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Valour FC - 2023 Season Thread


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On 4/14/2023 at 1:19 AM, Bison44 said:

If Valour does start to draw 6 or 10k a game, WEC will just charge them more for the stadium use and they'll still post small losses and the Bombers will be happy.  

"IG Field is a complicated issue.  It's all at once grand and also a handicap.  But one thing it isn't though, is short of potential.  A LOT of good seats are waiting to be filled, and a marketplace is there to fill them if you have something that market is willing to buy.  But that part is down to Valour."

Its a modern useable stadium.  I guess it would be nice to be packed into a temp bleachers (thrown up in 6 weeks) lining up for porta potties and looking for hot dog vendors in the parking lot.  But my family was very happy to have nice seats, bathrooms, tons of food options, the bomber shop and a nice stadium to walk around, even if the other side of the stands was empty.    There are other football stadiums in use (its just a fact of life in canada right now), we could have been fighting for years like Saskatoon trying to get something new built.  If Valour ever catches fire we wont have to "redo" the stadium for an expanding fan base.  Like Cheeta said, its built, its ready to go, we just need the people to see it as a fun outing with good soccer.  

I have similar thoughts on attending matches at Tim Horton Field, it isn't perfect for soccer but it is a very comfortable game day experience, rarely any long lineups for food and beverage, lots of washrooms and decent sight lines! Yes I wish we had a soccer specific stadium, with a grass pitch or even some sort of roof covering the fans in bad weather but given the whole business dynamic of it THF works just fine!

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27 minutes ago, gator said:

I have similar thoughts on attending matches at Tim Horton Field, it isn't perfect for soccer but it is a very comfortable game day experience, rarely any long lineups for food and beverage, lots of washrooms and decent sight lines! Yes I wish we had a soccer specific stadium, with a grass pitch or even some sort of roof covering the fans in bad weather but given the whole business dynamic of it THF works just fine!

Doesn't hurt that I live only a few blocks away either lol.

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On 4/12/2023 at 6:50 PM, jonovision said:

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2023/04/12/valour-fc-in-it-to-win-it

Not much in terms of breaking news for the diehard fans, but good as always for the team to be getting some press. Of interest, Polisi, Mzoughi and Jean-Baptiste are not available for the match vs York.

Add Haynes to the list of the injured.  "Valour, meanwhile, will be without defender Andrew Jean-Baptiste, while Jordan Haynes and Marcello Polisi are both day-to-day with injuries."

https://canpl.ca/article/preview-york-united-fc-vs-valour-fc-2023-match-4

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When I look at the roster, I see a very defender-heavy roster.

Valour need to tighten up at the back, but we also lost all of our creativity and goal scoring from last year. 

In order to improve this year, Siaj, Ulloa, Williams, Ponce, Novak and Pacifique are going to have to produce (de Brienne seems to be moved to LB this year if pre-season reports are true).

Ponce was dogshit last year. I'm not thrilled about him returning. Ulloa was not very good when he was with Valour in 2021, but he's only 21 years old and maybe he's (hopefully) improved. Siaj and Williams are wildcards. Pacificque has by all accounts been impressive in pre-season. Novak has not played in a while, but should be good for a couple of goals as he is dependable, but not an elite attacker.

CM is an area that hopefully improves this year. I like Guti and Rendon together. It will be nice not to have Forydyce on the field as he was absolutely spent by last year. Some midfield bite with Ohin and or Polisi should be better than Fordyce, but it would be great to get a few goals from our CM this year and I don't forsee that happening.

Who knows if our defence will be better or worse. Mekideche and Levis were probably our best players last year. Both are gone. If our defence plays better as a unit this year, I'm not concerned about who is out there. I'm just glad I don't have to watch Cebara gift the opposition a goal every game anymore.

The best news of 2023 - No FC Edmonton in the league anymore as Valour just couldnt figure out the last-placed team whever they played and dropped a ton of points against them when no other team did.

