The Moorpark Raiders opened their season at home against the Palomar Comets Friday afternoon where neither team was able to gain a commanding advantage as the match ended in a 0-0 tie.

The Raiders looked aggressive early, attacking the Comet’s defense and putting them to work immediately. Just when the Raiders started to gain momentum, the Comets countered with defensive stops while pushing the ball forward. The Raiders had a few good looks at the goal towards the end of the second half, but ultimately were unable to convert. Although unable to score, they looked like a cohesive unit, constantly talking to one another with every touch and pass.

Raiders Head Coach Sean Roche is optimistic while looking at the current roster, which consists of only a few returning players from last years club.

“This is an entirely new season, but it’s an interesting season because we had a lot of people that wanted to be here, like 60,” Roche said. “And we’re down to 30, more or less, and it’s inspiring to think of how well they can play [the] game.”

With many new players all adjusting to each other’s game, it will be interesting to see if the teamwork in Friday’s showing lasts for the duration of the whole season.

“I think they appreciate one another’s abilities,” Roche continued. “I don’t think that they’re a bunch of Ronaldo’s. I think they’re in here and they can appreciate other people who play well.”

The Raiders did indeed play well, especially for a team that was assembled less than an hour before the game was set to begin.

“For a group of people that were just thrown together basically 30 minutes before the game?” Roche asked. “[They played] very good. It was all them, it was all them.”

The Raiders will hit the road for their next string of games beginning on Tuesday, Aug. 30 against Cypress College at 3 p.m. Friday’s game was a good test for the team given the competitive conference that the Raiders play in. They also hope to have more players cleared to participate next game.

“We’re away for awhile now, but we’ll probably have a few more players cleared and it will give us a little bit more flexibility and we’ll have a bigger picture,” Roche explained.

Even this early in the season, Roche is focused on the future of this team and their competition.

“We don’t play any soft teams, so it’s always going to be hard,” Roche continued. “The part of the conference that we’re in has some of the best teams I would venture to say in Southern California. So we need to be ready to play.”