Pacific FC head coach Pa-Modou Kah made it clear from the start of his regular pre-match Zoom call with national media that he only wanted to discuss one thing on Friday. It was football, the talk of the whole country.
Pacific FC head coach Pa-Modou Kah made it clear from the start of his regular pre-match Zoom call with national media that he only wanted to discuss one thing on Friday.
It was football, the talk of the whole country.
Before even considering answering questions about FC Edmonton, who league leaders PFC face today in a Canadian Premier League match at 3:30 p.m. at Starlight Stadium, Kah said: “I want to make a statement. Congratulations to the Canadian women’s team and their Olympic gold medal. It is enormous. It’s fantastic. The national team has been on the rise for a long time. Women are leading the way. Hopefully the men can follow with qualification for the World Cup (Qatar 2022). All Canadians should celebrate the gold medal. If this happened in the United States, it would happen everywhere. This is what you want cultures to achieve. She is an inspiration to many women, including my daughters.
Kah noted how many Canadian players have come from the Vancouver Whitecaps’ REX program.
“Our Pacific FC Van Isle Wave program also wants to be a feeder to the national team,” said Kah, of PFC’s women’s development arm.
“There is no separation in our club (between the boys’ and girls’ development programs),” added Kah, who participates in training for the boys’ and girls’ Wave teams.
Van Isle PFC Wave U-18 and U-15 girls head coach Dave Dew guided Canada to its first women’s victory over the United States in Columbus, Ohio, in 2000, and its last before the Tokyo Olympic semi-finals this week.
The pre-match press conference, meanwhile, ultimately led to the PFC-Eddies match. Pacific FC moves to the top of the standings today with a 6-2-2 record after rallying for a 2-1 win Wednesday over second-place Valor FC of Winnipeg, scoring the game-winner courtesy of Marco Bustos, despite the fact that there were only 10 players left.
FC Edmonton (3-5-2) just lost 2-1 to Calgary Cavalry FC in the Alberta CPL derby known as Al Classico, a rivalry game between the giants Spaniards Barcelona and Real Madrid.
FC Edmonton is coached by Alan Koch, under whom Kah was an assistant coach at FC Cincinnati in Major League Soccer, so each is familiar with the other’s style and approach.
PFC hits the road after today’s games for games in Calgary against Cavalry on Wednesday and in Winnipeg against Valor on August 16.
