Valour FC - 2024 Season Thread

[jonovision]

49 minutes ago, EnigMattic1 said:

The centre of the park is lacking. That much was shown by starting Faria there against Vancouver. Yes, I know Ohin is coming back from two big injuries, but PDS knew this. We have an abundance of wide players (Binate, Williams, Alarcon, Sukunda, Faria, Hanson and, at a push, Verhoeven) so more central players should have been signed. 

You only have so many roster spots.

As pure CMs, Valour has Campbell, Verhoeven, Sanchez, Polisi, and Ohin. A few others like Sukunda who can play there as well.

But the latter two are injured and PDS seems not to rate Sanchez.

[K Edgar]

8 hours ago, top cheese said:

Sheppard is apparently in Halifax on trial. How do you draft a player number 1 in a draft and not offer a development contract that essentially costs the team nothing? It seems like a typical Valour use of the draft. Players must hope this team does not take them in the draft.

Also, the goaltending looks horrible. Evan Barker would be more reliable. 

USports picks are cheap and do not use a roster spot.  Valour (and all the CanPL teams) should be all over them.  If Sheppard pans out for Halifax it will be another brutal disappointment for Valour.  Valour had Mukumbilwa in camp a couple of years back and didn't sign him.  Appears Valour cannot recognize talent?

I would much rather Valour develop a young Canadian GK, like Barker, Artemenko, or even Tisseur or Murasiranwa, than watch a mediocre veteran play out his last few years.

[johnyb]

On 4/14/2024 at 8:34 PM, Soccerpro2 said:

There is no other protentional owner. Just like there is no stadium solution other than playing in a CFL stadium.

I've heard that indeed there is a sale pending. I thought it was crap when Manual Veth broke the news, but apparently the Bombers are in discussions currently with a potential buyer. No idea what the vision of this new potential ownership is and if they intend to keep the team at Princess Auto. I can't divulge my source, but it's a pretty good one. I admit a potential purchase is not a purchase, and nothing may come of this.

Edited April 20 by johnyb

[K Edgar]

18 minutes ago, johnyb said:

I've heard that indeed there is a sale pending. I thought it was crap when Manual Veth broke the news, but apparently the Bombers are in discussions currently with a potential buyer. No idea what the vision of this new potential ownership is and if they intend to keep the team at Princess Auto. I can't divulge my source, but it's a pretty good one. I admit a potential purchase is not a purchase, and nothing may come of this.

As long as it stays in Wpg then Princess Auto is the only venue.  The Bombers should be cooperative with a new owner as any additional revenue at the stadium is good for them.

So, next year in the ideal Winnipeg soccer world:
- Valour is purchased my a new ownership group which also scoops up a new Project 8 team
- FCManitoba is part of a new L1Prairie league along with ~2 other Winnipeg teams
- UofM and UofW start mens soccer programs
- Valour makes the playoffs!!!

Did I miss anything?

Edited April 20 by K Edgar

[SoccMan]

What else is that stadium in Winnipeg used for ? Do they rent it out to the public for community use? I mean 10 dates a year or so for home games for the CFL doesn’t seem like total efficient use of the place financially speaking . I would imagine there must be a few concerts a year there and some other events .

[jonovision]

7 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

What else is that stadium in Winnipeg used for ? Do they rent it out to the public for community use? I mean 10 dates a year or so for home games for the CFL doesn’t seem like total efficient use of the place financially speaking . I would imagine there must be a few concerts a year there and some other events .

Major football stadiums, CFL, NFL, whatever, mostly sit empty. Doesn't matter what city it's in. Stadiums are bad investments, especially pointy-ball ones.

The stadium in Winnipeg is used for: Blue Bombers, Valour, U of M Bisons football, Bisons women's soccer, high school football playoffs, the occasional concert or other event. Marathon start/finish. 

Only the Blue Bombers nights (10-12 a year) require a stadium of this size.

Edited April 20 by jonovision

[K Edgar]

5 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

What else is that stadium in Winnipeg used for ? Do they rent it out to the public for community use? I mean 10 dates a year or so for home games for the CFL doesn’t seem like total efficient use of the place financially speaking . I would imagine there must be a few concerts a year there and some other events .

Very few concerts.  None since the pandemic that I can recall.  UofM must use it for their football and womens soccer games.  Womens world cup, but that was a few year back.  Simply needs more use.

[jonovision]

1 hour ago, johnyb said:

I've heard that indeed there is a sale pending. I thought it was crap when Manual Veth broke the news, but apparently the Bombers are in discussions currently with a potential buyer. No idea what the vision of this new potential ownership is and if they intend to keep the team at Princess Auto. I can't divulge my source, but it's a pretty good one. I admit a potential purchase is not a purchase, and nothing may come of this.

