Midfielder Ben Fisk, who has two caps for Canada and played in the Europa Cup last season with Ireland’s Derry City, has been signed by Pacific FC.
But the club is remaining mum on media reports that Pacific FC is on the verge of signing Marcel de Jong, who this week parted ways with the Vancouver Whitecaps of MLS. He has 56 caps for Canada and played six seasons for FC Augsburg of the Bundesliga and also four seasons for top-level Eredivisie club Roda JC in the Netherlands.
“I can’t comment on that,” said Pacific FC CEO Rob Friend.
What Friend said he could comment on was Fisk, the 26-year-old Vancouver native and former Canada U-20 and U-23 performer, who comes to the Canadian Premier League after playing last season with the League of Ireland Premiership club Derry City. Fisk also has pro experience with FC Edmonton of the NASL, Charleston Battery of the USL and Coruxo and Deportivo B in the third and fourth Spain divisions.
“He has loads of talent and is a great leader and is going to be great in the community,” said Friend. “We frankly didn’t think we had a chance to sign him when we reached out to him.”
Pacific FC also announced the signings of Victor Blasco and Jose Hernandez to bring to 10 the number of players under contract.
Pacific FC will play at an expanded Westhills Stadium in Langford among the seven charter franchises in the inaugural season of the CPL, which will be Canada’s domestic pro league.
It will be something of a homecoming for Blasco, the native of Mallorca, Spain, who had some outstanding moments with the Vancouver Island University Mariners in scoring 12 goals in 13 games to be named both 2014 PacWest Conference rookie of the year and MVP. Blasco led VIU to the Canadian colleges national championship game that season, scoring twice in the final, before the Mariners lost on penalty kicks to the host Sheridan College Bruins in Oakville, Ont.
That didn’t go unnoticed as Blasco signed his first pro deal the next season in 2015 with Vancouver Whitecaps 2 of the USL. The Spanish citizen came up through the youth academies of Barcelona, Cornella and Mallorca and is the first foreign player signed by Pacific FC, although his B.C. connections are many.
“Victor Blasco could have been with the Whitecaps first team but was maybe young and naïve,” said Friend.
“He has grown up a lot and has all the tools to be one of the best players in our league.”
The 18-year-old Hernandez is from Edmonton and is the youngest player inked by Pacific FC. He has played U-17 for Canada and has been part of the Whitecaps Residency program.
“These are three very dynamic, attack-minded players,” said Friend.
