Former Powell River sportsman Willy Cooke is taking to the airwaves, offering commentary on the latest and greatest developments in the sporting world.
Going by the name of Willy’s Sports Talk, Cooke is taking to platforms such as his own website, YouTube and Facebook. Cooke is providing analysis and interviews for sports-hungry consumers.
“I’m right into sports,” said Cooke. “I love sports. I love travelling, so I thought: what can I do to make this possible?”
Cooke has made some significant investments, such as the audio-visual equipment required for broadcasting, and he has outfitted the back of his truck with a rotating addition that serves as a sports desk when he is interviewing or broadcasting on location.
Cooke said his first episode of Willy’s Sports Talk was the Stanley Cup final from Florida, featuring the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers in game seven.
“It was absolutely brilliant and snowballed from there,” said Cooke. “Then, I went to Newfoundland and interviewed a three-time Canadian kickboxing champion and after that I interviewed Powell River soccer legend Drew Ferguson about his career.”
Cooke, who was in Powell River recently to cover Powell River Villa and Powell River Kings games, said he also has plans to conduct interviews outside Vancouver Whitecaps and BC Lions games. He will be returning to Powell River around Christmas for the Steve Steele Boxing Day charity soccer match.
“Also, I’m going to the Grey Cup and the Super Bowl,” said Cooke. “My bucket list includes the US Open, Wimbledon and others, so you’ll see me outside stadiums, interviewing fans, plus athletes past and present.”
Cooke said that everything he generates goes to his website, which is willyssportstalk.ca, and gets linked to all his social media platforms.
Community connection
Cooke said he was born in Toronto but grew up in Powell River, gaining his love for sports in this community.
“I played youth hockey, youth soccer, and I loved playing soccer with Powell River Villa,” he added. “I was on the right teams where we won a lot back in the 90s and early 2000s. I played college soccer and I coach college soccer. I play tennis, too, but mostly, it has been soccer.”
While here to produce content for this website and social channels, Cooke said he was attending the Villa game to interview fans on why it is important to support Powell River Villa, and then at halftime, he was planning to interview three local legends of soccer. He said he could bring his truck into the Timberlane Park facility and be able to use his portable sports desk inside the gate. He said the setup is professional.
For the Kings game and the Villa game, Cooke also planned on having some drone footage to provide good sports venue visuals.
He said it is great to profile sports and give athletes and teams their due over platforms that might be viewed by people from around the world.
In order to maintain and grow his channels, Cooke said he is always looking for sponsors who might want to market their own brand to sports lovers. He is also asking people to subscribe to his social media and view his website to help grow what he is doing.
In addition to the athletes and teams, Cooke said it is important to acknowledge the fans. He said in his Villa soccer playing days, fan support put the team over the top.
“It’s what’s behind the scenes that make the club,” he added. “We’ve had so many people travel with Villa for away games. I lived on [Vancouver] Island and there is so much respect for Powell River Villa. It’s more than people realize.”
Another local club Cooke would love to cover is the Powell River Regals, which holds several national championships and has provided fans decades of hockey excellence.
“What Willy’s Sports Talk is about is getting behind the scenes and telling important stories like these,” said Cooke. “There’s even provision for youth teams, for example, that are going to provincial championships. That’s what I’m here for. All I ask is for people to subscribe.
“It’s said that 98 per cent of YouTube watchers don’t subscribe. So, it would be appreciated if people do subscribe to my channel.”
Pursuing passion
Cooke said his passion for sports is driving his ambitions to be a broadcaster.
“It’s just fun,” said Cooke. “I am going to travel the world doing this.”
He said gaining familiarity with electronic media has involved a steep learning curve. He said he owes a big shout-out to Gary Slootweg for being his editor and the “computer dude behind the scenes.”
“I’m a little bit older to learn all the technology stuff but it has broadened my horizons,” said Cooke. “If you have passion for something, that makes it easier.
“I want to do this for the rest of my life. I’ll be doing interviews right on my hospital deathbed, talking about sports on TV. I’m kidding, but I love it and I can’t wait to go to talk to athletes and fans about games.”
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