The Lead
David Forsyth has been called the “father of Canadian soccer.” He founded the Dominion Football Association in 1878, a mere fifteen years after the codification of the Association Rules in London. He composed one of the earliest tactical guides in print, espousing the virtues of the then-in-vogue 2-3-5 formation. Forsyth helped organize and played in one of the first international friendlies outside the home nations, a 1-0 victory against the United States in 1885. In 1888, Forsyth arranged a tour in Great Britian of select Canadian players. They beat Middlesborough 3-2, and Lincoln City 3-1, and drew 1-1 against Sheffield. Canada also beat Newton Heath 2-0, the team now known Manchester United. They finished with a 9-5-9 record. The London Sporting Times wrote of the team at the time:
“…success [by Canada] against some of the best Irish, Scottish and English clubs had been greater than most of the followers of the association game at least expected and indeed, considering the formidable opponents they have met over here, they have made themselves a deservedly high name as all-around exponents of football.”
David Forsyth achieved all this over two decades before the formation of what is now known as the Canadian Soccer Association in 1912.
David Forsyth was also a high school math teacher.
Obviously the circumstances today are quite different from what they were when football was in its infancy, just beginning to break bonds with its amateur, school boy roots. Today, football is a multi-billion dollar global sport. The standard within elite soccer nations is the best it’s ever been, the result of long-established football cultures, serious government funding, and strict standards for coaching and education.
Canada, needless to say, is a bit behind.
After last night’s horrific 8-1 loss to Honduras, a result which sees Canada’s hopes to join a World Cup put off for another four years, the same old canards were trotted out across the Canadian soccersphere. Stephen Hart wasn’t up to the job. The CSA should be disbanded. Canada is terrible at football, always has been, always will be (meanwhile it should be noted how an odious European press, who had paid no attention to Canada or indeed any of the other non-Mexican/American sides until last night, chimed in one after another yesterday to express incredulity, which makes yesterday’s match a true national embarrassment).
Some took the slightly more measured route, pointing out this would all be moot had Kevin McKenna’s header hit the target when a limp Honduras side were in Toronto at BMO Field in June. They remarked at the significant progress since the last CONCACAF World Cup qualifying campaign. They pointed out there are still very talented players in the Canadian national team, but that finishing was inconsistent and away performances were poor.
In fact, while ostensibly charitable, this view is far more damning of Canada than the extreme (and useless) hyperbole emanating from the usual suspects. Because this issue is not Canada’s awfulness—it’s Canada’s inconsistency. You see it in how Canada can put in two dominant-if-fruitless performances against Panama and Honduras, only to fail to come together in the cauldron of a CONCACAF away fixture. You see it in the wild fluctuations in our rank within CONCACAF nations, while the US and Mexico remain perpetually at the top of the heap.
In a country with Canada’s participation numbers in football and our GDP relative to our rivals, that inconsistency is unacceptable. It reflects an ad hoc, messy approach to player development that is driven more by luck than by careful planning.
So where to begin fixing it?
The good news is some of the work towards answering that question has already been done. The CSA has already embraced the Long-Term Player Development guidelines, whose principles of education in youth soccer have been proven effective in nations like Spain and Germany. It has also recently approved recommendations from a recent study on the viability of a Division II league in Canada (full disclosure: I assisted in some of the work on said study), which in part calls for facilitating lower-tier U23 regional development leagues similar to the Canadian Hockey League model, building on existing clubs and instilling standards for education in coaching to bring this country in line with some of the best in the world (more on this in the weeks to come).
Despite these positive developments, checking your watch and waiting for the CSA to do all the work on these issues isn’t going to be enough.
Which brings me back to Forsyth, our intrepid high school math teacher. If one person can help give Canada “a deservedly high name as all-around exponents of football”, surely there is something you can do individually? It could be as simple as taking an LTPD coaching course. The CSA has a good reference available on the main website. Perhaps there’s a local club for which you can volunteer? Perhaps you could pressure the CSA to help implement a national player development strategy, rather than waiting for your provincial association to take the lead. And when the full study into recommendations for a U23 development league are released, why not give them a read, and try to determine what role you might play in helping the CSA to bring various small, regional leagues under a national umbrella?
