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24 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday July 26, 2006 www.oakvillebeaver.com Courageous Crusader Devils salvage tie with London By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR As the father of a newborn baby, Phil Ionadi already has a difficult time getting enough sleep. Were it not for a late comeback by his Oakville Blue Devils last weekend at Bronte Athletic Field, the soccer coach might not have gotten any slumber at all Sunday night. The Blue Devils were minutes away from a disappointing loss, trailing the worst team in their division by two goals going into injury time. However, Oakville (6-3-2) managed to tally twice in the final four minutes of the contest, salvaging a 3-3 tie with London City and maintaining its four-point lead atop the Canadian Soccer League's National Division. The late rally, capped by Sam Hassam's marker in the 93rd minute, left Ionadi and the Devils with mixed emotions. After all, the coach pointed out, Oakville shouldn't have been in that situation in the first place. Mental lapses costly "Coming back was the positive part, but being down and putting ourselves in that situation isn't what I was expecting," said Ionadi, whose team controlled the first 30 minutes of play and opened the scoring before mental lapses led to three consecutive London goals. "I have to focus on why we fell asleep for a little while and get ourselves back to proper preparation." Concerning Ionadi the most was his players' lack of attention to their defensive responsibilities. After the Blue Devils had struggled to score in recent contests, Ionadi implemented a more aggressive game plan against London, but he noted players still need to focus on two-way play. "To win a championship, a team has to come together and understand that each player has offensive responsibility and defensive responsibility," he said. "That's a complete player. That's something that maybe some of these guys, when they were playing at a lower level, (didn't learn)." Important clash with Windsor Ionadi plans to stress that again to his team this week as it prepares for an important game Saturday against the Windsor Border Stars, a squad that knocked off the Devils 1-0 in Oakville earlier this month. "We'll probably change our system for that game. Away from home, I like to go a bit more tight in the back," Ionadi said of the impending divisional showdown. "Windsor usually gets a big crowd, 1,500-2,000 people, so they'll come out firing. We want to cool the storm, play nice and relaxed and wait for our opportunities to go forward." Judah Hernandez and Andy Garcia also scored Sunday for the Blue Devils, who hope to have Lovemore Ncube (hamstring) and Nicholas Poku (eye) back in the lineup this weekend. The team is also looking into bringing back a couple players from last year's championship team, Shawn Faria and Sergio De Luca. Both players began this season in other leagues but sustained injuries and might be available to return to the Blue Devils. -- Jon Kuiperij can be reached at sports@oakvillebeaver.com. DEREK WOOLLAM / SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER ON THE MOVE: Derek Boyd of the Oakville Crusaders under-18 team (in yellow) emerges from the scrum while an Aurora Barbarians defender moves in for the tackle Saturday at Crusader Park. Oakville downed the Barbarians 17-12. $ 39 o.a.c. as low as per month THE BIGGEST 95 The Oakville Art Society's 41st Annual SALE ER! EV $ PLUS *$500 in Government Rebate on 14 Seer Air Conditioner 0 1FF O Furnace Check Up *Free central air Financing Available * Call For Details * The Same Day Installation FREE CENTRAL AIR (Installation Extra) Purchase a Hi Efficiency Furnace and Receive a Monday August 7st Civic Holiday 10 am to 5 pm Art Park IN THE Waterfront Heritage Park in Bronte Located at the foot of Bronte Road at the corner of Ontario Street and Jones Feel free to linger in our store. (None of our merchandise ever does.) Fine furniture on consignment. Redecorating? Downsizing? Making Changes? Let us sell your items for you. Call 905-815-1949 to find out how. 427 Speers Road, Oakville · tradingplacescanada.com Plus: NO Payment NO Interest For 6 Months O.A.C. Reserve now and you will receive a central air absolutely free. This is a great opportunity to replace your old inefficient furnace and air conditioner with hi efficiency and greatly reduce your utility bill. Call today to book an appointment with our Professional Home Comfort Advisors. Oakville's Premiere Outdoor Art Show Over 120 artists from throughout Southern Ontario representing a variety of art forms, with empasis on painting, pottery, sculpture, woodturning, glass, photography and more. Admission $3.00 Summer art classes still available! Limited Space, please call for details. LIMITED TIME OFFER. LIMITED QUANTITIES AVAILABLE. W E S T 7 LOCATIONS TO SERVE YOU BETTER 905 849-4998 1-888-827-2665 www.aireone.com 560 Bronte Road, Oakville 905-827-5711 www.oakvilleartsociety.com Supporting Creativity in Our Community for 41 Years