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Victoria Highlanders FC | USL Premier Development League


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#81 tedward

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Posted 21 July 2014 - 01:35 PM

A little note: tickets should be picked up @ Centennial Stadium, Apparently Select Your Tickets directed some people to pick them up at RAP.  :whyme:

 

Oh, and if anyone is interested there are already two food trucks, Wannawafel and mini donuts carts as well as lots of tents which may have extra food service for tonight.


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#82 pontcanna

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 07:51 AM

I heard the Sunday nite Meet/Greet with Rangers FC at the Strath was either a disaster or didn't happen? Anybody with the details?



#83 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 08:01 AM

I heard the Sunday nite Meet/Greet with Rangers FC at the Strath was either a disaster or didn't happen? Anybody with the details?

 

Ya, it got cancelled.

 

Game was a success:  http://www.timescolo...adium-1.1254830


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#84 thundergun

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 09:06 AM

^ Yeah, I went and had a good time. Hopefully this becomes a recurring event. The layout at Centennial wasn't perfect but seemed to work fairly well. Only glaring oversight I noticed was only having one food truck that served meals (three if you count donuts/waffles as meals) and some little hot dog wagon. Other vendors missed some good business out there - lineups were huge and people were in a spending mood.



#85 tedward

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 12:15 PM

^ Yeah, I went and had a good time. Hopefully this becomes a recurring event. The layout at Centennial wasn't perfect but seemed to work fairly well. Only glaring oversight I noticed was only having one food truck that served meals (three if you count donuts/waffles as meals) and some little hot dog wagon. Other vendors missed some good business out there - lineups were huge and people were in a spending mood.

 

Sad for the other food truck down by the scoreboard that you and so many people missed it. I only noticed it because I wandered around to check out all the the food options.

Even with all the wannabees and tourists in blue shirts it was a good game. :P


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#86 thundergun

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 01:00 PM

Sad for the other food truck down by the scoreboard that you and so many people missed it.

 

Sorry, forgot about that smoked meat one. As a vegetarian though, the options were essentially zilch.



#87 jonny

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 01:23 PM

So what does the Highlanders' GM mean when he says things like:

 

 

“I think we can continue to see more marked improvement in our attendances. We’ve always said this, it’s not a word of a lie. We’ve been saying it since 2009 and maybe it gets old, but it’s going to happen soon. We really do want to move to another level and events like this show us it’s possible,” said De Frias. “It shows us that Victoria wants to have a higher level of football here and we’re happy.”

 

Pro?

 

The pro leagues all seem to be in the southern and eastern US. I don't see how that would be feasible here.



#88 thundergun

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 02:40 PM

Good question. I find the North American soccer pyramid confusing at the best of times so who knows what he's referring to. Took a quick peak and found something that may be of interest. Note - I have no soccer contacts and my knowledge of the sport is minimal at best.

 

North American Soccer League Future Planned Expansion

"In July 2014, it was reported that the NASL and the Canadian Soccer Association were looking into creating a seven team all Canadian league with the help of the CFL by 2016, thus establishing the first top tier fully Canadian league since Canadian Soccer League which folded in 1992.[60] FC Edmonton and Ottawa Fury would likely join this league."



#89 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 22 July 2014 - 03:35 PM

 

North American Soccer League Future Planned Expansion

"In July 2014, it was reported that the NASL and the Canadian Soccer Association were looking into creating a seven team all Canadian league with the help of the CFL by 2016, thus establishing the first top tier fully Canadian league since Canadian Soccer League which folded in 1992.[60] FC Edmonton and Ottawa Fury would likely join this league."

 

Ya, I had beers with the Highlanders GM 2 weeks ago and he talked of this.  Very interesting.


<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#90 jonny

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 07:30 AM

So the Highlanders want to go pro. Interesting.

 

That's kind of what I was thinking, but he nearest NASL team is Edmonton, which doesn't seem terribly feasible from a cost perspective. Those would be some long bus trips!

 

If he's looking for attendance to be around 5,000-6,000 they wouldn't be able to stay at RAP in its current state as it only holds three thousand I think for soccer in the bleachers. Centennial stadium has around 5,000 permanent seats, I believe.



#91 jonny

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 07:38 AM

Note that NASL average attendance for 2011, 2012 and 2013 was 3,770, 3,806 and 4,670 respectively.

 

Those are certainly achievable numbers here, but Victorians are cheapskates and travel would be terrible. Hopefully if that was the plan, we'd see teams in Vancouver, Kelowna and Calgary as well to at least have some places within a day's bus ride.

