League1 BC 2023

[Raven]

All news related to the 2023 Season.

 

League1 BC proudly welcomes @harboursidefc as its 1st expansion club! Based in Nanaimo & representing the mid-Island region, they're the 8th member of @league1bc & join the league's founding 7 clubs to kick off league action in the 2023 season.

October 19, 2022 – Vancouver BC

Following a comprehensive application process, League1 BC is excited to welcome its first expansion club, and second on Vancouver Island. With this new addition, eight clubs will now compete in 2023, League1 BC’s second season.

https://league1bc.ca/video/league1-bc-welcomes-harbourside-football-club-as-newest-license-holder-and-first-ever-expansion-team

[MM3/MM2/MM]

Hopefully they upgrade their website with player rosters and game summaries.  Both L1O and PLSQ do a good job.

[ted]

9 hours ago, Raven said:

 BC proudly welcomes @harboursidefc as its 1st expansion club!

Finally the Island Derby is back! #NoFerry

[Raven]

Interesting news from Burnaby. BCLeague1 2024?

 

[Watchmen]

On 12/17/2022 at 10:03 AM, Raven said:

Interesting news from Burnaby. BCLeague1 2024?

 

Maybe, but it actually sounds like its more a case of cutting through some red tape and giving kids more options for their development. JJ Adams wrote a bit about it (and the state of BC soccer in general).

 

[Unnamed Trialist]

10 hours ago, Watchmen said:

Maybe, but it actually sounds like its more a case of cutting through some red tape and giving kids more options for their development. JJ Adams wrote a bit about it (and the state of BC soccer in general).

Unusually long and thorough article, in general well written and correct. Good to catch the spirit of a more collaborative mentality.

Some little errors (BC does not have more pro-semi/pro outlets than Ontario right now, it is clearly less), but I like to see it.

He did not talk about physical infrastructure, which we also need to build to accompany 2026. Even if it is smaller stadiums, training centres with at least one well-kept grass field. Could also look at quality of coaching, getting more qualified people into coaching the kids.

[Watchmen]

3 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

Unusually long and thorough article, in general well written and correct. Good to catch the spirit of a more collaborative mentality.

Some little errors (BC does not have more pro-semi/pro outlets than Ontario right now, it is clearly less), but I like to see it.

He did not talk about physical infrastructure, which we also need to build to accompany 2026. Even if it is smaller stadiums, training centres with at least one well-kept grass field. Could also look at quality of coaching, getting more qualified people into coaching the kids.

Yeah, I noticed the error in the BC vs Ontario teams too and assumed he miscounted on Ontario (TFC, Forge, York, Ottawa vs Whitecaps, Pacific, Langley, and a potential Kelowna team).

I've thought about that coaching situation before. Mostly after Iceland qualified for a major tournament and discussed how they knew they couldn't compete by having a "pro" league, so they compensated by having more highly qualified coaches per kid than any other country. I'm not saying that's the solution for Canada, but certainly working to increase the number of qualified coaches should be a goal.

[davey_twelve]

Thanks for posting the article, provides a good background for soccer in the province and some interesting pieces to think about.

- He does bring up the mild climate as an advantage for training year round but I find this to be more of a drawback.

- I agree that coaching development needs to be a goal. Seemed almost like a throwaway comment in the article mentioning that there are only 10 coaches in the Lower Mainland with a 'coveted Youth License'. I know it's a fairly recent addition to the licensing pathway but that seems quite low. Curious as to what BC Soccer/CSA is/can doing to promote here.

[Soccerpro2]

The League1 BC season was super short compared to League1 Ontario. Is it going to be longer this year?

[ted]

6 hours ago, Soccerpro2 said:

The League1 BC season was super short compared to League1 Ontario. Is it going to be longer this year?

I doubt it. The problem is that the L1BC season is in opposition to the already existing seasons for the teams from which it draws players. University players start in August and play through to November while Vancouver Metro and VISL leagues run September through May.

