he EA Sports BC Soccer Premier League (BCSPL) launches its second season of play on February 23 with 23 matches on opening weekend. Opening weekend matches will take place in Vancouver, Surrey, Abbotsford and Victoria.
The EA SPORTS BC Soccer Premier League was designed by BC Soccer, Vancouver Whitecaps FC and soccer community representatives, to create a new high performance level of competition and support player development at the provincial, professional and national team level. The BCSPL has proven to be an integral step in the player development pathway with players moving on to Whitecaps FC Residency and Girls Elite programs – including more than a dozen players on the boys’ side and more than 15 players on the girls’ side.
“The BCSPL is fast becoming a crucial part of the youth development structure for soccer in British Columbia,” said Dan Lenarduzzi, Whitecaps FC director of soccer development. “As the league continues to grow, so too will the standards of play in this province – including our Residency and Girls Elite programs – and that’s an exciting prospect for everyone in the soccer community.”
“As we enter the second season of the BCSPL, we are excited about the kick off weekend and are truly pleased and encouraged to see the continued efforts to advance the overall training and match play environment for the players and coaches”, said Michael Findlay, Director of Soccer Development for BC Soccer. “This has been and will continue to be a corner stone of the high performance league and its overall goal to development of players within the high performance stream of play within BC and Canada. This process will be delivered through the eight (8) member clubs of the EA Sports BC Soccer Premier League, our development partners the Vancouver Whitecaps FC and the Canadian Soccer Associations National Teams Program,” he added.
With the dynamics of the BC weather, the Thompson Okanagan FC club will have the first two weekends off and will begin play on the March 9/10 weekend when they travel to the lower mainland to visit Mountain United FC.
The 2013 League play constitutes boys and girls play at U-13 to U-16 with the U-17 and U-18 boys and girls playing in a combined U-18 division for both League and Provincial Premier Cup play.
With 21 match weekends spread out over the calendar season, the first 14 match weekends from February through June, will be used to declare the BC Soccer Provincial Premier Cup representatives with the top four teams in the League standings qualifying for the semifinals of the Premier Cup. Coastal FC will be hosting the Provincial Premier Cup Finals over the weekend of 29 and 30 June 2013.
The final seven match weekends will take place from September through November which will lead into play offs to determine a League Cup winner.
Next month all eight BCSPL clubs will field teams in the 2013 Whitecaps FC Showcase, projected to feature over 100 teams with college scouts attending from across Canada and the United States. The tournament will also feature Whitecaps FC staff scouting for the club’s Residency and Girls Elite programs.
David Haber, BCSPL League President stated, “It is very exciting to see the league kicking off its second season of play and how it is becoming the established pathway for High Performance playing opportunities for boys and girls in BC”.
Below are the match-ups for opening weekend league play on February 23/24. The full schedule for the league season can be found on the league’s new website at www.bcsoccerpremierleague.net
About the EA Sports BC Soccer Premier League
The EA SPORTS BC Soccer Premier League was designed to create a new high performance level of competition and support player development at the Provincial, Professional and National team level. It will simplify scouting of top young players, provide an elevated level of competition and increase the chance for players fulfilling their potential and creates a dynamic new commercial property at the pinnacle of youth soccer in BC.
The eight founding franchises that make up the league are:-
- Coquitlam Metro Ford SC
- Fusion FC
- Magnuson Ford Mariners FC
- Mountain United FC
- Coastal FC (formerly South Fraser FC)
- Surrey United SC
- Thompson Okanagan FC
- Vancouver Island Wave
For information about the EA Sports BC Soccer Premier League please contact:
Matt Holbrook
General Manager
gm@bcsoccerpremierleague.net
<b>Matches on Saturday, February 23</b> |
<b>U13 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 10:50am @ Trillium Park West in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 2:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U14 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 12:30pm @ Trillium Park West in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 4:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U15 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 2:30pm @ Trillium Park West in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 2:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U16 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 4:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U18 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC (95) <i>– 12:30pm @ Trillium Park East in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC (96) <i>– 6:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U13 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 10:50am @ Trillium Park East in Vancouver</i></p> |
<b>U14 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 2:30pm @ Trillium Park East in Vancouver</i></p> |
<b>U18 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Magnuson Ford Mariners FC vs Coastal FC (95) – <i>2:00pm @ Exhibition Park in Abbotsford</i></p> |
<b>Matches on Sunday, February 24</b> |
<b>U13 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 10:00am @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U14 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 12:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U15 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 2:40pm @ Trillium Park West in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 2:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Vancouver Island Wave vs Coastal FC – <i>12:00pm @ Pacific Institute for Sports Excellence in Victoria</i></p> |
<b>U16 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 4:15pm @ Trillium Park East in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC <i>– 4:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
<b>U18 girls</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC <i>– 12:30pm @ Trillium Park East in Vancouver</i></p> |
<b>U16 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC (96) <i>– 4:15pm @ Trillium Park West in Vancouver</i></p> |
<b>U18 boys</b><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Fusion FC vs Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC (96) <i>– 12:30pm @ Trillium Park West in Vancouver</i></p><p style="margin: 5px 0px 4px;">Surrey United SC vs Mountain United FC (95) <i>– 4:00pm @ Hjorth Road Park in Surrey</i></p> |
