TORONTO – Canadian soccer is undergoing a tremendous period of growth as the country prepares to welcome new clubs from coast to coast in the Canadian Premier League, and for the select group of head coaches charged with guiding each of these teams through the early days of formation, the end goal is, unilaterally, the same: Win, first and foremost, but also develop talent to feed Canada’s national team.
The message of unity was on full display as the coaches met for league meetings in Toronto this week, with the group of bench bosses sizing each other up for the first time ahead of kick-off in April of 2019. When the topic of national team development was introduced, each head coach agreed that their respective clubs will place a high priority in helping Canadian players grow.
HFX Wanderers FC head coach Stephen Hart has seen soccer come a long way during his time in Canada, and is now working to develop even more quality for the Canadian men’s national team, beginning next year.
“I think the Canadian Premier League is extremely important because in the past you had a huge group of players that never got the opportunity to learn about being a professional and taking their game further,” Hart told CanPL.ca this week. “Now this opportunity is in place and they can cut their teeth and hopefully they can be exposed to the national team program and be available for potential selection.”
Always a pleasure chatting with @HfxWanderersFC coach Stephen Hart. #CanPL pic.twitter.com/qeTsYier3s
— Kurt Larson (@KurtLarsonCPL) August 22, 2018
Having managed the men’s national team in the past, Hart knows the struggle that Canada’s previous generations faced in carving out professional careers in soccer – often having to move abroad to earn playing time – but Jeff Paulus of FC Edmonton believes the future crop of talented young players won’t have to jump through as many obstacles to succeed.
Paulus, who helms the FC Edmonton Academy, is confident that the CPL can not only help this new generation grow, but is actively setting goals to get players into the national team fold.
“I think out of our league, if every club is producing two or three players from their roster and getting them sent up to the senior national team, then we’re all doing our job,” Paulus offered. “I think that has to be our target for all of us within the league.”
Valour FC head coach Rob Gale agreed, calling the development of that pathway to the national team “absolutely vital” to the success of Canada. More than the number of options, though, Gale believes that the national team will benefit from a player pool that is seeing more regular and meaningful minutes, too.
“It’s all very well being in professional clubs, but when you’re playing professional football on a week in, week out basis – and knowing what it takes every single day to turn up and do your job and compete for those minutes – that’s what’s going to be the difference maker,” Gale explained. “That’s what this league will hopefully give them; at least the first start in their professional careers and potentially push them on and continue to grow, as the league develops, all the way up to 2026.”
Great chat with @CPLCavalryFC coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. #CanPL pic.twitter.com/qnQI7FLsOL
— Kurt Larson (@KurtLarsonCPL) August 21, 2018
For each of these coaches, the 2026 World Cup represents a tangible long-term development goal, since players in their late teens and early 20s will be in the prime of their careers when it comes time for Canada, alongside Mexico and the United States, to host the world’s best in this global soccer contest. The more immediate goal is qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. sees the 2026 affair as a major benchmark to aim for during a rich period of growth within the country.
“There’s not a better time, really, for Canadian soccer,” Wheeldon Jr. offered. “On the heels of the big-money move of Alphonso Davies (to Bayern Munich from the Vancouver Whitecaps), he’s inspiring a generation that we haven’t seen before. You’re seeing all the kids following him around, and they’ve been inspired because of the move he’s made.
“You look at the securing of the 2026 World Cup, which those kids could use as the ignition switch to then follow up and play for their local clubs,” he continued. “Then, you’ve got the launch of the CPL, with eight clubs in 2019 and then more clubs there in 2020, it’s just more places for Canadians to grow. Simple math suggests that the more Canadian players are playing, well, the bigger the base, the higher the pyramid. It can only be a great thing for Canadian soccer.”
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