2009 (16U) Girls State Premiership I

Familiar Foes Collide

To say Pegasus FC and Palatine Celtic are familiar foes, is an understatement. The players know each other, the coaches know each other and by now, parents must too! The two sides played a total of five times against each other in the Fall 2023 season. Twice in the Premiership, once in the Palatine Celtic Cup and two more times in the Presidents Cup. They will come toe-to-toe yet again on September 15th when Palatine Celtic visit Pegasus for the Fall 2024 State Premiership Game of the Week.

They both have ground to stand on when it comes to bragging rights. Palatine Celtic won three out of the five games, managing a win in the Palatine Celtic Cup 5-4, beating them in the group stage of the Presidents Cup 2-1 and then winning 3-0 away in one of the two Premiership games. Pegasus would not shy away from stating their accomplishments however, as they got a win away in the Premiership, 2-1 and when it seemed to count the most, got the upper hand in the Fall 2023 Presidents Cup Final to be crowned Champions. Pegasus would add the Premiership title to their belt of accomplishments and would do this with a two-point advantage over the Palatine side. The two teams grit, determination and talent cannot be questioned, and this will be on full display come Sunday, September 15 at Clavey Park.

Pegasus enter this game with seven points early on, with two wins and a draw. A 10-1 victory in their first game will surely show what type of attack they have. They do play one more game before entering the stage with Palatine as they host FC Lake County on September 14th. The focus is one game at a time for Pegasus, however, they know very well they will be wanting to come into the Game of the Week with all the momentum in the world. A win against FC Lake County the day before, would do just that.

Palatine Celtic come in with three points in their one game, beating CL Force in the opening weekend. A tough 3-2 victory shows an overcoming of adversity early on. The mentality that it takes to win these close, tough games is something they can take with them. With Pegasus playing the day before, Celtic may feel fresh legs is at their advantage.

Coaches’ Pre-Game Interview

The teams know each other well, placing first and second in the Fall 2023 Premiership, splitting wins in that season. That being the case, how do you prepare your team mentally for a game like this? 

Greg Bowers – Pegasus FC
Same as every other state premiership game. All players in the player pool play. We have played Celtics already at the Celtic cup in pre season And obviously it’s a repeat of last seasons USYS presidents cup final. Every game is highly competitive and I have known coach Gordy for a long time and enjoy sharing the sidelines with him. Looking forward to seeing players given their chance and perform against a well organized opposition with lots of attacking threats which can cause us issues. Always tight fun game when playing Celtics 2009s and I look forward to hosting them this weekend.

Gordon Poluyanskis – Palatine Celtic SC
You can learn a lot from past matchups but they can also be negative if players dwell on a tough result. I prefer we learn what we can from each of those games, use what we can & prepare for them to play us a bit differently than they did the previous game.

What are you most excited to see in your team this season?

Greg Bowers – Pegasus FC
After losing a few players last season to other clubs I am definitely seeing a more tight knit group of girls who want to play with each other. It’s been a wonderful pre-season and we have started off really well in cup and state premiership games so far. Looking forward to seeing the girls continue to gel on and off the field and hoping to put them in a position going into HIGH SCHOOL seasons at the best level they can be for their respective schools.

Gordon Poluyanskis – Palatine Celtic SC
We’ve worked a lot on composure with the ball & patience in the attack. I’m excited to see if we can excel in those areas.

Final Thoughts

Both Coaches know that there is a lot to take from previous matches against each other, but also recognize that this is a completely new game. They respect each other and know how good each team can be, but the focus is on the now versus the past. The players surely have knowledge of what they are up against in facing each other as well and know going out and executing to the best of their own ability is all they can control. Pegasus host Palatine, Sunday, October 15th!