Pacific FC played host to a cross-country home coming for the Nash family.
York United head coach Martin Nash, brother of Steve and son of John, brought his team to Starlight Stadium to face James Merriman’s Pacific FC on Sunday (June 18) for Father’s Day. The pair brought out their fathers onto the field to mark the occasion.
“My dad is in the crowd passionately watching ever single match we play,” Merriman said. “He has a few things to say to me after every match.”
John used to coach Merriman when Merriman was a young soccer player.
“I think I was maybe 16 years old,” Merriman said. “They [the Nash family] push you in a different way to try to do something growing up on Vancouver Island. It was a nice experience to get introduced to them at an early age. I was lucky to grow up in that culture.”
The Nash family are renowned in Greater Victoria for their sporting success, with the two Nash parents still living locally even as their sons have gone onto sporting success elsewhere, Martin on the soccer field and Steve on the basketball court.
“It’s always nice to come back and catch up with a few friends and my parents,” Martin said. “We were always close family because it was, there’s only five of us and everyone else was in England pretty much so we spent all those occasions together as a family and it was always a special time.”
Pacific FC came away with a 1-0 win over York United Sunday thanks to a header from from midfielder Sean Young.
“I was happy to win this game on Father’s Day for my dad,” Merriman said.
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