LOHNE, Germany – On July 28 at 1 p.m. EST, Hannover 96 II will kick off their first game in the 2023 Regionaliga Nord – the fourth-tier German soccer league – season.
Starting at fullback will be Golden Hawks alum Micah Chisholm. The Markham, Ont. native recently signed with Hannover 96 II, the reserve team for the 2. Bundesliga's Hannover 96.
It's an organization with a long history of launching Canadian soccer careers. Canadian national team great Julian de Guzman played three seasons with the club from 2002 to 2005.
Chisholm says that played a role in his choosing to sign with Hannover. "96 was one of very few clubs giving Canadians a chance."
"They want to push me to hopefully play for the first team someday," he continued. "They just really want the best for me, my family, and my soccer career."
It didn't take long for Chisholm to settle in. He trained with the team only twice before starting his first pre-season game, which Hannover won 6-2. They followed that up with a 3-2 victory in their final tune-up before the regular season.
"I got a lot of compliments from my coaches and my teammates," he said. "I feel like they have trust in me going into the season."
That's not to say there haven't been adjustments he's had to make. The European game, he says, is a lot faster.
"In Canada, you have way more time on the ball ... [in Germany], you have maybe a maximum of two or three seconds before you have to make up your mind and know where you're going to move next."
The language barrier has been another hurdle.
"We're learning. In practice, a lot of time is spent on how to communicate with each other, and the coach [Daniel Stendel] is doing a great job incorporating all players on the pitch."
Chisholm's goal is to be called up to Hannover 96's first team before the end of the season, but that's not all he's focused on.
"As much as I'm here to better myself personally, I also want the team to reach our goals: qualifying for playoffs and hopefully getting promoted for next year."
He's also watching for a call from the Canadian national team. "For me and my family that would be big, to represent Canada at any level."
Already on the threshold of a major accomplishment, Chisholm looks back fondly on his time at Laurier. "I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed the players, and especially the coaching staff." Chisholm led the team in points with a goal and three assists last season.
"My goal has always been, since I was younger, to play at the pro level ... unfortunately I can't do both."
When he steps foot on the pitch for the season opener, he'll be one step closer to reaching a level very few athletes ever attain, and he's only just getting started.
