Steven Sandor's Blog, page 15

Purple reign: Pacific FC is official CanPL team No. 7

Pacific FC is officially the seventh team to join the Canadian Premier League ahead of the nascent circuit’s inaugural season set to kick off in 2019.

The announcement was made Friday afternoon at the E&N Roundhouse in Victoria. The team’s colours will be “starfish” purple, “lagoon” blue and “lighthouse” white. The team will play out of Westhills Stadium in Langford, B.C. The stadium is expected to be expanded from its current capacity of just over 1,700 to what the CanPL calls “steep, intimate seating” for 6,500.  The logo is a stylized representation of a Douglas fir.

A pair of former Canadian national-teamers will have key front-office positions. Josh Simpson, whose career was cut short because of a badly broken leg suffered when he was playing for Young Boys Bern, is the team president. Rob Friend, who has 32 career caps for Canada, is the team’s executive director. The team’s chairman is Dean Shillington, the president of Knightsbridge Capital.

“We can now truly say what I’ve been saying for months, that we’re coast to coast,” said CPL Commissioner David Clanachan.

Simpson recalled his first trip to Europe for a soccer trial. He was 12 years old, and noticed the kids were all similar. They were all local kids trying out for their local clubs. When he was 14, he was offered a chance to play in the Czech Republic.

“Does that sound like it makes sense? Moving time zones away?. Leaving everything you know?”

His mom didn’t want him to leave; he stayed in North America and then made it back to Europe. But, the point is, teenage kids he saw in Europe had the chance to play elite-level soccer close to home, where Canadians had to make the choice to leave the country, or possibly have their careers derailed.

“Dean and me are thrilled to be part of the solution,” Simpson said.

“That 14-year-old boy doesn’t have to leave the country, to leave the island, to achieve his dream. He can take his game to the next level right here on the island.”

Toronto FC suspends supporters-group privileges in wake of Ottawa explosion

It’s like how it used to be in elementary school; if there’s one bad apple in the bunch (or a few bad apples), everyone in the class gets punished.

Toronto FC announced Thursday that it is temporarily suspending privileges for all of the club’s recognized supporters groups. The decision comes after an incident during Wednesday’s Canadian Championship game in Ottawa, when flares led to fire and even an explosion in the stands, incidents which were caught on video.

“The safety of our fans, employees and supporters is the highest priority for TFC. The events which took place in Ottawa last night involving TFC supporters were unacceptable and needlessly put the safety of others at risk,” TFC President Bill Manning said in a statement that was issued to the media by the club. “Due to the seriousness of this incident we are left with no choice but to suspend all recognized supporter group privileges indefinitely as we conduct a thorough review of TFC’s recognized supporter program.”

Manning said the club is working with Ottawa Police to help identify the fans responsible for the fires and explosion at TD Place.

Inebriatti, a supporters group that has been linked to the incident via social media, released this statement on its Facebook page.

“Inebriatti does not condone interfering with the play of any match that we attend. We had no part in the flare that was thrown onto the field or the explosion at last night’s match in Ottawa. We are communicating with the relevant parties to understand what happened at the match last night and how to move forward once that is established.”

 

TFC is efficient; Montreal wins, but is wasteful in front of goal

Toronto FC will be happy with an efficient 1-0 road win over the Ottawa Fury. The Montreal Impact, meanwhile, might not be so happy with its 1-0 home win over the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Wednesday saw both semifinals of the Canadian Championship get underway.

TFC has the advantage of a road goal over the Fury. The goal came in the fifth minute, with  Jonathan Osorio’s shot deflecting once and possibly twice off Ottawa defenders before beating Fury keeper Maxime Crepeau.

“We didn’t clear the ball like we should,” said Fury coach Nikola Popovic. “The ball bounced and Toronto did well to score the goal. But I think, after that, the game was even. I cannot say that there was one team who was dominating the other.”

The ball was squared to Osorio from fellow Canadian Ryan Telfer.

Outside of Osorio, the Reds left their big offensive guns at home. Even though the team has endured a wretched regular season and a Canadian Championship is now seen as a minimum requirement for a team that came within a penalty kick of the CONCACAF crown, coach Greg Vanney didn’t stretch the likes of Sebastian Giovinco or risk Jozy Altidore, who is in the process of coming back from injury.

But it was enough. The Fury had a couple of half-chances on free kicks from Kevin Oliveira; but neither forced TFC keeper Clint Irwin into a save. At the end of the game, the Fury pushed forward, and smashed ball after ball into the Toronto penalty area, but, time and time again, the Reds defenders blocked the attempts, not allowing anything to come through to trouble Irwin.

 

Impact 1, Whitecaps 0

The Impact beat the Whitecaps 1-0 thanks to a second-half goal from Alejandro Silva. But, honestly, the Impact will be lamenting a bevy of missed chances in front of the club’s home fans.

Really, this semifinal tie should be all but over. The second leg in Vancouver should have only been a glorified friendly. But, thanks to the woodwork and some very good saves from Whitecaps keeper Stefan Marinovic, the Whitecaps survived a game that they deserved to lose by three or four… at least.

Canadian striker Anthony Jackson-Hamel put on a clinic when it came to wasting opportunities. In 70 minutes of action, Jackson headed a cross off the post. He blasted over the bar from inside the box. He forced Marinovic into a very good save. He hit a shot off the crossbar. Then, he put one in the net, just before being subbed off. Problem was, the flag was up for offside.

