Holy Cross claims N.L.'s 1st national women's amateur soccer championship

Holy Cross FC captured the Jubilee Trophy with a convincing win Sunday,becoming the first team from Newfoundland and Labrador to win a national women's amateur soccer championship and providing the perfect sendoff for one of their players in the process.

The team from St. John's finished the Jubilee Trophy tournament, held in Vaughan, Ont., with a 4-0 record, only giving up one goal in those four games.

In Sunday's final, Holy Cross defeated Ontario representative London Alliance FC 3-0 with goals fromLauren Taylor, Malorie Harris and Connie Lewis.

Harris's goal was the 34th in her Jubilee Trophy career, only strengthening her claim to the record she'd set earlier in the tournament as the top Jubilee Trophy scorer since 2000.

'It warmedmy heart'

The win had some extra importance for Harris, who decided that she'd be hanging up her boots and retiring at the end of this year's tournamentafter some frustrating losses in years past.

"It makes me emotional now that I'm talking about it," she told CBC News just after her final game.

"I've been playing for 35 years and I've never had that opportunity, we always kind of got our butts handed to us every time. It's been a struggle, so to finally actually hold on to that [trophy], it warmed my heart because I got to do it with the girls that I could do it with. It was just an incredible feeling."

Harris said the team is a close-knit group that'sunlike any other she's played with. She's played with Holy Cross since 2018, but 10 of the players from Sunday's winning team also earned a national bronze medal in 2017.

"This group of girls, they've been friends forever, there's no qualms it's just love and support," said Harris.

"That's what does it for this team over others, we really come together, we really unite."

While they play at a high level, the Holy Cross team is one made up of amateur athletes who fit high-level soccer training into the rest of their lives.

When she's not on the pitch, Harris is a police officer with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and said she's lucky to have an understanding employer.

"I think a lot of people underestimate the amount of work that has to go into it," she said.

"Yes, it is kind of a fun league, but for girls who can't get to the national [team] level, the top ranks, this is it. It's a lot of fitness, it's a lot of mental game."

But with Harris deciding to retire, she's going out on top withnational and provincial glory.

Her body's starting to hurt, she said, so she plans totake a full year off but said she likely won't be able to stay away from the game forever.

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