Meet Your Highlanders! (Women's Team)

Get to know your League 1 BC team from Victoria, British Columbia, the Victoria Highlanders! This time we chat with the women's team's head coach, Neil Sedgwick, returning player Mariel Solsberg and goalkeeper Milena.

Meet Your Highlanders! (Men's Team)

We stopped by Braefoot Park in Saanich, BC to chat with the Victoria Highlanders FC Men's team as they prepare for their season home opener!

Interviews with Head Coach Steve Simonson, Kensho Ando and Javi Sagaste.

Our Last Episode of Jonesing for Answers

In this final edition of our recurring segment when we ask Pacific FC's VP of Operations, Brad Norris-Jones, some questions, we chat about pre-season planning at Starlight Stadium and what fans can expect for the 2023 season. Be sure to watch till the end for a tribute to Brad's fine work at Pacific FC.

Pacific VC Home Opener and Tifo!

Let's take a look back at last week's home opener at Starlight Stadium, where Pacific FC took on the brand new Canadian Premier League expansion team, Vancouver FC. Supporter groups for both clubs had some of the best tifo in the league!

Pacific FC Launch Party!

Join us at the Wicket Hall for Pacific FC's season launch party! We have a chat with Managing Director of PFC, Paul Beirne, Head Coach James Merriman and Ted and Ryan have a chat about the night.

CSA, PFC and the CRTC

In this episode of Hear The Noise, Ted Godwin and Ryan Arrowood discuss the latest news regarding the Canadian Soccer Association and the CMNT's latest performance, Pacific FC news, local Vancouver Island soccer news and a very interesting development in rulings from the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications organization.

Pacific FC vs Valour Preseason Friendly (full game, with commentary)

Join us at Starlight Stadium for this preseason friendly between Pacific FC and Valour FC, which took place on March 22nd, 2023.

PFC's New Captain and Big Changes at LSB

In this studio episode, Ted and Ryan discuss changes with on-field leadership at Pacific FC and policy changes at one of Pacific FC's supporters groups.

CANADIAN PREMIER LEAGUE ANNOUNCES NEW PLAYOFF FORMAT

 

Playoff field expanded to five teams; regular season winner, runner-up compete to host final

Toronto, ON – (March 15, 2023) – The Canadian Premier League (CPL) today announced a new five-team playoff format ahead of the League’s milestone fifth season in 2023, ensuring stiffer competition and even more excitement in the battle to be crowned postseason champion.

 The top five teams in the League standings at the end of the CPL regular season on Saturday, Oct. 7 will qualify for the 2023 postseason, increasing the field by one team from the 2022 playoff structure. The playoffs will once again consist of five total matches, with each of the CPL regular season’s top four teams guaranteed to host at least once in postseason play.

 The new playoff format will ensure postseason hype begins earlier than ever before. Teams will battle not only to be crowned CPL regular season champion, a recognition officially implemented in 2022 by Commissioner Mark Noonan, but for seeding in the CPL regular season standings that may be critical to the length and difficulty of their playoff pathway, as well as their ability to host games at home in front of electric, supportive crowds.

 The top two teams in the CPL regular season standings will be rewarded with a more direct path to hosting the CPL Final, fighting to host the big game in their opening match of the playoffs.

 All four games in the run up to the CPL Final will feature different match-ups, with the top four seeds guaranteed to host at least one match. Four of the five playoff matches will be knockout events, with an opportunity to host the CPL Final on the line in the lone non-elimination game.

 Every playoff game will matter, forgoing tense and tentative opening legs of the past.

 The playoffs will begin on Wednesday, Oct. 11, when the fifth-place team visits the fourth-place team to open postseason action.

 The winner of that match will advance to face the awaiting third-place team on Saturday, Oct. 14. It will be one of two matches played that day, with the CPL regular season champion hosting the runner-up in the day’s other action. A win in that match will secure a spot in the CPL Final, as well as home field advantage for the victor in the championship match.

 

The other playoff finalist will be decided in a fourth game, to be contested by the loser of the match between the first- and second-place team and the winner of the match between the third-place team and the victor in the opening game of the playoffs.

 “We are excited about this new format because it provides additional incentive to perform well during our regular season and makes every single playoff match essentially a final,” said Mark Noonan, Commissioner, Canadian Premier League. “Win and advance or lose and go home.”

 The 2023 CPL Final is scheduled to take place the weekend of Saturday, Oct. 28 and Sunday, Oct. 29. All playoff dates are subject to change depending on venue availability.

