EDMONTON, AB – Over 3,000 spectators packed the stands at Edmonton’s Clarke Field on Sunday for the first leg of Al Classico, the supporter-driven two-legged exhibition series between the USL PDL’s Calgary Foothills FC and a squad comprised of FC Edmonton Academy players that also featured a number of returnees from the club’s time in the NASL.

Foothills cruised to a well-deserved 4-0 victory, not surprising given the Calgary outfit are merely 2 weeks away from the official start to the 2018 PDL season and were pitted against an FC Edmonton squad who clearly had been assembled for the derby.

More important than the result on the day, or over both legs for that matter, was the resounding response from the citizens of Edmonton (and a contingent from Calgary who travelled north for the match) that these Canadian rivalries are alive and well and are imperative to the growth and development of the pending Canadian Premier League (CPL).

Having ceased NASL operations in November of 2017, FC Edmonton are seeking to lock down primary tenancy of Clarke Field in a bid resurrect themselves as an inaugural CPL club. Their opposition at the moment appears to be minor soccer and football teams, with municipal government stuck in the middle of the debate in terms of who gets first right to use the city-owned facility.

To fill the stadium near-capacity on a Sunday afternoon where kick-off temperatures were hovering at single digits (and falling by the minute) is extremely admirable, and the City as well as the CPL brass must take note that an appetite for competitive soccer exists in Alberta’s capital, but also that Canadian soccer fans will both flock to and get behind rivalry matches without question.

With CPL Commissioner David Clanachan recently telling theScore.com that the league seeks to launch with potentially eight clubs, the opportunity to play two tried and tested games between existing civic rivals may be slim given rumoured franchise locations.

On the assumption that Halifax are in, for example, here’s hoping for a second club in Atlantic Canada.

Indeed, the rivalry between Alberta’s two largest cities runs long and deep. From the days of the Canadian Pacific Railway choosing where to lay their tracks, Edmonton’s selection as provincial capital, and not least of all the Battle of Alberta (waged on ice, of course), these are two urban centres that have loved to dislike each other for over a century.

As for the on-field action, Foothills controlled most of the play and found themselves on the right end of a pair of FC Edmonton defensive miscues within the game’s opening seven minutes.

The first allowed Calgary’s DuWayne Ewart to intercept a telegraphed back-pass and open the scoring. Only minutes later, Ali Musse recovered well from a poor defensive tackle by Edmonton’s Mason James to double Calgary’s lead.

With several of FC Edmonton’s alumni making way for Academy players in the second half, Calgary never looked back.

In the 55th minute, Jackson Farmer weaved through a handful of Edmonton players before finishing from the top of the 18 yard box to make it 3-0.

Two minutes later, Tofa Fakunle got on the end of a low cross from defender Dominick Zator and Calgary had scored their fourth and final goal of the afternoon.

Stephanie Labbé entered the match for Calgary in the 79th minute to the largest round of applause reserved for an individual on the day.

Labbé, native Edmontonian and currently on tryout with Foothills FC, easily endured the busiest spell of play directed at the visitors’ goal.

She did very well to maintain the clean sheet kept by starter Marco Carducci, courageously challenging a lone incoming Edmonton attacker and then later, in the match’s dying minutes, parrying a hard drive over the bar.

Regardless of the result, FC Edmonton, it’s supporters, and soccer fans in the city as a whole must be complimented for not only turning out in droves to an important derby match, but also for creating an atmosphere that hopefully has the CPL on alert.

Our soccer rivalries are healthy and must be allowed to continue to thrive, not only for themselves but the greater good of the sport in Canada.

Calgary hosts the return leg at Foothills Field in Okotoks Calgary Soccer Center on May 5.

*Update 3:15 pm Eastern – The location of the return leg has been changed to Calgary Soccer Center.

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Adam Kostanuick Website Born and raised in Montréal and now residing in Victoria, Adam is a lifelong fan of all things pertaining to The Beautiful Game. He counts Canada’s 2000 win in the CONCACAF Gold Cup and Montréal Impact’s journey to the CONCACAF Champions League Final in 2014-15 among his favourite memories. After years of playing recreation league soccer, Adam finally decided to hang up his boots in 2015 to enjoy the game as a spectator. Adam can be heard weekly, dispensing a uniquely Canadian perspective on The Beautiful Game, as co-host of The Young Gaffers podcast.

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