![\"Slider-Plavsic-Sasa-2\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/announce\/files\/2014\/12\/Slider-Plavsic-Sasa-2-150x150.jpg\")
No matter what angle you examine it from, Sasa Plavsic\u2019s journey from the University of the Fraser Valley men\u2019s soccer program to the European pro ranks is a compelling underdog tale.\nHow many former Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) men\u2019s soccer alumni go on to make a living playing the game in Europe? And how many of those can say they\u2019ve helped their club craft a season so ascendant, the storyline could have been borrowed from a movie script?
\nBut that\u2019s Plavsic\u2019s reality right now.
\nThe 25-year-old striker established himself as a key contributor this year with IK Frej, a small Swedish club based in a suburb of Stockholm, and scored a number of key goals as the team gained promotion to the Superettan \u2013 the second-highest tier of Swedish pro soccer \u2013 for the first time in the its 46-year history.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s been a little bit overwhelming,\u201d said Plavsic, who is back in the Fraser Valley over Christmas to visit his family. \u201cI\u2019ve wanted to do this since I was really young. Now, it\u2019s become a reality.
\n\u201cMy main focus now is to just keep developing and progressing. I think there\u2019s still a lot for me to learn, and there\u2019s room for me to develop and achieve more.\u201d
\nPlavsic, a graduate of Coquitlam\u2019s Centennial Secondary, is one of the most accomplished players in the history of the UFV Cascades men\u2019s soccer program. He was among the top 10 scorers in the Canada West in each of his three seasons (2010 to 2012), racking up a total of 20 goals and 11 assists in league play, and he finished third in the conference with eight goals in 2012.
\nAfter completing his kinesiology degree in December 2012, Plavsic was among 102 players selected to participate in the USL pro combine in Florida the following January, and he ended up suiting up for the Vancouver Whitecaps\u2019 U23 side that summer.
\nHis play drew the attention of an agent from Sweden, and in August 2013, he went over for a series of tryouts and ended up signing with Syrianska IF Kerburan, a Division 2 club (the fourth tier of Swedish soccer). He had a good half-season for Syrianska, scoring seven goals in 11 games, which led to interest from Div. 1 clubs. He ended up signing with IK Frej in January 2014, after impressing their staff by scoring a hat trick in an exhibition game.
\nFrej is a tiny club \u2013 its home pitch has seating for just 1,250 fans, and they had been playing in Div. 4 as recently as 2001. But they put together a storybook 2014 campaign, going 16-7-3 to finish second in the Norra (Northern conference) of Div. 1. That gave them a chance to qualify for the Superettan via a two-game promotion\/relegation playoff against \u00d6sters IF, the 13th-place finisher in the Superettan.
\n\u00d6sters IF is a much bigger club with a longer track record of success \u2013 they had been in the Allsvenskan, Sweden\u2019s top professional tier, as recently as 2013, and play in a sparkling new 12,000-seat stadium.
\nBut on Nov. 6, \u00d6sters traveled to Frej for the first leg and suffered a stunning 3-0 defeat. Frej exploded for three goals in a span of five minutes in the second half, and Plavsic scored the second goal \u2013 a teammate headed the ball back to him, and he roofed it on a full volley in the 53rd minute.
\nHe also scored in the second leg at \u00d6sters on Nov. 9, as the keeper misplayed his free kick early in the second half. The goal gave his team a 2-1 lead, and while \u00d6sters rallied to win the game 3-2, Frej prevailed 5-3 on aggregate.
\nPlavsic said that IK Frej went from going unmentioned in soccer season preview articles in major newspapers, to drawing a large media contingent to their training sessions later in the year to chronicle the unlikely ascent.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s quite incredible that we actually got there,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a small, ambitious club and they\u2019re really happy about where they are right now.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ll just continue to work hard and see where we go next.\u201d
\nPlavsic, who scored nine goals in 25 games across all competitions this season, recently signed a new one-year contract with IK Frej, and the club\u2019s impending move up to the Superettan is a great opportunity for him to further his career.
\nPlavsic was born in Croatia and moved to Canada with his family in 1997, and the fact he\u2019s got a Croatian passport has helped him break into European pro soccer \u2013 not just because he doesn\u2019t count as an import on the roster, but because it helps him overcome any preconceived notions that clubs might have about the calibre of Canadian players.
\n\u201cI think the toughest step was just getting into the professional environment, because there\u2019s limited opportunities for Canadian players,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cI\u2019m happy with where I\u2019m at right now, but I\u2019m not content. Hopefully I can continue to move up the system and get into a bigger league in the next few years.\u201d
\nPlavsic looks back fondly on his time at UFV, and credits a move from midfielder to striker after his first season on campus for accelerating his development. He\u2019d played in the midfield his whole life, but after consulting with Cascades head coach Alan Errington in the spring of 2011, he was shifted to striker for an exhibition game vs. Quest University. He scored two goals that game, and the rest is history.
\n\u201cWe put him up front, and he just scored goals for fun,\u201d Errington recalled with a chuckle. \u201cTechnically, he\u2019s a very good player. He\u2019s a good passer of the ball, and he strikes the ball well with both feet. Most importantly, he scores goals.\u201d
\nErrington is extremely proud of what Plavsic has accomplished in Sweden.
\n\u201cSasa is one of those players that had the drive to be a soccer player,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a credit to him to change his life, live away from his family and chase the dream that he\u2019s had since he was a kid.
\n\u201cHe\u2019s a very smart lad, very intelligent. He treats football like any of his other courses \u2013 he\u2019s a student of the game, rather than just playing for fun. Players like that make good coaches.\u201d
\nIndeed, while Plavsic\u2019s immediate goal is to continue to climb the pro soccer ladder, his long-term dream is to coach at the university level.
\n\u201cIdeally, it would be at UFV,\u201d he said with a grin. \u201cIt would be a really great honour to come here and build the program up and look at ways I can develop players and get them playing professionally, or have good careers outside of the game . . . whatever they\u2019re most passionate about.\u201d<\/p>\n