The Canadian men’s national soccer team’s first camp of the year includes two men with strong connections to the Oakville Soccer Club.

OSC technical director Rafael Carbajal was recently named as an assistant coach with the national men's team, while OSC product Kyle Bekker is on the 23-player roster at the camp that began Sunday in Sunrise, Fla.

Carbajal, 53, has previous coaching experience with the Canadian women’s national team and the Canadian men’s under-18, U20 and U23 squads. A former goalkeeper from Uruguay, he holds UEFA A and USSF A coaching licenses.

According to OSC executive director Dave Harris, Carbajal’s appointment to the national team coaching staff won’t affect his duties with the Oakville club. Carbajal has served as OSC’s technical director for the past three months, following the resignation of Dino Lopez.

“He won’t be working (with the national team ) so much that it will take away from his duties here. We have an understanding about what he will be able to do and won’t be able to do,” Harris said.

“We couldn’t have a technical director who was full-time with the Canadian men’s national team… Our focus here is on our membership. But there’s no question having somebody in our club being part of the national team is a feather in our cap.”

Bekker is coming off his rookie season in Major League Soccer, playing in nine games — including three starts — with Toronto FC. The 23-year-old midfielder, who ranks second all-time at Boston College in assists, earned four caps for the U23 Canadian men’s team during the 2012 CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament.

Twelve of the 23 players participating in the camp will be eligible to represent Canada’s U23 team that will attempt to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. According to a Soccer Canada release, most players at the camp likely won’t be mainstays at the senior level for some time.

The camp, led by Canadian men’s national team coach Benito Floro, will conclude Jan. 22.