League 1 BC season number two - what a success!
With the men’s team bringing the season to a close July 26 with their first ever playoff hurrah, and both team’s players transitioning back to their collegiate, professional, and other high performance teams, it’s time for our final thank yous and celebrations.
First and foremost, thank you for following along! It’s been a pleasure to have such an active community backing Harbourside, and we can not wait until next season!
Playoff game goal celebrations.
A special thanks to our sponsors and partners for making the season and game days happen! Thank you for supporting our players. You may have noticed their logo front and center on Harbourside’s jerseys - thank you to our lead sponsor RLR Lawyers for your continued support. That jersey and Harbourside’s sleek fit is thanks to our teamwear supplier, O’Neills. And where would we be without our club athletic therapy partner, Wildwood Health, on game day! Thank you for taking such good care of our players and visiting athletes too!
Thank you to all our club sponsors:
Team Wear: Junk In Our Trunk
Youth Supporters: Seaview Home and Auto Glass
FunZone: Coastal Community Credit Union
Primary Field Sponsor: Martin Velsen Realty Team
Field Sponsor: Rona
And thank you to our partners:
Nanaimo Track and Field Club - Operations and facilities
Nanaimo News Bulletin - Promotion
Footprints Security - Operations
City of Nanaimo - Facilities
Jingle Pot Pub - Ice for players
Hub City Fisheries - Ice for beer garden
Let’s revisit some season highlights!
On June 1, Harbourside won their first ever trophy - the Reid Davidson Charity Shield. The Shield was a home-and-home, total points tournament against Rivers FC. Rivers FC is the Kamloops based League1 BC team. Reid Davidson played much of his youth soccer in Kamloops, so the competition gave Reid’s family and friends the chance to celebrate and remember him in both communities. They were games to remember. Reid’s uncle, Victor Lizzi, graciously designed the trophy and hand-made the wooden base. Revisit the moment here.
Captain Fergus Hall and Coach Kevin Lindo with the Shield after the final leg against Rivers FC.
The women’s team crushed the second half of their season. At the beginning of the year, they were unable to snag three points and were working hard in practice to develop their attacking transition and ability to finish in the final third. Their positivity and grit paid off, as they secured two wins in their final few weeks of play and bumped into 6th place ahead of Rivers FC. Well done ladies!
Coach Bobbie Taylor commented on their season:
“The season was another fantastic experience for players and coaching staff. The final weekend was a true example of our season…we persisted with grit and resilience and pulled out a win but then played one of our best games of the season and lost 1-0. That’s soccer! We will continue to grow individually and collectively from our experiences.
Thank you to the HarboursideFC community for your support. Let’s keep growing and making our mark!”
It was a historic year for the men’s team. Harbourside finished in last place in their inaugural League1 BC season in 2023 and only a year later, they made their first playoff game. The team showed incredible dedication and growth this season, and their passion for the game was contagious. We can’t wait to see what next year has in store for them!
A few words from Coach Kevin Lindo:
“The main goal for this season was to make improvements on the field, specifically in areas going forward and also to be solid as a unit. Overall, I think we certainly achieved that and making the playoffs was the goal. Now we’re hoping that’ll be a minimum standard moving forward. More importantly, the guys really connected, they love the support in the community and we created a great culture for years to come. The game day staff, supporters and the board all did an amazing job, and we’re very appreciative of their work. It was also nice to see some of our players become household names in the community as well as get their recognition on the League1 stage. Thanks again everyone involved and we look forward to next year.”
The starting eleven at the playoff game against TSS at Swangard.
After the playoff game, the League1 BC award winners were announced, and Harbourside was proud to bring home 5 awards!
Suka Behery: Midfielder of the Year
Kevin Lindo: Coach of the Year
Billy Bagiopolous: Forward of the Year, Top Goalscorer of the Year, Player of the Year
Congratulations! What a spectacular season.
Suka Behery and Kevin Lindo with their awards, Billy Bagiopolous' awards.
But wait! There are still two awards to be announced. The highly anticipated and regarded team-voted Harboursiders of the Year awards go to Suka Behery and Gilliane Stewardson! These two athletes showcased great athleticism and sportsmanship on and off the field, and helped make this year’s Harbourside teams the best they could be. Congratulations Suka and Gilliane!
Gilliane and Suka after being announced the Harboursiders of the Year.
And thank you to our inaugural Team Builder Sponsors who are helping us build a great experience for our players:
Little Ears Audiology Practice - Player Welfare
Inside Edge Tiling - Equipment
Michael and Alison Wassermann - Training
Fox and Hounds Pub - Training
Anonymous Fan - Training, Cross Training
Jim and Sandy - Team Fun, Travel, Player Welfare, Training
Prime Performance & Therapy - Sports Medicine, Strength and Conditioning
Rock City Cycles - Cross Training
Nicol Street Pawnbrokers - Equipment
Coates Family - Team Fun
St. Jean’s - Nutrition
And with that, the Harbourside crew signs off. Thanks for a great season and we’ll see you next year!
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