By Ottawa Sports Pages, for OSU Force Academy
Ottawa South United Soccer Club has always wanted to be among the best in Canada, but the chance to prove it’s worthy of that stature is new.
“It’s something we wanted for years, and it wasn’t there. But it was kind of the obvious thing to have a nationals be the top target,” recounts OSU Founding (and current) Club President Bill Michalopulos. “A specific target is very motivating. We want the reputation of being a national contender every year.”
A year after earning a historic title at Canada Soccer’s inaugural Player-Development Program Championship, the OSU Force doubled their medal haul this season with both the U15 boys and girls winning bronze at the nationals.
Last year’s groundbreaking champions didn’t have a PDP nationals this season at the U16 level, but that group continued their winning ways nonetheless by capturing the Ontario Player Development League Charity Shield crown on Oct. 26.
Another new national frontier has surfaced in recent years with the arrival of men’s and women’s Canadian professional leagues.
The Canadian Premier League remains young, and Ottawa will get to host the CPL Final on Nov. 9, when OSU’s Ralph Khoury will be in Atlético Ottawa colours at TD Place.
The Northern Super League is in its infancy, with the first playoffs on tap and a home game coming up in Ottawa as well on Nov. 8. Competing for the Rapid will be Emily Amano, who was recently the keynote speaker at OSU’s end-of-season banquet.
The club and player both enjoyed the full-circle moment the evening provided.
Less than a decade ago, Amano was one of the young players in the crowd, and OSU leaders remember an eight-year-old coming out to summer camp with an unmistakable passion for the sport not long before then.
A member of OSU’s original Ontario Cup champions in 2013, Amano went on to join the National Development Centre and youth national teams, followed by a decorated athletic and academic career at Colgate University, and a couple years playing in Sweden and Iceland before the opportunity to play pro in her hometown became a reality.
Read More: ‘The start of a new dream’ for OSU product Emily Amano with new Ottawa Rapid FC women’s pro team
“I learned so much through all my youth being here (at OSU). The professionalism, the discipline and just what it takes day in and day out to be able to make it to the next level,” reflects the 25-year-old midfielder/defender.
“I’m so glad that soccer was able to take me around the world, but to come back to where I grew up, and see so many familiar faces, it’s really just a dream come true.”
Michalopulos found Amano’s presence inspiring.
“A role model like Emily is a powerful incentive for kids, because they can relate to it,” he highlights. “They can see there was a little girl playing in the field in an OSU uniform, and so the dreams become tangible.”
A few days later, young Force players got about the biggest shot of inspiration imaginable when soccer’s greatest international goal scorer of all-time visited the club on Oct. 28.
Sponsored by CIBC, Christine Sinclair gave a classroom session on leadership and on-field training for 40 female OSU players aged 11-13.
There are several OSU players sporting the maple leaf themselves for the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco – Mya Angus, Felicia Hanisch and Naomi Lofthouse.
Lofthouse has trained and appeared for the Rapid alongside Amano this season, illuminating an intriguing new potential pathway for players to go from the grassroots to the pros all in Ottawa.
Lofthouse was also part of the Force’s Quebec Ligue 1 program, which captured women’s U21 and men’s U19 espoir championships this season.
The Force captured many more titles this season, including an OPDL Cup for the U16 girls and an overall OPDL championship for the U14 boys, who clinched a berth in next summer’s U15 nationals, plus many more tournament and Eastern Ontario regional crowns.
“All those trophies show that you’re performing, and that you’re keeping up your programs. That’s what we’re shooting for all the time,” Michalopulos underlines. “We’re not complacent. We’re into self improvement. We have a winning mentality, and we have the right people. That’s the DNA.”
Read More: Ottawa South United Force U14 boys finally get to celebrate title of ‘campeónes’
Piles of OSU products advanced to the next levels of soccer this season, joining the National Development Centre in Toronto and professional academies in Canada and in Spain, and many obtaining scholarships to play for universities in Canada and the U.S.
Michalopulos loves looking at the graphic showing all the varsity teams OSU players have joined over the years, and he’s enthusiastic about a new partnership with advisors from Sports Ambitions to help players seeking scholarships and placements.
OSU was also proud to deliver impactful community initiatives such as its new program for players with autism and its soccer in schools program.
Read More: New OSU program for players with autism will kick off with ‘incredible’ enthusiasm
Michalopulos says that many people still marvel at OSU’s ability to consistently reproduce successful results year after year.
“The reason for that is right in front of us. It’s the people that make OSU. The players, the teams, the parents, the coaches, our staff – everyone. You guys are responsible for the success of OSU collectively – thanks to everybody,” he signals while speaking to a crowd of over 1,000 packed into the Infinity Convention Centre on Oct. 17 for OSU’s competitive banquet.
Tickets to the banquet sold out the day after they went on sale and the audience included Mayor Mark Sutcliffe along with city councillors David Hill and Isabelle Skalski, and MPP George Darouze.
“Just seeing those hundreds of faces, happy, smiling, is so motivating,” Michalopulos adds after the club gathered to celebrate another highly successful season. “I feel elated. I’m sure everybody does in the room. It’s just joy.”
Learn more about the OSU Force Academy at OSU.ca.
