Matt Hamlin, Memorial University

Men’s Soccer

Growing up in Maddox Cove, just outside of St. John’s, Nfld., Memorial University’s Matthew Hamlyn took to soccer at a very young age.

“I think once I could walk, I was down on Fieldian Grounds with a ball at my feet,” he says.

As a child, Hamlyn says he spent several years watching his father coach the Fieldians Challenge Cup team.

“I used to love going with him to the team’s practices and being there on game day each weekend,” he remembers. “So, at a very young age, soccer became something that I looked forward to, and I haven’t looked back since those early days.”

Hamlyn first began playing organized soccer in Mount Pearl. At age 12, he moved to St. John’s to join their all-star program and played there and on a number of provincial teams until he was 17. At 14, he also began travelling to the National Training Centre to train. His youth soccer career ended with a bang when he played with the 2009 Canada Games team.

His varsity soccer career would begin soon after that.

“Memorial was always going to be [my] first choice,” he says. “I think the idea of getting a chance to play for your hometown university is always appealing to an athlete.”

Hamlyn was thrilled when he tried out for and made the MUN men’s soccer team.

Now in his third year on the team and his first in pharmacy school, Hamlyn also works behind the scenes with MUN athletics, assisting event staff with basketball and volleyball games held at the Field House.

He cites making the playoffs and participating in more volunteering ventures in the community as his goals for this season.

Getting to know Matthew Hamlyn:

What has been your most memorable moment playing for Memorial so far?

“In my rookie year, we played at Moncton and squeezed out a 2-1 win there. It had been raining all day and the game was a rough one. I think we defended for probably 90 per cent of the game, [but] got two shots on net and they both found their way in. It always feels great when you get a result in games like that.”

What do you think or hope you are best known for on the soccer field?

“To the people I have played with and against so far, I would hope to be known as a player who goes out and competes and someone who just loves to play the game. I try to keep quiet and do my job on the field hoping everything else just falls into place.”

What do you think or hope you are best known for off the field?

“I hope to be known for being someone who is their own person, unique but relatable, who does stuff because [he] believes in it. I think that’s the best way to live your life, so I hope people see me in that light. “