# Simcoe County Rovers FC

Simcoe County Rovers Football Club is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in Barrie, Ontario, that plays in the League1 Ontario Premier men's and women's divisions. The Rovers won the 2023 League1 Ontario championship and qualified for the 2024 Canadian Championship. The Rovers played their first season in League1 Ontario in 2022.

## History

The club was founded in 2021, by former Canadian national team player Julian de Guzman, Peter Raco, and the Barrie Soccer Club under the name FC Barrie, who had initially been part of the group forming 1812 FC Barrie, before departing to form their own team.
On July 6, 2021, the club was officially unveiled under the name Simcoe County Rovers FC as a joint partnership between Raco and de Guzman. In August 2021, it was announced that Canadian national team player Cyle Larin was joining the club as a co-owner; in December 2021, fellow Canadian national team player Doneil Henry was announced as another co-owner. In January 2022, Canadian women's team player Janine Beckie also joined the ownership group. In April 2022, Atiba Hutchinson also joined the ownership group. Since its formation, the team has been affiliated with youth clubs Barrie SC and Aurora FC (who previously operated a team in League1 Ontario until 2020), and Orangeville-based school Athlete Institute.
On October 21, 2021, it was announced that the club was officially joining both the male and female divisions of League1 Ontario for 2022, acquiring the license of Aurora FC, who did not play in 2021 and joined the Rovers as an affiliate club. Both teams played their debut matches on April 24 against Blue Devils FC, with the women winning 3–0 and the men drawing 1–1. In 2022, the men's reserve team won the League1 Ontario U21 Reserve Division.
In 2023, the men finished the regular season in second place, earning their first home playoff game, where they defeated Vaughan Azzurri in the semi-finals, in front of over 1,200 fans. In the championship final, they defeated Scrosoppi FC to win the League1 Ontario title, thereby qualifying for the 2024 Canadian Championship. Over 600 travelling supporters attended the League1 Ontario final, marking a League1 Canada traveling supporters record.
On April 24, 2024, the club made their Canadian Championship debut, where they were defeated 5-0 by Major League Soccer club Toronto FC, with over 2000 estimated Rovers fans having purchased tickets and attending the match.

## Players, staff, and ownership
### Coaching staff

Men's team :
| Name | Position |
| Doneil Henry | Head coach & Sporting Director |
| João Victor | Assistant coach |
| Zack Wilson | Assistant coach |
| Jerry Pennant | Goalkeeper coach |
| Derek Boakye-Yiadom | Associate sporting director & team manager |
Women's team :
| Name | Position |
| Will Devillis | Sporting Director |
| Zack Wilson | Head coach |
| Mike Rusell | Assistant coach |
| Vacant | Assistant coach |
| Jerry Pennant | Goalkeeper coach |

### Owners

Rovers Sports and Entertainment Group (RSEG) owns the Simcoe County Rovers Football Club. RSEG is made up of current and former Canadian National team players, as well as others. The ownership group includes Julian de Guzman, Peter Raco, Kosi Stobbs, Will Devellis, Jason Melbourne, David Zbar, Steve Mantzouranis, as well as Canadian national team players Atiba Hutchinson, Janine Beckie, Cyle Larin, and Doneil Henry.

### Executives

| Name | Position | Tenure |
| Peter Raco | President | 2024-present |
| Peter Raco | Chief Executive Officer | 2020–present |
| Will Devellis | Chief Operating Officer | 2020–present |
| David Zbar | Chief Marketing Officer | 2023–present |
| Jamie Massie | Senior Executive Advisor | 2021–present |
| Andy Wilson | Director of Game Day Operations | 2020-present |

### Past Executives

| Name | Position | Tenure |
| Julian de Guzman | President & Sporting Director | 2020–2023 |

## Seasons
### Men

| Season | League | Teams | Record | Rank | Playoffs | League cup | Canadian Championship |
| 2022 | League1 Ontario | 22 | 13–5–3 | 5th | Semi-finals | not held | did not qualify |
| 2023 | League1 Ontario | 21 | 15–1–4 | 2nd | Champions | not held | did not qualify |
| 2024 | League1 Ontario Premier | 12 | 9–7–6 | 5th | – | Finalists | Preliminary round |

### Women

| Season | League | Teams | Record | Rank | Playoffs | League Cup |
| 2022 | League1 Ontario | 20 | 12–5–2 | 5th | Quarter-Finals | not held |
| 2023 | League1 Ontario | 19 | 8–4–6 | 7th | did not qualify | not held |
| 2024 | League1 Ontario Premier | 10 | 5–6–7 | 7th | not held | Semi-finals |

## Honours

Senior
* League1 Ontario
** Champions (1): 2023
* Trent Severn Cup
** Winners (2): 2022, 2023
Reserves
* League1 Ontario U-21 Reserve Division
** Champions (1): 2022

## Notable players

The following players have either played at the professional or international level, either before or after playing for the League1 Ontario team:

### Men

* Ethan Beckford
* Orlendis Benítez
* Gabriel Boakye
* Jordan Dover
* Trivine Esprit
* Javier George
* Ricky Gomes
* Ijah Halley
* Shawn-Claud Lawson
* Baj Maan
* Reshon Phillip
* Jarred Phillips
* Alejandro Portal
* C. J. Smith
* Nathaniel St. Louis
* Rahim Thorpe
* Jalen Watson

### Women

* Brianne Desa
* Yazmeen Jamieson
* Rylee Traicoff
* Carley Uddenberg
* Cloey Uddenberg
* Kayla Uddenberg

## Club records

Below are current record holders for the club.

### Men

| Record | Record holder | Date |
| Largest victory | 9–1 vs. Unionville Milliken | June 17, 2023 |
| Most appearances | Shawn-Claud Lawson (70) | 2022–present |
| Most career goals | Jevontae Layne(30) | 2023-2024 |
| Home attendance | 1,180 | August 27, 2023 |
| Away attendance | 2,250 (BMO Field) | April 24, 2024 |

### Women

| Record | Record holder | Date |
| Largest victory | 7–0 vs. ProStars FC | July 12, 2023 |
| Most appearances | Cloey Uddenberg (53) | 2022–2024 |
| Most career goals | Brianne Desa, Courtney Chochol & Cloey Uddenberg (16) | 2022–2024 |
* 1 2 3 4 Includes all competitions