June 4, 2005 W-League Toronto Lady Lynx (story from Toronto Star)
Jun. 4, 2005. 01:00 AM
Lady Lynx struggling off field, but not on
Remain unbeaten after three games
Financial woes still plague club
DONOVAN VINCENT
SPORTS REPORTER
Like a sprouting flower, the Toronto Lady Lynx soccer team is showing early signs of promise.
Born from the ashes of the defunct Toronto Inferno, the club has carved out an impressive 3-0 record in this, its inaugural season.
That's a far cry from the woeful play of its franchise siblings — the Toronto Lynx, the men's pro team that was 0-6-3 going into last night's game against the Impact in Montreal.
"It's been a group effort," says Lady Lynx coach Brett Mosen.
"There's a great mood on the club and I'm impressed with everyone's work ethic."
The team's success on the field has provided the Lynx organization with a ray of light amid an otherwise gloomy financial picture.
Like the men's side, the women have been dogged by problems like tepid attendance, weak sponsorship and poor revenue streams.
The young team — the average age is 21 — sits atop the Northern Division in the Eastern Conference of the United Soccer League's W-League, an amateur circuit comprised largely of players enrolled from American universities and colleges.
Following the collapse in 2003 of the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), the USL's 34-team W-League is considered the top competition in North America.
The Lady Lynx roster includes several of Ontario's top players, some of them former members of Canada's national squad. Seven were on the under-19 national team that recently returned from an international tournament in Houston.
The Lynx next play tomorrow at Etobicoke's Centennial Park Stadium against the Vermont Lady Voltage, a side they've already beaten this year.
After that, Mosen expects the schedule to get tougher as the Lynx battle teams like Ottawa for the first time.
"We've yet to meet the big boys .... uh, I mean big girls," he added.
But what has him especially pleased is that his team has only allowed one goal, which came in its first match. Goalkeeper Stacey Van Boxmeer has provided security and stability with back-to-back shutouts, and forward Kimberly Warner, with her lightning speed and spirited play, has carried the attack.One of the main players on the team is 18-year-old Amanda Cicchini, a 5-foot-2, Grade 12 student at Oakville's Holy Trinity Secondary.
Cicchini, who enjoys hip-hop music and just hanging out with friends, loves the competition.
"I work really hard. I just hate losing," she said.
Some might call her naïve and unrealistic when she insists that interest in her team and women's soccer in the GTA is burgeoning.
"It's getting more and more popular," she enthused.
The numbers don't necessarily lend support for her optimism.
After drawing about 3,000 for their home opener, the women have averaged closer to 1,500 fans for subsequent matches. The men attract between 2,000 to 3,000 per match.
Sponsorship is minimal because the corporate community is just not getting behind either team, said a frustrated Nicole Hartrell who, with husband Bruno, are the chief financial and chief operating officers of the Lynx organization.
They created the Lady Lynx from the old Toronto Inferno club — a W-League outfit that played in Scarborough — obtaining and renaming the franchise and giving it a new home. The men's team, a USL First Division side, is in its ninth season.
There also are seven youth league teams under the Lynx umbrella.
With Pizza Pizza and Tim Hortons as their top sponsors, the Lynx have nearly a dozen "high-end" backers (who pour in between $5,000 to $40,000 a season) and 30 or 40 lower-end supporters (good for between $500 to $1,000 a season).
Despite the sponsorship money and gate receipts, Hartrell says the club still loses about $400,000 a year. Still, she remains optimistic that they can turn things around.
"We're holding our own, considering the challenges we've had to face," she said.
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