Beckham Hatch is a fourth-year midfielder from White Rock B.C. who has been playing soccer since he could walk. After stops at Capilano University, Langara College, and even a stint in the U.K. with Lancing FC and Montpelier Villa FC, Hatch found a home in the Fraser Valley for the 2025/26 season. Coming off of a 2024 PACWEST Championship with Langara, Hatch brought his winning pedigree to UFV while relishing the opportunity to finally play alongside his younger brother, Sloan.
What was it like moving to the U.K. to play soccer after high school?
I was supposed to move over a lot sooner, but unfortunately, due to COVID I wasn’t able to make that happen. I graduated high school a semester early, and then just kind of stuck around here for a bit training and staying fit. Once I was able to, I moved over there for about six months, and I played semi-professional. I played for a couple different teams, I played for Lancing FC, and the other one was called Montpelier Villa FC. The experience itself was amazing to be able to play in front of fans and just in the culture over there.
Who was the coach that inspired you the most while you were growing up?
One would be Aleks Gundelj. He’s a coach out in Chilliwack now. Without that guy, I probably wouldn’t even be playing today. He’s just one of those people that picks you up, and gave me the confidence in myself that I needed as a player.
Was it difficult to transfer away from Langara?
I was part of a foundation of a strong Langara team … and I sit here as one of their biggest supporters. A lot of people looked at me and went, “why would you leave that?” I just came off a provincial winning year, and you know, why would I walk away from that?
It’s to see how far can I go, and having my brother in the program here at UFV was another motivating factor … It was tough. It was difficult, but it’s paid off. It’s been a fantastic bet to take with the team that we’ve got now and the successes that we’re having week in and week out … I’m glad I did take that risk.
How has it been playing alongside your younger brother so far?
He’s four years younger than me, so we never played on the same team before this … I don’t have a whole lot of years left in my eligibility so why not spend those playing with my brother? It’s been an awesome experience.
Growing up I’ve been able to be a role model to him, or someone he can look up to playing, and now to be able to finish that off as a full circle moment and play with him — as opposed to just having him on the sidelines at my games and me being on the sidelines at his — now we get to be there together.
How has it been for your parents?
It’s funny because I’ve gotten the text from my mom a couple of times, because the second game of the season, my brother subbed me off, and she texted me … the screenshot from the [stream] footage. It makes them smile, you know. And I’m glad it’s been able to do that too, because they’ve seen both of us grow up playing the game. To see both of us now at the same place, playing together, I think they’re really happy.
What has been your favorite part about UFV so far?
I’d say the momentum we’ve come into the season with has been better than I could have even expected. And I had a lot of confidence to begin with, especially after a strong preseason. But I think this momentum that we’ve built has been shocking to myself, as well as a lot of other people in the league. One of the best things to see is slowly but surely, teams have become very scared of playing us, I think that’s priceless.
Interview has been edited for length and clarity.
