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25 | Friday, D e c e m b e r 2 , 2 0 1 6 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | w w w .insideH A LT O N .com Kevin Nagel Oakville Beaver Sports Editor knagel@burlingtonpost.com Sports By Kerry Gillespie Toronto Star "Connected to your Community" M a k in g a good living playing soccer National women's team union officially created this week with that goal in mind bono lawyers Jam es Bunting and Maureen Littlejohn of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg. It' s believed to be first women' s players' union in Canada and it will represent the national team in nego tiations over compensation and play ing conditions, similar to the National Hockey League Players' Association. In the U.S., the wom en's soccer players' association has already been a vocal platform in the fight for gender equity It's locked in contract negotiations with the U.S. Soccer Federation and players have threatened to strike if they don't get a compensation package equal to what the male players have. what the men make. If it comes close to following global norms, it's more, even though the women are the far better team. W hat Erin McLeod, a two-time Olympic goalkeeper who now plays in Europe with the Swedish club team FC Rosengard -- knows, is that men at her level of the game have a far different financial exis tence than she does. "If I was a male player, I'd be able to retire with the money I'd be making," said the 33-year-old who missed Rio because of her third knee surgery "I've never been driven by the money but, some times, it's almost like I have to close m y eyes to it or else I'll be bitter -- there' s definitely big differences." Canadian players say they've come a long way in their relation ship with the Canadian Soccer Association. Its financial support of the 10-team National W om en' s Soccer League in the U.S. has dra matically increased professional opportunities and it's now possible for the national players who aren't in university to play for a pro team six months of the year. But, until now, negotiations have been done on an ad hoc basis led by the team veterans, Christine Sin clair, Rhian Wilkinson, Matheson and McLeod. They are all in the 30s and, as they contemplate the end of their playing careers, they want to make sure there's a system in place to build on. "It's our time to make sure, not just this generation but the future of Canadian wom en's soccer, is in good hands," McLeod said. Gold for St. John Paul II and St. Andrew The St. John Paul II boys' volleyball team (above photo)celebrate their Halton Catholic District School Board elementary championship Wednesday at Jean Vanier Secondary School in Milton. They defeated St. Luke in the final while St. Andrew won the girls' gold medal with a win over St. Timothy. In right photo, Natalia Konopka (20) of St. Andrew returns the ball to Robyn Hebert of St. Timothy. In the bronze-medal games, St. Brigid defeated St. Vincent on the boys' side, while Sacred Heart defeated St. John Paul II on the girls' side. | Michael Ivanin - special to the Beaver They've already made Canadian soccer history, winning back-toback Olympic medals, and inspired countless young girls to take up the game. Now, with the groundbreaking step of forming a union, Canada' s top players are looking to leave an even bigger legacy for sport: the possibil ity for women to make a good living out of soccer. That' s something that has been far harder for female play ers than their male counterparts na tionally and globally. "The (veteran) players on our team have seen this progression of going from nothing to being able to earn somewhat of a decent liv ing," said Oakville's Diana Matheson, who was with the team that struggled in 2 0 0 8 and then found success with Olympic bronze med als in 2 0 1 2 and 2016. "Now, we want it to be more stable for younger kids coming up so they know they can earn a living through soccer and not have to worry in the winter when the wages dry up and, hopefully, they don't still have to go live with their parents into their 30s like some of us have had to do," said the midfielder who stays with her parents when she's not playing for Canada or the Washington Spirit. The Canadian W om en' s Nation al Soccer Team Players' Associa tion, which was officially created at a meeting in Toronto yesterday (Thursday), is the culmination of years of work by the core of the current national team and pro U.S. players filed discrimination suit Earlier this year, American play ers filed a suit against their govern ing body alleging wage discrimina tion and, before that, they launched a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario over the use of artificial turf during the 2015 W om en's World Cup in Canada arguing that the m en's elite game would never be played on it. The American women took their fight for equal pay and conditions to 6 0 Minutes on CBS saying they felt like "second-class citizens." "It's an issue across the globe right now," Matheson said about gender equity and women's com pensation in soccer. "They're setting the example for us and for sure we think Canada can be a world leader in that as well and that's definitely something we have our eye on." The Canadian Soccer Associa tion has been tight-lipped about OAKVILLE yF i o w r o g g i with the optimum in vehicle rust control and much more! C o m p le te C ars from INSURE Y O U R FUTURE T O D A Y P re fe rre d ra te s fo r a c c id e n t fre e d riv e rs . S a ve u p to 40% o n y o u r p o lic y .A s k us h o w . N e w d riv e rs & h a rd to in s u re d riv e rs a ls o w e lc o m e . $ 119-95 N E W C A R S , U SED C A R S , R U S T Y C A R S ... 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