Having won their first two games on the road, Guelph Union returns home to play Waterloo United on Saturday.
The women’s semi-pro soccer team will play inside the University of Guelph’s Alumni Stadium.
Head coach Onkar Dhillon said this team is a really special group of players.
“They’re super comfortable on the ball. They have the ability to make adjustments in game, which we pride ourselves on,” he said.
“The game presents many problems simultaneously and our group is smart footballers. They’ve been well-coached through their youth. They understand how to solve those problems in real-time and they make really intelligent adjustments.”
Guelph Union beat Darby FC 1-0 and then defeated the Oakville Blue Devils last weekend 2-0. Guelph United FC, the men’s side, was also victorious in their opener last week beating London FC 6-0.
With both clubs currently undefeated, Dhillon says there’s momentum heading into this weekend’s matchup.
He says training has also been going well since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted.
“It allowed us to slowly build back,” he said.
He said the team started with some technical stuff to get them back on the ball and “reconnected” with the game. From there, they progressed into some match play in training and went through some tactical ideas.
“They were ready. They had handled their own fitness really well during the spring months. So they were ready to go.”
He added the shortened season is perfectly appropriate for this team.
And while the women’s side is making an impact on the field so far in its first-ever season in League1 Ontario, Sara Orell, executive director of Guelph Soccer, hopes the team can have just as much of an impact off the field, too.
The expansion side is a part of Guelph Soccer, a local youth soccer organization. Orell said she hopes this team can inspire young girls, no matter what sport they play.
“Recent research that’s come out from Canadian Women and Sport indicates that one in four girls are not committed to returning to sport,” she said.
“There is more and more money being invested into girls and women and sport and there’s lots more opportunity than there ever was. So we’re really hopeful that the Guelph Union program inspires young girls to continue in sport and to play at the highest level that they want to play at.”
Last week, the federal government announced that $196,000 in funding will go to Guelph Soccer for the next three years. The funds will go to the She’s Got Game project.
Orell said the project will target two different key demographics: girls who are transitioning from youth players to adults; and mothers who have players within the program.
Dhillon says the team is really excited about their home opener. He said he’s looking to have them reconnect with the game.
“Being off of the game for 18 months is unprecedented,” he said.
“We wanted our athletes to get reconnected with the game in a meaningful way, get reconnected with the community in a meaningful way, and let the football come as it comes.”
The game starts Saturday at 5 p.m.