| | | | | The Ottawa FURY Soccer Club | | | | | |
|  In eight years, under the ownership of John Pugh, a former high technology entrepreneur, the Ottawa Fury has developed into one of the leading clubs in North America at the senior and youth levels. The Ottawa Fury strives to provide opportunities for soccer players in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec to realize their potential to play at the highest level possible and to provide players with access to the best facilities, coaching, competition, medical care, and scholarship support available. Fury teams represent Ottawa in the USL W-League, the USL Men's Premier Development League and the USL Super Y and Super-20 Leagues
The W-League represents the highest level of Women's Soccer in North America with many of the best female players in the world participating. In each of the past seven years, the Fury squad has qualified for the playoffs reaching the North American Championship  Finals twice (2005 & 2006) only to fall short to New Jersey and Vancouver respectively; the North American Championship Final Four 5 times (2003-2006; 2009) finishing 4th in 2003 and 3rd in 2004. The Fury's W-League team has been ranked as high as 7th in the world. In 2006, the team included 12 players who had played for Canadian national teams, and five members of Canada's World Cup squad. The 2008 season brought a new look to the squad with a new Head Coach, Craig Smith, and a vast array of talent from across the United States and Europe and New Zealand. After winning their division for a 6th consecutive season in 2009 with a record of 11-1-2 they defeated the Chicago Red Eleven in the Conference Semi-Finals before defeating FC Indiana in the Conference Championship to advance the Final Four. The Fury travelled to Washington and faced the Washington Freedom that saw both team go scoreless through 120 minutes and the Freedom prevailed in penalty kicks. The team's regular season record over the past seven seasons has amassed to 82-7-5 (best in the W-League).
The Fury Men compete in the USL Premier Development League; a league comprising 67 clubs spanning North America from coast to coast. The PDL provides top US and Canadian players under 23 years of age with the opportunity to perform in a professionalized setting during the summer months while maintaining their collegiate eligibility. The League acts as a development league for players seeking to play in the professional ranks. In their inaugural year (2005) the  Fury squad finished in third place in the New England Division, one short of a playoff position with a 9-7-0 record. In 2006 the team finished with a 7-6-3 record good for 2nd place in the Division. Despite a pleasing start (1-1-3) in 2007 the Fury fell to 7th in the Division with a 3-8-5 record. The 2008 squad returned with renewed optimism and despite a record of 6-1-3 down the stretch and recording their best season on record going 9-4-3 the team missed the playoffs on a tie-braker. In 2009 the Fury captured their first-ever post-season birth after posting an undefeated season (12-0-4) en route to their first Division Title. In front of a boisterous and sold out crowd the Fury squared off against Ocean City. Both teams played to a 1-1 draw through regulation which only provided the stage for heartbreak as the Fury fell 2-1 in extra time ending their hopes of a PDL Championship.
The Super Y-League is a professionalized system that is the first step for developing youth soccer players in North America. The league is designed for talented youth players destined for collegiate, professional or international careers and has the objective of pitting the best youth players in North America against each other week-in and week-out in league play. Each year, many of the Fury's players are awarded scholarships to play as student-athletes at US and Canadian colleges. Since the Fury Youth Program began over 50 Fury players have received Scholarship to U.S. Colleges and Universities. In 2007, 4 Fury teams reach the Super Y-League Finals in Tampa, Florida and the Club finished the year ranked 2nd in the SYL New England Division and 5th overall amongst Super Y-League Club in North America. In 2008, a record 5 Fury teams reached the Super Y-League finals that saw the U16 girls bow out in the Semi-Finals and the Fury U17 Girls become the first Fury team to reach a final where they fell 2-1 to Division-rivals Cape Cod. The Fury finished 2008 ranked 1st in the SYL New England Division and 7th throughout the entire Super Y-League. For the second straight year, in 2009, the Fury sent 5 teams to Tampa for the SYL Finals. The Fury's U14 Boys reached the semi-finals doing the Club proud as the U14 team represented the first group of graduated players from the Fury Academy Program. The Fury ended 2009 ranked 2nd in the New England Division and 8th in North America. The Fury have also participated at the prestigious Foyle Cup in Ireland, where they capture bronze in 2007 and silver in 2008, along with the Gothia Cup in Sweden where the Fury U15 Girls finished 8th out of 120 teams.
The Ottawa Fury Academy, launched in 2006, is a key component of the Ottawa Fury Soccer Club's Player Development Program. The Fury Academy provides young soccer players between the ages of 10 and 13, residing in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec, with player development programming that is of the highest standard and quality. The Ottawa Fury's approach to player development relies on the same model used in leading soccer nations, which in recent years is also being adopted by progressive North American clubs - the model is based on providing a player development pyramid internal to a club that includes youth, reserve and senior teams playing in national and/or continental leagues. Led by Technical Director, Frank Lofranco, the Fury Academy is staffed with knowledgeable and specialized coachesoffering a comprehensive and integrated approach to player development. All Academy players benefit from training and instruction that ensures development across all four elements of soccer performance - technical, tactical, physical, and psychological - and in a manner that is informed by measurable outcomes. In 2007, the Fury U12 Boys team reached the U.S. National Cup Finals in North Carolina. In 2009 a group of U13 Fury players travelled to France to participant in the renowned Plomelin tournament where they showed well against teams from France, Scotland, Germany and Brazil. The Club will be sending another team again in 2010. The Fury will also be sending over a team of U11 and U12 players to London, England in 2010 to participate in s residential camp run by Tottenham Hotspur.
First offered in the Fall and Winter of 2007, the Ottawa Fury Soccer Club School of Excellence Program is the newest component in the Fury's comprehensive Player Development Program. The School of Excellence caters to 8 to 13 year  old players who want to develop their soccer skills at the key development ages under the stewardship of some of the region's top coaches. Please note that the program will NOT have a competitive team or league component - players in the School will remain with their club teams. The School of Excellence Program is open to youth players aged 8-13 that are looking to continue to develop their skills. The idea behind the program is to ensure that players have as much contact with the ball as possible to aid in their touch, familiarity, control and confidence. The program is broken into two phases - Phase 1 is a 5-week program that is offered for FREE by the club and runs in the early fall. Phase 2, which is currently in progress, is a 15-week program that runs November-March that is offered in the East and West ends of the city. For more information on the program or to register click here.
The Ottawa Fury Soccer Club is very pleased to offer our Soccer in Schools Program for a 8th consecutive season. In partnership with Health Canada, the Fury aids in the quest to increase the level of physical activity throughout Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. Using soccer as the medium, the Ottawa Fury are aiding Health Canada's goal of increasing the amount of physical activity of inactive children and youth by 30 minutes more per day. Using fun,  skill-based games, Fury coaches or players will come to your school to conduct one hour clinics in gymnasiums or on the school's playing field. The clinic will consist of a ten minute talk on the benefits of physical activity, a thirty minute activity session and a ten minute Question and Answer session with Fury personnel. Entering into its 8th year in 2009 the Soccer In Schools program had its most successful season involving over 30 schools and some 5300+ students. This program has grown dramatically since its inception thanks in large part to the Fury players, coaches and our sponsors. In the past two years the Fury have visited over 55 schools and with over 9300 students participating. The Fury's Soccer in School's Program is one that we take great pride in. Fury PDL and W-League players visit local and area schools to help educate students about the importance of staying active and maintaining a healthy diet as part of our partnership with Health Canada. Students also get to spend time on the field with these players practicing their skills and even challenging these elite athletes to games. All students receive tickets to Fury PDL/W-League games, a magazine from Health Canada along with other items from Club sponsors. For more information on the Soccer in Schools Program please click here.
Fury Camps are offered at a variety of points throughout the year. Camps are offered during the March Break (Ottawa  School Calendar) and during the month of July. The Fury also offer team camps - where Fury coaches and/or PDL or W-League players will run one or several training sessions for your teams. The Fury also offer community camps that can run for a day or multiple weeks - in years past the Fury have run Community Camps in Brockville, Perth and Portland. This past summer, the Fury we please to welcome coaching staff from English Premier League Club Tottenham Hotspur to run two weeks of the Fury's High Performance camps in the month of July. For more information on Fury Camps please click here.
The Fury also provide corporate and individual sponsorship opportunities, ticket and merchandise sales. The programs and opportunities in addition to other fundraising efforts help the Ottawa Fury pay for such things as travel, league fees, equipment, marketing and administration fees. The Super-Y League and Academy teams are currently largely supported by parent contributions.
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