 

Ottawa Fury tickets range from $15-35. FC Edmonton tickets seem to range from $15-30.

 

Travel for the entire NASL is brutal with teams from Edmonton, Ottawa, San Antonio and Florida. Those are some brutal bus trips!



#92 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:02 AM

HERE are some very recent attendance stats (perhaps 2 weeks old) for all levels of soccer in North America.  Highlanders are 9th in the PDL, but the crowd size is not exactly phenomenal, at 1,314.  They only play about 8 home games each season, and our baseball team, that plays 27 (including usually 3 in a row each series) has a higher average attendance (about 1500).


<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#93 tedward

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:09 AM

Sorry, forgot about that smoked meat one. As a vegetarian though, the options were essentially zilch.

 

And a total lack of gluten-free options - as my G-F friend mentioned several times. ;)

 

 

... but he nearest NASL team is Edmonton, which doesn't seem terribly feasible from a cost perspective. Those would be some long bus trips!

 

What little is known of the CFL-NASL-CSA negotiations seems to be thus:

  • the "league" would be connected to the NASL and thus would play American teams as part of the season.
  • each CFL team would have the option for team in this league to add more dates to their stadium events schedule
  • That adds Regina, Calgary and Winnipeg to Edmonton in the west
  • Victoria could be affiliated with (get an investment from) the BC Lions

 

If he's looking for attendance to be around 5,000-6,000 they wouldn't be able to stay at RAP in its current state as it only holds three thousand I think for soccer in the bleachers. Centennial stadium has around 5,000 permanent seats, I believe.

 

The Highlanders have been quietly talking about new or renovated stadium options for a couple of years now. There was even talk of turning the old velodrome in Colwood into a soccer-specific stadium.


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#94 jonny

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:16 AM

What little is known of the CFL-NASL-CSA negotiations seems to be thus:

  • the "league" would be connected to the NASL and thus would play American teams as part of the season.
  • each CFL team would have the option for team in this league to add more dates to their stadium events schedule
  • That adds Regina, Calgary and Winnipeg to Edmonton in the west
  • Victoria could be affiliated with (get an investment from) the BC Lions

 

The Highlanders have been quietly talking about new or renovated stadium options for a couple of years now. There was even talk of turning the old velodrome in Colwood into a soccer-specific stadium.

 

Interesting.

 

I'd love to see them stay at a renovated RAP. I thought moving to the city was a success for the Highlanders? Spending a bunch of capital out in Colwood with Capital City Center would be a mistake.



#95 thundergun

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:17 AM

^^ I'm interested to see how this all plays out. In the CFL cities that already have MLS teams (Van, TO & Mtl) I would be surprised if they try to support a secondary team. Perhaps Victoria could be BC's team - and maybe Hamilton/Quebec City for the others.

 

A soccer specific stadium would be great, but hopefully somewhere more central than Colwood.



#96 Mike K.

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:26 AM

Wouldn't it be great to have a BC team here? I think that would actually boost attendance to some of the highest levels in whatever league the team played in.

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#97 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:39 AM

I'd like to see them stay at RAP too.  It's a good field.


<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#98 jonny

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:42 AM

Wouldn't it be great to have a BC team here? I think that would actually boost attendance to some of the highest levels in whatever league the team played in.

 

What do you mean "a BC team here"?



#99 jonny

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 08:42 AM

I'd like to see them stay at RAP too.  It's a good field.

 

It's excellent.

 

I guess a problem could be that the Highlanders could never have a grandstand on the other side of the field with the way the field is currently used.



#100 tedward

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Posted 23 July 2014 - 09:23 AM

I'd love to see them stay at a renovated RAP. I thought moving to the city was a success for the Highlanders? Spending a bunch of capital out in Colwood with Capital City Center would be a mistake.

 

Yes, and that is, IMO one of the reasons they dropped the idea. Sorry if that was not clear: there is NO CURRENT PLAN to move back out to Colwood/Langford area. 

 

 

Wouldn't it be great to have a BC team here? I think that would actually boost attendance to some of the highest levels in whatever league the team played in.

 

Yep IMO it is clear that Victoria is ready to support a higher caliber of soccer and attendances would rise significantly if we went pro.

 

 

... the Highlanders could never have a grandstand on the other side of the field with the way the field is currently used.

 

Not a full-length grandstand anyway.

 

I thought it was interesting when someone pointed out that orienting the field perpendicular to it's current east-west might be feasible.


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