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“The establishment of a club like this in our country, it’s such a beautiful thing. I hope they really appreciate the opportunity.

“I hope the public appreciates it, what the next generation has in front of them. To go at it alone with all the foreigner restrictions and what not, it’s such a challenge for Canadians, so to be able to develop your game, to showcase Canadian talent at home in your backyard, it really is something to cherish and I hope everyone does that.”

The next wave of up-and-comers seem to be doing their part, at least, with 13 local products out of the 19 first-team players FC Edmonton currently has under contract for the upcoming season.

And Hirschfeld said there is no reason why the quantity or quality of Edmonton soccer player can’t climb as soccer infrastructure, such as the Edmonton Scottish Society Soccer Dome, continues to develop.

“And this dome is just the start, we probably need 10 more like this to actually satisfy all the kids,” he said. “But if we’re really serious about developing and promoting the game and producing something on the world stage, we need to get behind it.”

At the same time, all the facilities in the world wouldn’t help a player if there wasn’t anyone to coach them.

“There were no doors open, really. You had to go at it on your own and that was very, very difficult,” Hirschfeld recalled. “I was fortunate, I had people that opened doors for me and helped me and mentored me along the way. Without them, I never would have gotten as far as I did and actually had the opportunity to play like I did.

“I think we’ve got to get in the mentality of, ‘Let’s develop as much as we can, let’s let them go and hopefully they one day come back and take care of the next generation.’”

Email: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge