He may have just wrapped up his first official week as a professional soccer goalkeeper, but it wasn't exactly love at first sight between Waleed Cassis and his chosen position.

In fact, the 23-year-old Ottawa native was pretty much dragged kicking and screaming, almost literally, in between the goalposts as a kid.

"When I was seven I started playing soccer to get in shape, just to try a sport," says Cassis of his introduction to the game.

"But I was always a striker, I hated playing in goal, I despised it.

"I would cry when they would put me in goal, I remember that."

Despite his aversion to the position, Cassis had the misfortune of being one of the bigger kids on his team as a U9, which at that age is all it takes to make a kid an ideal shot-stopper.

"We didn't have a keeper and I was the chubbiest and biggest kid on the team, funny how it always works out that way," said Cassis, who began his soccer career with the Nepean City Storm.

"I played that game and I started to like it. I kept playing in goal and I developed a passion for it."

That passion brought him to Brazil for two years where he played U17 soccer, which he followed up with a scholarship to California State University Los Angeles after graduating from high school in Ottawa.

After his second year of college, Cassis stayed in LA with MLS side Chivas USA's U23 squad before transferring to the University of Buffalo for his junior year.

And then Fury FC came calling with an offer of a training camp tryout, which Cassis officially wrapped up when the club made his contract signing official Monday.

"It's a great pleasure for me to be playing for my hometown, representing my city," he said.

"To be signing my first pro contract, it feels like the beginning of a new chapter."

As far as being a young goalie coming up through the professional rank goes, Cassis is in a perfect spot to develop.

Not only is he playing behind an experienced keeper in Romuald Peiser, he is working under Bruce Grobbelaar, a Liverpool legend and someone who genuinely still loves the game.

"It's a fantastic environment for me to be in," Cassis said.

"To have Bruce as a goalkeeper coach is a great honour, a man of his experience.

"He really teaches you, not only basic stuff about the position, but also the mental aspect of the game."

Grobbelaar is one of the many who have shaped Cassis as a goalie early in his career -- he's never shied away from relocating to chase the next opportunity. He's picked up five languages -- French, English, Arabic, Spanish and Portuguese -- along the way.

"I love to travel but I also have a great passion for the sport," said Cassis, who will graduate from University of Buffalo this weekend.

"What I really like about this game is you encounter so many people from different cultures and you pick up different styles of play. It's nice to be put in different environments; it helps you grow as a player and as a person."

Though he knows he still has a lot of work to do, Cassis said his goal is to one day suit up for Canada's men's national team.

"That would be great," he said.

"I'm still trying to build my foundation as a professional. But my ambitions are there."

He'll take his first step toward that goal this summer when Cassis travels to South Korea to represent Canada at the FISU World University Games.

chris.hofley@sunmedia.ca