 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vasyl Yevhenovych Ishchak | ||
| Date of birth | (1955-04-05)5 April 1955 (age 70) | ||
| Place of birth | Dubie,Ukrainian SSR | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Defender/Forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1974 | SC Lutsk | ? | (1) |
| 1975 | SKA Lviv (reserves) | ||
| 1976–1977 | FC Mashuk Pyatigorsk | 56 | (9) |
| 1977–1990 | FC Chornomorets Odesa | 357 | (13) |
| 1990–1993 | BVSC Budapest | 62 | (1) |
| 1993–1994 | FC Blaho Blahoyeve (amateur) | 14 | (0) |
| 1994 | Toronto Italia | ? | (?) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2008–2015 | FC Chornomorets Odesa (youth teams) | ||
| 2015 | Toronto Atomic II | ||
| 2015–2016 | Toronto Atomic FC | ||
| 2018 | Unionville Milliken SC | ||
| 2024– | FC Ukraine United | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Vasyl Yevhenovych Ishchak (Ukrainian:Василь Євгенович Іщак; born 5 April 1955) is a retired Ukrainian professionalfootballer and manager who coachesFC Ukraine United.
Ishchak's football career began in theLviv region with Sokol Lviv in 1972.[1] After two seasons in his native region, he joinedSC Lutsk while serving in thearmy.[2] In 1976, he continued his professional career withMashuk-KMV Pyatigorsk in theSoviet Second League.[1]
He began playing in the country'stop-tier league in 1977 withChornomorets Odesa.[3] Throughout his lengthy tenure with Odesa, he managed to play in twocontinental tournaments.[1] His first international tournament was in the1985–86 UEFA Cup.[3] After the 1986 season, the club was relegated to theSoviet First League and managed to secure a promotion by winning the league title.[2][1] His next European tournament occurred in theUEFA Cup 1990–91.[1] Ishchak's final piece of silverware won with Odesa was theUSSR Federation Cup where they defeatedDnepr Dnepropetrovsk.[4]
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, he ventured abroad to play in theHungarian top-tier league withBVSC Budapest FC.[1] Following his two-year stint in Hungary, he returned to Ukraine to play with FC Blaho Blahoyeve.[1] He made 14 appearances with Blaho in thenational amateur league.[5]
Ishchak emigrated to Canada in 1994 and played in the Southern Ontario-basedCanadian National Soccer League with Toronto Italia.[6][1] In his debut season, he helped Toronto win the regular season title.[7] The Italians would also win the league championship by defeatingSt. Catharines Roma in the postseason finals.[8]
After he retired from professional football, he coached the youth teams of his former clubChornomorets Odesa.[9]
Ishchak returned to Canada in the summer of 2015, as the head coach forToronto Atomic's reserve team in the second division of theCanadian Soccer League.[10] Midway through the season, he was elevated to the senior team to replaceIhor Yavorskyi as the head coach.[11][12] He led the team to a playoff berth by finishing fifth in the league's first division.[13][14] Toronto was eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs, bySC Waterloo Region.[15] Once the season concluded the league named him the division'scoach of the year.[16][17]
In 2016, Toronto Atomic extended his contract.[18][19] Ishchak secured another postseason berth for Toronto by finishing fifth in the division.[20] TheSerbian White Eagles eliminated Toronto in the quarterfinal round.[21]
In 2018, he managedUnionville Milliken SC.[22]
Ishchak joined the coaching staff ofUkraine United in theOntario Soccer League in 2024.[23]
Ishchak is married to Odesa-bornballerinaTatiana Stepanova.[1]
Chornomorets Odesa
Toronto Italia
Individual