Football Canada Cup breeding ground for pros & Team Canada members (14)

Each July, the Football Canada Cup (FCC) allows players from across the country to test themselves against the best Canadian under-18 competition in front of family, friends, coaches and scouts. This experience has helped 14 former FCC participants who are in London, June 24- July 2 for Team Canada’s training camp as they prepare for the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Senior World Championship in Austria. Both events support athlete development pathways from playground to stadium where grassroots players can aspire to play on both the national and international ranks.

At the Football Canada Cup, provincial squads from across the country represent their communities, playing for a chance to be crowned National Champion. The event has evolved over the years from an original U19 division, expanding to a second U17 division in 2004 and in 2010 merging to a single U18 division.

Matt Walter, from Calgary Stampeders training camp is one of many Team Canada hopefuls to have represented their province at the FCC. Walter won a gold medal at the 2007 Canada Cup with Team Alberta, picking up game and tournament Offensive MVP as well as a tournament all-star award in the process. Walter went on to star for the Calgary Dinos and is replacing injured teammate Anthony Woodson — another FCC alumni on the roster.

Steve Faoro was a member of the 2000 U19 British Columbia team, the last from the province to compete at the FCC until returning to the tournament in 2010. The linebacker from Port Moody, B.C. went on to star at Acadia University, where he was a two-time Atlantic University Sport conference Defensive Player of the Year and AUS nominee for the Presidents’ Trophy as Canadian Defensive Player of the Year.

Josh Symons, a defensive lineman who hails from Calgary, was a part of the U19 Alberta Team that participated in the 2006 FCC in Winnipeg. Symons believed the experience to help his transition to the CIS.

“The athletes were much bigger and much faster [at the FCC]. This made the jump to the CIS easier.”

Symons has gone on to play for the Calgary Dinos who reached the last two Vanier Cups in 2009 and 2010 against Queen’s and Laval respectively. The experience for Josh expands beyond the game and creates a lasting legacy.

“The friendship’s and bonds I created with many of my teammates are still strong today. It was an experience that I am grateful to have participated in and shared with so many.”

Prior to playing in the CFL for the Saskatchewan Roughriders during the 2009 season and a successful career at both Saint Mary’s University– where he was a second team all-Canadian in 2008 and the University of Regina– where he was a 2005 second-team all-Canadian, Joel Lipinski earned a bronze medal at the 2004 U19 edition of the FCC with Team Saskatchewan.

“The tournament helped to prepare me for both my university and professional careers by allowing me to see the type of talent that exists throughout the country. The type of talent at Canada Cup made me realize that there are many great players out there, so you have to continuously work on your game if you want to excel.”

Hard work helped Lipinski earn a roster spot with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2009 as an undrafted free agent. He played in 9 CFL games that season registering one defensive tackle and five special teams tackles. In week 7 of the 2009 season, Lipinski was awarded the “Big Hit Award” by the Riders.

Another Team Canada DB, Alexander Hoad won a gold medal at the 2002 U19 FCC as a member of Team Ontario in Ottawa. For Hoad, “winning gold and celebrating with my team really stuck out in my mind as it was my first football [National] Championship at the time.”
“Playing at a national level and competing for my province gave me a sense of pride and accomplishment in my football career. Meeting and playing with other guys from across the country also stuck out to me, especially in that many of us continued to play with or against each other throughout university and the pro level.”

Similar to Symons, the tournament helped Alex prepare for the next level with the Gee-Gees at the University of Ottawa.

“I was able to compete and go up against some of the best players across Canada at my age level. Playing at this level and getting more exposure gave me a boost of confidence going into training camp at U of Ottawa. I felt I was able to compete in camp.”

Playing and winning a National Championship also helped Hoad learn to deal with the pressure of playing in big games.

“I have always stayed focused and driven for any game,” explains Hoad, “but I think playing on the national level at the Canada Cup Championship got me more prepared for future games like the Yates Cup or Eurobowl or at least used to them and more comfortable going into the game.”

“Getting that big game experience gave me a better sense of how to deal with pressure and larger stage games. As my career progressed, playing in front of more and more people, and with more important games on larger scales I just learnt to block everything out and focus on the game itself, this Championship was definitely a start”.

The level of coaching at the Canada Cup is also more advanced as this is typically the first time players are exposed to a position specific coach, enhancing player development. Zachary Pollari won a gold medal with Team Ontario in 2004 prior to moving on to The University of Western Ontario. He was later drafted in the 4[SUP]th[/SUP] round of the 2009 CFL draft by the Toronto Argonauts. For Zach, like most under-18 players, Canada Cup was also the first time he experienced two-a-day practices. “This was great in the sense that the practices were designed how practices are designed in University.”

Team Canada continues two-a-days in preparation for the IFAF Senior World Championship.

Both the 2011 FCC and World Championship run simultaneously with the Senior National Team and Canada Cup opening games taking place on July 9. Lethbridge, Alberta host of this year’s Canada Cup may prove to be the breeding grounds for the next generation of National Team athletes, perhaps even the second generation of Junior National Team stars which is set to take place next July.

Football Canada Cup alumni currently at National Team training camp below:

Name/ Nom	Hometown/ Lieu de résidence	Team/ Équipe	Location/ Lieu du tournoi de la CFC
Steve Faoro	Port Moody	2000 U19 Team B.C./ Équipe C.-B.	Winnipeg, MB
Josh Sacobie	Fredericton	2001 U19 Team New Brunswick/ Équipe Nouveau-Brunswick	Medicine Hat, AB
2002 U19 Team New Brunswick/ Équipe Nouveau-Brunswick	Ottawa, ON
Alexander Hoad	Rockwood	2002 U19 Team/ Équipe Ontario	Ottawa, ON
Joel Lipinski	Regina	2004 U19 Team/ Équipe Saskatchewan	Ottawa, ON
Justin Glover	Hamilton	2004 U19 Team/ Équipe Ontario	Ottawa, ON
2005 U19 Team/ Équipe Ontario	Waterloo, ON
Zachary Pollari	Guelph	2004 U19 Team/ Équipe Ontario	Ottawa, ON
Donnie Marshall	London	2005 U17 Team Southern Ontario/ Équipe Sud de l’Ontario	Waterloo, ON
Reed Alexander	Medicine Hat	2005 U19 Team/ Équipe Alberta	Waterloo, ON
Anthony Woodson	Calgary	2005 U19 Team/ Équipe Alberta	Waterloo, ON
Troy Adams	Toronto	2005 U19 Team/ ÉquipeOntario	Waterloo, ON
Jahmeek Murray	Mississauga	2006 U17 Team Ontario West/ Équipe Ouest de l’Ontario	Winnipeg, MB
Josh Symons	Calgary	2006 U19 Team/ Équipe Alberta	Winnipeg, MB
Matt Norman	Montréal	2006 U19 Team/ Équipe Québec	Winnipeg, MB
Matt Walter	Calgary	2007 U19 Team/ Équipe Alberta	Sherbrooke, QC
Bryce McCall	Regina	2007 U19 Team/ Équipe Saskatchewan	Sherbrooke, QC