If that was a test, then Victoria Highlanders general manager Mark De Frias believes his team and the city passed it.
With 5,735 enthusiastic fans at UVic’s Centennial Stadium looking on, the local USL Premier Development League club dropped a 2-1 decision to touring Rangers FC of Glasgow on a sunny, but blustery Monday evening.
With Scottish and Rangers FC flags flapping in the wind, fans of the club known as The Light Blues serenaded their treasured team, but it was De Frias who smiled the most.
“I’m beaming. It’s an absolute huge success and we’re happier than clams today that this worked out and it was a test to see if Victoria can back pro product,” he said.
“That’s what we need. We need to know that we can generate 5,000 to 6,000 fans a game to come to the park and support soccer,” added De Frias, who suggested his club would run a similar event next season.
“We’ll probably do one more of these next year, if we can make it work. Hopefully, one more here at Centennial Stadium with the team announced just after the new year.”
The GM wouldn’t hint which team it would be, but he dropped suggestions as to what may lie ahead for his own club.
“I think we can continue to see more marked improvement in our attendances. We’ve always said this, it’s not a word of a lie. We’ve been saying it since 2009 and maybe it gets old, but it’s going to happen soon. We really do want to move to another level and events like this show us it’s possible,” said De Frias. “It shows us that Victoria wants to have a higher level of football here and we’re happy.”
The visitors were equally as impressed by the gracious welcome.
“It’s just fantastic. It’s great to see so many coming out to the game and a great occasion for the people of Victoria as well,” said Rangers assistant manager Kenny McDowall. “They’ve given us a great reception here and it was a good game. It was a good tough match for us.”
It was the third of a four-game North American tour for the famed club, which will play in the Scottish Championship league this season, directly under the Premiership.
Rangers FC lost 3-1 to the PDL’s Ventura County Fusion on Tuesday before defeating Sacramento Republic FC of the USL Pro league 2-1 on Saturday night. Rangers FC now head to Ottawa to play the NASL’s Fury on Wednesday before returning home to Glasgow.
“It’s good to get a win, but we’re looking for fitness as much as anything in these games,” said McDowall. “We gave a lot of the young players a run tonight and it was good for them to get a bit of football playing time.”
Rangers were without recognizable players like Kenny Miller and Lee Wallace on this night. Miller has returned to Glasgow for his third stint after parting ways with the Vancouver Whitecaps of Major League Soccer. Wallace, Victoria fans recall, played in the FIFA U-20 World Cup match at Royal Athletic Park back in 2006. Canadian Fraser Aird of Toronto also did not play.
The Glasgow team started quickly as Rangers striker Dean Shiels sent a left-footed offering just wide of Highlanders goalkeeper Elliot Mitrou’s net in the fifth minute.
Calum Gallagher then finished off a cross from Ian Black after a through ball from Steven Smith to give the visitors a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute of play. But talented Highlanders’ midfielder Cam Hundal knotted it at 1-1 in the 12th.
Rangers’ Nicky Clark was thwarted on an opportunity by Mitrou, but buried the second chance while on his side in the 28th minute to make it 2-1 for the Glasgow side. That was it for scoring with Clark being one of the more rambunctious players on the night.
“It was good, aye,” Rangers defender Darren McGregor said of the result. “We want to improve on that.
“The standard that the Rangers have played, we’ve fallen well below that at the minute — whether it’s to do with gelling or new players coming in or what not. We need to fix that before the season because performances like that aren’t good enough.
“Fairness to the team we played, I thought they grew into the game and they gave a good account of themselves, but we need to lift to a few levels.”
Hundal, who doubles as a Victoria Vike during the fall, was one of the better Highlanders on the evening.
“I knew I had to create offence against a pro side, that’s the toughest part,” he said. “I made a run behind [Rangers defenders] and Manny [Gomez] played a great ball through. I just happened to get on the end of it and pot one.”
It will be a goal he remembers forever.
“It’s not every day you get to play against a team like that and scoring against them makes it so much better,” said Hundal. “Not many people get to play pro teams, especially one from abroad. Such a big club like the Rangers coming over to play us is an opportunity of a lifetime.”
As it was for the fans.
“Unbelievable,” said McGregor. “To come to a team like this [from St. Mirren] and see the support worldwide is incredible. I tip my hat to these guys.”
