Born in Canada, Martinez grew up in a house that loved music. Although she spent her early years immersed in music, studying classical piano and ballet, Martinez obtained an undergraduate degree in biology and later completed her master’s degree in international business.

A distinctive Latin / Jazz artist, Amanda Martinez brings flair and variety to each and every one of her songs. Her sound is a blend of musical influences, including flamenco inspired rhythms, Afro-Cuban beats and Mexican folk music. The Toronto based singer – songwriter records her albums almost entirely in Spanish, but most of her fan base is English speaking, her first language.

Everything About Amanda Martinez

Listen To Sueños Posibles (Dreams Realized)

I’d be the last person to discourage children from playing sports. Indeed, I wish many more would move away from their computers, put down their iPods and cellphones and devote more time and energy to physical activities.

But for many children and adolescents, the problem is the opposite of being sedentary. Encouraged by parents and coaches, many with visions of glory and scholarships, too many young athletes are being pushed — or are pushing themselves — to the point of breaking down, physically and sometimes emotionally.

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Canada’s pride of ownership
I am currently house hunting. This Englishman’s Canadian castle has been sold which will render the vendor homeless midway through the World Cup unless he finds something suitable in the near future.

Finding ‘something suitable’, it turns out, is easier said than done. This is due, in part, to the way in which some estate agents market their clients’ homes. Suffice to say I am now up to speed with the industry lingo.

Descriptions such as “stunning” and “immaculate” accompany many of the properties for sale. The fact most of them are neither just means the agent is being, shall we say, ‘creative’ in his or her attempt to drum up interest from people like me.

A phrase with which I have become familiar in recent days is “pride of ownership”. It is intended to convey a message of a solid property, which has been meticulously maintained and is in prime condition for a prospective buyer.

My wife and I have stopped going to see such stock. From what we can tell, pride of ownership is actually agent-speak. Roughly translated, it means the dwelling is still standing but is going to need thousands of dollars spent on renovations to drag it into the 21st century and make it habitable.

I was fortunate to witness pride of ownership of an entirely different kind this past weekend. While Toronto FC was out of town, I was asked to MC the Ontario Soccer Association’s annual awards banquet. It is, as you might imagine, a gathering of the great and the good of the province’s soccer achievers.

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Soccer Academy Alliance Canada gets OSA approval
After several years of unsuccessfully applying to the Ontario Soccer Association for official recognition, SAAC, a national association of privately owned, soccer skills teaching schools or academies, has been voted into the fold.

SAAC is now an Associate Member of the OSA. In a vote of the Board the OSA passed RFD 2010-007, a referendum tabled earlier this year to give Associate Membership to the Soccer Academy Alliance of Canada.

“This is a big step towards legitimizing to the professional academy system in Canada and helping SAAC achieve it’s vision of becoming the primary player development platform in Canada.”

Lino Terra Commissioner of the SAAC

Throughout the world, the academy system has been the standard bearer of quality coaching and elite player development. For reasons unclear or perhaps untold, officialdom in the soccer community has resisted their incorporation into the mainstream. And, that has hindered the realization of our soccer playing youth’s full potential. Until today. At least in Ontario.

“Today’s OSA approval for SAAC Associate membership means that the real work is just about to start. The academies will be entering a new phase in Canadian Soccer with the objective of building a solid foundation for player and coach development. I challenge the Canadian soccer society to join the academies alliance – SAAC – in achieving its mission to develop World Class soccer players in Canada on a continual and
systematic basis, by providing our members with best-in-class training, facilities and competition.”

Bassam Naim ANB Academy Director

Nathan Mesher “I founded this program to allow me to help give back to players that are less fortunate than myself,” Mesher said. “Players that receive financial assistance will have an equal opportunity to achieve a soccer scholarship together with a university education.”

To date, Toronto Lynx players have earned over 100 such scholarships.

“This award demonstrates how the power and good will of communities can change a youth player’s life forever,” said Lynx Academy Director Duncan Wilde.

The Toronto Lynx Premier Soccer Academy is specifically designed for elite-level soccer players that have ambitions of earning soccer scholarships at universities in Canada and the United States. The academy is a year-round player development program requiring a full commitment from each player. Recent teams have proved to be very competitive against some of the top competition in North America, with three Junior Lynx teams qualifying for USL Super Y-League North American Finals in 2009. The Toronto Lynx are currently the ranked No. 1 ranked boys club in the Midwest Division of the Super Y-League. Toronto is also the No. 7 ranked boys club in North America based on the 2009 SYL First 11 Rankings.

All of Toronto’s Junior Lynx and Lady Lynx teams compete in the Midwest Division of USL’s Super Y-League. The Lynx also enter each team in seven of the highest ranked tournaments and college showcase events throughout the year. The SYL North American Finals are hosted in Tampa, Florida each November. All Toronto Lynx teams are eligible to qualify to compete in the event based on their performance in the Super Y-League regular season. There are two playoff spots open for each age group.

