My kids have enjoyed playing in this league for a couple years. Sadly they have never followed through with balancing the teams in the 4 years we have played. One year it worked out fine- but two of the years (including this recent) they had teams beating our team and one other team 15-0. There isn’t much learning in a loss like that- pretty destructive to kids’ self esteem. Don’t get me wrong- I think losing is really important. But when it’s that unbalanced, it can turn the kids off of the sport completely. The refs are really great and always willing to energetically step in when a sub coach is needed. Just the admin that needs work imo. (They see the scores, they talk to the coaches, they should follow through with what their side says about balancing to ensure a fun season for all).
This club claims to value development and a supportive player environment, but in my experience, the reality is very different. At the competitive level, especially in the U13+ age groups, the focus is overwhelmingly on results — often at the expense of player morale and psychological safety. Coaches shuffle player positions without explanation, single players out in front of peers, and divide teams into “strong” vs. “weak” groups without providing meaningful, actionable feedback. The effect is predictable: kids who once loved the game start to dread practices. When families raise concerns — calmly and constructively — they’re treated with suspicion, accused of being disruptive, or worse, retaliated against. Club president John Hendriks sets the tone. His response to concerns is defensive at best and inappropriate at worst. Rather than listening or reflecting, he deflects blame onto players and families, even questioning their commitment or history in the sport. Suggesting that kids are struggling because their parents “didn’t start them early enough” is not just unprofessional — it’s mean-spirited and completely misaligned with the values of youth sport. Even more concerning, he’s suggested that when a player loses motivation, it may just mean they’re “no longer into soccer,” without acknowledging how the club’s environment might be causing that shift. It’s a convenient way to avoid responsibility. Instead of improving, the club doubles down and demands silence. That’s not leadership — it’s damage control. Many of the issues are systemic: overextended coaches, no backup programs, weak development pathways, and poor communication. Families are left to fend for themselves, and kids bear the consequences. If you’re looking for a place that genuinely supports your child’s growth, confidence, and long-term love of the game, I would not recommend this club. The technical training may be fine, but the emotional climate and leadership behavior are serious red flags. If your child is thriving, you may not see the cracks — but if they ever need support or clarity, don’t count on this club to provide it. Youth sports should build resilience, confidence, and joy. Sadly, this environment does the opposite.
As a parent with experience across multiple soccer clubs—including Cherry Beach, East York, North Toronto, North York Cosmos, and others—I wanted to share my personal observations to help fellow parents make informed decisions. Every club has strengths and areas for improvement, and I’ll try to be as objective as possible. Cherry Beach Soccer Club certainly has positives: it offers solid facilities (turf fields, a convenient location in East Toronto) and a well-established house league program. However, there are a few important considerations before committing. Facilities: While many games are held at Monarch Park, some house league seasons may take place at other fields like Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough. This can add significant travel time. Also, parking at Monarch Park is often difficult. Don’t dismiss other clubs based solely on location—for example, North Toronto’s indoor house league runs at Central Tech, which has excellent parking and, depending on where you're coming from, can be just as convenient as Cherry Beach’s alternate fields. Organization: In my experience, other house leagues have been much more consistently run. Some balance volunteer parent coaches with paid staff, which I’ve found leads to higher coaching quality and better continuity. Cherry Beach, by comparison, typically relies heavily on volunteers without the same level of support. Communication is also inconsistent. For instance, I once registered my child for a weekend house league, only to discover on the first day that it had been canceled due to low enrollment—something I was never informed of beforehand. This lack of transparency and basic communication has been a recurring theme in my interactions with the club. Club Culture & Leadership: If you are considering competitive soccer, I strongly recommend looking carefully at a club’s leadership and culture early on. In any competitive environment, occasional conflicts between players, coaches, or parents are inevitable. However, what truly sets clubs apart is how leadership handles these situations. In my experience, Cherry Beach’s leadership has consistently shown a lack of professionalism when addressing concerns. Rather than engaging openly with families, listening to feedback, and working toward constructive solutions, the club’s approach has often been defensive and dismissive. Instead of focusing on the well-being and development of players, I’ve seen leadership prioritize protecting the club's image or justifying their decisions, even when valid concerns were raised. This dismissive attitude filters down to the broader club culture and, in my opinion, creates an environment where player and parent concerns are not taken seriously. As a parent, I expect a baseline level of respect and professionalism from a club's leadership—qualities I have consistently found lacking at Cherry Beach. Development vs. Results: Another trend I’ve noticed at Cherry Beach is a strong emphasis on team results over long-term player development. This isn't unique to Cherry Beach—it's an issue with North American youth soccer—but it’s worth mentioning because of how it shapes the player experience. Celebrating team wins is great, but in my view, true player development goes beyond short-term results. When leadership seems to focus more on showcasing successful teams rather than ensuring all players are progressing, it raises questions about priorities. It’s also worth considering how clubs allocate resources between teams. Some families may value transparency and equity in how training time and slots are distributed across all teams. In the end, Cherry Beach does have positives, but based on my experience, there are other clubs in Toronto that offer a more professional, organized, and development-focused environment. Every family’s priorities differ, but I encourage parents to explore all their options carefully. This review reflects my personal experiences; others may have had different ones, and that’s valid.
