CCAA Soccer apprentice: Martina Pettenon

Story courtesy of the CCAA

A total of 13 first-year aspiring female coaches will participate in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association’s (CCAA) Female Apprentice Coach Program (FACP) during the 2023-24 season.

The FACP, which is funded in part by Sport Canada, is designed to identify and support female graduating student-athletes who demonstrate the desire and skills for coaching by providing them opportunities to share in the coaching experience in the CCAA.

Leading the way is CCAA Soccer, which will feature five apprentices this year. In the PACWEST, Martina Pettenon will be mentored by Chris Laxton at Douglas College with the Royals.

Motivated by her passion to be a respected team leader at Douglas, Pettenon embraced the captain role in her final year with the Royals. Under the guidance of Laxton, who was instrumental throughout her journey with the team, Pettenon embraced a more prominent leadership role on the field.

“Recognizing that my voice and impact on my teammates translated into success in my own performance, I aspired to be a leader who influenced more than just game outcomes,” she said.

For the past two years, Pettenon has also served as a coach in the development centre at the North Shore Girls Soccer Club (NSGSC), where she had the opportunity to share her knowledge and experiences with aspiring young players ages 8 to 13.

Pettenon believes that her diverse leadership experiences will make her an asset to the Royals as an apprentice.

“This role has been incredibly rewarding, allowing me to positively influence youth athletes who look up to me,” she said.

Pettenon played her entire five-year career with Douglas and unfortunately, as with many student-athletes across the country, her collegiate career was impacted due to the pandemic. Despite the break in competition, she remained engaged during the lost 2020 season.

“Martina’s maturity and leadership were integral to allow our student athletes to stay connected with each other and the program through the pandemic and returning to the pitch amidst much uncertainty,” said Laxton, who is entering his 10th season at the helm of the Women’s Soccer program at Douglas.

His commitment and dedication to the sport is demonstrated through his involvement in soccer at all levels. As testament to his passion in building the coaching capacity, Pettenon will be Laxton’s third apprentice (Kelsey Acaster in 2017 and Samantha Kell in 2019) in the FACP.