Category: Team Sports

Soccer is the number one sport in popularity worldwide and Canada has joined this experience little by little, as Canadians have grown passionate about this exciting sport. But why is this hockey nation sharing its love with soccer and investing time and resources on it?

The Immigrants’ Role

Throughout the last couple of decades, there has been an important period of immigration from countries on the other side of the world. Migrating from your country and leaving everything behind is hard, especially for the younger people that don’t even speak the language. But in the dark, there is always hope.

Many immigrants have found that engaging in soccer, as they did in their home countries, is an excellent way to feel more at home in Canada. Since the country has an open arms policy, there is a wide range of cultures that converge within its territory and they can all come together for a nice soccer game.

Canadian Women’s Team’s Fierce Success

After being the host for the Women’s World Cup in 2015, where the Canadian team played its way to the quarterfinals, there was already an uproar and a sense of pride among fans. This was only etched deeper into both fans and teams when the woman’s soccer team competed in the 2016 Olympics and brought home a bronze medal.

Soccer is almost a universal sport that is taking the world and sweeping it off its feet, making all of us team sports fans fall in love with it. The different teams, the outstanding performance of women’s selections, and the way it brings communities together will always remain reasons for the passion to keep growing.

It is no secret that women’s sports are highly underrated and that female athletes do not get the recognition they deserve for the amazing skills and performance they offer. However, hockey players like Marie-Philip Poulin are seeking to change this situation and everybody needs to listen as she is an example for all female athletes out there.

Unlike many famous hockey players, Poulin’s presence is far from all about scoring but she impacts the whole game without skipping the hard areas. She is known for being incredibly kind and thoughtful of her teammates and all these qualities have earned her comparisons with male counterpart Sidney Crosby.

This professionalism and excellence in team leadership, has also impacted on Crosby himself who has taken to go and watch her play. He fondly recalls watching her score big goals against the USA at three Olympic Finals in a row and admires how she performed despite the high pressure that was on her.

She has had instances where she scores a goal within seconds of the game’s ending, managing a tie that leads to a win during the overtime of the Gold Medal Game. Poulin has stayed humble regarding this, comparing it to a fairy tale and expressing that it was particularly special because she was in Canada, where family and friends joined her.

This outstanding hockey player understands that these moments happen when preparation meets luck, and she never stops working hard and training to excel. At 28 years of age, Poulin has proven to be incredible under high pressure and to provide teammates with great leadership at all times.

Female athletes all over the world can and should look at Marie-Philip Poulin for an example of hard work, dedication, love for the sport and her teammates, and overall skill. This hockey player is bringing women’s sports up to the front of mass media with feats like winning the Olympics and she will stop at nothing to get the recognition she deserves.

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If you want to become a top rugby player, the likes of Rod Snow and Robert Spray, the only thing holding you back is yourself. At Strength in Unity, we’re sharing with you a few basic tips that any rugby player can follow and see the improvement in skills and performance.

Pick a Position and Stick to It

Since each position has its demands and tricks and skills to be perfected on it, you benefit from picking a position and sticking to it. Remember that focusing all your efforts into particular skills will help you perfect these skills better than if you were switching positions all the time.

There is no I in Team

We have all seen it in one sport or the other, that superstar that plays so well they have stopped playing as part of a team and started doing it all on their own, thus failing. Rugby is a team sport and you will be an outstanding player if you learn to play with your whole team and build victories together.

Keep Tabs

You always need to keep an eye on what’s going on, regardless of if you’re running, tackling, or being tacked. Try to keep your head up and be that player that is always aware of what teammates are doing, spotting holes on your lines and tightening them. This will also enable you to spot loose balls that you can grab or place for a ruck.

Develop Tackled Expertise

If you are playing rugby, you will get tackled at some point. Our final tip is to learn how to make a tackle and it’ll be less likely that you get injured, not to mention you will help your team with rucks.

These tips are simple, and any rugby player can apply them. Remember to stick to your position, appreciate your team, keep tabs on what’s going on on the field, and learn to be tackled like a boss.

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