Blazers MSC Rustle Up Talented Midfielder before Season Kickoff
The CMU Men's Soccer program is very pleased to announce the commitment of Messager Mumbere for the 2024-25 MCAC season. The local talent with CCAA experience will look to be a big presence in the middle of the pitch for the Blazers this year.
A 2022 graduate of Sturgeon Heights, Mumbere suited up with the Huskies for his varsity indoor seasons in grades ten and twelve, as well as his final year for outdoor. The MHSAA "AAAA" school were winners of the indoor Championship division in his grade ten season, and followed that great team campaign with another good season personally, as he was named the Championship division top scorer for his final year in high school indoor soccer.
On the club side, Mumbere started out with St Charles Soccer Association and played there up to his U16 season. They were regular attendees at the USA Cup in Minneapolis, and even managed a finals appearance at the premier tournament during his youth club run. For his final U17 season he transferred to Winnipeg South End United, but the COVID-19 pandemic took out any chance of his team competing at any tournaments either here or abroad.
Following his final year of youth eligibility, Mumbere signed on with a scholarship to the Lakeland College Rustlers out of Lloydminster, Alberta in the ACAC, a conference within the CCAA. Although he featured primarily as a defender for his high school squads, Mumbere found himself at home as a central attacking midfielder with the Rustlers during the outdoor season, and as a winger in the indoor futsal season. His Lakeland squad were bronze medalists for futsal in 2023, and Mumbere will bring some of his experience of the indoor game back to Manitoba and the Blazers. In between college seasons he has honed his outdoor game during the summer competing with Team Congo at the Canadian African Cup of Nations, a program started by Blazers co-head coach Gode Katembo. Congo were winners in last summer's tournament, and this year fell to Egypt in the bronze medal match, a team that featured his other new co-head coach, Anderson Pereira.
Interested in more than just the playing side of the game, Mumbere has coached youth soccer with Youth for Christ as well as Soccer Without Borders (another Katembo-led program alongside the Canadian African Cup of Nations), and in 2023 gave back to his high school by being their varsity team head coach. His desire to develop both his game as well as the next generations' is strong, with a Concacaf "C" license in the works. Mumbere enjoys seeing the progression that his players make over the course of a season, and then seeing them go on to play for good teams.
Mumbere's ties to CMU run deep, as his relationship with coach Gode Katembo has stayed strong since graduating high school, and he even played under Anderson Pereira in his youth days with St Charles Club. He is continuing his studies at CMU in the Redekop School of Business, as it blends well with his interests in team leadership and project management. He is excited to play at home once again in front of friends and family, and face off against top competition in Manitoba, and perhaps even Canada if the Blazers manage to make a deep playoff run this year. Co-head coach Gode Katembo is himself excited to see their latest signing back in Manitoba, stating "I'm thrilled to have Messager on board. His high energy and sharp vision make him an excellent fit for our midfield. His ability to read the game and distribute the ball effectively is exactly what we need. I'm confident that his technical skills and passion for the game will elevate our team's performance this season. Messager's addition to our squad is a big win for us, and I'm eager to see how he'll contribute on and off the field." Mumbere will have a chance to reacquaint himself with some ACAC foes later this month, as the team heads west to Red Deer for pre-season action.
The winner of the Manitoba Collegiate Athletics Conference earns the right to represent the province at the Canadian Collegiate Athletics Association (CCAA) National Championships at the conclusion of the outdoor season, which the Blazers look to accomplish now entering the fourth year that the MCAC has been fully included in the Canada-wide conference. Blazers Men's Soccer last hoisted the provincial trophy in the fall of 2018 in Pereira's first season at the helm, while their most recent Men's Futsal championship was in the spring of 2020.
Print This Article
