BEIJING, China – The UBC Thunderbirds were resilient in their play as they battled heat approaching forty degrees Celsius, with humidity, to down Oxford University 2-0 in their semi-final match of the WEUFT World Cup.
The win earns UBC a spot in the championship game of the tournament on Saturday, July 2nd at 1am PT versus the University of Tubingen (Germany). The game will be streamed live on YouTube.
Watch the UBC vs. Tubingen for the WEUFT championship here.
UBC's game versus Oxford was a tough battle as both teams struggled to generate quality chances in the opening half. UBC fullback
Chris Damian, who has played every minute of every game in the hot and humid conditions during the tournament, was particularly stout on the T-Birds' backline.
"Today was really about dealing with the conditions and the adversity," said UBC Head Coach
Mike Mosher. "I've been in this league a long time, 30 years as a player and a coach and it's not often you're playing forty degree heat. At halftime we knew we needed to possess the ball more and break them down. That's what happened."
UBC grabbed a streaking burst of energy in the 53rd minute, when
Zach Verhoven went on a probing run into the heart of the Oxford defense, The skilled Verhoven made it to the end-line before cutting the ball back directly onto the boot of striker
Ryan Arthur. Arthur made no mistake on the finish and UBC was up 1-0.
In the 63rd minute Verhoven struck again. This time he dribbled his way into the Oxford penalty area before being chopped down by a defender, drawing a penalty kick.
Kyle Sohi converted from the spot and it was 2-0 'Birds.
"I think full credit to Oxford on the day," said Mosher. "They might have executed their game plan a bit better than us in the first half. We knew in the second half if we could control the ball, we would wear them down and that's what we did. We knew that first goal would be vitally important."
UBC goalkeeper
Chad Bush has recovered from a nagging hamstring injury and was stellar in net, making six saves overall. So far in the WEUFT World Cup, UBC has played two teams from China, one from Australia and one from Great Britain, with a match-up against a German side set for the championship final.
"I think overall we are getting so much out of this trip, on and off the field," said Mosher. "We are going to get Tubingen, which is one of the best university teams I think I've ever seen."
