2015 record (Canada West regular season): 10 W – 0 L – 2 OTL
2015 record (CW playoffs): 3 W – 0 L – 0 OTL
2015 record (CIS Championship): 1 W – 0 L – 1 OTL

2015 Canada West All Stars:                        Chad Bush (Ottawa, Ont.), Goalkeeper (First Team)
                                                                        Bryan Fong (Vancouver), Defender (First Team)
                                                                        Chris Serban (Calgary, Alta.), Defender (First Team)
                                                                        Harry Lakhan (Surrey, B.C.), Midfielder (First Team)
                                                                        Gagan Dosanjh (Abbotsford, B.C.), Midfielder (First Team)
                                                                        Sean Einarsson (Surrey, B.C.), Forward (First Team)

2015 Canada West Coach of the Year:        Mike Mosher

2015 CIS All-Canadians:                               Chad Bush (Ottawa, Ont.), Goalkeeper (First Team)
                                                                        Gagan Dosanjh (Abbotsford, B.C.), Midfielder (Second Team)
 

The 2016 CW men's soccer season opens tomorrow! @ubctbirds picked to repeat in men's soccer https://t.co/iT11PAEExv pic.twitter.com/xw1caVPDVc

— Canada West (@CWUAA) August 23, 2016

Head coach Mike Mosher's UBC Thunderbirds squad ripped through the Canada West in 2015-16, going 10-0-2 in the regular season before a 3-0 run through the conference playoffs to take the Canada West title. In combined conference play, the 'Birds outscored their opposition 36-5.

UBC took out Toronto 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the CIS national championships before falling to the top-ranked York Lions, with the Ontario side taking the decision in penalties.

"I can't be upset with the guys, because until we lost that final game, we had never trailed all season," said Mosher.

Now, ahead of the 2016 Canada West season, the 'Birds are heading into a year of transition, according to Mosher, one that will see some wholesale changes all over the pitch.



Gone are graduating standouts Harry Lakhan, Gagan Dosanjh, Milad Mehrabi, Sean Einarsson, and Justin Wallace, who combined for 26 goals across all competitions. From the backend, Chris Serban is off to the pros with the USL's WFC2, while Nike Azuma has transferred to the United States, and Adriano Clemente will be sidelined with a lower body injury.

Still, a couple of core pieces remain from a defensive unit that allowed just six goals in all of 2015, and Mosher believes that they provide a great foundation from which to build the next Thunderbird squad.

"[Fifth-year defender] Bryan Fong and [All- Canadian goalkeeper] Chad Bush are about as good as we could ask in terms of veteran guys. Bryan's been here a long time, and has been excellent for us through his tenure here, while Chad was great for us last year – we'll need that and more from him this year."
Up front, it's going to be a scoring by committee approach, as Mosher looks to recoup some of the offensive potency that graduated this past year.



"We're going to need everybody to step up and be better," says the head coach. "Since the year ended, we've been asking 'Where are the goals going to come from?' In terms of guys that could play bigger roles, it's going to be really interesting going forward – a guy like Luke Griffin, who didn't factor in much last year, scored 10 goals in 10 games during our spring/summer season. Lucas Reis had three goals in our last game, and averaged about a goal-per-game, as well. Those are just a couple of guys who could have a chance to step in."

In addition to his incumbents, Mosher will also have a plethora of new pieces to work with up front, with Ryan Arthur (Kwantlen Polytechnic) and Brian Im (Pacific University) signing on, as well as several highly touted high school prospects.

"The true freshmen will get a chance to show they can make an impact. Off the top of my head, two Surrey United guys in Manpal Brar and Zach Verhoeven could come in and get some time up front. Manpal is a big, strong target forward, while Zach is an exciting, creative guy in the middle."



The backend, like the attacking corps, is a work in progress, but Mosher has already seen some encouraging progress from guys who could play key roles.

"Karn Phagura is going into his third year, and he's made consistent progression in training, he's worked hard, and now we feel he's ready to step in and be a really important guy for us. We've seen a huge improvement in his all-around game in the last eight or nine months. Karn is a perfect example of how important recruiting is, even years down the road – you always need to have guys who are able to grow and step in when needed."



Despite all the changes to his squad, Mosher was clear – this is a just because this is a transition year doesn't mean expectations are any lower.

"Every year is different. Every team starts at the same starting line, and away we go. It's the same for the players – when we have so much change happening all at once, there's competition for spots all over the field. I think that, with the talent we still have on the roster, we can and will make a push for the Canada West title. That's our goal every year, and this is no different."