Season prediction - We won't have above average offensive output, and also won't be able to shut out other teams consistently, either. It will be another difficult "just outside the post-season" type of season.

6-7th place.

 

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^ I don't know where the goals come from.  Does Dos Santos?

Dangerous business if your opponents aren't afraid of you scoring a goal.  They'll just get at you.

Here's hoping some of these pieces the gaffer brought in can click.  Could use a pleasant surprise.

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1 minute ago, Cheeta said:

^ I don't know where the goals come from.  Does Dos Santos?

Dangerous business if your opponents aren't afraid of you scoring a goal.  They'll just get at you.

Here's hoping some of these pieces the gaffer brought in can click.  Could use a pleasant surprise.

For me there is more finishing talent in the squad than last year, if even one of the new guys pans out at all. Dyer got a ton of chances but wasn't an above average finisher. Lots of PK goals among his Valour totals. Novak was annoying to play against because he doesn't give the appearance of having any talent but often scored. We haven't seen Niyongabire play but my guess is he will be a more than adequate Akio replacement. The creativity of Rea will be tough to replace, but a tradeoff is that whoever takes his spot will likely give much more defensive help. 

Gutierrez is Valour's best player and perhaps if Ohin assumes more of the defensive duties he can provide more going forward.

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The way I see things, Ohin will be the defensive block between the defence and midfield (assuming PDS goes 4-3-3). Guti and Rendon in the centre of the park with Niyongabire on the left and Ulloa or Williams on the right. Up top, it will be one of either Novak, Ponce or Siaj (I am not confident in either of them at present).

However,

Should PDS look to play a 4-2-3-1, Ohin will probably partner Guti with the latter being the more attacking/creative of the two. Again, Niyongabire on the left and Ulloa on the right with Williams in the hole. Lone striker the same as above.

I think the defence picks itself in both scenarios, with Yesli in goal, Baquero and (a fit) Haynes as full backs (although I would opt for de Brienne over a fit Haynes). First choice centre back pairing will be Samake and (again, a fit) AJB. Should one of those be injured (I'm looking at you, AJB), Pianelli will get the nod, unless the opposition are strong in the air, in which case, the 6'6 Chandler will get the nod.

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Even though I may rib the Manitobans, I sincerely think the Valour fans and thread on this board are by far the most engaged and interesting of all the CPL teams. So if Valour does well this season that will be great for the league, no question. CPL could do with new power poles and winners.

And if the Blue Bombers tone it down a bit it'll be easier to handle for the rest of us.

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I do wish bomber players and the bomber social media admin made a bit of a fuss about Valour. Last home game I was at Zach Collaros was there with his family. Why no-one thought to do a quick pic and a 20 second interview for twitter and instagram is beyond me. that and why they don’t use bomber games for more Valour ads and ticket giveaways.

 

Really the team should be doling out tickets, merch and food to bomber players and their families with a simple ask that they post to their socials. Think of how many people follow Willie Jefferson, Brady Olivera, Adam bighill, and past players like John Rush. 
 

finally we need a different sponsor. I don’t have a problem with one soccer, but no one that isn’t already watching doesn’t know they exist. We need someone more local and big to step up like Neo financial, Skip the dishes or CanadaLife. Someone that will push for more local exposure and who can leverage their existing customer base.

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2 minutes ago, Moore204 said:

I do wish bomber players and the bomber social media admin made a bit of a fuss about Valour. Last home game I was at Zach Collaros was there with his family. Why no-one thought to do a quick pic and a 20 second interview for twitter and instagram is beyond me. that and why they don’t use bomber games for more Valour ads and ticket giveaways.

 

Really the team should be doling out tickets, merch and food to bomber players and their families with a simple ask that they post to their socials. Think of how many people follow Willie Jefferson, Brady Olivera, Adam bighill, and past players like John Rush. 
 

finally we need a different sponsor. I don’t have a problem with one soccer, but no one that isn’t already watching doesn’t know they exist. We need someone more local and big to step up like Neo financial, Skip the dishes or CanadaLife. Someone that will push for more local exposure and who can leverage their existing customer base.