Jackson-Hamel could have scored five. And that’s not an exaggeration by any means. And you wonder, when the teams meet again in Vancouver, if the Impact will look back longingly and wonder “if only we could have shot straight in the first leg.”

Sure, Jackson-Hamel deserves credit for continuously getting into the good areas, of creating space for himself. But, in the end, a striker has one main job; to have the nerve and skill to finish the chances.

Silva’s goal came 12 minutes into the second half, and he smashed the ball in after Jeisson Vargas made a good pass to Saphir Tadir. Then, Tadir laid it off for Silva, placed the ball into the corner of Marinovic’s goal.

Cristian Techera had the Whitecaps’ only real good chance of the game. His cross floated towards the Montreal goal and struck the woodwork.

But it really was only one reply, a blip in a game that the Impact absolutely dominated. But, the Impact’s players can only blame themselves for throwing so many chances away, and allowing Vancouver a ray of hope for the second leg.

 

World Cup ratings: Canadian viewership numbers down significantly from 2014

Wow. The numbers are impressive. Or are they?

On Tuesday, TSN issued a media release that trumpeted the fact that a total of 25.8 million Canadians tuned in to the Bell network’s soccer coverage over the course of the World Cup. That’s nearly three-quarters of Canada’s population! And, Sunday’s final between France and Croatia drew an average of 4 million viewers, and peaked at 5.4 million.

On top of that, TSN’s digital properties recorded a total of  7.3 million different stream starts throughout the World Cup. The Croatia-England semifinal was the most streamed World Cup event, with 155,000 starts.

Heady numbers, right? Um, no.

First off, the entire World Cup is 64 games, which were all broadcast live on TSN, RDS and CTV (Bell Media). Divide 25.8 million by 64 and you get an average of just a little more than 403,000 for the tournament. Take away the 5.4 million for CTV’s broadcast of the  final and you average a little more than 323,000 per broadcast.

Let’s go back to CBC’s numbers from the 2014 Brazil tournament. CBC reported that a total of 30.7 million Canadians watched at least some portion of the tournament, and that the World Cup final between Germany and Argentina averaged 4.9 million viewers, with a peak over 7.4 million. A total of 13.5 million hours of coverage was streamed through CBC’s digital platforms.

So, in fact, despite TSN’s oh so bright-and-cheery spin, its coverage of the 2018 World Cup didn’t do the numbers that CBC did in 2014. In fact, over the course of the tournament, TSN attracted 5 million fewer viewers than CBC did in 2014.

Now, there’s some mitigating factors. Brazil offers much friendlier viewing times for Canadian audiences than Russia does. And, well, CBC has greater reach than TSN.

But, as we reported earlier on this site, only TSN’s group-stage games on Saturdays and Sundays did well enough to break into Numeris’s list of weekly top 30-viewed programs in Canada, and they got nowhere near the top 10. The weekday games couldn’t do it. And that has to be a worry as we head towards Qatar in 2022 and the United World Cup in 2026, — with three possible Canadian host cities. In 2026, the tournament will have 48 teams, and viewers (or, lack of them) are already showing us that group-stage matches in a 32-team tournament aren’t performing all that well in terms of viewership. When it’s 16 groups of three playing games just to get a field of 48 to 32, will viewers care all that much?

Inescapably Canadian Power Rankings: MLS Week 20/USL Week 18

So, as consolation goals go, Alphonso Davies’s strike against D.C. United will go down as one of the greatest in MLS history.

Down 3-0 in the brand-new Audi Field to the Eastern Conference’s last-place team (but, to be fair, D.C. United does have a bunch of games in hand on Toronto FC), Davies scored a late goal that might only be surpassed by Eric Hassli’s famous wonder strike against the Seattle Sounders for “most picturesque goal in Whitecaps’ MLS history.”

The Canadian teen skipped through pretty well the entire D.C. United backline, including an audacious back-heel move, before ripping a shot into the far corner of the goal. He made the defenders look like wax-figure imitations of themselves.

So, we salute Davies’s goal as we update the minutes-played-by-Canadians rankings.

Here are the rankings after the 20th week of MLS play/18th week of USL action:

MLS MINUTES BY PLAYER, THE CANADIANS

Samuel Piette, Montreal, 1830 (21)
Alphonso Davies, Vancouver, 1509 (20)
Mark-Anthony Kaye, LAFC, 1495 (18)
Jonathan Osorio, TFC, 1442 (17)
Will Johnson, Orlando, 1325 (16)
Marcel de Jong, Vancouver, 1029 (13)
Raheem Edwards, Montreal, 809 (14)
Ryan Telfer, TFC, 793 (13)
Jordan Hamilton,TFC, 731 (11)
Michael Petrasso, Montreal, 682 (11)
Jay Chapman, TFC, 619 (12)
Russell Teibert, Vancouver, 618 (10)
Dejan Jakovic, LAFC, 604 (8)
Ashtone Morgan, TFC, 568 (8)
Anthony Jackson-Hamel, Montreal, 558 (14)
Doneil Henry, Vancouver, 540 (6)
Tosaint Ricketts, TFC, 533 (13)
Liam Fraser, TFC, 389 (7)
Brett Levis, Vancouver, 227 (4)
Tesho Akindele, FC Dallas, 190 (7)
Shamit Shome, Montreal, 160 (4)
Richie Laryea, Orlando, 154 (6)
Louis Beland-Goyette, Montreal, 109 (4)
Julian Dunn-Johnson, TFC, 104 (2)
Kwame Awuah, NYCFC, 37 (4)
Brian Wright, New England, 27 (2)
David Choiniere, Montreal, 12 (1)
Aidan Daniels, TFC, 12 (1)

