Rising tides: Will having a women's pro soccer team help score a stadium for Halifax?

The Wanderers Grounds have been home to just one team since being renovated in 2019. That is going to change following the official unveiling of the Halifax Tides.

“We have the name, the badge that we’ve been able to share with the community. We’ve got our website now live and we’re selling our merchandise,” says Tides co-owner, Courtney Sherlock.

The professional women’s soccer team will be joining the team, coast-to-coast, Northern Super League.

The current team calling the Wanderers Grounds home is ready to welcome the Tides aboard.

“I'm thrilled,” says Wanderers coach, Patrice Gheisar. “You know I've been lucky enough to coach male and female Soccer and I think you know, we're the growing part of the game. It's great to see such an amazing city have both teams.”

A photo of the Wanderers Grounds taken on June 14, 2024. (Jonathan MacInnis/CTV Atlantic)

While the Wanderers Grounds are nice, the 6500 seats stadium isn’t up to the standards of professional soccer.

“I’m so excited that our fans come out and support us at the Wanderers grounds. I would love to have running water, flushing toilets, that would be incredible,” Sherlock says.

Having a second team now behind the pursuit of a permanent stadium, there is optimism the project Start to gain momentum.

“Well, I certainly hope so. I mean, if it’s not a professional women’s team, what is going to do it right? I think we could be a huge value in getting a permanent stadium for Halifax that is so badly needed,” adds Sherlock. “We are a soccer city, we’re athletic city, and we need infrastructure. We need permanent infrastructure.”

Wanderers owner Derek Martin is excited about the possibilities. In a statement to CTV, Martin says.

"We have invested $5 million in creating a special place at the Wanderers Grounds that we have always made available to anyone in our community who wants to use it. It is a very expensive venue to operate in, however, so while I have not had anyone confirm anything yet, our doors are open, and we would be more than happy to have them join us.

The permanent stadium is well on its way to approval and there are several user groups that are keen to utilize it once it is finalized but having a women's professional team in the mix is certainly a great addition."

That addition will soon start taking shape with roster announcements on the horizon. The Halifax Tides’ schedule is expected to be released by the end of the year.

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