The end of August nears and with it, the end of the majority of soccer in Sudbury.

The bulk of recreational leagues have now hosted their end of summer tournaments and gatherings, with the more competitive groupings on the field for maybe another month or so.

Beyond that, the off-season awaits – for all but perhaps the post-secondary crew, some of whom will step directly from their older GSSC (Greater Sudbury Soccer Club) Impact team into training camps with the Laurentian Voyageurs or the Cambrian Golden Shield.

Following a brief taste of life south of the border, former St Charles College standout Jack Jordan has returned home, pursuing his love of carpentry in the classrooms at Cambrian this fall and re-connecting with his one time coach Jason Garforth (now men’s head coach with the Shield) to bolster the overall competitiveness of the northern program.

“I talk to Jason at least once a week; he’s a good recruiter,” said Jordan, who spent the summer with the GSSC U21 Impact team. “I am so confident that we are going to do well in the league this year – so excited.”

While position shuffling has been a constant for Jordan these past few years, the main goal of what he wanted to get out of the summer soccer season did not deviate a whole lot. “No matter who I am playing for, as long as I am playing and getting touches on the ball, everything else will follow suit.”

“Throughout the summer, I really just wanted to keep my foot on the ball.”

Growing up in Sudbury, Jordan excelled largely through the midfield, though he was aware a change was imminent as he made his way to Pennsylvania last fall. “In the States, I was seen as more of a defensive player with a lot of vertical passing skills,” noted the 19 year old one-time resident of Hawaii.

“They had good midfielders. When I got back in Sudbury (this summer), they started me at defensive mid, moving up occasionally to attacking mid.” For a variety of reasons, consistency on the attack proved to be somewhat elusive for the Impact, forcing Jordan to tackle a new challenge.

“They put me at striker or a false nine in the middle as a target man,” said the younger of two brothers who would finish with eight goals to his credit in 14 Ontario Soccer League games this year. “I was happy with it, but I am definitely most comfortable in the midfield; that’s where I can most exploit my skills.”

Thankfully, that is also where coach Garforth sees the fit, in all likelihood, as OCAA play kicks off next month. “I started as a defender with him before but he saw something in me being a little unique with my left foot. I’m taller, but with agility and quick feet. He was one of the coaches that taught me the simple things about playing in the midfield, rotation and a bunch of different strategies.”

“At Cambrian, he has that same ideology.”

A member of the current Impact U15 boys team for the past few years, defender Jacob Hulisz does not aspire to play beyond high-school. His current experience is exactly what he hopes to draw from the sport, including a very special memory back on July 28th as the Sudbury lads were taking it to the NDSC (Nipissing District Soccer Club) Lakers pretty good.

“We were awarded a penalty kick and the boys let me take it – and I scored on it, which was pretty nice,” said Hulisz. “It’s the first goal I have scored in competitive soccer.”

Thankfully, with no advance knowledge of his teammates’ plans, the grade 10 student at Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School did not have a whole lot of time to stress over the best approach to use on his first ever PK.

“I kind of figured I would try and bomb it slightly to the left, as hard as I could kick it, and get it just a little higher so that it was just out of the goalie’s reach.” That mindset, however, has backfired for many an amped-up young player, typically blasting the shot several feet above the crossbar.

Not Hulisz. Not this time.

“I have quite a powerful kick, keeping it low with my laces, so I just did that.”

As for any helpful advice from the players on his team who might be the ones called upon to take the kick in a game that was much closer, well, there’s some debate as to just how helpful they were.

“They all told me not to miss,” said Hulisz with a laugh.

Notwithstanding his offensive contribution in this particular encounter, the young man who has always drifted towards the more defensive elements, whether in soccer or hockey, is far more content to contribute by helping protect his own goal area and the twenty to thirty yard stretch directly before that.

“I’m quite physical, so defensively that helps out, being able to get in front of somebody and be able to clear the ball,” said Hulisz. “That’s what I think I do pretty well.”

Unlike Hulisz, Impact U16 right back and wing Chad Tullio is anything but a life-long defender.

After spending the majority of his pre-Covid years as a striker, the young man who is exactly one week shy of his 16th birthday was a mainstay, previously, at the top of the formation, typically taking to the field as a striker.

“My high-school coach, Matt Cootes, put me back because I was taller, a better fit at right back,” said Tullio. “I realized that I had to be more physical, but I could see the pitch more.” In fact, tapping into his previous experience has paid huge dividends for his team this summer.

“I can play through balls from the back because I know what a good cut from a striker looks like – because I played the position, I’ve done those cuts before. I work a lot with Atom Thususka, who scores our goals; I send it down to him a lot.”

The GSSC U16 Impact boys are one of four local teams taking part in HDSL Cup finals Saturday in Huntsville. Opposite an Orillia Lighting team against which they earned a draw (2-2) and a loss (3-2), Tullio knows that his team will need to be at their best to reverse this trend in one of their biggest games of the year.

“We need to spread the pitch, make sure that we are talking, calling out,” he said. “Then we can work our magic.”