By Craig Lobban
craig@canucks-abroad.com

With 23 canadians representing us in 5 different levels of football, there is no shortage of Canucks in Germany.

The top league, Bundesliga, is home to two Canadians; Daniel Imhof, who is a regular starter as a holding midfield for VfL Bochum, who are currently 12th in the league, and look to be safe in staying in the Bundesliga.

Ryan Gyaki is also signed to a team in the German top flight, Hansa Rostock, who are 14th in the league. He is an attacking midfielder and though he has yet to play for the senior team, he is a regular on the reserve side.

The main source of Canadian blood in Germany, however, is in the 2. Bundesliga, the second division. There we have seven players who are having big impacts on their teams.

One of the Canadians making waves in Germany is Rob Friend, who plays for Borussia Monchengladbach. M'gladbach are currently at the very top of the league, largely thanks to Friend. Playing up front, Friend is having the season of his life, currently sitting 2nd on the scoring leaders board with 14 goals.

Another team fighting for promotion is FC Koln, currently tied for fifth in the league with 36 points. Helping them along is defender, and captain, Kevin McKenna. As a senior member of the team, McKenna has taken his responsibilities seriously, and has helped young players thrive.

Sitting eighth in the table is TSV 1860 München, who feature Canadian midfielder Nikolas Ledgerwood. Nikolas hasn't been playing much with the senior team, but is regularly on the reserve side.

Twelfth in the league is FC Pauli, featuring Canadian Jonathan Beaulieu-Bourgault. Though he has seen the bench recently, he is a promising young Canadian in the midfield position and former U20 regular.

There are two teams in the 2. Bundesliga who feature Canadian players that are currently facing the threat of relegation.

1. FC Kaiserslautern, who sit 16th on the table, features two Canadian midfielders, Patrice Bernier and Josh Simpson. Things haven't been great for the two recently, with Simpson just finishing serving a 4 match ban, and Bernier not starting recently, but they will be very important if the team, who sit 4 points back from safety, hope to remain in the second highest league in Germany.

The other Canadian sitting in the relegation zone is David Hoillet who is only 17 and plays with SC Paderborn (on loan from Blackburn), who sit 17th in the league with 16 points. Hoillet has begun to see some action off the bench, and looks to be a very promising youngster.

Other young Canadian players in Germany include Cody Cook and Eddy Sidra, both playing for Energie Cottbus' U-19 team in the A-Jugend.

Other players of note are Ali Gerba, who is a recent addition to Regionaliga Sud side FC Ingolstadt 04 and is already starting to have an impact, and Riley O'Neill who has 6 goals in 13 games this season for Oberliga Nord side Wilhelmshaven.

Suffice to say, there is plenty going on in Germany for Canadian footballers (or should I say, Fußballers?). I hope to cover the action in Germany as well as I can, although there will be more coverage of the higher leagues, as the information is more accessible.

To finish, a look to Germany reveals a lot of Canadian talent. We have many up-and-comers and well as tried and true footballers and CMNT regualrs. Makes me look forward to World Cup Qualifiers, though I shouldn't get ahead of myself. For now , I'll continue to update regarding our players in Germany, and we'll hope for promotion for some of their sides.

For next post: For those new to German football, next post I will be outlining the league structures (including what the new 3rd Liga being introduced next season will mean) and show where our Canadians (and their teams) sit as far as promotion/relegation goes.

Complete List of Current Players in Germany:

Daniel Imhof - VfL Bochum (German Bundesliga 1) (1)
Ryan Gyaki - Hansa Rostock (German Bundesliga 1) (1)
Eddy Sidra - Energie Cottbus (German Bundesliga 1) (1) A-Jugend
Cody Cook - Energie Cottbus (German Bundesliga 1) (1) A-Jugend

Rob Friend - Borussia Monchengladbach (German Budesliga 2) (2)
Nik Ledgerwood - 1860 München (German Bundesliga 2)(2)
Josh Simpson - Kaiserslautern (German Bundesliga 2) (2)
Patrice Bernier - Kaiserslautern (German Bundesliga 2) (2)
Kevin McKenna - FK Koln (German Bundesliga 2) (2)
Jonathan Beaulieu-Bourgault - St. Pauli (German Bundesliga 2) (2)
David (Junior) Hoillet - SC Paderborn 07 (German Bundesliga 2) (2)
On loan from Blackburn Rovers (English Premier League) (1)

Ali Gerba - FC Ingolstadt 04 (German Regionalliga Sud) (3)
Alex Elliot - Sportfreunde Siegen (German Regionalliga Sud) (3)
Kent O'Connor - FSV Oggersheim German Regionalliga Sud) (3)

Kennedy Owusu-Ansah - Hertha BSC II (Oberliga Nord/NordOst) (4)
Riley O'Neill - Wilhelmshaven (Oberliga Nord) (4)
Maycoll Canizales - SC Bonner (Oberliga NordRhein) (4)
Zach Kalthoff - Kaiserslautern Amateurs (Oberliga SudWest) (4)
Gianluca Zavarise - VfL Bochum Amateurs (Oberliga Westfalen)(4)
Massih Wassey - Preussen Muenster (Oberliga Westfalen)(4)
Robert Kerek - Bahlinger SC (Oberliga Baden-Württemberg) (4)

Victor Collins - MSV Neuruppin (Verbandsliga) (5)