Unimpressed with the “lessons” and now quite disgusted with the owner, John. He is so fragile that he can't be questioned without long, ranting, defensive emails. The gist; he's never wrong, his coaches are the best in the world and shouldn't be questioned (I never spoke to coaches, just John), and if you don't like it, there's the door. This is long, but please read before paying this man: I wrote John initially to find out which program I should sign my new-to-soccer 12-year-old up for. He wants to learn basic beginner skills; things his friends who’ve been taking lessons know. John recommended Skills and Development and I registered for the Jan 26 through April 27 session. My son’s class wasn't a new session, he joined a group that had begun in October. No matter, except that if there had been any skills training, it happened before he joined. What he attended was fifteen minutes of drills without any corrections or suggestions from coaches, then 40 minutes of scrimmage. They seemed to be having fun, but my son wasn't being taught anything. When he asked coaches how to do something they’d repeat “keep, control, pass” and nothing more. The result was aimless running around for my son because he wasn't sure HOW to keep, HOW to control or how/when to pass. It’s like going to a first swimming lesson and being told “Dive, swim, tread water”. How?! After he had attended 2 classes and missed one (flu) we got the summer registration email. Before signing up for additional classes, I emailed John to explain what I had watched so far, acknowledged I couldn't judge on only 2 lessons, and asked if more teaching could be expected. I asked if there was a list of skills they’d cover. He replied very defensively, told me his coaches are some of the best players in the world, this is the best soccer school in the city, there's no checklist of what to teach, and he doesn't tell his coaches how to coach because they are experts and know how to create soccer players. He doesn't ever want them to step in if only one kid needs help, only if it's a teachable moment for everyone. If we don't like it, leave, put it in writing and he will refund the remainder of the lessons because there's a long waiting list. This was peppered with how insulted he was. I was a bit shocked at the defensiveness and checked my original message to see if I'd been rude. I don't think so, I just wanted to know what the lessons include so I could decide about an additional season. I replied that he would love to stay, that his coaches do look like soccer players and that my son still needs more instruction. Should we expect that? I got another long and defensive reply, so I said we would leave, thank you, and please go ahead and refund the remainder. Then, (see attached) the man said we didn't pay what we were supposed to, this class started in December, and we should have been coming since then. Huh?! Not sure what that’s about, we signed up for what was offered online and paid in full. If a new player can't sign up for it, how did we and why didn't someone tell me the error? Didn't they wonder why he wasn't there for a month? I emailed our receipt (attached) showing exactly what we registered and paid for: Jan 26-April 27th. I first contacted him on Feb 12th, and we never returned. Two weeks later he has dropped off the face of the earth. No refund, no reply. I've asked for an update twice. Crickets. $230 for 3 nonsense “lessons” is a bit much. My expectation was never that my son should receive special treatment or private instruction. I did expect some form of teaching to occur.
ZERO ⭐️ This club has great potential, and is in a fantastic catchment area as one of a few clubs in East Toronto… that is the good part. The truth: After 7 years at the club, and acting as a team manager for 5 of those years I can tell you to RUN AWAY from this club. Here are some bullets as the issues here are too many: -There is no structure, developmental programming to speak of, with each coach training their own way (good or bad) which leads to inconsistency between age groups -coaches come and go like a revolving door, often from being frustrated, jaded and disrespected by the admin team -uniform kits are priced the same as Under Armour, Puma or Adidas kits from other clubs -extremely disorganized and last minute with field times, schedule announcements -academy training session are chaotic with no thought or pre-planning, with times often communicated to parents less than 24 hours in advance, then players are berated for not attending impromptu sessions they were not aware of -EXPENSIVE, cost for 12 months of REP soccer is almost $4500/year, which is higher than almost every club in the GTA, and more than OPDL clubs ——all while only offering 2 hours of training a week, less than every other club -teams playing 11 v 11 are forced to train on 25% of a field, giving little opportunity to train for realistic in-game situations -permits have expired for training sessions leading our team to be locked out in the dark with no notice -fields being assigned to teams that are dangerous and unplayable or with more dirt than grass… when you raise concerns to the club you are blasted for your concerns -Teams get random coaches of varying expertise, experience -club doesn’t support player development if your child wants to play at a higher level than mid-tier I-Model -little to now support for their girls program as the girls teams get less field time, lower quality fields, scheduling that often put them training 2-3 days in a row followed by games with no rest ——owner of club admitting in writing that he gives preferential treatment to teams he feels are more competitive, turning into better time slots, more training time…all while charging everyone that same fees -Owner of the club is a narcissist, and out of touch with reality -any feedback from parents is met with harsh, rude, incoherent email rants…with the final rebuttal of “if you don’t like it here, leave” In closing, it’s truly disappointing to see such potential be squandered by a tyrant of an owner in John Hendricks - who is more interested in lining his pockets than soccer, and your child’s development. There are great kids, coaches, a families at this club - but with the current owner and leadership in place, Cherry Beach will always be a Mickey Mouse, mediocre, middling club at best - with 1-2 teams at the top of a Tier 2 league in their age group. CBSC please don’t respond with personal insults or slander - or I may be forced to post emails received over the years defending each point I’ve raised - and illustrating how truly insulting, patronizing, inflammatory, disrespectful and arrogant John Hendricks is. If anyone reading this wants more information, or recommendations on great clubs in the area, pricing or general tips from a soccer parent with years of experience in the Toronto market, please don’t hesitate to ask.
I have two boys in the club. They joined during COVID, because their old club seized operations. The level of coaching is very high and professional. The club has access to some of the best soccer fields in Toronto. Coaches are fair, kind, and reward hard work. Cherry Beach is more then a soccer club. It is a family.
My son loves to play at the turf facilities offered. Incredibly convenient location if you live in the east end of Toronto. Has multiple experience levels from both starting out new to the game of soccer to more advanced players (house league > Rep League > All-star). Lost a star due to the website design and lack of clear communications. Trying the development and skills track next.
Cherry Beach Soccer Club is a Canadian Soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario. Cherry Beach Soccer Club is located at 1 Parkmount Rd, Toronto, ON M4J 1G6, Canada.
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