Making his Mark

Three years ago, long before he was anointed head coach of the University of Manitoba Bisons women’s soccer team, Mark Colvin was in Sweden, hastily figuring out how to pronounce the most basic words of the native tongue to communicate with preteens at a local academy.

The Toronto-born coach had touched down a day earlier with an agreement to be an assistant coach for U13 IF Brommapojkarna for a season while he adjusted to the European country.

When he arrived for the first day of practice, however, Colvin — jet-lagged and all — was informed that the head coach was sick and that he would need to take over as interim.

“I literally, quickly on a piece of paper, scribbled the Swedish words of pass, shoot, left, right, yellow and red, and then went on to the field to coach these young players, who, a lot of them, their English was not good,” Colvin, who holds onto that scrap piece of paper for sentimental reasons, told the Free Press recently.

Two weeks later, Colvin was named head coach of a sister team within the academy, for which he would help develop some of the top players in the country for a season. The 33-year-old called it a period of professional and personal growth, while his communication skills were tested more than ever before.

“Honestly, that year of coaching was definitely my most rewarding. And I think I learned the most because it was one of the top academy teams in the country,” said Colvin, who worked with senior-level players as the head coach and academy director for Eskilstuna United in Sweden’s Elitettan professional league the last two years.

“It was an incredible experience, and really tests your coaching ability of how you can clearly communicate and connect with a group of young, talented athletes that don’t actually speak the same language as you.”

Colvin believes those lessons will serve him well as he settles into his next gig in the Manitoba capital. He was named head coach of the Bisons in June, replacing longtime bench boss Vanessa Martinez Lagunas, who had been at the helm for 12 seasons.

A chance to lead the Herd intrigued Colvin for several reasons, none more than being near family again.

“Certainly, there was a priority to be closer to home after living abroad and being so far away for so many years and so, for me, it was looking for the right opportunity that was also close to home in Toronto,” he said.

Colvin said he’s also watched U Sports women’s soccer during his free time, and that it’s a level of competition he’s wanted to break into for years. The former head coach of Lakehead University’s men’s team relished the opportunity to work with a core group for four or five years, rather than dealing with the constant turnover he experienced in Sweden.

“I really enjoy working with athletes of this age range,” he said. “I see a university-level student as kind of that last development stage of a young person, and the opportunity to be able to work with players for four to five years, like that is an opportunity to really push the development, come up with a playing identity and a style within the team.”

Colvin has had to quickly adjust since arriving in Winnipeg, meeting players and learning their tendencies and qualities to develop a game plan. The Bisons have yet to earn a win under their new head coach — they are 0-3-1 to begin the season — but Colvin doesn’t think the final scores have told the full story of how well his team has played.

That sentiment is shared across the team, which is believed to have a strong foundation of core players in place.

“Change is never easy, and I think a lot of the girls were nervous going into pre-season, because we didn’t really know what to expect,” said third-year midfielder Taryn Cabak, one of the team’s two captains.

“One thing he made very clear was that even though change is difficult, that doesn’t mean that it’s a building year. He still wants us to set goals and set lofty goals and achieve them in our first year as a team, which I think is a very good thing to hear from your leader.”

The Bisons were ranked 13th in Canada West to begin the year, which has only served as bulletin board material for a team that is preparing for its home-opening series against the Mount Royal Cougars, which starts Saturday at 12 p.m.

Since taking over, Colvin described his philosophy as a significant change for players, who are now being asked to play an “extremely proactive” and “aggressive” play style, especially on defence, where the Bisons will look to dictate the game. It’s different, but players are embracing it.

“I think all of us were super excited, super open, to want to learn,” said fourth-year midfielder Taylor Sousa, the team’s other captain. “It was a bit of an adjustment at first, for sure, but I think the overall team has adapted super well and we’ve all really enjoyed learning a new side of the game.”

The Bisons went .500 or better in five straight seasons from 2018 to 2023, but have won just eight games in the last two seasons combined. Colvin is remaining positive during this turbulent start. He believes his team is close to playing the brand he wants to see.

“I think if we dig a little bit deeper into our performances, implementing the style of play that we’re excited about for this season and just looking at our ability to create scoring chances, shots on goals, I think I’m disappointed that we only have a point to show for it,” he said, “but I’m also very proud of, honestly, how the team’s been progressing.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam