TORONTO — Growing up, Max Ferrari was told he was too small or too slow to excel at soccer.
"Not really talked about when I was younger, getting looked off a lot, I think, was a good thing in the end for me," Ferrari said. "It really pushed me. It really showed me that I had to work even harder for what I wanted to achieve and that was always to be a professional footballer."
Several trials with the Toronto FC academy didn't lead to anything. But Ferrari has since proved his critics wrong.
On Friday, the 23-year-old from Newmarket, Ont., is set to make his 100th career appearance for York United FC when the Toronto-based Canadian Premier League team hosts Calgary's Cavalry FC.
"It's an honour to reach that (milestone) with my hometown club. Especially with the team I've been with since the start of my professional career," Ferrari said in an interview.
That it will happen at York Lions Stadium is also special. Ferrari and his father were season ticket-holders for York's inaugural 2019 season.
Ferrari had ties to the team through Morey Doner, a close friend and former teammate at League1 Ontario's Aurora FC who played for York that year, and then-York coach Jim Brennan, whom Ferrari has known since he was eight.
"It was also just a pro team in my area. The stadium is only 30-40 minutes from my house so I was supporting local football like a lot of kids do now," Ferrari said. "And it's special to see when I see them in the crowd. That was me in the first year."
Current York coach Benjamin Mora, noting Ferrari's stamina and consistency, paid tribute to the youngster.
"This is a great achievement for Max. He's a young boy and there's not many players in football who have (appeared in) so many games at such a young age," Mora said.
"And he's still very young. He's eager to continue learning. He's a very educated boy. And of course on the pitch, he gives us more and more every time. So we're very happy to have him at York."
Ferrari signed with the CPL team in February 2020 after stints with Aurora and the Humber College Hawks.
The pandemic hit when he was in training camp in Florida, scattering the York players back home. The team didn't resume training together until July.
Brennan and former assistant coach Paul Stalteri proved to be big influences.
"Paul Stalteri was a big role (model) for me too when I was first getting in (the league). He was really tough on me, which in the long run has been good," Ferrari said of the former Werder Bremen, Tottenham, Fulham, Borussia Moenchengladbach fullback and Canada captain.
Ferrari also learned under former coach Martin Nash, who followed Brennan. He is now on his third coach in Mora, who succeeded Nash in early June.
Ferrari is also working for his third ownership group in Game Plan Sports Group, led by the Pasquel brothers. The Mexican consortium bought the franchise in November from Canadian Soccer Business, which shares the same ownership as the league, which had purchased the team in April 2023 from the Baldassarra family.
"It's growing, getting better every day," Ferrari said of the club.
"And now it's showing it on the field as well," he added.
York (9-5-4) has lost just one of its last 10 league outings (6-1-3) and goes into play Friday second in the standings on goal difference behind Forge FC. Cavalry (6-3-9) sits fourth in the eight-team table.
Of Ferrari's 99 York games to date, 93 have come in CPL play with another six in the Canadian Championship. He has pretty much been a constant in the lineup since the 2021 season, save 2022 when injuries restricted him to just 14 games.
Ferrari started his soccer career as a central midfielder but has since shifted to a variety of on-field roles.
"Growing up, until about years old, I was the smallest kid on every team I've been on," said Ferrari, who now stands five foot seven. "I'm still small now but I grew a lot once when I got to 16, 17. That's when I kind of gained my speed and I was pushed more as a winger."
Ferrari, who can both score goals and help make them, started as a right-winger for York but has subsequently switched to first fullback and now wingback.
"I'm really enjoying it and enjoying learning it every day as well," he said.
As of Monday, 31 players had already reached the 100-game mark in the CPL, with 16 of those doing so with the same club. Ferrari will become the first player to reach the milestone entirely at York.
Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson tops the league record book, with 169 appearances (140 games in the CPL, 15 in CONCACAF play and 14 in the Canada Championship) — all for Forge FC. Forge captain Kyle Bekker is second at 167 games, also all with Forge.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 15, 2024
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