Canada doesn’t need more angry op-eds, or black t-shirts, or shoulder shrugs. And, for better or for worse, we’re going to be stuck with the CSA, if not Stephen Hart, for the foreseeable future. Canada is currently without a national player development program. It simply doesn’t exist. Ask yourself: what can I do to help implement it?
“They pointed out there are still very talented players in the Canadian national team, but that finishing was inconsistent and away performances were poor.”
In other words… nothing has changed in 30 years.
Great article Richard, I really enjoyed the read. However, I also feel the lack of funding provided to sports outside of hockey is having an impact on how our national soccer programs can develop youth players here in Canada. But I suppose that’s another issue entirely.
On top of the lack of funding (on par with what hockey gets) — you also have to realize a lot of talented athletes who might be dominant at footy end up playing hockey because that is where their parents push them and that’s what they know. In Canada we play American Football, Baseball, Soccer, Ice Hockey, Basketball, Tennis, everything…..too much diversity.
That wouldn’t explain the US’ relative success in football over the last two decades, which was no accident.
Make no mistake, any sport that isnt hockey gets treated as 2nd rate in this country.
I have always wondered, what percentage of kids that play soccer in Canada are doing so because they love the sport, versus those who are playing to keep in shape for hockey season.
FACT:
Only 10% of kids in this country play hockey.
Thanks to CBC. It’s an elitist sport.
The Canadians lack talent and coaching to compete. The CSA needs to go out and sign a coach who can do a lot with a litte such as Guus Hiddink
I know how I can help.
I grew up playing AAA hockey in my youth, and didn’t pay much attention to soccer at all. It started halfway through Toronto FC’s inaugural season, that I found my role in soccer, a paying soccer spectator.
That is right. If you get a few thousand more of me, you can have money coming in to have profitable professional teams.
“Oh but Daniel, having a national league is so scary, and how would it be financially stable at the beginning?”
It won’t genius. The NASL isn’t profitable, but the USSF needs it because it is invaluable.
Some MLS teams struggle still, but look at the USMNT right now. Take a very long and hard look. Just do it, then turn and look me in the eyes and tell me that we should continue to let our CIS, college, top amateur adult club soccer, and top U18 talent, not have a club to play for beyond that stage. Just let them drop off the abyss into day jobs, and leave their misguided Canadian soccer dreams to die in their youth.
Fantastic! Well done Richard. We need to stop thinking that the only thing that we can do is show up to games and cheer.
I went onto the OSA and CSA websites last night found (with great difficulty) the framework for coaching and then how to become accredited. I then sent off an email to the North MIssissauga Soccer Club (the closest club to me offfering the Soccer for Life course in December) to see what the next steps are.
What we have been doing isn’t good enough. We have to take ownership.
Using the CHL model is the best way to get this off the ground, I’ve thought so for years. And I accept your challenge to get practically involved. Great article.
The CHL model wouldn’t work without the coaches to train the players in the first place. Coaches from the grassroots need to get A LOT better.
Nialando: Coaching next steps
Don’t hold your breath. The LTDP is all talk and powerpoint slides. The coaching streams of both the Provincial Associations and CSA are inadequate. The elite stream is disjointed and there is simply no coach education, just some assessments. For example, you will attend sessions and receive a bunch of photocopies of stuff. The CSA coach educators are typically egotistical and seem only out to intimidate attendees. The provincial coach educators are too busy coaching provincial teams to care enough about you.
Have a look at the English or Scottish FA coaching streams for an example of how things need to be. Real substance to their education streams.
Things need to change. Not just talk from the same CSA and Provincial stuffed shirts.
nuff said.
so …..then get involved to make the change instead. yes, it’s a challenge.
At our soccer school, we decided to pursue our coaching education through the USSF and the NSCAA. Our your coaches are doing impressive work with our youth players. I would recommend you look towards the US to pursue a coaching education, their courses are great.. We have over a hundred kids both boys and girls playing amazing technical soccer in the SAAC league. What we need is progressive coaches at the provintial level that will not reject players becasue of size.
Well, i have already been contacted by the club about registering for the course which I think is great. The cost is $220, I don’t know if it would be covered by a club who would be interested in having a coach.
I understand there are challenges but we as a concerned soccer community have to do more . If enough people are involved and are saying that this doesn’t work then change will be forced upon the OSA, CSA et. al.
@Jake, I would be interested in looking into the academy stream as well. It didn’t exist when I was a kid and something that I think could be very effective.
If you are starting out in getting your coaching credentials, shouldn’t you start out with Active Start (U4-U6), then FUNdamentals (U7-U9), then Learn to Train (U10-U12) prior to taking Soccer for Life (U13-U18+). Shouldn’t you learn/get certified at the lower levels prior to getting qualified for higher ages? Then you have the basic understanding for all age groups.
USSF and NSCAA are light years ahead of us in coach education. The course content for the National C license is what is needed here in Canada.
Its funny that the CSA and Provincial bodies are preaching LTPD with glossy powerpoints and talk. Then you look at the heads of our provincial coach education department and they are coaching provincial teams of players!! They need to figure out what business they are in.
I’ve been involved in coaching for 35 years and nothing has changed in Canada since I started. The way I see it is that the professional teams will do the correct player development (e.g. Impact, Whitecaps, TFC) and CSA and provincial bodies will sit and collect fees and waste $$ on photocopies of their manuals to hand out and try to justify their existence.
Sorry to sound cynical but I’ve been through this before.
Agreed fully with you DejectedCoach, coaching standards have not increased since I was a kid playing football. CSA/Provincial associations don’t do nothing for the development of coaches other than collecting fees from all coaches in Canada… nor LTPD will help. I have gotten into coaching 12 years ago (youth) and even now I haven’t seen a change in the three different provincial associations I have coached under. I am hoping for a change in CSA’s mentality soon.
Nice article Richard. My problem is I’m just not sure what the goal was for this team and was it realistic? Every country wants to qualify for the world cup and Canada hasn’t done it since 86. So why do we think this is a realistic goal? We can’t beat Mexico, USA, Jamaica, or Honduras so what is a goal for the next time. I think Canada showed who they are against Honduras, and are exactly where they should be. Close to the next level but just not good enough.
In conclusion, Nani is a twat.
I think that one thing missing from the coaching curriculum I’ve seen on the OSA site is the mental aspect of training players in the u11 and up range. Last night we saw a team that has the talent and skills to take on a team like Honduras. However, for what ever reason they didn’t show up. Last night was a failure of their mental toughness so much more than their lack of finishing ability. 1-nil, 2-nil is lack of finishing, 8-1 is lack of heart.
So, great article Richard, others seem to be on the same track (DeVos et al) and hopefully we can get a quick injection of some of the talent currently bubbling up for the 2018 run and then get to a full blow development system by 2022.
While I don’t think I will ever be a good coach for the U11 and up, maybe I can become a coach for the lower levels to free up someone who would be……Active Start and FUNdamental here I come.
Some very good ideas. Now it’s the long haul and it’s the time to turn to the youth. We need to put the young men who played so well in the Olympic qualifying tournament (until they, well, soiled the bed in the key moment, just like the senior team) into positions to excel at the senior level and to do the same with U-17s from across the country.
The days of McKenna, DeRosario, and deGuzman are behind us. Probably Hutchison, too, although he has been the brightest light through all this and may one day be the coach for a successful national programme.
AS for getting involved coached until this year at Rep level in Ontario, did my first three levels , did my Pre B and passed , but like dejected found the instructors all about themselves not about my education ( with a couple of exceptions)
However to take the next step not only would i have to invest significant time ( on top of the three times a week i was coaching) I was also expectedd to pay and be out of pocket by my club………Remember they are getting all the coaching free for paying kids , and all my expenses are on me. I also have 16 parents to deal with via email and personal time on top of the coaching …….
I suffered a mjor knee injury that took me out for this year, but do i want to go back to it …take a guess…….
The politics of the OSA and the CSA need a compete overhaul……I am a first gen canadian so grew up in the english system and played at University level. Will always love the game but am tired of a system that fights against producing the best results we can for the kids invovled !!!!
As a casual soccer fan, take these random out of order steps for what they’re worth…
- Accept that international soccer is not going away anytime soon & that Canada will forever, as long as sport exists, have to challenge itself to find a way to get its men’s national team in order & on a competitve path. It is absolute disgrace that Canada is less than a minnow on the global FIFA men’s stage.
- CSA should conduct cross section investigation to where on earth elite Canadian athletes aged 18-35 are ending up. The carrot at the end of the stick has to be taken into account.
- Canadian soccer, from its roots (6-9yr olds or whatever) all the way up, should begin a CONCACAF geared competitive philosophy. Canada is not ever going to be geographically relocated & no we are not going to join Oceania (lol); how about we stop training to be the best non-hockey hockey players on the pitch & start (finally?) becoming a CONCACAF’centric association- train from youth all the way up to challenge the Central American associations like Panama & even Mexico… there will only ever be one single path to the World Cup & it involves going through the better squads from this zone.
(use Gold Cup not as some exhibition we’re excited to be there, start gauging progress & hone skills around what we’re missing- just as any losing side in any sport ought to do yes? BUT don’t pretend we’re better, train our kids from 6yrs old to take bites out of the Panama & Mexico soccer styles- so results can emerge)
I believe soccer is not going anywhere in Canada, I bet there are as many soccer fans as CFL fans- we’ve nearly all grown up playing the sport, it’s beyond high time we start becoming at least a CONCACAF bastard to play!!
Great article and I completely agree! Us Canadian soccer fans doing volunteering and just doing anything we can can definitely help in steering our soccer programs in this country in the right direction. I’m all for that.
Right on Richard. I have been back in coaching for three years now, I have my OSA level 1 and will be moving on to level 2 probably this winter. This message is an important one.
But it’s not enough. We are not led. Better players, long in the future, is not enough of an answer.
US colleges and Universities have a better grasp on Canada’s soccer talent than the CSA does, I can name 3 kids from Brampton alone (didn’t play for Brampton mind you, thats another story), 91′s, that recieved full scholarships at Division 1 teams in the last 3 years and 1 partial to Florida State, 1 scholarship was declined to play division 2 in Italy the others were accepted none have been approched to even try out for the CMNT, if there is no youth movement now we are doomed.
I know I’m usually a downer but here’s a positive.
Even with the disgraceful and pathetic FA this country has, we still manage to produce decent players and a somewhat competitive team. This team only lacked one thing…mental strength/belief. They definitely had the talent to compete despite our pathetic football organizations/development in this country.
Just imagine what we will become when all this is fixed…within the next millenia lol.
But the problem is,who’s the “we” in your statement? The canadian soccer system? The CSA? Club teams? Or do we just have a handful of one-off talents that succeed despite the lack of any cohesive development strategy? Every country does, but the top teams supplement it with truly homegrown talent?
Or are we free-loading off of the devlopment of our players in the European clubs’ youth system?
With all this banter about coaching credentials and lack of opportunities in the CSA, I’m surprised nobody has brought up Junior Hoilett’s path to stardom or a few of the other young Canadian fellows we have scattered around academies and leagues overseas. (i.e. Carreiro and Petrasso on QPR, Piette, etc….)
What does this say about the state of affairs in Canada? First, it says that because you can’t develop here, then you must get out if you want to be successful…. but what’s actually wrong with this model? How many players have come up through Man Utd’s academy and been valuable assets for their National Teams?
What’s wrong with the model generally is that you have a bunch of players born/raised in Canada, but developed elsewhere. As a result, they have no professional connection to Canada, and no inclination to play for our national team.
And automatically expecting them to play for Canada is like expecting every Canadian to drink Tim Horton’s coffee and buy their gas at Petro-Canada.
You are missing my point. Just because a player doesn’t have a “professional connection to Canada” doesn’t mean they shouldn’t feel an inclination to play for our national team. I understand that JDG2 and Hoilett really don’t help my argument out too much, but there are a lot of players from Latin American countries that go to academies in Europe — benefit greatly from that experience — and still end up playing for their country.
how many other country”s in the top 100 of FiFA rankings don’t have there own top flite Domestic League? I bet were in the Minority and imo inorder to compete on a regular basis we need to have a league that kids can be proud of and grow up hoping to one day be able to play in said league. I realize we have the CSL, but nobody knows that we even have a league. Impact, TFC, and Icecaps need to quit the MLS and be the front runners in getting the league started. there are lots of city’s big enough to host teams, this would give alot of canadian kids a chance to play and not just sit and play as backups in other leagues like the MLS. tho we all know this is a long long way from ever becoming a reality. but that to me is one of the biggest needs if were ever gonna compete at the international level on a consistant basis.
Had very excited young man tell me he’s trying out for Edmonton FC next month, hate to tell him they just fired their coaching staff due to finances.
Wow that was stupid, and ill informed.
They fired the coaches “for financial reasons.”
As in they couldn’t afford to only win five games a season. The team owners are still the biggest spenders in the NASL. Hurray for you though, hopefully you crushed that kid, I hope some hopeful, young Canadian kid never plays again.
*slowclaps*
Solution:
Revamp the youth leagues.
STOP making kids that are 9-12 years old play on big fields. THEY CAN’T RUN THAT MUCH AND THEY CAN’T KICK HARD ENOUGH.
Leave them on small fields where they can improve technical abilities, which we severely lack in.( It showed in our games, can’t connect good passes together and can’t even hit the net.)
As someone from the outside looking in I’ll tell you what’s wrong with Canadian soccer. Canada has turned it into a rich people’s sport. Have you ever seen the cost of these “soccer camps”? Look I’m not here to be stereotypical but most of the kids I see playing organized soccer are white kids who, no offense to any of you, have little to no technical ability and cannot read he game particularly well. What you are exceptional at is running. You’re athletes first and footballers second, you use speed and power to play, not skill and ball intelligence. You ever wonder how there’s always so many great Brazilian players and then read about how they grew up poor and played in the streets? That’s how you develop skill and ball intelligence – small games in confined spaces. I’ve seen organized soccer here in Canada and at the grassroots level it does not promote the technical side of the game very well. It’s kids on a big field running up and down.
Again I come to this idea of money as immigrants are typically far better individually at the game than white Canadians but most cannot afford to pay to attend soccer camps so they’re stuck playing pick up games and you can only elevate your status so far in Sunday pick up. Right now I’m playing in an indoor league and the cost is fair for someone who works, is single and earns average income. Put that salary for a family and no way could they afford to do pay that. My point is simply this: immigrant kids are technically better but they do not have the financial means to play at a high level. Whereas white Canadians do not understand the game at the same level due to poor grassroots and the two socioeconomic classes hardly ever get to mix so that Canadians can expand their game. Canadians play with Canadians so they never get better or get to understand other styles of play they can learn from other immigrant kids who cannot afford to play organized sports in this country.
Expensive? Yes. Exclusively white, not so much. My six year-old son plays 4 days a week through the winter, including two days with the Brazilian soccer school of Guelph, using the futsal, and an Identification & Development Programme through Guelph soccer. He and his mates are getting excellent coaching, all focused on precise ball control and touch with some attention paid to team tactics like spacing. These groups happen to be very multicultural (my son is Korean, his best mate is Japanese, some of the other kids are black and Latino, the coaches include Latinos and black adults). However, it is definitely costly. There are some programmes in town to help kids play who can’t afford to pay, and coaching house league myself I’ve met families who have used them, but my guess is that the elite training programmes rarely avail themselves of those programmes. Helping poor, talented kids get more training should be a priority.
Thanks for the article Richard. I made my decision two years ago to do something about Canada’s lack of development; myself and a business partner are developing a club with the goal to teach skills (i.e., Cruyff turn, Matthews turn, et.c.) to youth soccer players, along with instituting the proper goal for youth teams: skill development. We are seeking out like-minded individuals and academies and clubs as well, in order to work together. The long term goal being to be participate in and support a regional third tier development league. So again, thank you for putting out the challenge. I believe the answer is simple: teach & develop skills (what Canadians would probably call fancy shit) and then give the 17-21 year olds a place to play and practice their craft in Canada (a league that doesn’t pander to match-fixing European players… ahem CSL).
As far as volunteering, that’s great. But Canada needs professional development, which means dedicated training & coaching staff. Lets get out of the mindset that every soccer club has to be a volunteer run organization and that aspiring young soccer players won’t put in the resources that aspiring young hockey players do in this country.
You should check out Brazilian soccer schools.
I whole heartedly agree, Competition at the higher levels needs to be implemented, The CSA and the Provincial Organizations need to work better together, unfortunately we live in Canada and have that vast space to travel and cover if we want our best youth talent to train together and creating an adhesive, beneficial National Youth program that benefits our Children will always be problematic. Even the LTPD program address this to some extent restricting travel at the various ages as they should, spend more time on the field then in the car and you will have a better player. We as Canadians and New Canadians need to address one basic starting idea, the club, parents and players need to embrace the local club, and once this happens the rest will follow, it seems the frame work is being put into place slowly by CSA, OSA but if we do not come together at the individual club level it will surely fail.