Suburban FC wins 2022 Nova Scotia men’s provincial championship

Suburban FC came from behind on Sunday 14 August to win the 2022 Nova Scotia men’s provincial championship with a 2:1 victory over Halifax Dunbrack SC. Down a goal after Ahmed Ibrahim scored in the third minute, Suburban FC got goals in the second half from substitutes Damian DeDekker and Liam Kelly to secure the victory. It was Suburban FC’s second men’s provincial championship (2011 and 2022).

In the provincial final, coach Ollie Hewish’s starting lineup featured Will Veinot (goal), Alex Taylor at right back, Lewis Dye and Connor Manuel at centre back, Logan Harrington at left back, Max Bodurtha, Cole Stuart and Scott Firth at midfield, and James Spence, Moe Jaber and Ben Herrington up front. Damian DeDekker, Woody Bain and Liam Kelly featured as substitutes while Jack Kennedy, Carson Ripoll, Nacho Sanchez and William Warren dressed but did not feature.

This marked the first Nova Scotia provincial championship since the global pandemic which canceled events in 2020 and 2021. With a young squad, coach Hewish said the key to his team’s success was his players’ collective trust in the process. That trust runs all the way back to the start of the season when they had to come from behind three times to win their opening match. Said Hewish, “it opened our eyes to what we could achieve on the road ahead.”

While Suburban FC are provincial champions, runners up Halifax Dunbrack SC will represent the province at Canada Soccer’s 2022 Toyota National Championships in Vaughan, Ontario. Suburban FC had already declared their intent to miss this year’s national competition because many of their players would be unavailable during the Atlantic University school season.

In the provincial semi-finals, Suburban FC won 4-3 on kicks after a 3:3 draw with Valley United while Halifax Dunbrack won 5:4 over United DFC. The Friday semi-finals as well as the Sunday provincial final were played at Mainland Commons in Halifax, Nova Scotia.