I am writing on behalf of the parents of the U13/14 NOTL soccer team. Our team played its final game of the season last week and with a 4-0 win ended the year undefeated.

Unfortunately in our age group, Thorold was the only one other team in the league with enough players signed up, so every week our kids and coaches practised Monday evenings on the field at Memorial Park in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Every other Tuesday the team from Thorold came to play against us on home turf.  Our team travelled to Thorold every other Friday to challenge and be challenged.

Our coaches and kids took sportsmanship to the next level and all the parents are unbelievably proud of the efforts of all the players and the coaches.

Some games were tied and the rest were wins but moreso, in the end, a group of kids who didn’t know each other at the beginning of the season came together.

There never was a moment of gloating and our kids cheered when that perfect shot landed in between the goal posts, no matter who’s end of the pitch.

The support they showed teammates, cheering each other on was great to see. Some even met at the field on off-nights to kick the ball and practise the game they love to play.

Because our team was not part of last weekend’s NOTL Soccer League’s year-end festival, the parents wanted to make sure our amazing kids and coaches get the recognition they deserve.

An undefeated season, kids who showed respect and sportsmanship, and coaches who volunteered their time to teach new skills, keep them on the ball and make the season so much fun. That all deserves to be recognized.

We are so proud of this group and want to thank the coaches Phill Lambert, Rob VanEgmond and Tommy Visca for their time and effort to make this season a fabulous one for the kids.

And we want to thank the kids both from Thorold and NOTL for showing up and letting  us watch some great soccer.