Cascadia will enter its first competitive football tournament on May 31st when its side faces Ellan Vannin (Isle of Man) at Sutton United’s Gander Green Lane.
James Nichols will lead Cascadia into battle in London
Given all this, they are seen by some as dark horses for the tournament and much depends on how quickly coach James Nichols can get the to gel while they play.
EXCLUSIVE: Cascadia appoints James Nichols as ConIFA World Cup coach
Ahead of the fixture, we spoke to Nichols about the squad the tournament and the challenges ahead.
Q. How did you first here about the ConIFA Cup and Team Cascadia?
A. I first heard about it when I was assistant manager at Penrith. A couple of players from Panjab played in the last world cup and performed well and were playing in the same league. Whilst looking at the tournament I spoke to Aaron Johnsen (chairman of the CAFF) a number of times and accepted the role of head coach.
Q. Since then, what have you picked up about the culture of the Cascadia area?
A. I have spoke to a large number of players as well as support staff from Cascadia and have found that there are a strong set of values and beliefs that we will try adhere to during the tournament.
Q. You’ve now had sufficient interactions with Cascadians and adopted Cascadians. Are we weird?
A. Haha, definitely not. I have found an immensely proud group of people who are desperate to represent their region in soccer and I can’t wait to meet everyone face to face and get started.
Q. Of your own players, word is that Max Oldham and Josh Doughty are the ones to watch. What can you tell us about their qualities?
A. Max is a very direct winger who had had a fantastic season, leading his team to promotion. Josh is a technically gifted player with a massive future in the game, he left Manchester United on his terms and I’m sure there will be a lot of clubs taking an interest in his services.
Max Oldham is one of Cascadia’s dangermen up front
Photo: Corinthian Casuals
Q. Who else might surprise us?
A. We have got a group of very talented players, a number of whom i believe can play higher than the current level they are plying their trade.I think all our squad will have a part to play in the tournament and I don’t think there will be surprises, our squad has been picked because we believe they were the best players to represent Cascadia.
Q. You won’t have ever played a game as a team before you kick off against the Isle of Man, how much of a disadvantage is that?
A. I think our first game will be our most difficult in the group stages as we are only meeting each other 24 hours before kick off. The Isle of Man are an organised team who play a lot together whereas we will still be learning about each others as players and as people.
Q. If I offered you 0-0 at half time in the first game, would you take that now?
A. I think if that was on offer I would take now. I think the deeper we get in to the tournament, the better we will play after spending more time working with each other.
James Riley with his Cascadia shirt
Q. How big a deal was it when James Riley signed on?
A. I think to have someone of James’ calibre is a huge boost for our squad and for the competition. From the first moment I spoke to James, he spoke with a real enthusiasm and determination to represent Cascadia and his experience will be invaluable both on the pitch and around the training ground.
Q. What’s your take on your opponents?
A. Ellan Vannin are a strong, well organised physical side and had pace in wide areas and through the danger man Sean Doyle. They will be a difficult opposition for our first ever game. Nearly all of their squad play in the Isle of Man and 11 players play for the same club team so they will be used to playing with each other. It was a good opportunity to go and watch both teams play and it allowed us to glean information about our opponents.
Barawa have a large proportion of their squad based in England. We are aware of a large number of them due to their semi-professional backgrounds and they will hope Kingsley Eshun will add some quality from Queens Park Rangers.
We don’t know an awful lot about Tamil Eelam, we are fortunate that we will be able to watch them against Barawa after the opening ceremony. I expect all teams to be competitive and it to be a difficult game and it’s important that we approach all games professionally and with a positive mentality.
Q. Apart from your own team, who are the sides to watch?
I think the stronger sides will be Ellan Vallin, Abkhazia and Padania. I feel the Isle of Man’s collective experience will be a large part in their progress in the tournament. I feel that the other 2 teams have got a good mix of experience and youth and their players are playing at a high standard and will set the benchmark in the opening days of the tournament.