Gatorade and Allstate are 2 major league sponsors that aren't on any teams jerseys.

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1 hour ago, K Edgar said:

Not sure about the source of this tweet...

I saw that this weekend. The guy runs some sort of esports company that seems legit. I somehow doubt this is particularly likely to happen, though, and despite claims to the contrary, I believe owning Valour is valuable to WFC as long as losses (or "losses") aren't excessive. 

Nice profile and it seems like an interesting line of business to be in, but they hardly seem like titans of industry: https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/2023/03/14/going-for-an-economic-touchdown

Edited by jonovision
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"Not sure about the source of this tweet..."

Well its responding to a Calgary supporter complaining about WPG Valour, so right there its sus as my 8 year old would say.  WHo is this guy/company and do they have any kind of cred to get into owning a team??  And are there actually people lining up to buy existing CPL teams??  Finding suitable owners and stadiums in towns that have enough interest to support a team isnt easy as we have all seen.  

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1 hour ago, EnigMattic1 said:

Niyongabire. Is he a left winger or a right winger (or both)? I was under the impression that he was a left winger and Williams was a right winger yet they were on the opposite sides vs York.

Niyongabire is a right winger and Williams an attacking mid -- according to transfermarkt.

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4 hours ago, Bison44 said:

"Not sure about the source of this tweet..."

Well its responding to a Calgary supporter complaining about WPG Valour, so right there its sus as my 8 year old would say.  WHo is this guy/company and do they have any kind of cred to get into owning a team??  And are there actually people lining up to buy existing CPL teams??  Finding suitable owners and stadiums in towns that have enough interest to support a team isnt easy as we have all seen.  

A quick LinkedIn check reveals he used to work for Paquin Entertainment and left to start New Frontier

From their site: " New Frontier Esports & Entertainment is a grassroots, Canadian Esports organization that is dedicated to the development of this new and innovative form of digital entertainment. We’re Canada’s first independent Gaming, Entertainment, Media, and Esports agency. We’re excited to power the business behind today’s newest entertainment industry."

Are they legit? As much as any startup. They've only been in business for 2 years. There are a couple odd things about them. Of the seven listed employees, one works for Precision ADM Group (they were in the news recently because they made those unusable washable silicone covid masks that were just in the local news), another is listed as 'Angel Investor' from Abbi Ventures, and a third is a consultant with KPMG Deal Advisory.

They were also in the WFP last month. I don't subscribe to the WFP so I don't know what the article actually says. 

Instagram     Free Press Article

In the end though I don't see why they couldn't do it like True North S&E.  An ownership group with a small, less well capitalized but charismatic and energetic face to the group, with a bigger, silent investor to keep the money flowing. It would just be a matter of finding someone.

And sure, they could pay WFC to use IG Field or they could build a modular stadium at Cantafio, but the bigger question that hasn't been asked is how much would WFC want if they were to sell Valour? The price would certainly be higher if a prospective buyer approached them versus WFC trying to dump the team. I don't know and I don't care to speculate. In the end, if he's got enough interest and passion for the team to want to make a play for ownership, more power to him. 

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2 hours ago, Moore204 said:

In the end though I don't see why they couldn't do it like True North S&E.  An ownership group with a small, less well capitalized but charismatic and energetic face to the group, with a bigger, silent investor to keep the money flowing. It would just be a matter of finding someone.

Yeah I saw that and it didnt fill in the picture any.  The problem is finding big deep pocketed investors that can soak up some losses without throwing in the towel.  Investors like David Thomson (richest man in canada) dont just fall into guys laps eh?  I could do it, if my old man owned 10 car dealerships (like Chipman), my family were millionaires and I was best friends with one of the Richardsons.  Maybe this guy has connections like that...but I doubt it.  

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