 

TEAM RANKINGS, MLS MINUTES PLAYED BY CANADIANS IN 2018

Toronto FC, 5193/19 (273.3)

Vancouver, 3923/20 (196.2)

Montreal, 3884/21 (185)

LAFC, 2099/19 (110.5)

Orlando City, 1479/19 (77.8)

FC Dallas, 190/19 (10)

NYCFC, 37/20 (1.9)

New England, 27/19 (1.4)

 

USL MINUTES BY PLAYER, THE CANADIANS

Jordan Schweitzer, Colorado Springs, 1820 (21)
Maxime Crepeau, Ottawa, 1440 (16)
Paris Gee, Tulsa, 1437 (18)
Skylar Thomas, Charleston, 1411 (16)
Kyle Bekker, NCFC, 1410 (18)
Jamar Dixon, Ottawa, 1386 (18)
Eddie Edward, Ottawa, 1350 (15)
Robert Boskovic, TFCII, 1340 (15)
Karl Ouimette, Indy, 1336 (15)
Jordan Dover, Pittsburgh, 1334 (15)
Carl Haworth, Ottawa, 1261 (17)
Bradley Kamdem-Fewo, Fresno, 1246 (14)
Chris Mannella, Ottawa, 1232 (14)
Luca Uccello, TFCII, 1169 (16)
Thomas Meilleur-Giguere, Ottawa, 1139 (13)
Adonijah Reid, Ottawa, 1118 (16)
Amer Didic, Swope Park Rangers, 1110 (13)
Malik Johnson, TFCII, 1109 (17)
Jordan Murrell, Reno, 1038 (14)
Aidan Daniels, TFCII, 997 (13)
Noah Verhoeven, Fresno, 888 (15)
Josh Heard, Real Monarchs SLC, 859 (13)
Rocco Romeo, TFCII, 834 (10)
Julian Dunn-Johnson, TFCII, 810 (9)
Zachary Ellis-Hayden, Fresno, 757 (9)
Matthew Srbely, TFCII, 673 (12)
Dante Campbell, TFCII, 660 (9)
Mastanabal Kacher, Real Monarchs SLC, 654 (11)
Noble Okello Ayo, TFCII, 649 (9)
Nana Attakora, Ottawa, 630 (7)
Drew Beckie, OKC Energy, 630 (7)
Ryan James, Nashville, 612 (9)
Chris Nanco, Bethlehem Steel, 593 (15)
Tyler Pasher, Indy, 512 (7)
Shaan Hundal, TFCII, 485 (11)
Mauro Eustaquio, Penn FC, 462 (7)
Angelo Cavalluzzo, TFCII, 450 (5)
Gianluca Catalano, TFCII, 434 (5)
Luca Petrasso, TFCII, 418 (7)
Keven Aleman, Sacramento, 396 (6)
Darrin MacLeod, Swope Park Rangers, 360 (4)
Jordan Faria, TFCII, 352 (8)
Zak Drake, Las Vegas, 296 (6)
Mark Anthony Gonzalez, Reno, 278 (4)
Liam Fraser, TFCII, 270 (3)
Doneil Henry, Ottawa, 270 (3)
Michael Cox, Nashville, 264 (5)
Ryan Telfer, TFCII, 252 (4)
Jordan Hamilton, TFCII, 243 (3)
Daniel Haber, FC Cincinnati/Ottawa, 234 (8)
Alessandro Riggi, Phoenix, 220 (11)
David Edgar, Nashville, 200 (5)
Steffen Yeates, TFCII, 196 (4)
Kyle Porter, Ottawa, 193 (3)
Callum Irving, Ottawa, 180 (2)
Kunle Dada-Luke, TFCII, 147 (4)
Luca Ricci, Phoenix, 119 (3)
Matthew Baldisimo, Fresno, 90 (1)
Daniel Da Silva, TFCII, 59 (1)
Terran Campbell, Fresno, 53 (5)
Gabriel Wiethaeuper-Balbinotti, Ottawa, 50 (2)
Maxim Tissot, Ottawa, 48 (2)
Monti Mohsen, Ottawa, 45 (1)
Terique Mohammed, TFCII, 20 (1)
Malyk Hamilton, TFCII, 11 (1)

 

TEAM RANKINGS, USL MINUTES PLAYED BY CANADIANS IN 2018

TFCII, 11578/17 (681.1)

Ottawa, 10348/18 (574.8)

Fresno, 3034/21 (144.5)

Indy Eleven, 2028/18 (112.7)

Colorado Springs, 1820/21 (86.7)

Tulsa, 1437/18 (79.8)

Real Monarchs SLC, 1513/19 (79.6)

Pittsburgh, 1334/17 (78.5)

NCFC, 1410/18 (78.3)

Swope Park Rangers, 1470/19 (77.4)

Charleston, 1411/19 (74.3)

Reno, 1316/20 (65.8)

Nashville, 1076/17 (63.3)

OKC Energy, 630/19 (33.2)

Bethlehem Steel, 593/19 (31.2)

Penn FC, 462/19 (24.3)

Sacramento, 396/21 (18.9)

Phoenix, 339/19 (17.8)

Las Vegas, 296/18 (16.4)

FC Cincinnati, 201/19 (10.6)

 

Orange County, Canada: Forge FC unveiled as Hamilton’s CanPL club

The Canadian Premier League now officially has the same number of teams committed for the 2019 season as the National Hockey League did for two and a half decades.

