Two Squamish United Football Club youth soccer teams are headed for the 小蓝视频 Soccer Provincial Championships in July.
The Under 15 girls and Under 16 boys teams came out on top of their Division 2 league to directly qualify for the competition that will be held in Kamloops later this year.
Squamish United Football Club technical Director, Peter Weiland, told The 小蓝视频 that it was an exciting achievement for both teams who have missed out on qualifying over the past few years.
鈥淲e have 18 clubs in the 小蓝视频 Coastal Soccer League, and all age groups from years 11 and up, and those two teams were our most successful teams this season,鈥� Weiland said.
鈥淭he boys were undefeated, so that's a feat in itself and the girls U15 team, they only lost one game.
鈥淲e won the West division, and both teams have the highest point-per-game average, and so they qualify automatically [for provincials].鈥�
It will be the first time in eight years the boys have made it to provincials and 15 years for the girls.
鈥淚 think it's validation for them, and especially the stronger players who've stayed here and had the opportunity to play soccer with their classmates and friends,鈥� Weiland said of the achievement..
鈥淚t's [also] a testament to the coaches of both teams who've been coaching these teams since the kids turned 10 years old. So five and six seasons total, that's a lot of hours and rain and shine on the field with them.
鈥淎nd for our club, I think we always try to present that message, you don't need to go to Vancouver and drive three times a week to play quality soccer.鈥�
Head coach Mark Appelman and assistant coach Tim Shier are behind the success of the U16 boys, with Tricia Duncan, Gillian Bigsby Frantz and Kristy Black leading the U15 girls to their best season.
For the love of sport
Weiland said that the fact Squamish is a very athletic town, can often have a negative impact on youth soccer teams鈥� success.
鈥淭he athletic area is exactly part of the problem because a lot of our kids here are multi-sport athletes. So often, eventually, they choose [another sport],鈥� he said.
鈥淲e coached Jackson Goldstone, who is now world champion in mountain biking and Teigen Pascual, who is in the top three or five in Canada in BMX. Soccer is a great foundation for agility and it's a great foundation to branch out in other sports.
鈥淪o a lot of these kids have all been multi-sport athletes, and so often we lose some top talent to other sports.鈥�
Despite this, he is confident both teams have what it takes to bring home the win at provincials.
鈥淏oth of these teams are the top teams in the Lower Mainland in their division and traditionally, lower mainland clubs do really well at provincials,鈥� he said.
鈥淪o my guess would be that they have a chance to go all the way, if it's their day. It's a four-day tournament, so if luck and good form and everything coincides then I think both teams have a great chance to at least get on the podium.鈥�
Coastal Cup
Both teams will also take part in the 小蓝视频 Coastal Soccer League鈥檚 Coastal Cup prior to provincials.
鈥淭he Coastal Cup is the best 16 teams from the Lower Mainland in their division, so they play four rounds. And because our teams were both division winners, they have home turf advantage and will play up until the semifinals here in Squamish, that's all in April,鈥� Weiland said.
The top two teams from the competition will also head to provincials, but for the Squamish United teams, they will enter just for some friendly competition as they have already secured a spot.
鈥淭hey can enter it without the stress of having to make the finals 鈥� so the Coastal Cup is a bonus, and I hope, actually, that they will win that too,鈥� Weiland said.
For more information on youth soccer in Squamish, visit the
-Please note this story was updated to include Kristy Black as one of the U15 girls' coaches.
