Upcoming soccer season brings volunteer challenges to New Brunswick

Some Maritime sports associations are struggling to find enough volunteer coaches.

The fields are empty now, but soccer season is right around the corner and with upwards of 500 children on the field every summer for the Miramichi United Soccer Club, the search for volunteer coaches enters another year.

“In the past we’ve always had challenges finding coaches for the recreational program,” said Club Vice President, Craig Silliker. He said the club is still looking for around 15 volunteers to meet their growing demand while they explore other solutions.

“If a child wants to play soccer, from the age U5 up to U18, we do try to find a place for every child and every player,” Silliker said.

“It may put more children on a team, it may affect the way practices are run for coaches, the way games are going to run,” he said. “They may have to do a little more managing.”

Silliker said they’ve added a recreational coordinator – the club’s first paid position – to meet the volunteer challenge. They’re also offering incentives – like discounts for children whose parents commit to coaching for the year.

The Shediac Minor Soccer Association has offered a similar incentive for a number of years and added a student bursary last year to encourage volunteers.

Brock Belliveau is the president of the Shediac Minor Soccer Association. He said they had 108 volunteers last year and despite a few gaps this season, he feels good about the roster overall.

“You know, there’s expectations that are coming with filling certain roles,” Belliveau said. “Whether it be learning new technology platforms or managing expectations from parents, players, so on and so forth, but I mean, the conversation that we’ve been having is really ‘let’s find a way to support our volunteers.’”

Some New Brunswick clubs have found creative ways to attract the help they need but the volunteer shortage is widespread.

Sport New Brunswick CEO, Cheryl MacDonald said she sees two major challenges provincewide: increased professionalization of sport and increased cost of living shifting personal priorities.

“We are finding across the board that because of that increase of formalization of sport and the increased expectation of coaches, officials, timekeepers, it can be difficult to find folks that have the time to put in now that our expectations for the quality and safety of sport have increased,” MacDonald said.

Officials said volunteer fatigue, higher cost of living, an overall bigger commitment and even social media are adding pressure to an activity that’s supposed to be fun.

“If we’re going to increase professionalization, I think people need to be paid not only for their time but also for their expertise,” said MacDonald. He said lobbying the government, increasing funding for New Brunswick sports and increasing volunteer recognition could all help address the shortage.

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