I would not be surprised by a sale. I would be shocked by a sale that kept the team in Winnipeg.

[EnigMattic1]

4 hours ago, Soccerpro2 said:

If another poor season is in the cards (and it absolutely is), I wouldn’t be concerned about keeping Williams. I think the bigger concern is that the club won’t exist anymore. 

How are fans supposed to return for yet another year of losing? Especially when the team is likely going to lose most of their first 7 games before even playing their first home game?

I’m a former FC Edmonton season ticket holder when I lived there. I’ve seen this scenario play out before. Things are not going to improve.

 

4 hours ago, jonovision said:

The one ray of hope I have is that Valour has been playing so far without their best CB (or the player you'd expect to be their best CB), their best CM, and their best creative player. 

Unfortunately one can't typically count on Valour having a healthy roster.

I do view starting with 7 games away as a positive, not a negative, as most of the ticket buying public does not pay any attention to away games or the team's record. What they do pay attention to is the game results and experience when they're in the building. And Valour could use the extra month and a half to sell ticket packages.

My issue is, and this is just me speaking from a coaching/scouting perspective, Valour have a somewhat unique situation in stat they have no direct rivals. There are 2 teams in BC and 3 in ON. They, in effect, have 2 provinces worth of players that they could look at. Instead of signing players from Australia or Portugal, they could look closer to home. 

Example #1 Viscosi coming in from Finland and you have Evan Barker who had 2 seasons where he was up for Goalkeeper of the year.

Example #2 Vancouver FC will be more attractive to fans as they have something like a dozen "local" players. Fans will want to see a "hometown" hero.

Valour held open trials last year and, although they only kept Alvin Rode on for pre season, you can't tell me there is nobody across 2 provinces who could push for a place in a team that finished bottom and is looking set to do so again.

With over 60 teams in the MMSL, it wouldn't take much to get someone from the scouting team (if we even have one) to keep an eye on the results or even the Bison Cup to see if anyone is worth taking a look at.

Don't get me wrong, this is all just my opinion, but I do think recruitment needs looking into.

Edited April 20 by EnigMattic1

[jonovision]

1 minute ago, EnigMattic1 said:

Valour held open trials last year and, although they only kept Alvin Rose on for pre season, you can't tell me there is nobody across 2 provinces who could push for a place in a team that finished bottom and is looking set to do so again.

If there was any sort of big talent base locally that Valour was ignoring, surely you'd expect one or two of them to be popping up elsewhere (other CPL teams, USL, etc.)

It's not happening.

The last "hometown hero" we tried out was Federico Pena. Nobody got excited about him, because he sucked.

[EnigMattic1]

2 hours ago, K Edgar said:

As long as it stays in Wpg then Princess Auto is the only venue.  The Bombers should be cooperative with a new owner as any additional revenue at the stadium is good for them.

So, next year in the ideal Winnipeg soccer world:
- Valour is purchased my a new ownership group which also scoops up a new Project 8 team
- FCManitoba is part of a new L1Prairie league along with ~2 other Winnipeg teams
- UofM and UofW start mens soccer programs
- Valour makes the playoffs!!!

Did I miss anything?

Well FC Manitoba did pull out of USL2 this year and, if other L1 leagues are anything to go by, there will probably be a L1Prairie exhibition series this year which one would assume FCM will compete in.

Apparently, it is down to money why the UofM and UofW don't have mens teams.

[EnigMattic1]

Just now, jonovision said:

If there was any sort of big talent base locally that Valour was ignoring, surely you'd expect one or two of them to be popping up elsewhere (other CPL teams, USL, etc.)

It's not happening.

The last "hometown hero" we tried out was Federico Pena. Nobody got excited about him, because he sucked.

There have been quite a few Winnipeggers that have appeared and come good elsewhere. Marco Bustos and Kyle Hiebert (the latter of who even debuted for Canada recently).

[jonovision]

1 minute ago, EnigMattic1 said:

There have been quite a few Winnipeggers that have appeared and come good elsewhere. Marco Bustos and Kyle Hiebert (the latter of who even debuted for Canada recently).

Yes, one guy every 4 or 5 years. 

[jonovision]

My last discouraged post of the day: Have a look at the starting XIs for Ottawa-Cavalry. I'd argue that at least 16 of the 22 players, were they to show up one day in a Valour shirt, would immediately become the team's best player.

How is this team supposed to have any sort of chance of competing if ownership won't commit to building an actual professional roster?

