The Canadian Premier League looks to kick off with a bang Saturday with a large crowd at Tim Hortons Field expected for the opener between Hamilton's Forge FC and visiting York 9 FC.
Forge FC owner Bob Young is opening up the entire stadium — capacity is 23,000-plus although it will be limited to some 10,000 for future games — and essentially giving tickets away for the historic first game. Spectators will be asked to donate to youth soccer while season ticket-holders who bought tickets for the game are getting free ones for a future contest.
"We may set an attendance record for Tim Hortons Field," said commissioner David Clanachan.
"I think it's going to be great for Canadian soccer," added Forge FC coach Bobby Smyrniotis. "A monumental day.
"It's just great to see the buzz in the city, it's great to see the buzz around the game," he added.
Said York 9 coach Jim Brennan: "It's going to be great for the fans, it's going to be great for the league, great for the country."
What happens on the field is just as important as the scene in the stands for the fledgling seven-team league and coaches say the product won't disappoint.
Clanachan also says the new league will be distinctly Canadian.
"I want the game to be entertaining and I want people to recognize that we're going to create a style of play in this country that people will recognize us for as Canadians," Clanachan said.
"Hard but fair. No cheating, no diving, no simulation. The way people expect Canadians to play any sport."
Smyrniotis says Forge FC will deliver entertainment.
"We've got a very ambitious group that likes to play the game, that are technically gifted in all positions and really like to enjoy the game and play a high-tempo type of style," he said.
"We're a very fluid group, with players that can play multiple positions," he added. "We've created a squad which we believe has a lot of depth and I think that gives us a lot of tactical flexibility, But for the most part, it's a team that going to try and play with the more enjoyable parts of the game — a possession high-tempo game."
Familiar names of the Forge roster include goalkeeper Quillan Roberts, defender-midfielder Kwame Awuah, midfielders Kyle Bekker and David Choiniere and forward Emery Welshman, Chris Nanco and Marcel Zajac.
Many of the Hamilton players came up through the Sigma FC system with Smyrniotis so there is a degree of familiarity.
A newcomer worth watching is Senegal international midfielder Elimane Oumar Cisse.
York 9 features defender Luca Gasparotto and midfielders Manuel Aparacio, Kyle Porter, Joe Di Chiara and Ryan Telfer.
Aparacio and Bekker will lead out their teams Saturday as captains.
Fourteen of the 20 players listed on the Forge FC roster are 24 or younger. On the York 9 side, 10 of the 21 players are 24 or younger.
The new league continues play Sunday when Pacific FC hosts HFX Wanderers FC at Westhills Stadium in Langford, B.C.
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Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