All Lynx Academy Teams began winter indoor training during the first week in January 2010. The Toronto Lynx train indoor twice a week until the outdoor season begins. Teams adopt a three day training schedule once the outdoor sessions begin.

The Toronto Lynx Academy currently has five players registered with the Canadian Youth National Teams, including three players in the Men’s Olympic Development Program. All Junior Lynx players will be registered with both the Toronto Soccer Association and the United Soccer Leagues (USL).

No other academy program in Toronto offers the components available to Toronto Lynx Academy players. Lynx players are registered with the Toronto Soccer Association, Ontario Soccer Association and the Super Y-League. Players also gain the opportunity to be selected for USL’s SYL ODP National Camps and the Lynx Mentor program, which allows players future playing opportunities in the USL Premier Development League and USL W-League. Returning college players are eligible to compete in USL’s Super-20 League where the Lynx have enjoyed much success, advancing to the league semifinals in 2007 and the championship match in 2008.

The Lynx have been USL members for 14 years. The club has a proven track record of forwarding players into NCAA Soccer Programs in the United States since 2004. Founded in 1988 by Wilde, the Lynx possess 20 years of academy business experience in Ontario. The club has won five Super Y-League Division titles, advanced to the Super Y-League semifinals five times and have played in the final twice. The Lynx have also appeared in one Dallas Cup final.

Joanne’s fine art career began in 1995, and she is already regarded as an accomplished artist, skilled in many media and styles.

Joanne Gervais Art

Up Against It: Why our Soccer System Fails
Like most of the BC soccer community, I was extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Roman Tulis and found myself tearing up when I came across the news. Although I had never met him before, I was friends with many of his players, both male and female. His players always possessed supreme technical ability and everyone spoke so highly of his methods of teaching, his passion, and his integrity in the game. Through his obvious passion for the game and the belief it could be done better, I admired the way he didn’t put his energy into the politics that envelop the game in Canada but instead embarked on building opportunities for players that backed his strong passion for and knowledge of the game. He quietly did his own thing and let the accomplishments of his players speak for themselves.

In the same manner that Roman saw a deficiency in the system and took action to add another option for the benefit of the players, a group of us twenty-something elite female players started the girlsCan Western Canada Soccer Showcase, a professionally run College Showcase for female players in grades 9-12. While on one hand, we have some fantastic stories that have come out of the first three years of the Showcase, this year again elucidated some very real problems that exist within the soccer system in BC and Canada. I believe these problems need to be highlighted and changed in order to move soccer forward in a real way in this province and country. I will highlight the history of running this showcase over the last three years to show just one tiny example within many others, of the type of resistance people face when trying to sincerely change the soccer landscape for the better in this province and country. In giving my experience, perhaps it will serve to uncover the answers that I always have had as a player as to why we always seem to be falling so far short of our potential to be a true soccer powerhouse.

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To have such a big turnout, especially on Easter Weekend and considering how nice the weather is outside is very gratifying to my colleagues and I.

A special thank you to the members of the local, provincial and national soccer community and the members of the media who have turned out today to lend their support.

Today is a very exiting day for our new club and the result of almost a full year of planning.

Last May, a group of passionate (and some might say slightly disgruntled) soccer supporters from across the country started an online discussion to debate the merits and feasibility of trying to start our own professional soccer club.

Once it became clear that there was very serious interest in this idea, the discussions moved offline and into a boardroom where we started the sometimes painfully slow process of taking what seemed to some a crazy idea and turned it into reality.

Despite some setbacks along the way and the departure of some people from the original working group who helped get the project off the ground, a small but dedicated team of passionate soccer lovers came together, put in a lot of hours of hard work and, thanks to the support of family, friends, the Milton Youth Soccer Club, the CSL and many important people in the Canadian Soccer Community, some of whom are in this room today, MILLTOWN FC came to be.

Milltown FC is very proud to be able to represent the dynamic and and rapidly growing Town of Milton in The Canadian Soccer League. We strive to be a leader in growing the sport of soccer at the senior elite level here in town and in the surrounding areas. Thanks to the affiliation agreement we will be signing today with Milton Youth Soccer Club, we hope to be able to create opportunities and attainable pathways for talented young Canadians who aspire to pursue a full time professional soccer career. In our own small way, we will work to create the same types of attainable and affordable pathways for young soccer players that have existed for young hockey players for a very long time and which have served Canadian Hockey very well.

Our ultimate goal is to develop players who are able to reach their full potential and who may, one day, represent Canada at the international level. As someone who is a staunch and passionate supporter of Canada’s National Teams, the possibility that, one day, a Milltown FC player could put on a Canadian kit would be hugely satisfying.

To make that possible, we will provide a professional environment for our players, complete with proper facilities and a highly qualified and experienced technical staff, led by our Director of Soccer Operations and Head Coach, Rafael Carbajal.

I’ve known Rafael for about 3 years now and the one thing I can promise all newly minted MILLTOWN FC supporters is that you will be treated to a very entertaining brand of soccer.

