Ottawa gets forgotten. Unless you're complaining about your taxes, or are actually from the city, few people in Canada think about the capital.
And, that goes in soccer as well. Even FC Edmonton gets more thought than the Ottawa Fury. It's a shame, because the Fury have developed a highly professional program on the women's side of the game and are now taking their first steps into the pro men's game.
The NASL Ottawa Fury are set to become the fifth Voyageurs Cup eligible team in Canada when they launch this Spring.
Unlike other Canadian pro teams, the Fury are being conservative. There are no proclamations of big name signings nor championships out of the gate. Instead, they are talking about things like creating a core of players that are invested in the community, upgrading an existing academy to fully professional status and giving Ottawa fans a competitive side that will represent them well.
Not that manager Marc Dos Santos doesn't want to win. He just realizes it's a process and Ottawa isn't going to enter the league like the New York Cosmos did with a bankroll nearly triple what the rest of the league has.
“That New York won is a different story. Their budget way higher,” Dos Santos said, adding that the iconic brand of the Cosmos also helped attract better players than other NASL clubs could. Ottawa will have more modest goals in 2014. “Establishing a base in first year is the key and then grow it every year,” he said.
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When Dos Santos talks about his plans that word – base – comes up over and over. What he doesn't want is a revolving door of players. He wants guys that will come to Ottawa and establish roots.
His first three signings reflect that. All three – Oliver Minatel, Nicki Paterson and young domestic player Carl Haworth – were brought in with a long-term view. Dos Santos said that in addition to playing ability that language factors were also considered with the signings, especially the two foreign players.
Dos Santos wants players out in the community, interacting with the fans. To that end there are a couple “interesting” options among Francophone players that the Fury are looking at. However, Dos Santos insists that no player will be signed unless they've earned it on the pitch.
To that end, the Fury will not be playing Canadians for the sake of their passport. Dos Santos says that too often Canadians think that they are entitled to play for Canadian clubs simply because they are Canadian
“It's a problem,” he said. “You see it a lot – this entitlement.
“Canadians will not be treated any differently. They will need to earn their spot.”
That isn't to say that Dos Santos doesn't appreciate the need for the Fury to be developing Canadian talent. Improving the Fury academy is a major priority of his.
“As soon as we came in we were concerned about getting best Technical Director in,” Dos Santos said, adding that the TD's main focus will be upgrading the academy, which in his mind is “more like a youth club” today.
“It will take time, but it's definitely something that we take very seriously. In future we want to give local players a chance to break in.”
This year, Dos Santos anticipates that 2-3 u17 players will train with the first team.
In terms of bottom line results, his goal is that the Fury be “competitive” and qualify for the Canadian Championships semi-finals by beating Edmonton.
His goals grow in 2015.
“(Next year will be a success) if most of the players are back in 2015,” he said. “But, we want to win things for Ottawa.”