A decade to remember

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This article was published 20/12/2022 (734 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Justin Légaré certainly knows how to go out on top.

Légaré is the head coach of the Université de Saint-Boniface Les Rouges women’s soccer team, and he’s leaving his position after a highly successful run with the southeast Winnipeg-based team.

On Oct. 30, the top-seeded women’s team won its third consecutive Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference championship by beating the second-seeded Providence University College Pilots 4-1 in the championship final hosted by Assiniboia Community College at Sportsplex Field in Brandon, Man.

With a heavy heart, Légaré is leaving the head coach’s position after more than 10 years of involvement with the women’s soccer program at USB. As it turns out, Légaré noted, he wasn’t originally intending to stay on this season, but with another championship in the books, he’s more than happy he did.

“It’s not an easy decision and my team has made this even harder as I am blessed and honoured to have had such a wonderful group of women to work with,” Légaré said, noting he also stayed on to help the coach that will replace him — “the knowledgeable, talented and hardworking” Tonya Derkson.

“They did everything I asked, they trusted me, gave me their time, efforts and together we grew from the team that could not win a game to a team that has won the last six championships in the MCAC — futsal and outdoor.”

Reflecting on the last decade or so, Légaré is grateful for the effort, hard work and dedication of his players and coaching staff. Looking back on this past season, the 43-year-old — who works full-time at Manitoba Blue Cross — said he always knew it would be an emotional one, as well as a transitional one.

“It was a season to remember. I knew it would not be an easy season for me and many of the graduating players, that it would be an emotional season, but knew it would be important to keep those emotions in check and use them as extra motivation to reach our goals and have another successful season as a group,” he said.

“It wasn’t always easy and one of the worst parts of a coaching job is saying goodbye to players that have given you so much — twelve graduating players, and many the heart and soul of this team. This does open the doors to the next generation of Les Rouges players and create room for new roles, stars, leaders and provide time for them to write their stories as members of this team.”

From a statistical standpoint, this season’s results make impressive reading. During the regular season, the team registered 13 wins — keeping a clean sheet in 11 of those — and one loss, scoring 70 goals and conceding five. Les Rouges also had the three top scorers in the league, five players of the week, the league MVP, four all-conference players, the championship weekend MVP, and once again earned the right to represent the province at nationals in Quebec in November.

One of the things Légaré is most proud of is the fact he’s leaving “an extremely well-rounded team, who all contribute, and all play a role.”

“ We grew from the team that could not win a game to a team that has won the last six championships…

“We have created a family-style environment where the girls are able to be themselves, showing up to practice and games confident, which only helps us as coaches bring out the best in them,” he said.

“Consistency is something I challenge my players to think about and focus on all the time — having the ability to be your best each time you are on the practice field or in a game. We often talk about setting standards of play if we have the ability to play high-level soccer, so why not do so each and every time we are in training or in a game.”

“We also worked really hard to develop each player on the squad. We see progress in all our players and have so much depth. Although it sometime makes our job as coaches harder to decide who gets time on the field, we have 22 players that can play and contribute positive play and help the team earn the results we want, and many of our games this season we played 20-plus players,” Légaré added.

Looking ahead, the avid soccer fan said he still hopes to stay involved in the game as a player and a coach in some capacity, but plans to take some away from competitive coaching, while continuing to work with the kids program he runs with Sports en français. He’s also looking forward to spending quality time with his partner, Margaret, as well as family and friends, and enjoying different outdoor pursuits.