Nothing but Ness: CBU women’s soccer coach celebrates 25 years of success on and off the pitch

SYDNEY, N.S. -

As Stephen ‘Ness’ Timmons looks back at the photos of his many championship teams, the man who binds them all together has a hard time believing it’s been 25 years.

"Yeah, it went very fast. It's like a soccer season, it just goes, goes, goes," says Timmons, head coach of the Cape Breton Capers Women's Soccer team.

When Timmons first took over what was then the UCCB women's soccer program in 1996, he began with very little, and the Capers finished at the bottom of the league.

"We were starting from scratch. We had a lot of local girls. We jumped in the AUS. So we knew we were probably in over our heads for the first couple of years,” says Timmons.

But the Cape Bretoner quickly took the team from rags to riches, turning the Capers into one of the most consistently successful programs in the country.

Since the year 2000, the Cape Breton University women have won 11 Atlantic University Sport conference championships.

Perhaps even more impressive - they've lost only 33 regular season games since the turn of the millennium.

Timmons has picked up a lot of personal hardware over that time – being named AUS Coach of the Year seven times, and U Sports coach of the year three times.

But the crowning moment came in Timmons' home community of New Waterford back in 2007, when the Capers hosted - and won - their first and only national championship.

"It was on Veterans Memorial Field on November 11, so it's not hard to remember that. But it was a build-up. We had some big schools in town, we were the small school. We had the Ottawa U’s, UBC, and York in the final. And it just was kind of a storybook ending."

Timmons has won a lot of championships, but has won even more respect from the many players he’s coached and just about anyone who has met him.

"Yeah, I think he's a legend,” says Phil Currie, Executive Director of Atlantic University Sport.

Currie says Timmons’ success is about more than just winning, as he’s been a mentor to hundreds of young players.

"And he does it for all the right reasons. He cares about school, he cares about his student-athletes, and he cares about their future."

“It never gets old, winning championships,” says Timmons. “But I think the big thing in university sport, it’s all about growth and development of the athletes.”

Now, as a special coincidence for his silver anniversary, the Capers will host nationals for a second time, beginning on Nov. 18.

Heading into the final weekend of the regular season, the Capers sport an undefeated record with seven wins, three draws and no losses, and will look to win their fourth straight AUS championship on home field from Nov. 4-7.

At age 64, Timmons shows no sign of giving it up anytime soon.

"I've got lots of energy for it. I really enjoy it,” says Timmons. “You know, I went year to year when I first started, and I'm still doing that now. So who knows how long I'll be here."

Cheers to 25 years, for a man whose name is synonymous with soccer success.