Laval Comets

History

The Comets were founded in 2005 by Pierre Marchand, a Laval businessman, following the demise of the Montreal Xtreme (2004) and Dynamites de Laval (1997-2001). Marchand was joined by 3 partners, the Montreal Impact, Centre Sportif Bois-de-Boulogne, and Soccer Québec, who assured the operation of the team for a minimum of three years. The club was set up as a non-profit organization owned by the 3 partners, to assure the long-term survival of the team.

In October 2005, contacts were established with the W-League, and a new franchise was granted to the group for the city of Laval. In November 2005, a competition was started for a name for the new team; hundreds of names were submitted. The club management selected the name Comètes de Laval. In January 2006, the club confirmed its first major team sponsor, Grolsch beer. The team's official colours, uniforms and the first players under contract were presented on March 8, 2006.

Year-by-year

Players

The Comets had a wide range of talent, some from university and high school teams, and others that have played for the Canadian National Team (7 Comets players in the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship). Seasons were brief since most players played at Canadian and American universities, therefore these were designed to accommodate their schedules, ending the first week of August.

Squad 2014

Coaching staff 2014

• Head Coach: Cindy Walsh
• Assistant Coach: Chantal Daigle

Former head coach

• CAN Mohamed Hilen (2006-2008)
• CAN Lyonel Joseph (2009-2012)

Former assistant coach

• CAN Owen Braun (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010)

Former assistant coach

• CAN Jimmy Patsilivas (2014 & 2015)

Rivalries

The Comets had a major rivalry with Quebec City Amiral SC. Several former players on the Comets played for the Amiral SC. In matches between the two teams, it was common for supporters to travel between Montreal and Quebec City to watch the teams.

Supporters

At the gate, the Comets had average crowds of 500 fans. After a disappointing season in 2009 (where the average gate was between 800 and 900 people), the attendance to the matches fell to 266 persons a match in 2010.

The all-time single-game high was the 952 fans in attendance against Ottawa Fury Women on Friday, July 4, 2008.

References

References

1. "United Soccer Leagues (USL)".
2. (French) L'Xtreme est mort et enterré, vive les Comètes de Laval! [https://archive.today/20120905075050/http://www.canoe.com/sports/nouvelles/archives/2005/12/20051213-092400.html]
3. (French)La courte histoire des comètes, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Equipe.html {{Webarchive. link. (2011-07-13)
4. "Archived copy".
5. "Archived copy".
6. (French)Match nul à Toronto,http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2007/7/21_Match_nul_a_Toronto.html {{Webarchive. link. (2012-03-14)
7. (French)Saison 2007 terminée, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2007/7/25_Saison_2007_terminee.html {{Webarchive. link. (2012-03-14)
8. (French) Victoire contre Toronto, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2008/7/23_Victoire_contre_Toronto.html {{Webarchive. link. (2012-03-14)
9. (French) Grosse commande pour les Comètes, {{usurped
10. (French) Défaite pour terminer la saison, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2009/7/21_Defaite_pour_terminer_la_saison.html {{Webarchive. link. (2012-03-14)
11. (French) Les Comètes qualifiées pour les séries, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2010/7/19_Les_Cometes_qualifiees_pour_les_series.html
12. (French) Saison des Comètes terminée : Bilan positif, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2010/7/23_Saison_des_Cometes_terminee__Bilan_positif.html {{Webarchive. link. (2012-03-14)
13. "W-League 2012". USL Soccer.
14. (French) Sept (7) joueuses à la qualification de la Coupe du Monde U20 féminin, http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2010/1/20_Sept_(7)_joueuses_a_la_qualification_de_la_Coupe_du_Monde_U20_feminin.html
15. "Team". W-League.
16. "United Soccer Leagues (USL)".
17. "Team". Laval Cometes.
18. "Accueil - Québec Soccer".
19. (French) http://www.rds.ca/soccer/chroniques/299880.html
20. "Accueil - Québec Soccer".
21. (French) Guillaume Dumais, Amiral SC: des comètes filent à Québec, http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-soleil/sports/soccer/200905/19/01-857968-amiral-sc-des-cometes-filent-a-quebec.php
22. "Laverdière s'amène chez l'Amiral | Autres sports | Sports | le Journal de Québec".
23. (French) Les Comètes visent un premier championnat dans la W-League, http://www.courrierlaval.com/Sports/Soccer/2007-03-24/article-1129554/Les-Cometes-visent-un-premier-championnat-dans-la-W-League/1 {{Webarchive. link. (2013-01-19)
24. "Les Comètes écartées des séries éliminatoires - Football - Courrier Laval".
25. Taking Attendance, 8/2/2010, http://www.kenn.com/the_blog/?p=3455
26. (French) http://www.lavalcometes.com/lavalcometes.com/Nouvelles/Entrees/2008/7/4_Les_Cometes_sincline_devant_le_Fury.html {{Webarchive. link. (2012-03-14)