The men’s masters team started the weekend off early with a Wednesday evening game in Ladner where they won 6-1 against the Delta Masters team to maintain their first place position in their division. United veteran Doug Muirhead had given the masters’s the lead after twenty minutes and United should have increased their lead before the half. However, Spiro Pegios failed to convert from the penalty spot when his shot down the middle of the goal was saved by the foot of Delta keeper Paul Dolan who had originally dived to his right. Unluckily for Spiro had he converted the opportunity it would have stood up as the game winner; which would have been a first for Spiro in his long soccer career. United poured in on in the second half and notched five goals getting braces from Kelly Bey and Murray Howes and a single from Randy Carmichael. Delta scored a consolation goal to ruin Angelo Bonato’s shut-out bid.

On Saturday the men’s premier game between Surrey United and Burnaby Canadians featured a top of the table versus bottom of the table clash but there was to be no David and Goliath heroics in this game where the only surprise was in the score-line and the margin of victory. It was a day, when Surrey who looked dangerous throughout, missed a ton of quality scoring chances, particularly in the first half, where a combination of reckless finishing and some fine saves from Burnaby keeper Adam Alvaro kept the score from being at least six goals at the interval. Surrey’s fast forwards proved too hot to handle for the Burnaby defence and United striker Justin Carvery scored two goals in the first twenty minutes with the second one a skillfully executed chip over Alvaro after Surrey defender Martin Schaefer’s perfect long ball sent Carvery racing clear. In the second half, Surrey took their foot off the gas pedal but still could have added five goals with Carvery being denied his hat-tick when his twenty yard strike hit the post. Surrey’s Shawn Blakeway also hit the wood work striking the bar on one occasion, before adding Surrey’s third goal in the 80th minute, scoring from close range after Carvery had unselfishly squared the ball. The win coupled with Sapperton's tie against Croatia extended United’s lead at the top to nine points.

On Sunday the same two clubs met each other in the first division encounter with United winning the game 2-0 which was abandoned at the 65th minute mark due to the conduct of the opponents. The young United side played very well from the start and deservedly took the lead after eighteen minutes when Marko Maci chasing a long ball did tremendously well to reach it before it went over the bye line and then fired a cross into the path of Ryan Reynolds who hammered the ball into the net at the near post. United continued to dominate the play and Maci came close on two other occasions; firstly he headed a deep cross inches wide of the target and then hammered a low shot past the post. Early in the second half United increased their lead when 16year old permit player Andrew Sciampacone found youth teammate Scott MacDonald with a perfect pass. Macdonald turned quickly in the penalty area to elude his marker and hammered a left foot drive into the corner of the net. Burnaby, started getting a little chippy and then when one of their players rightly received a red card he then lost total control to such an extent that the referee was forced to abandon the remaining 25minutes of the game.

The men’s division two secured a fantastic 4-0 victory over the second placed team IFC Ravens and the three points for the win, vaulted United past their opponents into second place. The United team fired up by the significance of the game started strongly and maintained a torrid early pace that the visitors could not match and after only 25minutes United had built up a 3-0 lead. Striker Chris Roots opened the scoring after only seven minutes firing home from close range following a Brendan Wilkinson cross. Nine minutes later Ezra Fenwick increased the lead with a great low shot from twenty yards that gave the keeper no chance. It was Fenwick who added his second and United’s third in the twenty-fifth minute that really sealed the game for United who played some what conservatively thereafter to preserve the victory. The only goal of the second frame came in the 77th minute when substitute Greg Varney scored from the penalty spot after he had been upended in the box.

Our ladies premier team had their game postponed due to a frozen surface.

Our ladies Div 1-C team hosted Chilliwack Rapids on Sunday at Cloverdale Athletic Park on Sunday in a critical game that would ultimately determine first place. Unfortunately, United did not get off to a great start and surrendered an early goal. The game see-sawed back and forth with neither side gaining any control of the game but United did finally notch an equalizer in the 37th minute. The play developed after midfielder Taryne Clancy won a midfield battle for the ball, and laid it off to striker Krystle Gauvin who burst forward before squaring the ball into the path of Courtney Duncan who made no mistake driving a hard hit ball into Chilliwack’s net to level the scores. Not unlike the first half United again gave up an early goal at the start of the second. Despite a strong effort and dominating the remainder of the half it was not to be, and this time United were unable to find a way to get the equalizer. Chilliwack ladies defended desperately and some great saves by their keeper thwarted the United ladies time after time enabling the visitors to register a 2-1 victory.

The ladies Div One B team lost 5-3 against SBBA at Fleetwood in a highly entertaining affair. The game had lots of twists and turns. SBBA jumped out into a two goal lead but were then rocked back on their heels as United replied with three first half goals of their own. Carly Dupas and Ellen Malterer combined to set-up Kim Ashford for United’s first goal at the twenty five minute mark. Then three minutes later, Brita Lorenz won a great tackle on the flank and crossed the ball into the middle where Malterer hammered the ball into the net to level the scores. Then just before the interval Amanda Henderson and Kim Ashford linked up to send Malterer racing through and United’s leading scorer made no mistake slotting the ball into the net to give United a 3-2 half-time lead. In the second half United managed to hold their opponents at bay until midway through the frame when SBBA scored three goals in the space of ten minutes to secure the victory.

Ezra Fenwick who was a prominent player in the division two men’s team scoring two goals in their 4-0 victory to move into second place is this week’s Player of the Week. Each Weekly Winner will have their name entered into a random draw for the monthly prize of for Dinner for Two.