More than 2,000 fans gathered in Hamilton Thursday to see Forge FC unveiled as the sixth CanPL franchise, joining Halifax Wanderers, Cavalry FC, Valour FC, FC Edmonton and York 9.

Of course, while Hamilton’s entry was the sixth team to officially be launched, it will remain as team No. 1 for most who follow the CanPL, as the league’s genesis can be traced back to Hamilton Tiger-Cats owner Bob Young and team president Scott Mitchell. It was the Ticats management who brought in CanPL president Paul Beirne to help build the league and recruit support from across the country.

Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger said that an agreement to have Forge FC play at Tim Hortons Field should be finalized on Friday.

“In 2019 we will launch eight teams, but we’re talking to 16 other communities and potential owners. Soccer is on fire in Canada.” CanPL Commissioner David Clanachan said.

Young said that the Forge name honours the city’s past as a heavy-industry centre, and that the city is “forging” a new identity as an arts and tech hub.

The team will wear orange, silver and white. The colours of fire, steel and water. But, once a season,  the team will wear a special black and gold kit to honour the city’s traditional sporting colours. 

“This has been a six-year project, this is why we’re so excited,” said Young, officially listed as the co-founder of Forge FC.

Young said that, without Mitchell, neither the league nor Forge FC would have been possible.

“The future is ours, the opportunity is massive,” said Young,. “I love businesses that are at the front of the parade… I may have had a hand in starting this, as did Scott, as did David, but I am just the co-founder. I am going to need help… I think we have something like 2,200 other co-founders tonight.

“We have the opportunity in Hamilton to build one of the flagship teams, if not the flagship, of the Canadian Premier League.”

John McGrane will be the vice-chairman of the club.

 

Edmonton soccer fans: See the World Cup semis and final on the big movie screen

For those in the Edmonton area, come to the Garneau Theatre to watch the World Cup semifinals and finals in larger-than-life fashion.

I will be hosting three special days of soccer action brought to you by Metro Cinema, as the games will be broadcast on the movie screen. Kick off times are noon MT for Tuesday and Wednesday’s semifinals, and Sunday’s final goes at 9 a.m.

Yes, there is beer.

It promises to be one of the biggest World Cup parties in the city. The Garneau Theatre is located just south of the High Level Bridge on 109th Street. If you are able, leave the car or pick-up at home, as parking in the University area can be tight, and, well, I mentioned that there was beer, right?

Admission to watch the game is, well, there is no admission fee.

For more on the event, check out the Facebook page.

 

Inescapably Canadian Power Rankings: MLS Week 19/USL Week 17

It’s been another goal bonanza for Canadians this week in MLS and USL.

While Toronto FC only got a single point out of two games this past week, the offence wasn’t the issue. The Reds scored five times over the course of two games, but this is a team that needs to outscore its leaky defence game after game. Jordan Hamilton scored twice this past week, while Jonathan Osorio continued his best offensive season ever with another marker.

ADDITION (see comments below) Tesho Akindele scored twice after coming on as a 75th-minute sub for FC Dallas, spurring a fightback against Atlanta United. Akindele has been used sparingly in Dallas this year, so maybe this was a watershed moment for the Calgary-born forward.

Mark-Anthony Kaye, the York University product who has been an absolute revelation for LAFC this season, scored in a midweek 2-2 tie with Houston. As you can see on the minutes-played-by-Canadians list below, Kaye has become a real go-to player for LAFC coach Bob Bradley.

And, Paris Gee continues his excellent season with the USL’s Tulsa Roughnecks. The Simon Fraser product scored his third goal of the season this past week, and he’s also got four assists. But it’s not all good news on the Canadian-player front. July is the time when teams shuffle with rosters. And while we saw that OKC Energy added Drew Beckie, we’re also seeing Canadians leaving some respective USL teams; Kyle Porter is no longer with the Ottawa Fury and Zak Drake bid farewell to the Las Vegas Lights.

Meanwhile, the Fury acquired Canadian forward Daniel Haber from FC Cincinnati. Last year, Haber was a regular contributor with Real Monarchs SLC, but had been reduced to a bench rule in Ohio. The move to the Fury will possibly mean a chance to push for more playing time.

Here are the rankings after the 19th week of MLS play/17th week of USL action:

MLS MINUTES BY PLAYER, THE CANADIANS

Samuel Piette, Montreal, 1658 (19)
Alphonso Davies, Vancouver, 1419 (19)
Mark-Anthony Kaye, LAFC, 1405 (17)
Jonathan Osorio, TFC, 1352 (16)
Will Johnson, Orlando, 1248 (15)
Marcel de Jong, Vancouver, 939 (12)
Raheem Edwards, Montreal, 750 (13)
Ryan Telfer, TFC, 750 (12)
Jordan Hamilton,TFC, 641 (10)
Dejan Jakovic, LAFC, 604 (8)
Russell Teibert, Vancouver, 618 (10)
Jay Chapman, TFC, 574 (11)
Ashtone Morgan, TFC, 568 (8)
Michael Petrasso, Montreal, 565 (9)
Tosaint Ricketts, TFC, 518 (12)
Anthony Jackson-Hamel, Montreal, 499 (13)
Doneil Henry, Vancouver, 450 (5)
Liam Fraser, TFC, 366 (6)
Brett Levis, Vancouver, 227 (4)
Tesho Akindele, FC Dallas, 190 (7)
Richie Laryea, Orlando, 154 (6)
Louis Beland-Goyette, Montreal, 109 (4)
Julian Dunn-Johnson, TFC, 104 (2)
Shamit Shome, Montreal, 70 (3)
Brian Wright, New England, 27 (2)
David Choiniere, Montreal, 12 (1)
Aidan Daniels, TFC, 12 (1)
Kwame Awuah, NYCFC, 3 (2)

 

TEAM RANKINGS, MLS MINUTES PLAYED BY CANADIANS IN 2018

Toronto FC, 4885/18 (271.4)

Vancouver, 3653/19 (192.3)

Montreal, 3387/19 (178.3)

LAFC, 2009/18 (111.6)

Orlando City, 1402/18 (77.9)

FC Dallas, 190/18 (10.6)

New England, 27/18 (1.5)

NYCFC, 3/18 (0.2)

 

USL MINUTES BY PLAYER, THE CANADIANS

Jordan Schweitzer, Colorado Springs, 1730 (20)
Paris Gee, Tulsa, 1437 (18)
Skylar Thomas, Charleston, 1411 (16)
Maxime Crepeau, Ottawa, 1350 (15)
Robert Boskovic, TFCII, 1340 (15)
Jordan Dover, Pittsburgh, 1334 (15)
Kyle Bekker, NCFC, 1320 (17)
Jamar Dixon, Ottawa, 1296 (17)
Carl Haworth, Ottawa, 1261 (17)
Eddie Edward, Ottawa, 1260 (14)
Karl Ouimette, Indy, 1246 (14)
Chris Mannella, Ottawa, 1170 (13)
Luca Uccello, TFCII, 1169 (16)
Bradley Kamdem-Fewo, Fresno, 1156 (13)
Amer Didic, Swope Park Rangers, 1110 (13)
Malik Johnson, TFCII, 1109 (17)
Adonijah Reid, Ottawa, 1061 (15)
Thomas Meilleur-Giguere, Ottawa, 1049 (12)
Jordan Murrell, Reno, 1038 (14)
Aidan Daniels, TFCII, 997 (13)
Josh Heard, Real Monarchs SLC, 859 (13)
Rocco Romeo, TFCII, 834 (10)
Noah Verhoeven, Fresno, 827 (14)
Julian Dunn-Johnson, TFCII, 810 (9)
Matthew Srbely, TFCII, 673 (12)
Zachary Ellis-Hayden, Fresno, 673 (8)
Dante Campbell, TFCII, 660 (9)
Noble Okello Ayo, TFCII, 649 (9)
Ryan James, Nashville, 612 (9)
Mastanabal Kacher, Real Monarchs SLC, 564 (10)
Nana Attakora, Ottawa, 540 (6)
Drew Beckie, OKC Energy, 540 (6)
Shaan Hundal, TFCII, 485 (11)
Mauro Eustaquio, Penn FC, 462 (7)
Tyler Pasher, Indy, 457 (6)
Chris Nanco, Bethlehem Steel, 453 (13)
Angelo Cavalluzzo, TFCII, 450 (5)
Gianluca Catalano, TFCII, 434 (5)
Luca Petrasso, TFCII, 418 (7)
Keven Aleman, Sacramento, 396 (6)
Darrin MacLeod, Swope Park Rangers, 360 (4)
Jordan Faria, TFCII, 352 (8)
Zak Drake, Las Vegas, 296 (6)
Mark Anthony Gonzalez, Reno, 278 (4)
Liam Fraser, TFCII, 270 (3)
Doneil Henry, Ottawa, 270 (3)
Michael Cox, Nashville, 264 (5)
Ryan Telfer, TFCII, 252 (4)
Jordan Hamilton, TFCII, 243 (3)
Alessandro Riggi, Phoenix, 209 (10)
Daniel Haber, FC Cincinnati, 201 (7)
David Edgar, Nashville, 200 (5)
Steffen Yeates, TFCII, 196 (4)
Kyle Porter, Ottawa, 193 (3)
Callum Irving, Ottawa, 180 (2)
Kunle Dada-Luke, TFCII, 147 (4)
Luca Ricci, Phoenix, 119 (3)
Matthew Baldisimo, Fresno, 90 (1)
Daniel Da Silva, TFCII, 59 (1)
Terran Campbell, Fresno, 53 (5)
Gabriel Wiethaeuper-Balbinotti, Ottawa, 50 (2)
Maxim Tissot, Ottawa, 48 (2)
Monti Mohsen, Ottawa, 45 (1)
Terique Mohammed, TFCII, 20 (1)
Malyk Hamilton, TFCII, 11 (1)

 

TEAM RANKINGS, USL MINUTES PLAYED BY CANADIANS IN 2018

TFCII, 11578/17 (681.1)

Ottawa, 9746/17 (573.3)

Fresno, 2799/20 (140)

Indy Eleven, 1883/17 (110.8)

Swope Park Rangers, 1470/17 (86.5)

Colorado Springs, 1730/20 (86.5)

Charleston, 1411/17 (83)

