Jefferson Hagen / MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – A new field of play awaits the MacEwan Griffins soccer teams this upcoming Canada West season.
Both squads will play the majority of their home games at Clarke Stadium (11000 Stadium Rd) with a few dates set for Clareview Stadium (3804 139 Ave.).
Canada West released its 2018 schedule on Thursday – the historic 50th year of men's university soccer in Western Canada. And the Griffins won't have to wait long to show off their new digs as the men's squad opens play against cross-town rival University of Alberta on Aug. 25 at Clarke (noon, Canada West TV).
See the full Griffins men's soccer schedule here
See the full Griffins women's soccer schedule here
With a capacity of 5,000 and a host of solid amenities, Clarke Stadium is ideal for MacEwan soccer to showcase its product in front of Griff Nation and the wider Edmonton community.
"The proximity of Clarke Stadium to the downtown campus and the amenities it offers are important to us," said MacEwan Director of Athletics Ken Schildroth. "It's the closest facility to our campus and allows our teams to practice and play in the same place. We can't wait to showcase our product to our fans there."
Facing their cross-town rival immediately gives the Griffins men's soccer team a distinct starting target. The Golden Bears are only two years removed from winning the U SPORTS championship.
"We open up with U of A, so it will be a good test for us right away," said head coach Adam Loga, whose squad will open training camp on Aug. 1. "It's important that we get a good start because last year we had a lot of one-goal games in the first six. We came up a bit short.
"When you don't get the start you want and don't get breaks you need, you find yourself six feet underwater and trying to get your way back into it. It would be nice to come out flying and hopefully nick some points from some top-end teams right away and hope they're not maybe as organized as they start off the season before they find their form. Hopefully, we can come out organized and capitalize."
The Griffins will also host Mount Royal University (Sept. 8), Calgary (Sept. 9), Trinity Western (Sept. 15), Victoria (Sept. 16), Saskatchewan (Sept. 29) and Lethbridge (Sept. 30) before closing out the campaign on the road at Alberta on Oct. 20. All will be held at Clarke Stadium, except the MRU and Saskatchewan matches, which are slated for Clareview.
2018 will be a historic one for men's soccer, as it will mark the 50th consecutive season of university soccer across Western Canada. It will also mark the 47th season of Canada West men's soccer, which is one of 14 CW sports to be contested annually since the conference formed in the spring of 1972.
The Griffins women's soccer team will get its first chance to play in Clarke on Sept. 14 when the Saskatchewan Huskies visit for their home opener (6 p.m., Canada West TV).
The 2018 season marks the second one of two the Griffins will spend in the Pacific Division before returning to play in the Prairie Division in 2019. That means going head-to-head against B.C. powerhouses such as defending Canada West champion Trinity Western and other top challengers, UBC and Victoria.
"Being in the Pacific Division has changed things for us," said Griffins women's head coach Dean Cordeiro, whose team finished fourth in Canada West last season, narrowly missing a berth to nationals. "I think overall, it's been a bit more competitive of a group with some more big-time games. There's a lot of parity within the league.
"What we've learned it's a bit of a different playing style in the Pacific as opposed to the Prairies, although the latter is very strong as well. For us, it will be nice to host UBC and UVic because over the last two years we've went there twice and they have yet to play here.
"It will be a cool change. It will also be the first time we play at Fraser Valley and Trinity Western."
The Griffins women's squad will face a familiar start to the 2018 season, facing the same two starting teams as last year – Thompson Rivers University and UBC-Okanagan – albeit on the road this time (Sept. 8-9).
They will have to be road warriors often this season, though, as the Griffins play an unbalanced schedule of six home and eight away matches. That's due to UNBC being their travel partner (playing the same teams on the road on opposite days) and, unlike last year when the Timberwolves visited MacEwan twice to give the Griffins eight home and six road games, they will meet each other twice in Prince George in 2018 (Oct. 5-6).
MacEwan's women's team also has home dates against Regina (Sept. 16), Victoria (Sept. 28), UBC (Sept. 30), UBCO (Oct. 19) and Thompson Rivers (Oct. 21). All will be held at Clarke Stadium.
The 2018 university soccer season concludes Nov. 8-11, as UBC hosts the men's U SPORTS national tournament in Vancouver, while a women's national champion will be crowned in our nation's capital, as the University of Ottawa hosts the U SPORTS championship.
Once again this season you can watch conference soccer action all season long on Canada West TV – the official streaming home of Canada West. More than 150 games were available live last season on Canada West TV, with more live webcasts planned for this season, along with every game being available on demand.
Beginning with the 2019-20 season, every Canada West soccer game will be available live, as the conference continues to expand its webcasting schedule.
2018-19 Canada West TV passes go on sale Thursday, June 21.