 For the first time this season, any playoff match that is tied after 90 minutes of regulation play will go to extra time — two 15-minute halves played to completion. If a match is still tied after 30 minutes of extra time, the game will be decided in a penalty shootout. 

The 2023 CPL playoff champion will earn one of the League’s two spots in the newly expanded Concacaf Champions League, with the other spot going to its regular season champion. The new Concacaf Champions League, which will now include 27 clubs and more than 50 matches, will kick off in 2024.

 The 2023 CPL playoffs will be broadcast on dedicated soccer channel OneSoccer, available to all Canadian households through OneSoccer.ca, via Roku, Chromecast and Apple TV devices and with the OneSoccer app for iOS and Android devices. OneSoccer is also available to more than one million Western Canadians as a linear channel on Optik TV (Ch.980), the pay-TV service operated by Telus, one of Canada’s ‘big three’ telecoms companies, as well as on streaming service fuboTV Canada, where it sits alongside a range of other premium sports offerings, including English Premier League and Serie A channels. The 2023 season will also be available to fans abroad through Fox Sports in the United States as well as through other selected broadcasters worldwide and globally through the OneSoccer website and app.

via Press Release from Laura Armstrong, Senior Director, Communications, Canadian Premier League

Meet Your Team! Pacific FC Preseason Game Review

We dropped in on a Pacific FC preseason match with the UVic Vikes at Centennial Stadium! Join us for interviews with Defender Bradley Vliet, Attacker Djenairo Daniels and Keeper Emil Gazdov.

Pacific FC Pre-Season Friendly Schedule and Other Soccer News!

This week on HTN, Ted and Ryan discuss the resignation of Nick Bontis, news about Pacific FC including their pre-season friendly schedule, potential upgrades for Starlight Stadium, the return of Victoria United, and more!

PFC Pre-Season Training Camp

Join us at the Pacific Institute for Sport Education where Pacific FC is running a week long pre-season training session! Our guest host Mike Geldreich interviews PFC Midfielder Josh Heard and PFC head coach James Merriman.

Preseason Review! PFC and Canadian Women's National Team!

We're back in the studio after a three year hiatus! Join Ted Godwin and special guest Michael Geldreich as they discuss how Pacific FC's preseason is going so far, how League1 BC is shaping up and fair treatment for Canada's national teams.

Pacific FC Re-Signs Kunle Dada-Luke

Victoria, BC – January 10, 2023 – Pacific FC today announced the re-signing of Kunle Dada-Luke to a new one-year deal, with a club option for the 2024 season. 

The 22-year-old right fullback and winger, who has both Canadian and Nigerian citizenship, extends his stay with the club after initially joining The Tridents in 2021.

“This club took a chance on me three years ago I went from being without a club to a champion in that time span,” said Dada-Luke. “The Island has become a second home for me and playing at Starlight Stadium in front of our fans always gives me that spark I need to go the extra mile.”  

Dada-Luke played in 30 matches in the 2022 season for a total of 2384 minutes, his most consistent season to date. A fan favourite on the Island, Dada-Luke scored one goal and added two assists for Pacific in 2023, including setting up Josh Heard in the club’s 6-0 victory over Waterhouse FC in the preliminary round of the 2022 Scotiabank Concacaf League. He regularly showcased his aptitude for creating space and using his speed and size to his team’s advantage as a talisman up front in all competitions.

Dada-Luke was named to the league’s Gatorade Team of the Week three times last season. He led the squad with 73 tackles, winning a team-high 46 such battles, won a team-high 174 duals and contributed 36 interceptions and 13 crosses.

“I believe KDL can be the most dynamic right back in the Canadian Premier League and can also play as a wingback or wide forward,” said James Merriman, Head Coach, Pacific FC. “He is developing into a very versatile modern full back and is incredibly hungry to build off his 2022 performances and push to another level.”

Dada-Luke, who was raised in Mississauga, represented Toronto FC II in United Soccer League play and Toronto FC III in League1 Ontario play during his youth. He was picked up by Danish club FC Helsingør in 2019, returning to the CPL with Atlético Ottawa in 2020, though he did not feature in that year’s Island Games. He was crowned league champion with Pacific at the end of his first season with the club two years ago.

Dada-Luke previously represented Canada at the youth level, making his debut in Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Youth Program at 14 years old. He later went on to represent the country’s Under-17 team with two appearances at the 2017 CONCACAF Men’s Under-17 Championship in Panama.   

Pacific FC has a roster of 14 players confirmed for the coming 2023 season.