Tulsa, 1437/18 (79.8)

Real Monarchs SLC, 1423/18 (79.1)

Pittsburgh, 1334/17 (78.5)

NCFC, 1320/17 (77.6)

Reno, 1316/19 (69.3)

Nashville, 1076/16 (67.3)

OKC Energy, 540/18 (30)

Penn FC, 462/17 (27.2)

Bethlehem Steel, 453/17 (26.6)

Sacramento, 396/19 (20.8)

Las Vegas, 296/16 (18.5)

Phoenix, 328/18 (18.2)

FC Cincinnati, 201/18 (11.2)

 

From the ocean to the pitch: FC Edmonton coach Jeff Paulus’s career has taken some unusual turns

Jeff Paulus was a teenager serving in the Royal Canadian Navy. And, on board the HMCS Halifax, he was about to experience riding through his first vicious North Atlantic storm.

The ship peaked and rolled and dipped.

“I’ve been in some storms in the North Atlantic,” Paulus recalled. “A few of them. And they’re terrifying. My first storm in the North Atlantic, when you’re coming off an ocean swell, and I was young, I was just 19 years old. You’re on the bridge, you’re on the support lookout, and we come off an ocean swell and you come into the ocean. Your whole front of the ship is in the ocean. At 19 years old, a guy from Toronto having this experience, I was terrified. You’re hoping the ship comes back up. It always does, of course.”

Paulus spent seven years in the Navy, and did a NATO tour on the Halifax. He was part of the first NATO fleet to go to Poland when that country entered the North Atlantic treaty.

So, let’s just say that the new head coach of FC Edmonton is used to stormy weather.

And, he had to ride out a different kind storm after FC Edmonton dropped out of NASL in 2017 and put its professional program on pause. Paulus was the assistant coach of the FCE and head coach of its academy. Would there be a future for him at the club? But just as the Halifax rose every time it put its nose in the ocean, FCE also came out of the water. In June, the team announced it would be returning to pro soccer as a member of the Canadian Premier League.

On Tuesday, Paulus was confirmed as the new head coach.

He said that he learned a lot about what makes a good leader in his time with the Navy; and that he wants to take those lessons and put them into practise at FCE.

HMCS Halifax

“For me, leadership is such an important thing and, in the Navy, of course, leadership is everything,” he said. “So I’ve learned what good leadership is and I’ve seen bad leadership. But that’s informed me as a coach as well.”

Paulus spent eight years coaching at NAIT, and won a Canadian collegiate title with the Ooks. In 2012, he joined FCE as an assistant under coach Harry Sinkgraven. Paulus took over the academy, and he retained those positions when Colin Miller became head coach ahead of the 2013 season.

But how did Paulus go from the Navy to soccer coach? There is no way that he took anything close to a conventional route.

Go back to Paulus’s childhood. He was in Toronto and, like most Canadian kids, his dad wanted him to play hockey. Paulus went to an outdoor rink, put on the skates and…

Hated it.

He was cold, he was miserable. (Don’t worry; he is a hockey fan, though. Just ask him about the Leafs.)

Paulus met someone at school who had just moved from Scotland who introduced him to soccer. Paulus fell in love with the game.

So, years later, in the Navy, the base team needed a coach. And, so Paulus became the team’s player/coach at 20 years of age.

“I grew into coaching,” said Paulus. “I loved coaching as much as playing at the time. I kept up with it as much as I could.”

He was in Halifax, so he signed up for a Canada Soccer course. The teacher? Stephen Hart, who last week was announced as the coach for Halifax Wanderers.

“He was such an impressive individual,” Paulus said of Hart’s influence. “I think my passion for the game grew out of that course because of his passion as an instructor. I don’t know if he’ll remember that, because he’s taught a million courses. But that really showed me that next level. When I saw him do the course, I thought ‘I want to be like that guy.’”

Back then, Hart was the master, and Paulus was the apprentice. Next year, they’ll be matching wits when they put their teams on the field. But Paulus has also coached with Valour FC’s Rob Gale. He and Cavalry FC coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. are close. The Canadian coaching fraternity is a tight-knit group. So, what will it be like competing against people who are more than just colleagues?

“I’m not going to lie, Rob (Gale) and I, we’ve talked about it quite a bit. Tommy (Wheeldon) as well. The one thing we’ve all mentioned is how much fun it’s going to be. Going head to head. I know Rob Gale from the NTC (National Training Centre) days. I would meet Rob Gale every weekend. I’ve got a huge amount of respect for Rob as a coach and a person. Same with Tommy Wheeldon. Same with Stephen Hart. I like these people. We’ve talked as a group that it will be amazing during games and we’re going to go at it for 90 minutes. But, at the end, how nice is it going to be in the coach’s room and have a glass of wine or share a pint and talk about the game? There’s also a sense, in my conversations with Rob and Tommy, that we’re in it for our cities and whatnot, but in my sense, I have a sense of responsibility to the CPL as well. I think that this first group of coaches, we want this to succeed. We want to be competitors on the field, but we also want to do what we can to see this league grow.”

The Culture of FCE

General manager Jay Ball came up with the idea that FCE would not only stand for “FC Edmonton” but for “Family. Culture. Energy.” And Paulus thinks the “F” word will be one that guides him as he rebuilds the club.

