LAC LA BICHE - Macky Singh is the new head coach of the Portage College Voyageurs men’s and women’s soccer and futsal teams.
The Voyageurs squads have been without a permanent coach since last September. The outdoor men’s and women’s teams played until the end of October with college staff Al Bertschi, Al Robertson, and Mohamed Al-Hattab sharing the duties as interim coaches.
First home games coming up
The indoor season of futsal — five-aside soccer played on a basketball court — began across the Alberta Colleges Athletics Conference last week. The Voyageurs begin their season as a host of the northern division playdowns starting January 19 and running through the weekend.
The new head coach is looking forward to the role. When asked about his plans for the teams, Singh said the short-term plan for the month-long futsal programs is to prepare both the men’s and women’s teams for their upcoming regional tournaments as well as the championships at the end of February. This, he says, will be achieved through building their fitness levels, implementing playing strategies, and establishing appropriate goals.
He’s hoping to see improvements in the soccer program but admits it will take time.
While the men’s futsal teams have seen some success in recent years, the Voyageurs outdoor soccer program has struggled to find wins in the ACAC since joining the league in 2019-2020 season.
“The focus is long-term, knowing that it will take time to build competitive programs, recruiting more quality student-athletes, improving results by achieving a regular winning season, and then qualify for the ACAC Championships on that merit,” he stated, adding that this would be a three-four-year plan, whereby creating a solid foundation for long-term sustainability.
Singh continued by saying the rural community setting can affect recruitment, but the attraction of smaller class sizes, the Bold Center home fields that offer some of the best soccer and futsal facilities in the province, collaborative academic programming between Portage and other universities, scholarship potential — and affordable tuition, are “attractive prospects for potential recruits to choose Portage College.”
Coach’s bio
Singh brings more than 25 years of coaching experience to Portage College. While living in Malaysia from 2005-2006, he served as head coach of the Malaysian senior women’s soccer team and U19 women’s national team.
From 1998-2005 and again for the 2006-2007 season, Singh was head coach of the New Zealand University’s Women’s National Team, where he led them to three world universiad games.
He also has 14 years of experience coaching men’s and women’s teams at post-secondary institutions in Alberta and New Brunswick, including St. Thomas University, Olds College, Keyano College, and the University of Lethbridge.
He holds a Coaches Association of Canada Chartered Professional Coach designation, has a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports Coaching, and a diploma in Sports Psychology.
As head coach, Singh is responsible for recruiting for both soccer and futsal programs for the upcoming fall season and the future. He said recruiting is a process that requires patience, while promoting and building personal relationships with prospects.
“Being involved in collegiate soccer for the last 14 years, I have built up some very good networks and relationships with a number of recruitment agencies, clubs and the use of online recruitment platforms, will be where my recruitment will be focused on,” he said.
Singh tells Lakeland This Week that his coaching experiences both at home and abroad have prepared him well for leading the Voyageurs soccer and futsal programs. He enjoys coaching and leading athletes from distinct cultural and ethnic backgrounds and adapting to varying ability levels and skillsets of the players.
He is looking forward to working with the Voyageurs, offering them not only his experience, but more importantly the “professionalism and patience” he has utilized over his coaching career.