Edited April 20 by jonovision

[Mihairokov]

31 minutes ago, EnigMattic1 said:

Apparently, it is down to money why the UofM and UofW don't have mens teams.

Is this down to travel costs? A lot of the issues in this thread (lack of players, lack of programs, lack of rivals) seems to stem from Winnipeg being an island in the middle of the country with nothing much else near it.

I'd be surprised if there's a local owner willing to keep the team in Winnipeg, and even more surprised if they chose to keep the team at the CFL building. They need a smaller, more intimate venue, whatever that may be. Oversized stadiums are not the route forward, even if they have amenities and services already. Teams need a place to call their own.

[jonovision]

12 minutes ago, Mihairokov said:

I'd be surprised if there's a local owner willing to keep the team in Winnipeg, and even more surprised if they chose to keep the team at the CFL building. They need a smaller, more intimate venue, whatever that may be. Oversized stadiums are not the route forward, even if they have amenities and services already. Teams need a place to call their own.

I don't understand your thinking here. You really believe there's a local buyer who wants to spend tens of millions on a new venue in addition to whatever they pay for the team?

[Cheeta]

50 minutes ago, EnigMattic1 said:

There have been quite a few Winnipeggers that have appeared and come good elsewhere. Marco Bustos and Kyle Hiebert (the latter of who even debuted for Canada recently).

I'd suggest the list is underwhelming.  

Hiebert is a local development, I'd suggest.  More so than Bustos.  He left for the coast, out of necessity, in his teens.  Others have followed and I don't see that need changing for anyone who's serious about a career in football.

[Big_M]

from the V notes:

-Valour hopes to have midfielder Raphael Ohin and centre back Tass Mourdoukoutas available for next weekend.

[Mihairokov]

52 minutes ago, jonovision said:

I don't understand your thinking here. You really believe there's a local buyer who wants to spend tens of millions on a new venue in addition to whatever they pay for the team?

I have a tough time believing there's a local buyer for the team. I'm willing to be wrong on that.

I'm not convinced a new venue needs to cost tens of millions. Wanderers literally play out of temp stands and shipping containers. Logistics aside I don't think the futures of CPL teams should be in CFL stadiums.

Edited April 20 by Mihairokov

[Soccerpro2]

1 hour ago, Mihairokov said:

I have a tough time believing there's a local buyer for the team. I'm willing to be wrong on that.

I'm not convinced a new venue needs to cost tens of millions. Wanderers literally play out of temp stands and shipping containers. Logistics aside I don't think the futures of CPL teams should be in CFL stadiums.

I’ve lived in Halifax and now in Winnipeg.

Halifax got lucky with the most central, unbelievable location smack in the heart of the city nearby absolutely everything.  But for Wanderers grounds being available, they would not be the success story there are. Put them anywhere else in HRM, and it’s a different story.

It has nothing to do with shipping container stadiums or anything else. It was simply good fortune that the best location imaginable was available.

Even if it was available in Winnipeg, no such central site exists in super sprawl, suburban Winnipeg.

Edited April 20 by Soccerpro2

[EnigMattic1]

I still believe that, given the current state of the first team, it is possible to build a team using players from Manitoba and Saskatchewan sides that could push the current Valour side in a match. Yeah, Valour probably wouldn't take it seriously, but the talent is there.

Edited April 20 by EnigMattic1

[jonovision]

^ I think it's highly unlikely, but even if true a side that can push Valour in a match still isn't close to good enough to compete with the rest of the league.

[Mihairokov]

1 hour ago, Soccerpro2 said:

I’ve lived in Halifax and now in Winnipeg.

Halifax got lucky with the most central, unbelievable location smack in the heart of the city nearby absolutely everything.  But for Wanderers grounds being available, they would not be the success story there are. Put them anywhere else in HRM, and it’s a different story.

It has nothing to do with shipping container stadiums or anything else. It was simply good fortune that the best location imaginable was available.

Even if it was available in Winnipeg, no such central site exists in super sprawl, suburban Winnipeg.

My comment was more in regards to the total cost of the venue, not its location. If every team found a good, central urban location they would be better for it.

[CDNFootballer]

7 hours ago, jonovision said:

I would not be surprised by a sale. I would be shocked by a sale that kept the team in Winnipeg.

I don't think the league (club owners) would support or allow a move.

[K Edgar]

7 hours ago, EnigMattic1 said:

There have been quite a few Winnipeggers that have appeared and come good elsewhere. Marco Bustos and Kyle Hiebert (the latter of who even debuted for Canada recently).

Other Winnipegger: Kianz Froese, Musse, Ohin, Mukumbilwa, Pena, Attardo, Farago.  For Sask: Levis.