Literally thousands of youngsters had their first experience with soccer being introduced to the sport as a result of the North Bay Minor Soccer program. Gary Kraft was one of those thousands, but what set Gary aside from all of the others was that he was the first graduate of the program that went on to play professional soccer. Commencing in 1971 Kraft began his local career being recognized as a top-level goalie having won numerous best goalie awards and all-star selections at both the minor level and as a member of the Chippewa High School teams that excelled in numerous Northern Ontario Championships. Advancing to the North Bay Senior League, Kraft’s level of excellence was once again recognized with numerous individual awards and selection to the Northern Ontario all-star team having won an exhibition game against the Toronto Blizzard with Kraft selected the MVP of the game. In 1980, he moved to the next level as a member of the semi pro Sudbury Cyclones where, in his first year, he was selected as the first team all-star goalie. His success continued in 1980 as a member of the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union where he backstopped his team to the Canadian title. His professional career saw Gary as a member of the Toronto Blizzard of the North American Soccer League from 1981-1983, 1988–1990 and as a member of the Ottawa Intrepid of the same league. All in all, having competed at the highest level of professional competition in Canada is indicative of the outstanding talent that Gary Kraft displayed and he is a credit to the local program where it all started.