I's a vicious circle. So long as L1BC is mostly amateur players it cannot expand it's season, and so long as it is a short season it cannot attract anything but amateur players.

[Kent]

2 hours ago, ted said:

I doubt it. The problem is that the L1BC season is in opposition to the already existing seasons for the teams from which it draws players. University players start in August and play through to November while Vancouver Metro and VISL leagues run September through May.

I's a vicious circle. So long as L1BC is mostly amateur players it cannot expand it's season, and so long as it is a short season it cannot attract anything but amateur players.

Serious question, have players from Vancouver Metro and VISL been getting on CPL teams? I assume there must be some? If that isn't happening much, I would hope the BC players with the talent to play in L1BC will see the example set by L1O and PLSQ and see that it can be a pathway to pro soccer.

[Soccerpro2]

12 hours ago, ted said:

I doubt it. The problem is that the L1BC season is in opposition to the already existing seasons for the teams from which it draws players. University players start in August and play through to November while Vancouver Metro and VISL leagues run September through May.

I's a vicious circle. So long as L1BC is mostly amateur players it cannot expand it's season, and so long as it is a short season it cannot attract anything but amateur players.

How much of an impact can League1 BC make with a 12-14 game season? Isn't it essentially the PDL, but with more Canadian teams?

[ted]

On 12/24/2022 at 11:16 AM, Soccerpro2 said:

How much of an impact can League1 BC make with a 12-14 game season? Isn't it essentially the PDL, but with more Canadian teams?

Even worse, it's the Pacific Coast Soccer League with delusions of grandeur.

On 12/24/2022 at 12:57 AM, Kent said:

I would hope the BC players with the talent to play in L1BC will see the example set by L1O and PLSQ and see that it can be a pathway to pro soccer.

Not much when the "real" season (ie VMSL and VISL) is played September - May. Summer soccer in BC has always had trouble. In Ontario and Quebec you have to make a choice, here you can play both.

[Watchmen]

19 hours ago, ted said:

Not much when the "real" season (ie VMSL and VISL) is played September - May. Summer soccer in BC has always had trouble. In Ontario and Quebec you have to make a choice, here you can play both.

I'm giving BC Soccer a bit of slack because there's clearly a ton of infighting going on between them and VMSL/VISL/FVSL, so just getting L1BC up and running was a big step. But, at some point they're going to have to grow a spine and move to a lengthier season that overlaps those leagues. The current model hasn't worked in decades, so there's no point bowing to the pressure from failed development leagues.

[Unnamed Trialist]

On 12/29/2022 at 5:21 AM, ted said:

Even worse, it's the Pacific Coast Soccer League with delusions of grandeur.

Not much when the "real" season (ie VMSL and VISL) is played September - May. Summer soccer in BC has always had trouble. In Ontario and Quebec you have to make a choice, here you can play both.

Odd you'd say that, as a former and very enthusiastic fan of a PDL team that had the same length season.

In any case, a couple things:

-it was their first season; in Ontario L1 first season they played 16 games. As L1BC expands, they'll likely play more too.

-the league impacted U-Sports directly, with the two national finalists both teams that had been in L1BC, two teams that had played together L1 and then U-Sports from April to December.

-those teams then had players drafted by the CPL. 

-the first winner qualified for the Voyageurs Cup. PCSL, VMSL, other, never qualilfied and never even argued they should. So implicitly, they know that they are on a lower level and the aspiration was always local and amateur.

-L1BC is slowly expanding, and in ways you seemed to be pleased by (Vancouver Island Derby)

Not bad for a league that just started playing 8 months ago.

[MM3/MM2/MM]

I don't think that @ted would disagree with any of your points.  

[Unnamed Trialist]

1 hour ago, MM3/MM2/MM said:

I don't think that @ted would disagree with any of your points.  

Why is he so snarky about it then, I don't get it?

In the rest of Canada, there is no real choice, so if you have any league at all it is March-April to November, even December pushing things. Like MLS. 

