PICTURE: Vorkuta won this game against Kingsman and 14 others to go the entire 2019 regular season undefeated in the First Division. How far can Vorkuta go in the playoffs ?
FC Vorkuta has won 37 of the 48 regular season matches since kicking off in the Canadian Soccer League’s First Division in 2017. The club, named after and in tribute to a community with a troubled past located just above the Arctic Circle and almost 2,000 kilometers from Moscow, has won the CSL Championship and the First Division title twice, and Its reserve team has won the Second Division twice. All squeezed into almost three seasons.
The regular season just ended was particularly impressive with an unbeaten streak from start to finish in the First Division to reflect added signings on top of a solid squad that caught wide attention during the inaugural 2017 campaign and repeated successes in 2018.
New striker Mykola Temniuk, who played at a high level in Poland and Ukraine before signing for Vorkuta, was an immediate hit earlier this year and eventually won the current First Division top scorer award with 18 goals. Recent additions, midfielders Bogdan Borovskyi and Pavlo Chornomaz, both with high level experience in Ukraine, made a strong side even stronger following their arrival, and local talent addition Fadi Salback, who raised eyebrows when scoring four in his reserve team opener, was quickly moved to the first team, made a difference and is now considered a bright addition for the future..
How far can FC Vorkuta go in CSL professional soccer?
With two league titles won, can Vorkuta create a new CSL record by winning the CSL Championship and CSL Second Division Championship to scoop up all four titles in one season ?
“Playoffs are completely different story. Of course, we are dreaming of winning both playoffs titles and winning 4 titles in the same season would be something unbelievable. We will try our best, we will fight from the first second of the game till the very last one. We sincerely hope that we will lift both playoffs trophies on October 26,” said Vorkuta GM Samad Kadirov earlier this week.
Vorkuta’s first post-season match in pursuit of the CSL Championship goes against Kingsman at The Soccer Centre in Vaughan on Saturday, October 12, a 6 pm kickoff.
CSL Championship – Quarterfinals
Saturday, October 12 Ontario Soccer Centre 6 pm FC Vorkuta vs Kingsman A
Saturday, October 12 Birchmount Stadium 6 pm Scarborough SC vs CSC Mississauga
Saturday, October 12 RIM Park 7 pm SC Waterloo vs Serbian White Eagles
Sunday, October 13 Centennial Stadium 4 pm FC Ukraine United vs Hamilton City
Second Division Championship – Quarterfinals
The two top teams in the regular season standings, FC Vorkuta B and Serbian White Eagles B, gain a bye to the semifinals
Quarterfinal games:
Tuesday, October 15 Hershey Centre 9 pm CSC Mississauga B vs Brantford Galaxy B
Tuesday, October 15 Esther Shiner Stadium 9 pm Kingsman B vs Hamilton City B