American Fork boys soccer disappointed with loss to Corner Canyon | News, Sports, Jobs

American Fork head boys soccer coach Casey Waldron knows as well as anyone that wins and losses happen during most seasons, so seeing his Cavemen fall, 3-1, to Corner Canyon in a home match in American Fork wasn’t surprising.

But what he wasn’t happy with was how his team was defeated.

“It wasn’t our best performance for sure,” Waldron said. “I think we were coming off a high after a really good win over Westlake and then we had spring break. I think some of them were still in a funk.”

He said the Chargers definitely earned the victory as the visitors came in, limited the American Fork attack and seized the momentum with a pair of first-half goals.

“You’ve got to give them credit — but we are a good team too,” Waldron said. “We just did not show that today. It was sad to see and frustrating. It’s like they don’t know their own value because I’ve seen them play at a much higher level. But we’ll learn from it and get better.”

It wasn’t until American Fork was trailing 3-0 midway through the second half that the Cavemen showed some glimpses of how good it can be.

The home team responded with a lightning-quick counter-attack after a Corner Canyon corner kick, getting some great combinations that resulted in the only goal of the game for American Fork.

With 15 minutes left in the contest, the Cavemen built off that momentum and created a couple of other dangerous opportunities. In the end, however, the hole proved to be far too big to climb out of.

“It’s very easy to get down on yourselves when you make a mistake and the momentum swings the other way,” Waldron said. “Against a good teams, you make two mistakes and that’s all it takes to lose a game. We did have some good moments but it is a matter now of getting the team to play that way for 80 minutes. We haven’t been able to prove that yet.”

He said the bright side is that there is still time for the Cavemen to put the pieces together. He said they have been tinkering with the lineup a little bit but feel that aspect is close to coming together.

“Guys haven’t been getting into that groove and finding that chemistry of working in different positions,” Waldron said. “But I told them after the came that the coaching staff only has 10 minutes at halftime to make tactical adjustments. When they are on the field, things change so quickly. It’s a mindset that they have to have.”

He wants his team to have complete confidence it itself.

“They have to know that every time they step on the field, they can beat anyone,” Waldron said. “Tactically and technically, I think we’re fine. We have the players, we have the skill level and we have the athletes. It’s now just more of the mindset.”

But Region 4 will provide plenty of opportunities for his squad to test themselves.

“Our region will always get us prepared,” Waldron said. “I love that everyone goes to state because then you can have Cinderella teams. We beat a region champ in the first round last year. It’s great. We have time on our side to improve and get better.”

American Fork (4-3, 1-1) next plays at Pleasant Grove on April 20.

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