L1O and the Quebec equivalent grew, and fast, with lots of smaller clubs joining in, precisely because there was no alternative. You have a chance to do a broad coverage of the football landscape of both provinces. Well, there was, CSL, but it soon became clear it was too corrupted to be reliable and players realised it too.

In BC the traditions are longstanding, and these leagues are pretty good, maybe the best in PCSL or others are not that far off the best in L1BC. I saw the L1 final at Swangard, it was not a great level, to be honest, and they were playing on grass in optimal conditions. There were players who were like kids with weak football mentalities (hog, dribble, head down, no team play, defensively lazy, etc), only they were 18 or 21.

I appreciate some may be cynical about L1 having to replace the winter leagues in BC, and mostly because one may be just barely better than the others, if that. But all we are really asking for is to slightly to lengthen the season. If we could just add all of April and another week in August, you could play 18 games plus playoffs in a ten-team league. 

[Unnamed Trialist]

I wanted to add something that is important, and could be a mistake in BC. I have lauded the idea of university teams making it happen, but that is a bit of an easy way out--you are not asking clubs to commit. The universities already have facilities, coaching staff, and they have the rosters even-- they are set up. What you need is for clubs to dominate, like back east. Because a club that goes all in has a club structure, will improve facilities, including stadiums, then channels its youth into the path towards playing L1.

Because they are leagues in BC with university presence, they are blocking you from playing into the fall. The model conditions the growth of the concept. True, they could go earlier, nothing stopping that, but not later. That is not good and may not be tenable going forwards.

Of course, one subtle way to solve this would be for universities to have an A and B roster. This way the first and second year players who are often on the bench all season in U-Sports could play the fall part of the season.

Ideally all L1 in Canada would be full seasons in a high-level competitive amateur set up, fans paying to watch. And you'd be talking about at least 7-8 month seasons and 25 games. Men and women. Now that would be a powerful way to develop from ages 18 up. It'd run parallel to CPL and MLS, and you'd be able to draw players to either pro system when needed.

Edited December 30, 2022 by Unnamed Trialist

[Watchmen]

6 hours ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

-the first winner qualified for the Voyageurs Cup. PCSL, VMSL, other, never qualilfied and never even argued they should. So implicitly, they know that they are on a lower level and the aspiration was always local and amateur.

As a minor correction, I have heard that VMSL/FVSL/VISL were arguing to be a BC rep in the Voyageurs Cup (while making no changes to their leagues or failed development models). This is part of the infighting that was going on. I'm glad they were not given a spot.

[Unnamed Trialist]

7 minutes ago, Watchmen said:

As a minor correction, I have heard that VMSL/FVSL/VISL were arguing to be a BC rep in the Voyageurs Cup (while making no changes to their leagues or failed development models). This is part of the infighting that was going on. I'm glad they were not given a spot.

Thanks. I am personally not against broad participation, I'd have seen Thunder Bay Chill and other PDL clubs playing, if it were not for those proverbial short seasons. 

But I agree that the infighting is distasteful and that you have to deny them such privileges until they start to work for the bigger picture. 

We were told at the L1BC final, talking to Dino Rossi, that it was unilkely that the L1 winner would get a spot in the V-Cup. And again, that the reason was that the CSA felt the BC season was too short. So something changed between August and October. I am not saying it was L1 or the BCSA that were negotiating in favour of TSS Rovers, or the club itself, who are quite dynamic. Maybe a combination of all three. Maybe the CSA feeling guilty about screwing BC with the Iran-Panama friendlies. Sometimes an easy gesture in one area is all you need to smooth things over in an entirely different area.

Edited December 30, 2022 by Unnamed Trialist

[Watchmen]

10 minutes ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

Thanks. I am personally not against broad participation, I'd have seen Thunder Bay Chill and other PDL clubs playing, if it were not for those proverbial short seasons. 

