FC Edmonton Sign Three CIS Players

–By Dylan Matthias

Canada’s newest professional soccer team, FC Edmonton, announced it’s roster on Wednesday, and it includes a number of CIS and CCAA players.

Leading the pack is 2009 CIS bronze medallist and 2008 silver medallist Paul Hamilton, of the Trinity Western Spartans.

Goalkeeper Jaswinder Gill and midfielder Milan Timotijevic, both of the University of Alberta Golden Bears join Hamilton on FC Edmonton.

Kyle Yamada and Sam Lam both played in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference of CCAA last year. Yamada, a striker, scored six goals in nine games with Mt. Royal University. Lam, a midfielder, scored six in ten games at Concordia University College in Calgary.

Lam’s teammate, goalkeeper Tristan Ilko, was also signed by FC Edmonton. The final CCAA addition is Thiago Silva, a Brazilian who played with the NAIT Ooks this past season.

There is an AUS connection to all of this, as another FC Edmonton signing–Neto Miguel–played with UNB in the past, according to an article in the Toronto Sun, which also says he played at University of Calgary and University of Alberta, but we couldn’t find him on their 2009 rosters.

FC Edmonton will play in the new NASL, part of the second-division USSF Division Two. The team doesn’t join officially until 2011, but will play the Montreal Impact and Miami FC of NASL this year. They will also play a number of semi-pro and amateur teams, including the Ottawa Fury (PDL), Victoria Highlanders (PCSL), and the Spokane Spiders (PDL).

–Dylan Matthias is the incoming sports editor at the Dalhousie Gazette. He runs Dal Soccer Live on the side to provide more in-depth coverage of AUS and ACAA soccer. He has been a Toronto FC fan since Danny Dichio scored the team’s first ever goal. It showed him the magic of soccer.