Playing soccer is nothing new for Garrett Peters. An athlete since childhood, Peters is used to kicking a ball around the field. What is new, however, is being named captain of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s soccer team.

Peters, originally from Regina, has been playing soccer since he was six years old. Prior to coming to the U of S, he played for Trinity Western University in Langley, B.C. Now back in Saskatchewan, he’s both excited and nervous about his new position as captain.

“It was a nice surprise. It’s good and bad. It’s got its perks; it’s cool to be named the captain, but a lot of responsibility comes with it. A lot more meetings and time spent watching video and stuff, preparing for games and maybe just as a role player,” Peters said.

Being captain adds another item to Peters’ already busy schedule. As a biology major, he hopes to get into a professional college after completing his undergraduate degree. Like many student athletes, Peters struggles to maintain a balance between his sport, studies and social life.

“In the last five, six years [soccer has] taken up a tremendous amount of time. It definitely affects my life socially and the family, because during the summer I’m still training, I’m overseas doing whatever, playing soccer,” Peters said.

The demanding travel schedule is definitely a challenge for many student athletes and Peters is no exception.

“I think probably the worst part is travelling. So on weekends — like this weekend I’m going to Calgary, and it’s like a six or seven hour bus ride, which you think would be time to do stuff but it’s hard to focus on a bus,” said Peters. “I notice a huge difference between in season and out of season between grades and stuff like that. It is hard to juggle that, but you get used to it.”

Despite these challenges, soccer has opened Peters to a wide range of opportunities. This past summer, he represented Canada at the FISU Games in Gwangju, South Korea. His involvement with the men’s soccer team has therefore allowed him to see lots of the world. It’s not just travel that keeps Peters going. He also appreciates the other athletes he gets to work with at the U of S.

“There’s a huge community. Just soccer, there’s like 60 of us with men and women and you combine the other Huskies, there’s a couple hundred athletes. We don’t all know each other, but we see each other around and it’s a community. That’s probably the best part,” Peters said.

With his new leadership role, Peters hopes to be a good role model for his fellow players.

“I respect leaders that lead by example, so I want to be someone that the players can look to and say ‘Oh, Garrett’s doing that. I should be doing that also,’” Peters said.

He also recognizes the importance of clear and respectful communications with his teammates.

“A lot of people, they get angry or raise their voice, but if I can be a leader that is able to communicate the message and what I actually want specific people to do, I think that’s more effective,” Peters said.

In the end, Peters wants everyone to enjoy soccer as much as he does. He’s seen the popularity of the sport grow and hopes that it continues well into the future.

“I would like the readers to come watch us play. We’ve actually improved a lot with our fan base. I bet our home opening this [past] Friday we had probably close to 1,000 people, which is getting pretty good. Football gets 6,000 to 7,000,” Peters said. “If we can continue getting people out and get people to realize that we are playing, that would be awesome.”