As we have written in recent weeks, the benefits of the <>iModel template that was introduced by the Ontario Soccer Association a few years ago are finally being felt as teams across the province enjoy highly competitive encounters.

That said, it’s not the model for everyone.

For a wide variety of perfectly valid reasons, GSSC (Greater Sudbury Soccer Club) Impact squads may wish to forego the iModel pathway, seeking out a schedule of opponents that better suits the current skill-set of their team.

The U16B Impact boys crew, under the guidance of head coach André Leduc, have navigated their way nicely to the HDSL (Huronia District Soccer League), a six-team loop that keeps the locals north of Barrie, for the most part, all while offering a standard of play that suits the Sudbury lads quite well.

“All the teams are competitive here – but we still end up on top, most years,” said central defensive midfielder Nathan MacIsaac, with a smile. “All of the matches are fun.”

A 15 year old grade 10 student at St Benedict Catholic Secondary School, MacIsaac played just two years of soccer in his early youth, both as a goalie, before taking some time away from the Beautiful Game. It was only at the urging of friend Dominic D’Angelo that he returned to the pitch, some three years ago, with the tandem now working closely together to ensure some success for the Impact.

“We run two CDMs and Dominic has all the skill,” said MacIsaac. “I like using my speed and body out there. I am able to stop people and then I give it to him and he can move it up. He is good at going up with it – and has great footwork.”

One of the beauties of this second GSSC team is that it has served as a launching pad for talent to move on to higher ranked Impact units, all while keeping a core in place that are able to help newcomers to the group acclimatize quickly to what HDSL soccer is all about.

“We still have to learn to play as a team, learn to pass it properly,” said MacIsaac. “We can do it pretty good right now, but give us a couple of games and we’ll be a great team.”

The U16B Impact kick off regular season play this weekend in Barrie, making the trek to the south shoreline of Georgian Bay to face Collingwood United Soccer Club one week later.

The 2025 roster for the team features Hilton Duong, Zachary Fricker, Carter Goulet, Eric Huang, Ben Lamarche, Mathieu Lebrun, Joseph Leduc,, Francis Mallory, Gage Mantha, Hadi Najem, Zayd Qaraqouz, Cruz Rajabi, Logan Sawyer, Bradon Schell, Hudson Teddy, Lucca Vizza, Dominic D’Angelo and Nathan MacIsaac.

Also welcoming a healthy number of new faces to the lineup, the Impact U14 Boys are looking to rebuild outside the iModel framework, part of an eight team division in the TOSL (Toronto Soccer League). The GSSC reps opened with a win over the York Jets and will face an entry from North Bay in an exhibition game Sunday at Queen’s Athletic Field in anticipation of road games the following weekend versus USC Karpaty (Etobicoke) and North Scarborough SC.

“For this year, because we have a very new team compared to last year, TOSL is right for us,” suggested central attacking midfielder Xavio Cootes, a 13 year-old who has spent time in various slots near the middle of the pitch, but prefers his current locale the most.

“You can still be a midfielder while still being able to push forward and attack. You’re always trying to find the little pockets of space around the field, having that positional awareness.”

On a personal level, the grade eight student at Macdonald-Cartier who is headed to Lockerby Composite in the fall understands that given all of the congestion in and around his post as CAM, anything that can help increase his pace of play will be helpful.

“I’m working on improving my speed and the time I take to play the ball,” said Cootes. “I am focused on being faster when I have the ball, sprinting down the line, sprinting in the middle.”

Providing support for the young man who has always loved soccer are teammates Zain Ahmed, Neil Akruh, Daniel Binmore, Adrian Courtney, Cody Crocker, Alex De Rubeis, Bryson Desrochers, Cristian Diaz-Snow, Max Dodge, Zidan Eldahan, Calvin Faux, Aaron Flanagan, Tyler Goudreau, Ewan Huang, Malik Hussam-Eddin, Anael Kouadio, An Mai and Jaxon Mathieu-Gibson.

Getting their first taste of iModel action this year, the GSSC U13 Impact Boys have endured something of an eye-opener through their first four games, with only a draw to show for their efforts to date. That said, head coach John Georgievski was well-acquainted with the caliber of opponent his youngsters would be facing, taking a long-term approach to their goal of playing at the next level.

This weekend, the Sudbury squad will do battle with Bryst Academy on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. at James Jerome.

The Impact U12 girls opened play this past week, overcoming a 1-0 deficit early in the second half and scoring three unanswered goals en route to a 3-1 win. The team resumes HDSL league play on June 14th/15th, travelling south to face Barrie SC and Orillia SC.

And coming off a pair of victories at home over Newmarket (1-0) and South Simcoe (3-1) last weekend, the Impact U14 girls are taking part in the Peterborough Challenge Cup in preparation for the next round of iModel play later this month.