Paulus was inspired by the San Francisco Deltas, who came into NASL as an expansion team in 2017 under Canadian coach Marc Dos Santos. Before the season was done, the Deltas players and staff knew the team was likely to fold. They could have packed it in, but didn’t. And they won the league title.

“I look at San Francisco Deltas and what they did last year, even what they were able to accomplish knowing that they weren’t going to be around for another year. It was done — the players knew that before the end of the year. But the locker room stayed together and they all fought for Marc Dos Santos. And Marc will tell you they were a family.

“That was the most important thing. I think the ‘family’ piece will be what defines us as a culture going forward. Jay and I work extremely well together, we’re building something together. It’s going to be something that everyone is going to grow together with. And we want the players and the office staff to be one true group of people who like each other, care about each other, respect each other. They won’t always be best friends off the pitch; we know all the cliches. What I generally want is that when people come to FC Edmonton, I want them to see a group of players who absolutely love the game of football. They are going to train with smiles on their faces and they’re going to have a bit of fun. There’s always times to be serious. We know all this stuff. I want people to generally see a team that’s tight-knit. If they enjoy their work, they’re going to win a lot of games for us.

“I want to know everything about players. I’m not interested in their highlight videos. I’m not interested in their best 12 moments of a 15-year career. I want to see who the player is. How they play off the ball is important to me. It’s important to see full games. And I want to know the personality. I want a locker room like the San Francisco Deltas. They had a decent budget, not like Miami FC or the Cosmos, but they did it with a strong dressing room.”

But, Paulus taking over as coach of the first team doesn’t mean he is going to leave the Academy, which he’s nurtured for more than a half a decade, away to someone else.

“I would still like to retain control of the Academy,” he said. “I will have people run it, do the day-to-day. But I’ve got seven years into that Academy. It’s a hard one for me to give up on. If you look back over the seven years I did everything including doing the kit laundry for the Academy, I took it home every night.

“I plan on being at every Academy session when the team is here. I want to be at the Academy sessions. I won’t necessarily be coaching the Academy sessions, but I want them to see the head coach there. I want them to see that every single training session matters. I want them to see that the head coach is there, watching. I plan to be heavily involved, still.”

Many players from Edmonton have chosen to not go to FCE’s Academy in the past, or have left FCE’s Academy, so they could move to an MLS program. But, with the rise of the Canadian Premier League, Paulus believes there is more incentive for young Edmontonians to come up in FCE’s system rather than head to an MLS Academy. He said that, because of the independent natures of the CanPL clubs, a player can come up through the FCE Academy and then, if he impresses, can have a better chance of calling his own shot. If a player chooses to leave early for an MLS Academy, that player committed to that specific MLS team.

And, how will we see FCE play? Paulus believes in possession football.

“You have fun with the ball at your feet, not chasing it. Any time you have possession of the ball, there’s a purpose to it.”

Now, the hard work begins. Identifying players. Rebuilding a team. But, the ship always comes back up after the wave, right?

Inescapably Canadian Power Rankings: MLS Week 18/USL Week 16

Many Canadians in the USL celebrated the week leading up to Canada Day by providing  fireworks of their own.

Indy’s Karl Ouimette, Tulsa’s Paris Gee, Bethlehem Steel’s Chris Nanco and TFCII’s Robert Boskovic and Jordan Hamilton all scored in league action this week.

As well, we have confirmation that this will be TFCII’s final year in the power rankings. Toronto FC and the USL announced Monday that the TFCII will be moving to the USL’s new Division III league beginning in 2019.

TFCII is clearly a developmental team, and has done well to promote players to TFC’s senior team, including the likes of Ryan Telfer, Aidan Daniels and Julian Dunn-Johnson. But, in terms of wins and losses, TFCII has always been out of step with USL Div. II sides that put competition ahead of development. And, well, TFCII struggles to attract crowds in the hundreds, which brings the whole league average down. Toronto does not care for minor-league sports, period.

If Ottawa leaves USL for the Canadian Premier League in 2019, the American Div.-2 league will no longer have any Canadian teams.

Here are the rankings after the 18th week of MLS play/16th week of USL action:

MLS MINUTES BY PLAYER, THE CANADIANS

Samuel Piette, Montreal, 1568 (18)
Alphonso Davies, Vancouver, 1329 (18)
Mark-Anthony Kaye, LAFC, 1251 (15)
Will Johnson, Orlando, 1248 (15)
Jonathan Osorio, TFC, 1172 (14)
Marcel de Jong, Vancouver, 849 (11)
Raheem Edwards, Montreal, 750 (13)
Ryan Telfer, TFC, 659 (10)
Dejan Jakovic, LAFC, 604 (8)
Russell Teibert, Vancouver, 601 (9)
Jay Chapman, TFC, 574 (11)
Michael Petrasso, Montreal, 565 (9)
Ashtone Morgan, TFC, 515 (7)
Tosaint Ricketts, TFC, 495 (12)
Anthony Jackson-Hamel, Montreal, 476 (12)
Jordan Hamilton,TFC, 463 (8)
Liam Fraser, TFC, 366 (6)
Doneil Henry, Vancouver, 360 (4)
Brett Levis, Vancouver, 227 (4)
Richie Laryea, Orlando, 154 (6)
Louis Beland-Goyette, Montreal, 109 (4)
Julian Dunn-Johnson, TFC, 104 (2)
Tesho Akindele, FC Dallas, 85 (5)
Shamit Shome, Montreal, 58 (2)
Brian Wright, New England, 27 (2)
David Choiniere, Montreal, 12 (1)
Aidan Daniels, TFC, 12 (1)
Kwame Awuah, NYCFC, 3 (2)

