After their son was allegedly a victim of bullying on a Midland soccer team, a local family is looking for accountability — going so far as to escalate the issue to Ontario Soccer and file a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.
Greyson Houghton has played soccer since he was two years old, but his 2024 season was cut short by alleged bullying he was subjected to at the hands of the team’s coach and the coach’s son.
The Severn Township-based goalkeeper joined Midland’s U14 North Simcoe Soccer Club squad earlier this year, and he was eager to take to the field with his new teammates and continue chasing his passion for the sport like his family before him.
“My dad was from England, and he played soccer over there, and then I wanted to do what he did and play soccer, and my great-grandpa played goalie after World War 2,” the 13-year-old said of his passion for the game.
“I love the fun of it, and I love going out and making new friends on soccer teams and having fun times and winning.”
Soon after the season began, however, he said a teammate — the coach’s son — started giving him a hard time about his stutter.
“He just started making fun of my stuttering and stuff like that,” Greyson said. “I thought it was maybe a one-time thing, but then it just kept on going.”
Greyson’s parents, Phillip and Krista Houghton, said the bullying went on for weeks before he brought it up, recalling how he was mocked by being called “G-G-Greyson,” among other insults about his stutter.
“It just kept on happening, and then it was just not fun to go there, so I just walked off and left,” Greyson recalled. “I said, ‘Mom, I don’t want to be here,’ and I told her why, and then we told the coach.”
The Houghtons’ efforts to address the bullying ultimately led to the family pulling Greyson off the team — as they felt there was a lack of accountability on the club’s part — and taking the issue to Ontario Soccer and filing an application with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.
Before the situation reached that point, however, the Houghtons said there was a distinct change in the way head coach Ross McLellan treated Greyson after he was told of the bullying.
“When he walked off on the Sunday … the coach came over and was like, ‘Greyson, is everything OK?’” recalled Krista. “Then he said, ‘Well, tell me who it is,’ and I said, ‘This is going to be awkward because it’s your son,’ and he was like, ‘Oh, well, no way. There’s no way (my son) would do something like that.’”
From there, Krista and Phillip said their son was treated poorly by the coach, alleging Greyson was called “useless” and told by the coach to shut his mouth on different occasions.
“I was asking if we could do a goalie drill, and he just told me … ‘Shut your mouth,’” Greyson recalled of one incident.
“He struggles a little bit to get the words (out),” said Phillip. “I was there at the field and … he kept saying, ‘Shut your mouth. Shut your mouth.’ Greyson would try and finish his sentence, and I was like, ‘What are you doing? That’s not cool.’”
On another occasion, Phillip said he was temporarily filling in for the head coach, who was running behind, before McLellan showed up in an “angry” mood and resumed coaching, allegedly calling Greyson “useless” after he let in a goal.
“I don’t care who it is. Don’t ever call a kid useless,” Phillip said.
The team’s manager, Tabitha Cooke, said she also noticed a distinct change in McLellan’s treatment of Greyson after the initial bullying was brought up to him.
“He, in no way, has done this to any other child. When Greyson misses saving a goal, or doesn’t do a proper kick when he kicks the ball back … there’s a lot of negativity in it,” she said. “There’s nothing productive in the way he coached Greyson.”
After witnessing the events during the game in which Phillip filled in as coach, which would be Greyson’s last with the club, Cooke said she emailed the team’s board about the incident.
“This is a usual thing — a lot of negativity is given towards Greyson at games,” Cooke said. “The disappointment and irritation in the coach’s voice is carried across the field in our keeper’s direction at least once a game.”
The club took action to address the issue, with the board holding a meeting with parents before Greyson left the team, assigning a co-coach, and barring McLellan from hosting optional Sunday practices.
“A lot has been taken back. Another coach was added to the bench. Ross isn’t allowed to coach on his own,” Cooke said. “He was running optional Sunday practices by himself. Those all got cancelled.”
However, neither Cooke nor the Houghtons were happy with how the team meeting unfolded, calling it a “we love Ross” meeting that was followed up by a chance for parents to address their concerns.
“Basically, everything was so positive about Ross, and then it was, ‘OK, who has any complaints?’” Cooke said. “You’re not going to get anything after you just had an ‘I love Ross’ meeting. That’s not how it works.”
Krista agreed the meeting was not a good venue to discuss parents’ concerns.
“Ross got his back up, was defensive and said, like, ‘If any of you parents have a problem with me, I’m right here,’” she said. “(For) a lot of the families, English is a second language … and I was like, these families are never going say anything when you’re standing in front of all these authoritative figures.”
The Houghtons were unsatisfied with the club’s other actions, noting McLellan and the new co-coach had worked together before, and they expressed frustration with how the club handles complaints.
“Where’s the discipline for speaking to a kid like that? Why is there no discipline in place?” asked Phillip.
The family escalated its complaints to Huronia District Soccer Association, and ultimately to Ontario Soccer, which is investigating the issue.
“Ontario Soccer works with a professional independent, third-party complaints management service provider,” Ontario Soccer said in an emailed statement to OrilliaMatters.
“By offering this service to our members, Ontario Soccer is reaffirming its commitment to ensure a progressive, inclusive and safe environment where everyone is welcome. As at this time this specific case is under review (and) we will not be commenting any further.”
Chris Prete, president of the North Simcoe Soccer Club’s board, called what has unfolded an “unfortunate situation.”
“Once we heard of Greyson’s parents’ concerns, we held a meeting with the parents quite quickly (within a week) and developed a plan, which they supported. Greyson’s mother was present and supported the plan. This was the action of our board,” he said in an email.
“It should be noted that no concerns were raised by any of the parents at this meeting. No issues with discipline or bullying were brought forward.”
Prete said the club provided a second opportunity for parents to “raise concerns individually, separate from the group,” but added “no issues with bullying or discipline were brought forward by parents.”
On top of instating a co-coach from the club’s board and providing “multiple opportunities to allow for reporting of concerns,” Prete said the club held a follow-up meeting July 29, after Greyson had left the team.
“Greyson’s father has brought his concerns to the district and escalated to some other bodies,” said Prete. “This is his right and we will follow the process as they direct.”
The Houghtons said they were not spoken to about a plan to address the incident, and on July 31 the family filed a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.
Beyond the alleged treatment of their son, the Houghtons said they had numerous issues with how the situation unfolded.
“For us, it’s to hold everybody accountable,” Phillip said. “There’s got to be some procedures in place ... When we tried to report on the website, the links are all broken. There’s no way to file an actual complaint with them.”
“We’re trying to make it so that someone is held accountable for this, because it’s not OK to speak to children like that,” said Krista.
McLellan did not respond to requests for comment.
