Halifax Dunbrack won the battle of Nova Scotia on the opening day of the 2009 BMO National Championships Jubilee Trophy competition. Halifax Dunbrack won 3:0 over provincial rival Halifax City on a snow-covered pitch at Umea Field in Saskatoon, SK. Leanne Huck, Katie Richard and Julie Lawrence all scored for Halifax Dunbrack.
"They are familiar opponents, so perhaps it made it easier on our girls (for the opening match)," said Halifax Dunbrack coach Jack Hutchison.
As for the snow, it came down hard throughout the match. Fortunately, the two teams were able to complete their 90 minutes, although their play was considerably slowed by the conditions. Both evening matches were postponed by two days to Saturday.
"You couldn't run with the ball," said Hutchison. "We had to be super cautious because sometimes the pass would get there and sometimes it didn't."
Halifax City is the defending national champion from October 2008, although Halifax Dunbrack is the current provincial champion from 25 August 2009. Today's match was the fifth match between the two sides in 2009 (including league play, the provincial final, and today's Jubilee Trophy competition match).
The 2009 Jubilee Trophy competition runs this 8-12 October in Saskatoon, SK. The eight teams in the tournament will play three matches against group opponents (Group A and Group B) from 8-11 October. All eight teams will then play on 12 October to determine their final ranking.
BMO Financial Group is proud to support soccer at all levels across Canada, from grassroots to Canadas national teams. Starting with sponsorship of more than 400 Canadian youth teams to the title support of elite youth players at the BMO National Championships, through to the professional-team support (Toronto FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC) and sponsorship of the Canadian mens and womens national soccer teams, BMO Financial Group is serious about Canadian soccer. For more information on BMOs support of soccer in Canada, visit bmosoccer.com.