But I agree that the infighting is distasteful and that you have to deny them such privileges until they start to work for the bigger picture. 

We were told at the L1BC final, talking to Dino Rossi, that it was unilkely that the L1 winner would get a spot in the V-Cup. And again, that the reason was that the CSA felt the BC season was too short. So something changed between August and October. I am not saying it was L1 or the BCSA that were negotiating in favour of TSS Rovers, or the club itself, who are quite dynamic. Maybe a combination of all three. Maybe the CSA feeling guilty about screwing BC with the Iran-Panama friendlies. Sometimes an easy gesture in one area is all you need to smooth things over in an entirely different area.

I think TSS winning made it easier, for sure. I think they're the ideal type of club you want in L1BC and they've already had players going through their system to the CPL.

I'm also not against broader participation in the Voyageurs Cup, but I want more representation from the L1 clubs across Canada first before moving down to the VMSL etc level. Because you're right, it's about working towards a bigger picture and the VMSL etc clubs have not been doing that and should not be rewarded for their opposition to it.

[Unnamed Trialist]

1 hour ago, Watchmen said:

I think TSS winning made it easier, for sure. I think they're the ideal type of club you want in L1BC and they've already had players going through their system to the CPL.

I'm also not against broader participation in the Voyageurs Cup, but I want more representation from the L1 clubs across Canada first before moving down to the VMSL etc level. Because you're right, it's about working towards a bigger picture and the VMSL etc clubs have not been doing that and should not be rewarded for their opposition to it.

Again, agree about TSS. Ideal club. Also must say their fans were great, and their branding and merchandising is very well done. 

We'd do well to have a dozen like that in BC League One, that would be high impact imo. As is, we need to see these big, overarching clubs (thinking of the merger making Burnaby FC) making the move to join L1 in BC, using it as their elite option. 

When a Canadian university team in L1BC qualifies for the Voyageurs Cup we will move into really unusual territory, it may even be landmark internationally, a university off-season team playing in a national cup.

[Soccerpro2]

Question: I've read a lot about why B.C has fallen from the predominant national team-producing (at least MNT) province in the 80's to it's current state. Obvious factors are - year round advantage disappeared due to other provinces adopting to  playing indoors during winter, infighting in soccer in B.C, people looking to make a buck from the game first and foremost etc

What is it going to take for B.C to at least produce the number of national team players that is proportionate to their population?

I've been posting on the V's forum since the 90's. The thing I can't wrap my head around has been the Whitecaps place at the top of the pyramid and the putrid return on their player development side with development centres everywhere. It seems baffling.

[ted]

On 12/30/2022 at 3:04 AM, Unnamed Trialist said:

Odd you'd say that, as a former and very enthusiastic fan of a PDL team that had the same length season.

It's not odd. I want growth and improvement. We are about to enter 2023 and it's time to move forward with something that is better than what we had in 2003. I have gone to BCL1 games at home and away in 2022 and already have plans to do more this summer.

 

On 12/30/2022 at 6:42 AM, Unnamed Trialist said:

Why is he so snarky about it then, I don't get it?

You say "snarky", I say, "irreverent". Po-tay-to, Po-tah-to. I like to to think I offer constructive criticism with a dose of humour. Sadly that may not come across and that is on me.

What is on other people is the mindset being stoked by social media that to be anything less than a mindless cheerleader is to be opposed to something (or someone) existing. I am trying not to fall into that trap myself.
 

 

[Kingston]

I suspect what will happen is that over time - a few years at most - L1BC will become the obvious top league in BC.  It has the support of the CSA, and is integrated into the Canadian Championship, and will have the attention of the CPL teams and, presumably, the Whitecaps.  The other leagues will still exist, like other leagues to in Ontario and Quebec, but top teams will aspire to enter L1BC.  It will remain amateur, as L1O and the PLSQ are*, but will be the top BC league.

* I realize there is some money involved, especially in the PLSQ, but I think we can all agree these are actually amateur leagues.