 

TEAM RANKINGS, MLS MINUTES PLAYED BY CANADIANS IN 2018

Toronto FC, 4360/16 (272.5)

Montreal, 3262/17 (191.9)

Vancouver, 3366/18 (187)

LAFC, 1855/16 (115.9)

Orlando City, 1402/17 (82.5)

FC Dallas, 85/16 (5.3)

New England, 27/17 (1.6)

NYCFC, 3/17 (0.2)

 

USL MINUTES BY PLAYER, THE CANADIANS

Jordan Schweitzer, Colorado Springs, 1550 (18)
Skylar Thomas, Charleston, 1350 (15)
Paris Gee, Tulsa, 1347 (17)
Robert Boskovic, TFCII, 1340 (15)
Kyle Bekker, NCFC, 1185 (15)
Maxime Crepeau, Ottawa, 1170 (13)
Karl Ouimette, Indy, 1156 (13)
Jordan Dover, Pittsburgh, 1154 (13)
Carl Haworth, Ottawa, 1131 (15)
Jamar Dixon, Ottawa, 1116 (15)
Amer Didic, Swope Park Rangers, 1110 (13)
Eddie Edward, Ottawa, 1080 (12)
Bradley Kamdem-Fewo, Fresno, 1080 (12)
Luca Uccello, TFCII, 1079 (15)
Malik Johnson, TFCII, 1019 (16)
Jordan Murrell, Reno, 1003 (13)
Chris Mannella, Ottawa, 990 (11)
Aidan Daniels, TFCII, 973 (12)
Adonijah Reid, Ottawa, 919 (13)
Thomas Meilleur-Giguere, Ottawa, 869 (10)
Josh Heard, Real Monarchs SLC, 791 (11)
Noah Verhoeven, Fresno, 752 (13)
Rocco Romeo, TFCII, 744 (9)
Julian Dunn-Johnson, TFCII, 720 (8)
Matthew Srbely, TFCII, 640 (11)
Ryan James, Nashville, 612 (9)
Noble Okello Ayo, TFCII, 592 (8)
Zachary Ellis-Hayden, Fresno, 583 (7)
Dante Campbell, TFCII, 570 (8)
Mauro Eustaquio, Penn FC, 462 (7)
Mastanabal Kacher, Real Monarchs SLC, 452 (8)
Nana Attakora, Ottawa, 450 (5)
Angelo Cavalluzzo, TFCII, 450 (5)
Tyler Pasher, Indy, 440 (5)
Gianluca Catalano, TFCII, 434 (5)
Luca Petrasso, TFCII, 418 (7)
Keven Aleman, Sacramento, 396 (6)
Shaan Hundal, TFCII, 395 (10)
Chris Nanco, Bethlehem Steel, 363 (12)
Drew Beckie, OKC Energy, 360 (4)
Darrin MacLeod, Swope Park Rangers, 360 (4)
Zak Drake, Las Vegas, 296 (6)
Jordan Faria, TFCII, 286 (7)
Mark Anthony Gonzalez, Reno, 278 (4)
Liam Fraser, TFCII, 270 (3)
Doneil Henry, Ottawa, 270 (3)
Michael Cox, Nashville, 264 (5)
Ryan Telfer, TFCII, 252 (4)
Jordan Hamilton, TFCII, 243 (3)
Alessandro Riggi, Phoenix, 209 (10)
Daniel Haber, FC Cincinnati, 201 (7)
David Edgar, Nashville, 200 (5)
Steffen Yeates, TFCII, 196 (4)
Callum Irving, Ottawa, 180 (2)
Kyle Porter, Ottawa, 173 (2)
Kunle Dada-Luke, TFCII, 147 (4)
Luca Ricci, Phoenix, 119 (3)
Matthew Baldisimo, Fresno, 90 (1)
Daniel Da Silva, TFCII, 59 (1)
Terran Campbell, Fresno, 53 (5)
Gabriel Wiethaeuper-Balbinotti, Ottawa, 50 (2)
Maxim Tissot, Ottawa, 48 (2)
Monti Mohsen, Ottawa, 45 (1)
Terique Mohammed, TFCII, 20 (1)
Malyk Hamilton, TFCII, 11 (1)

 

TEAM RANKINGS, USL MINUTES PLAYED BY CANADIANS IN 2018

TFCII, 10858/16 (678.6)

Ottawa, 8464/15 (564.3)

Fresno, 2558/19 (134.6)

Indy Eleven, 1776/15 (118.4)

Swope Park Rangers, 1470/16 (91.9)

Colorado Springs, 1550/18 (86.1)

Charleston, 1350/16 (84.4)

Tulsa, 1347/17 (79.2)

NCFC, 1185/15 (79)

Real Monarchs SLC, 1243/16 (77.7)

Pittsburgh, 1154/15 (76.9)

Reno, 1281/17 (75.4)

Nashville, 1076/15 (71.7)

Penn FC, 462/16 (28.9)

Bethlehem Steel, 363/16 (22.7)

OKC Energy, 360/16 (22.5)

Sacramento, 396/18 (22)

Las Vegas, 296/15 (19.7)

Phoenix, 328/18 (18.2)

FC Cincinnati, 201/17 (11.8)