Pickering Football Club, commonly known as Pickering FC, is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in Pickering, Ontario that plays in League1 Ontario. The club was founded in 1984 as a youth soccer club and added its semi-professional club in League1 Ontario in 2014.[1] The team plays home games at Kinsmen Park.[2]
 | |
| Full name | Pickering Football Club |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1984 / 2014 |
| Stadium | Kinsmen Park |
| Head Coach | Eric Polo Soldevila (men) Peter Hogg (women) |
| League | League1 Ontario |
| 2024 | L1O-C, 10th - relegated (men) L1O-C, 5th (women) |
| Website | https://www.pickeringfc.ca/league1ontario |
The club was one of the ten original founding men's teams in League1 Ontario, which was established in 2014, as well as one of eight original founding women's teams of the League1 Ontario women's division which was established in 2015. The semi-professional team was originally known as Durham United FC from 2014 until 2015, and then Durham United FA from 2016 until 2019, when they re-branded as Pickering FC. Also until 2019, their youth OPDL teams were known simply as United FA.[3]
History
edit
In 2014, the semi-professional club was established by Pickering Soccer Club to play in the newly formed League1 Ontario as one of the founding members, with a placeholder name of Durham Power FC,[4][5] referencing their youth competitive teams which went by the name Pickering Power,[6] whose nickname references the Pickering Power Plant in the city. However, in an effort to be inclusive of the larger region beyond Pickering, the club was ultimately named Durham United FC. This inclusivity allowed the club to form working relationships with other local clubs - Oshawa Kicks SC and West Rouge SC - to participate in the club,[7][8] although Oshawa Kicks later formed their own club in 2019.[9] To recognize this partnership, in 2016, the club changed the FC to FA to be known as Durham United Football Alliance.[10] Durham United played their first home match against Internacional de Toronto at Kinsmen Park in Pickering, Ontario on June 8, 2014, defeating the visitors 2–0.[11]
In 2015, they added a women's club to participate in the inaugural season of the League1 Ontario women's division.[12] The women's team won the inaugural 2015 league championship.[13] After playing in the league's first four seasons, the men's team went on hiatus for the 2018 season (while the women's club remained active in their division),[14] before returning to the league in 2019.[15] In 2018, the women's team once again won the league championship, after winning the league playoffs.[16]
For the 2020 season, the club re-branded as Pickering Football Club, matching the name of the youth club, who changed their name from Pickering Soccer Club.[17]
After opting out of the 2021 seasons, following the COVID-19 pandemic, it was announced that the club would return to both the male and female divisions, under a new ownership group, Evolution Sports & Entertainment, led by led by principal investors Ritchie Jeune and Chris Rivett, who co-own USL League Two side South Bend Lions FC (Jeune also owns English sixth tier side Kettering Town F.C. and Chinese club Shantou Lions).[18] In 2023, the club withdrew from the Premier Division in both the men's and women's divisions in League1 Ontario, after being unable to find a club partner to operate the team, although they continued to field teams in the reserve division for each gender, with the hope of returning to the top division in 2024.[19] Nevertheless, in July 2023, the league chose to terminate their licence held by Evolution Sports & Entertainment, for the top two tiers for 2024 for both the male and female divisions.[20]
However, in January 2024, the youth club (separate from the Evolution Sports & Entertainment group) purchased the licences of Electric City FC, to re-join the league, entering in the new second tier Championship division (after the top tier division split) for the 2024 season.[21][22]
Seasons
editMen
edit| Season | League | Teams | Record | Rank | Playoffs | League Cup | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | League1 Ontario | 9 | 2–4–10 | 8th | – | Semi-finals | [23] |
| 2015 | 12 | 11–3–8 | 7th | – | Semi-finals | [23] | |
| 2016 | 16 | 11–3–8 | 4th, Eastern (8th overall) | did not qualify | Quarter-finals | [23] | |
