

Posted by

Ryan Stead ,

January 3, 2014 Email

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The excitement is growing, the people are talking, the team is coming together, the optimism is in the air and the anticipation is tangible. The Ottawa Fury are well into building what they hope will be a competitive team, not only for this season but for the future. Professional soccer will work in Ottawa. The time is right, and it will work. It just hasn’t been tested yet. We are going from bleacher soccer to stadium soccer. The naysayers have always been there. They are the same people that said the CFL will never work in Ottawa. Give me a break. For years, Ottawa has been without a professional summer team and there is no good reason for that. The capital of Canada is more than capable of supporting a professional soccer team. Ottawa has the population, climate, grass roots support and facilities. They are ready. The Ottawa Lynx always had “minor league” printed on them and we’ve never had a fully professional soccer team. MLS has built its league reputation and through its Canadian involvement helped grow the game in Canada as well. Though hockey fans may argue, the winds of change say soccer is the fastest growing sport in North America. Often it’s said the immigrant population of Ottawa should insure interest in soccer, but I’d disagree. While people that come from countries where soccer is the national sport will definitely be an asset, Canadian-born kids have always played soccer and the participation numbers have proven that for some time. If the Fury can get on TSN or Sportsnet, as opposed to regional Rogers 22 TV, it would go a long way to garnering not only national awareness but something essential to the longevity to the club, legitimacy. The CSL’s Capital City FC was regularly shown on Rogers local channel but was almost none existent as far as broader coverage was concerned. Even the local Team 1200 almost never mentioned the franchise. I believe a large part of that was that they never really appeared as a professional club. Another reason is when it comes to soccer, at least in Ottawa, there seems to be a reluctance with the media. The Ottawa Fury needs to not just hope for headlines and coverage, they need to demand it. They can’t give the media an option of ignoring them. The excitement around the new CFL franchise and the new Lansdowne stadium, as well as the surrounding entertainment complex, should help to initially draw attention. With the recent signings, the Ottawa Fury is sending a strong message to the calibre of the new club. The signing of Richie Ryan and Ramon Soria signal big-stage experience and a level of professionalism that will set the tone for their younger Canadian counterparts to follow. Head coach Marc Dos Santos and his technical staff have wasted no opportunity to sign players from all over the world, as the Fury tries to build a competitive team. I asked Marc Dos Santos if he thinks he can put the team together in time for the start of the season and he said “If we want, we could have a full squad.” “We want to have 80-85% of the squad done. You don’t want to go into training camp with your full squad in your expansion year because you want to give space to that 15% of guys that are invited that we want to look at in the camp. So we expect to have 85% of the squad done, and god willing, if everything goes well, 95% of the squad is done when we play are first NASL game.” When asked about the possibility of having a big name friendly he said “Yes, we are.” “We’re looking to do a huge international friendly.” The new signings look really good for a team that is supposed to be young and hungry. Ramon Soria played for Spain with their youth teams. Richie Ryan’s experience and determined presence will be essential to anchoring a solid midfield. Marc Dos Santos has always tended to a possession style of play, and with the team taking shape they should be in a good position to do just that. When you look at the new signings and their resumes, they are impressive. They have played in the Scottish Premier League, Copa del Rey and UEFA Europa League, which gives them great experience and credentials. There is another advantage to playing in Ottawa. For a lot of players, coming to play in North America not only affords them a higher standard of living, but its leagues are now respected worldwide. The signing of Oliver Minatel and Ramon Soria really sends a clear message that the Fury technical staff are not building a glorified CSL team, but a team that might even be able to hold its own with its Canadian brothers in MLS. FC Edmonton could be looked at as a Canadian team that started in the NASL. Though they have had mixed results both on the field and off, after a few years they are still here. Ottawa has a bigger population and it seems that if Edmonton can draw 1500-2000 people, Ottawa should not have a problem drawing a similar if not a better number. The big thing that appears to be growing in Ottawa is the excitement. The new signings, new stadium, even the CFL team, all adds to the growing anticipation that is undoubtedly building. With the Fury’s inaugural season running in the same summer as the World Cup, it should also provide an added boost to the interest in watching soccer. At the end of the day we really don’t know what to expect, but we do know that professional soccer has been stabilized in this country, first with Canadian MLS teams, and now with the NASL. Following in the footsteps of other Canadian teams Ottawa boasts a healthy population and new facilities. With a skilled technical staff at the helm, which includes Gold Cup champion Martin Nash, the future looks bright indeed.