For a long time, adult soccer enthusiasts in Cochrane only had one option if they wanted to play the game they loved.
Now, with the town’s ever-burgeoning population comes new opportunities and fans of the sport have another option: Cochrane Soccer Club (CSC).
Formed in January of last year by Dom Hickey and Keith Thomson, the club is different in what it offers players in Cochrane compared to the Cochrane Rangers Soccer Club, while still keeping with a fun, family-friendly environment.
“Dom and I were originally involved with Calgary West where we ran a men’s program for them,” said CSC president Thomson. “Dom had originally been coaching on the kid’s side of things so, I asked him if he’d be interesting coming onto the adult program and he said yes.”
That partnership with the Calgary club went on for five years before Hickey was offered the role of technical director at the Rangers, a role he took.
“After that we asked our players if they wanted to shift over to the Rangers and the majority of them said yes,” Thomson continued. “I also ended up coming on as a board member and did that for a year.”
Once having joined the club, things didn’t go according to plan as the CSC pair and the existing Rangers hierarchy had different views on how things were going to play out at the club.
While he understood the club had always done things this way, for Hickey, that wasn’t how you expanded or bettered your brand, which left him with only one option when several board members threatened to step down if things continued.
But, where some see hardships others see opportunity, so he and Thomson decided to break off and start afresh by forming another club.
“Rangers have been the only show in town for over 25 years and the town was big enough to have a second club,” Hickey said. “We ended up starting out with one men’s over-35 team, and a women’s over-35 and over-40 team, who were very successful at tier three level. “
“What our club offers is when you sign a contract you have a responsibility to try and make as many games and practices as possible. So far, people are loving it especially the ladies who turn up to everything because we offer soccer that is competitive for their ability and age.”
“We expect a bit more commitment,” he said. “As corny as it sounds, this is still a big social thing, but we also want to develop skills and teach people the mentality of a team game.
During this past winter season, CSC had some trouble finding solid facilities to get training time, because of that the club didn’t have a competitive men’s side, forcing them to recreational level practices at Cochrane High School. On the flip side, the ladies side showed tremendous success by moving up two tiers.
“They did OK,” Thomson said of his girls. “We didn’t finish bottom of the league so that was encouraging.”
At the beginning of the 2016 outdoor season, word had spread about the club, which led to an increased membership (currently standing at 52 players registered) and the creation of a new men’s open team, along with a buddy program for children.
The buddy plan is a day camp for kids aged four to seven, which allows them to receive full days of soccer coaching throughout the summer.
“We didn’t want to run something competitive to start with since there’s a lot of that,” said Hickey’s wife, Zeta. “We wanted to give children an introduction to the game where they can learn initial skills.
“There’s already a big children’s club in town that is mostly competitive and we wanted to do something from the fun standpoint and offer soccer to kids who might find it difficult in regular teams. It’s about access for everybody.”
Youth programs such as this are key as CSC looks to the future and the expansion of soccer in the community.
“We’ve only been doing adults at the moment because that’s what was originally in front of us,” Hickey said. “Once you get into the youth side of it becomes tricky, but we’re looking to get into other markets, and we’re open to all the children in the area. If their parents want to play as well, even better.”
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of the services CSC can provide involve Hickey, who, apart from being a former professional scout in the United Kingdom, is fully trained in sports rehabilitation. That has led to the club introducing specific conditioning sessions this year to combat injuries.
“The older players like someone who can coach them and also prevent injury,” Zeta said. “With the older groups soccer is more about health and being the best you can be. Sure, everyone likes winning, but it’s also about making good friends, and keeping fit.”
“People see Cristiano Ronaldo doing all these tricks on television and think that’s all the game is about but, you also have to learn the basics and we can teach that,” Hickey added.
For more information check out www.cochranesoccerclub.com.
