September 21, 2023...'Fantastic Attitute, Fantastic Person and a Great Player For This Club: Record-Breaker Max Ferrari
on his Journey (from York United FC website)
'FANTASTIC ATTITUDE, FANTASTIC PERSON AND A GREAT PLAYER FOR THIS CLUB': RECORD-BREAKER MAX FERRARI ON HIS JOURNEY
Sunday's clash with Pacific FC was the 23-year-old's 77th game for The Nine Stripes.
It said much about the love that exists for Max Ferrari inside the York United FC locker room that goalkeeper
Niko Giantsopoulos arrived for last Sunday's fixture against Pacific FC wearing a club jersey with his team-mate's
name and number on the back.
Days beforehand, there had been another moving gesture from within the squad. Skipper Roger Thompson revealed that
he would be handing the captain's armband to Ferrari for the game, and that the 23-year-old would lead the team out
at York Lions Stadium for the very first time.
After all, he had certainly earned it.
Last weekend's game was the 77th time Ferrari had featured for the side, becoming the all-time appearance leader
for The Nine Stripes in the process. In truth, but for an injury-interrupted 2022 season, he would be inching close
to becoming a club centurion.
It all started in unusual circumstances, with the 2020 campaign delayed for months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In what still ranks as an astonishing commitment from a fledgling league, the CPL fronted up some intimidating
logistical barriers and managed to pull off The Island Games, a shortened tournament, across August and September
that all took place in Prince Edward Island . Because of the travel restrictions faced by international signings,
York United focused their attentions on getting recent local acquisitions ready for action. The likes of Isaiah Johnston,
Ijah Halley and 16-year-old Lowell Wright had been brought in to bulk out a squad. Now, in the space of a few weeks
and months, they were preparing for plenty of professional game-time. Ferrari - who had turned some heads playing
League1 Ontario for Aurora FC, was part of that group too, and both he and Wright would establish themselves immediately.
Head Coach Martin Nash on what makes Max Ferrari so special.
"That pause was a good thing for me because when I came in, I wasn't as fit as I should have been," Ferrari says,
looking back on his tentative steps with The Nine Stripes.
"After seeing a month of the pre-season and realizing how consistent you've got to be at this level, those extra four
months helped a lot because I got really fit. The older guys - our vets - were on me all the time because they could
see the potential I had and they were really hard on me. So before we got to to the bubble in PEI, I was running 10km
a day, working out every day. So that time was big for me, mentally and physically. And then...in the bubble I went
on to have a debut to remember."
With his side 2-0 behind against new-boys Atletico Ottawa, Ferrrari was introduced off the bench early in the second half.
Within minutes, his dazzling dribble on the right side was followed by the perfect cut-back for fellow-sub Wright,
who calmly tucked the ball to the corner and made CPL history as the league's youngest goalscorer too. The team would
rally and dig out an equalizer not long after and secure a well-earned point.
Ferrari went on to appear in all seven of the side's games in PEI but enjoyed a banner year in 2021, making 30 appearances
across the league, playoffs and Canadian Championship. He scored his first professional goal in a thrilling 3-2 away win
in Halifax and grabbed another in a 2-0 derby victory over Forge at Tim Hortons Field. Additionally, he racked up five
assists and was nominated for the CPL Under-21 Player of the Year award alongside Alessandro Hojabrpour and Victor Loturi.
Then came a reality check.
After such an impressive campaign cane high expectations the following season, and a new Head Coach in Martin Nash to try
and impress. But a pair of injuries - one in April and the other in July - resulted in Ferrari making just six starts.
It was especially tough during that latter spell on the sidelines, as his team-mates managed to conjure a superb turnaround
and put together a spirited fight-back with five wins and two draws from their final nine fixtures.
Under Nash ('a great guy', Ferrari says), he's spent a lot of time fine-tuning the technical side of his game - positioning,
timing, decision-making. Having been a makeshift full-back on occasion in the past, he's hardly featured on the wing
at all this season. Since the departure of Lassana Faye, coupled with some injuries to a variety of the defensive unit,
Ferrari has been tasked with not just playing out of position but also on the opposite flank. And that's ensured he's
asked even more questions than usual.
"Nash has helped me learn the game," he says.
"I'm the type of guy who'll ask a lot of questions. And he's the type of guy who's willing to answer every single one
of them - even if it's a bad one."
If Ferrari wants to make this his best-ever season in terms of appearances, the regular season won't suffice. 31 is the magic
number, he's currently on 26 and there are just three league games remaining. So, a playoff run is required for him to make
his target. But, that's always been the goal anyway. With the team sitting in sixth - one point behind Atletico Ottawa
and two back from HFX Wanderers - everything remains up for grabs.
THROUGH THE YEARS: York United FC's record-breaker Max Ferrari.
"The goal is to make playoffs and go on a run. And other teams know we can do that," Ferrari states, matter-of-factly.
"We've done well against everyone this year and we have the players to do it. Nothing less than a run in the playoffs will do.
Last season when I was injured, it sucked to be on the outside and just watching. You realize how special it is to be
on the pitch. So the mentality is to always stay on your toes. I remember in 2021 and I wasn't supposed to play in that
first game. There was an injury in the warm-up and I ended up playing every game from that point on. So, it's about always
being ready. You never know. Football is all about opportunity. And it you take that opportunity then it goes a long way."
Words to live by, especially in a playoff crunch.
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