By Ottawa Sports Pages, for Ottawa TFC Soccer Club
All roads lead back home for Miranda Smith. The 29-year-old has crisscrossed the globe during her soccer journey, and she’s endured many trying circumstances along the way – including war, injuries and solitude – but the best moments of her career have all come in Ottawa, and she could not be more thrilled to commence the latest chapter in her career as a member of the new Ottawa Rapid FC professional women’s team.
“For all of us, it’ll be historic,” Smith says of Rapid FC’s upcoming Northern Super League home opener on April 27. “And especially for us from Ottawa, it’ll be such a special moment. I know I never imagined getting to play pro in my hometown.”
Long before she dreamed of playing soccer for a living, Smith just desperately wanted to follow her older brother into the sport. She began playing as soon as they allowed a toddler out on the pitch, and jumped into competitive soccer at the earliest opportunity too.
The short-but-slick midfielder played for both of Ottawa TFC’s root clubs in her youth career – at Cumberland United in her early competitive years and with FC Capital United at the provincial level.
Smith was among the first generation of local players to train at a similar rate as today’s Ottawa TFC Academy, and to gain success against Toronto-area opponents.
The St. Matthew Catholic High School grad represented Ontario at the 2013 Canada Summer Games alongside current Ottawa TFC High Performance Coach/Girls Programs Lead Jordan Lundin and Team Canada star defender Vanessa Gilles.
“I think Jordan, if she hadn’t had so many injuries, could still be playing at a high level now, but it’s really cool to see how she’s still involved in the sport and giving back,” signals Smith. “And I feel like watching Vanessa has been one of the most inspiring stories because of how late she started.
“To see her progression to where she is now – I don’t think I know anybody who works harder than she does.”
Smith and her teammates etched their names into the record books when they became the first Ottawa team to win an Ontario Youth Soccer League east division girls’ title on the pitch, in the signature U17 division.
“That team will be one team that sticks in my head forever,” reflects Smith, in part because they won a championship, but also because of the connections and many lifelong friends she gained.
“Coming from Ottawa, playing in the OYSL, we were usually the underdog, so to come in and do what we did was so special,” she notes. “And that was the year before we all went off to university, so to come off of that was really encouraging to go on.”
Smith earned a scholarship to play NCAA soccer in Memphis, but after three seasons in a punitive atmosphere, her confidence plummeted to the point where she questioned her love for soccer.
So she came back home and joined her hometown University of Ottawa Gee-Gees, which rejuvenated her spirit and ultimately led to an indelible moment in local sports history.
The host Gee-Gees reached the final of the 2018 Canadian university nationals, and in the championship game, Smith intercepted a pass and immediately launched a bullet just under the crossbar from 29 yards away for the winning goal.
“That’s probably been the most special moment in my soccer career,” smiles the two-time Academic All-Canadian. “Winning the championship was the big thing of course, but also to score, I’m not usually the goal-scorer, so I don’t know how that happened, and to win at home, in front of all my friends and family, with that team – that’s the other team along with Cap U that I feel like will stick in my head forever.
“We were all on the same page, everybody got along, and I don’t know if I’ve ever been on other teams that worked so hard for each other. We were willing to do whatever it took, not just for ourselves, but for the person next to us.”
With her passion restored, Smith knew she wanted to pursue a pro soccer career, but that pursuit has proven to be anything but linear.
Smith extended her time at uOttawa for a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to play in the FISU University World Cup in China, which the Gee-Gees won.
A torn labrum in her hip caused further delay, and then COVID hit and it became much more difficult to play abroad.
Smith eventually zigzagged to clubs in Finland, Iceland and France, where she got to hang out with Gilles on a few occasions, but spent most of her time sidelined by injuries and illness.
“Mentally, that’s really hard,” details Smith. “When you’re away to play, it’s not just an adjustment for soccer, you’re also adjusting to a new culture, a new language, and new environments, and you’re alone.
“There were a lot of big challenges, but I also feel like I’ve learned so much by traveling and going through all these experiences that I look at them all in a positive way.”
Smith’s last stop at home before settling in with Rapid FC was very much unplanned. She’d been enjoying the team environment with her new Maccabi Hadera FC club in Israel, but when war broke out, it was unquestionably the worst part of her time overseas.
“It was nothing I’ve ever experienced before, and it was quite scary,” recalls Smith, who escaped home to Canada for two months before eventually returning to a part of the country that was relatively safe.
“It’s given me a lot of perspective,” she adds. “It made me appreciate where I live and where I come from so much because I’ve never had to worry about that.”
While Smith’s last soccer stop further reinforced her thirst to play in Canada, that desire already burned strong from the moment news broke of the league’s creation.
She immediately told her agent: “Whenever this happens, I want to play in it.”
“I was so excited,” recounts Smith. “And a soon as I heard Ottawa was having a team, I was trying to figure out who I needed to contact to get in.”
That person turned out to be Rapid FC Technical Director Kristina Kiss, who’d coached Smith earlier in her career. Kiss also signed another Ottawa TFC product Florence Belzile, an attacking midfielder who will soon join the club after finishing her four years at the University of Nebraska.
“That’s awesome,” says Smith, who knows Belzile but hasn’t yet crossed paths in soccer since they are eight years apart in age. “It’s good representation for the club, and it shows that they can develop really strong talent.”
Smith has visited Ottawa TFC from time to time in recent years to guest coach, which is something she may like to do more often once her playing career concludes.
“A lot of young girls are starting to follow me and message me, and I would love to be a role model for them, and be able to give back, because that was so important for me,” highlights Smith, who remembers looking up to the Gee-Gees when she was young.
“I’m very proud and excited and honoured,” she underlines. “I’ve always felt the most comfortable at home and I feel like I play better at home. I’m so eager for it to start.”
Learn more about Ottawa TFC Soccer Club at OttawaTFC.com and follow OTFC on Instagram.
