuksan is the team’s goalkeeper and is the only keeper in the league with 2 shutouts in the season. Holden’s quick feet, strong hands, and lightning-fast dives have kept the team in games at important moments.
“I’ve watched them in every game, I’ve seen how hard they work at practices. They’ve gelled as a team, and I’ve seen them fight back from several goal deficits to win games. The other teams have all doubted them, but they’ve shown everyone what they are made of,” notes Coach Dave.
The team only has three games remaining in their season and if they can win all three, they will be crowned champions of their division.
It starts with a rematch against Orillia this Monday and the team is looking to even the series. MUFC U16 has played Orillia 3 times thus far, winning 5-1, then losing two games 4-3. If the MUFC U16 team can win against Orillia, all that will remain is to defeat both Sudbury teams on August 27th. “We want revenge,” says Coach Dave, “I know this team can win their last three games, they have the desire and drive to do it”.
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