Stan Adamson

Time and again, winger Sasa Viciknez slotted free kicks from just outside the penalty box inches inside the post while playing for Serbian White Eagles in the Canadian Soccer League, the skills of a dead ball specialist developed in northern Serbia and Bulgaria. When Eagles’ defender Mirko Medic was relentless in keeping the ball away from his penalty box, the skills were developed in Serbia, with lots of practice at higher levels in France and Denmark.

Viciknez and Medic did not play when Serbian White Eagles defeated Hamilton City for the CSL Championship on October 30, but some new faces were a reminder that the procession of outstanding Serbian players arriving from Europe to play in the Canadian Soccer League is never ending.

Serbian White Eagles have developed a reputation over the years of being attractive to watch. Making its first appeared in Hamilton in the late sixties, the team moved to Toronto in 1974,  winning the National Soccer League championship that year and continuing with some prominence  until  withdrawing from professional soccer in 1980 when the club maintained an amateur structure to focus on the development of young, local players.

The professional team then re-appeared in the CSL in 2006 and was an immediate hit, drawing large crowds and reaching the championship final, losing to Italia Shooters. The team was a finalist again in 2007, won the CSL championship in 2008 and again runners-up in 2009. Serbian White Eagles also won the then CSL International Division in 2006, 2007 and 2009 and the CSL First Division in 2015.

Mike Stojanovic was probably the best Serb player to arrive in Canada. The explosive centre forward  scored 54 goals in his first season with Serbian White Eagles of the National Soccer League (NSL) back in 1974. The NSL was a forerunner league of the CSL.  Stojanovic followed up with 42 goals the following season and was immediately sought by clubs in the North American Soccer League (NASL), the highest level club soccer in Canada and the United States at the time.

The native of Lapovo, Serbia, signed for Rochester Lancers of the NASL, followed by San Diego Sockers and was named North American Player of the Year by the Professional Soccer Reporters Association. He was selected for Canada in 1980, the first year ruled to be eligible. The prolific striker made 14 appearances for Canada and was inducted into the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame in 2009. Mike Stojanovic died at Toronto in 2010 while maintaining his unstinting support for the CSL team. He is the only Serbian White Eagles player to have his number (9) retired.

Players  Blagoja Tamindzic, Mike Bakic (became a Canadian international), Trifun Mihajilovic, Tibor Gemeri (capped for Canada) and Dragan Popovic were also prominent players for Serbian White Eagles during that period.

In recent times, CSL fans enjoyed watching players like Viciknez (2006 – 2012) and Medic.  Other experienced players to make Serbian Eagles one of the prominent teams in Canada are goalkeeper Dusan Belic, Nenad Stojcic, Bozo Milic, Aleksandar Braletic and Niki Budalic.  Zoran Rajovic scored 18 goals in 22 games in 2012 before returning to Europe, Boris Milicic, Aleksandar Radosavljevic, Zoran Rajovic, Ivan Stankovic, Branislav Vukomanovi,  Đorđe Jocic, Milos Kocic, Marko Krasic, Radenko Kamberovic, