Victoria Highlanders soccer team eyes higher level
The Victoria Highlanders play the first leg of a home-and-home friendly series this Sunday, August 8th, at Bear Mountain Stadium in Langford. The opponent is Edmonton FC, a team scheduled to make a step up into the new NASL pro tier of North American soccer next season.
Highlanders general manager Drew Finerty considers this game as a bit of a bellwether to determine community support for a possible bid by the Highlanders to move to a higher level themselves. Currently, the Highlanders play in what is called the Professional Development League (PDL), a step below the USL (and coming NASL) tier, which in turn is one step behind the top North American league, Major League Soccer (MLS). The Vancouver Whitecaps recently announced their coming move from the USL into the MLS in conjunction with the renovations to BC Place stadium currently underway.
The Victoria Highlanders playing at Bear Mountain Stadium at City Centre Park. Photo © by Victoria Highlanders Football Club.
In order to move up a notch, Finerty says the Highlanders need a few things to fall into place. First and foremost, they need to believe that they can put enough supporters in the bleachers to make the move financially viable. And at some point, they’ll need a firm commitment from Langford to increase seating at their City Centre Park stadium home, to a permanent capacity of well over 2000. It currently fits 1200 and is fitted out with extra bleachers set to either side of the main grandstand.
Finerty thinks that the team has met most of the milestones set out when he took control of the club three years ago. He’s hopeful that a large crowd for Sundays game will give them the confidence to keep moving forward. He admits that even though the Island supports a huge base of amateur play, both through youth teams and the men’s and women’s Vancouver Island Soccer League divisions, he’s not sure that everyone is familiar with the elite level of soccer on display at Highlanders games.
Part of the Highlanders commitment to youth soccer involves building a feeder program where top players in their late teens have an outlet to continue on in highly competitive play. Finerty says that when youth players see that there is a clear, continuing route upwards into professional ranks, that will spawn an appreciation for the Highlanders caliber of play, and also translate into more support in the stands for the team.
Sunday’s game starts at 6pm at Bear Mountain Stadium, located at the City Centre Park complex in Langford, on Langford Parkway. Tickets are available for purchase online here or at the gate on game day.
You can follow Victoria Highlanders soccer news on the VibrantVictoria discussion forum here.
Responses to this Headline or Article
The five most recent replies to VibrantVictoria.ca's discussion forum's Victoria Highlanders FC thread, the most relevant thread to the above headline or article:
VicHockeyFan
Jul 30, 2011 at 2:42 pmA loss today to Fresno.
tedward
Aug 02, 2011 at 2:11 pm
If the Victoria Highlanders do eventually make the jump to the professional ranks in the United Soccer League, they will owe a lot to the foundation laid by Drew Finerty.
But starting today, the team will be under someone else’s guidance. Finerty stepped down Monday as general manager of the USL Premier Development League organization.
Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/health/Finerty+steps+down+Highlanders/5190404/story.html
spanky123
Aug 02, 2011 at 3:59 pmSounds like the coach is next to go. The article on Saturday certainly didn't sound like he was intending to renew his contract.
tedward
Aug 03, 2011 at 2:55 pmNot sure I'd be sorry to see Bridge leave. If we are going to move up to USLPro we will need a new coach.
ViccyScrub
Jan 02, 2012 at 4:53 pmDespite being in the middle of the off-season, it's been an eventful two months for Victoria Highlanders FC.
In early November, the club announced that it would be shaking up the ownership structure, giving 60% of the club to its supporters and community soccer clubs. The new structure is as follows:
People who purchase a season ticket will receive an ownership share in the club, will get to vote on several issues at the club's annual general meetings, and will be able to vote for two supporter representatives who will sit on the club's board of directors.
As such, Victoria Highlanders are now the first high-level soccer club north of Mexico to boast community/supporter ownership.
Victoria Highlanders fans have taken the initiative of setting up an organization that will represent them as supporter-owners (shareholders) of the club. It has been named VISTA (Victoria Independent Supporters' Trust Associated), and can be found on Twitter and Facebook.
If you're not familar with the concept of a supporters' trust, you can read more about it here.
The new community-ownership model has attracted a tremendous amount of attention. Victoria Highlanders have already broken their record for number of season tickets sold, despite there still being four months until the 2012 season begins.