| 2017 | 16 | 11–3–8 | 3rd, Eastern (7th overall) | did not qualify | Semi-finals | [23] | |
| 2018 | on hiatus | ||||||
| 2019 | League1 Ontario | 16 | 2–2–11 | 14th | did not qualify | – | [23] |
| 2020 | Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic[24] | ||||||
| 2021 | on hiatus | ||||||
| 2022 | League1 Ontario | 22 | 7–2–12 | 14th | Did not qualify | – | |
| 2023 | on hiatus | ||||||
| 2024 | League1 Ontario Championship | 10 | 4–3–11 | 10th ↓ | – | Round of 32 | |
Women
edit| Season | League | Teams | Record | Rank | Playoffs | League Cup | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | League1 Ontario | 7 | 14–2–2 | Champions | – | Semi-finals | [25] |
| 2016 | 9 | 9–3–4 | 3rd | – | Quarter-finals | [25] | |
| 2017 | 11 | 9–4–7 | 5th | – | Quarter-finals | [25] | |
| 2018 | 13 | 7–2–3 | 4th | Champions | Round of 16 | [25] | |
| 2019 | 14 | 4–5–4 | 10th | Did not qualify | – | [25] | |
| 2020 | Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic[24] | ||||||
| 2021 | Did not enter due to COVID-19 pandemic (entered Reserve division) | ||||||
| 2022 | League1 Ontario | 20 | 3–3–13 | 17th | Did not qualify | – | |
| 2023 | on hiatus | ||||||
| 2024 | League1 Ontario Championship | 10 | 6–6–6 | 5th | – | Round of 16 | |
Notable former players
editThe following players have either played at the professional or international level, either before or after playing for the League1 Ontario team:
Men
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Women
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References
edit- ^ "The Club". Pickering FC.
- ^ "Durham United FC home opener is June 8". Pickering News Advertiser. May 27, 2014.
- ^ "The OPDL Spotlight Series - United FA". Ontario Soccer Association. June 27, 2016.
- ^ "Ontario launches provincial semi-professional men's league". Canadian Soccer Association. April 8, 2014. Archived from the original on July 4, 2020.
- ^ "OSA announces League1 Ontario teams". Ontario Soccer Association. April 8, 2014. Archived from the original on May 18, 2014.
- ^ "Pickering Soccer Club going strong". Oshawa This Week. August 12, 2009.
- ^ "Oshawa Kicks Soccer Club joins forces with Pickering to support Durham United FC". Oshawa This Week. February 20, 2015.
- ^ "Pickering Soccer Club joins forces with Oshawa Kicks, West Rouge". Pickering News Advertiser. March 24, 2016.
- ^ "FC Oshawa set to make soccer debut in League1 Ontario loop". Oshawa This Week. February 1, 2019.
- ^ "Pickering Soccer Club Announces Elite Player Pathway Rebrand". League1 Ontario. February 12, 2016.
- ^ "Soccer Fans Cheer for Durham United FC at Home Opener". Snapd Pickering. June 8, 2014. Archived from the original on July 16, 2020.
- ^ "Durham United F.C. Women - 2015 Season Preview". League1 Ontario. May 22, 2015.
- ^ Cudmore, John (May 17, 2016). "Durham spoils League1 Ontario soccer home opener for Aurora United women". Aurora Banner.
- ^ "2018 League1 Ontario Season To Feature New Format, Divisional Configuration And Several Exciting New Additions". League1 Ontario. March 14, 2018.
- ^ "Durham United FA Return to League1 Ontario Men's Division for 2019". League1 Ontario. December 20, 2018.
- ^ McNair, Brian (July 16, 2019). "Women's soccer in Durham Region hits interesting new heights". Durham Region News.
- ^ Greenwood, Matt [@MattGreenwood74] (September 24, 2019). "The next step in our club evolution" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Pickering FC to rejoin L1O Premier in 2022 with new ownership". League1 Ontario. October 19, 2021.
- ^ Jacques, John (March 7, 2023). "Pickering FC Can't Field League1 Ontario Premier Division Teams This Year". Northern Tribune.
- ^ "Applications invited to play in the men's and women's League1 Ontario Championship Division in 2024". League1 Ontario. July 4, 2023.
- ^ "Pickering return to League1 Ontario men's and women's divisions". League1 Ontario. January 9, 2024.
- ^ Parkes, David (January 10, 2024). "Pickering FC Takes Electric City's License, Returns To L1O". Northern Tribune.
- ^ a b c d e "League1 Ontario Historical Standings Men's Division". Canadian Soccer History Archives.
- ^ a b "League1 Ontario cancels Fall season plans for 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions". Canadian Premier League. September 4, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e "League1 Ontario Historical Standings Women's Division". Canadian Soccer History Archives.