For those that are not very familiar with the Canadian Soccer League, it is recognized as the 3rd Tier Professional League in the Canadian Soccer Pyramid. I often refer to it as a Professional Development League. The league consists of 13 clubs, 12 from Ontario AND 1 From Quebec and the quality of competition is very high.

For 2010, Milltown FC is joined by two other new entrants, one in Hamilton, the other in Brantford. We look forward to developing some exciting rivalries with these two new clubs as well as the 10 returning members. Our league is poised to continue to grow, as I am sure our new League Chairman, Domenic Di Gironimo, will explain when he speaks to you.

We are committed to developing and maintaining strong relationships within the Milton community. This is clearly a community that is supportive of community organizations that show a willingness to give back to the community. This is one of the biggest reasons why Milton was our first choice for a home town for our club when we approached the CSL to be considered for entry into the league.

We are hopeful that the community will support us as we get this club off the ground, and bears with us through some of the inevitable growing pains. On that note, Season Ticket Packages are now on sale and are priced very reasonably, especially for families who want to bring their kids to home games. We will work very hard to make our home game days fun events that are also family friendly.

Before I step aside so Rafael can say a few words, I want to thank Lino Terra, one of my fellow co-owners, for all the hard work he has done to get us to this point and for having belief in the vision I presented to him several months ago. I also want to thank Dan Baresic and Alex Dyck for all their efforts and commitment to the cause. They’ve both been part of this process Since Day 1 online.

Lastly, I want to thank my wife, Lori, and my three young children for all their patience and support. Without them, this could not happen.

Thank you again for coming today and I look forward to meeting you all at our first home game on May 28 @ 8pm at Bishop Reding Secondary School on Main Street.

Dino Rossi Jr
President, Milltown FC

I am delighted with the appointment. Mr. Ragan brings a great deal of experience at every level of the game and we are fortunate he has agreed to work with us. Through his leadership on and off the field he brings respect to the sport and the position.

Clive Wilkinson President, Ontario Soccer Association

Randy Ragan attended Simon Fraser University where he played varsity soccer and completed a Bachelor or Arts (Psychology). While at Simon Fraser University, he was a member of the 1976 Canadian Youth Soccer Team that played in the Youth World Cup qualifying round in Puerto Rico and the Canadian World University Games Soccer Team that played in the 1979 World University Games in Mexico City.

He was drafted out of Simon Fraser University by the Toronto Blizzard of the North America Soccer League where he played 117 games from 1980 – 1984, including the North American Soccer Bowl final in 1983 and 1984.

Ragan played 40 times for Canada including four games in the 1984 Summer Olympics and three games in the 1986 World Cup. He served as captain in 1986-87 and was inducted into the Soccer Hall of Fame in 2002 and he is a member of the 1986 Canadian World Cup Team inducted into the Soccer Hall of Fame in 2009. After his playing career, Ragan obtained a Bachelor of Education from the University of Western Ontario and a Bachelor of Laws from Osgoode Hall Law School of York University. He served as Criminal Duty Counsel and Deputy Legal Accounts Officer for Legal Aid Ontario and Acting Director (Research Support Services) and Contracts Manager in the Office of Associate Vice-President (Research) at the University of Guelph.

“Randy Ragan brings to the Ontario Soccer Association the respect and admiration of the entire Canadian soccer community,” says Jason deVos, soccer commentator for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and former professional and also a captain for Team Canada from 1999 to 2004.

“Having represented Canada at the 1986 World Cup, he has achieved the dream to which all players aspire – to represent one’s country at the highest level. Randy’s legal and administrative background will prove to be a valuable asset to the Ontario Soccer Association as it works to strengthen its ties with the soccer community. His technical knowledge and understanding of what is required to succeed at the highest level of the game will provide valuable leadership to the Association as it continually looks for ways to improve the technical aspects of player, coach and referee development. I am confident that the entire Canadian soccer community will join me in supporting Randy Ragan as the Chief Technical Officer of the Ontario Soccer Association.”

A Provincial B Licence coach, Ragan was an assistant coach with the University of Guelph Men’s Soccer Team and Head Coach of the University of Guelph Women’s Soccer Team since the start of the 2008 season.

As Chief Technical Officer, Mr. Ragan will be responsible for providing leadership and strategic direction to support the technical growth of soccer from the grassroots to high performance, to increase participation and improve the quality of soccer in Ontario by overseeing the management and development of technical programs pertaining to player, coach and referee development, league development, futsal and indoor soccer.

“The Ontario Soccer Association is most fortunate to have obtained the services of Randy Ragan to coincide with the launch of the Wellness to World Cup and Long Term Player Development strategies,” says Ontario Soccer Association CEO, Guy Bradbury.

“Mr. Ragan’s depth of experience at all levels and in all capacities of the game together with his professional credentials will serve the soccer community well as this important initiative is rolled out across Ontario and Canada in the coming months and years.”

“I am thrilled to join the Ontario Soccer Association and look forward to working with the Ontario soccer community in creating an environment in which all participants will have the opportunity to reach their full potential and achieve their goals,” says Ragan.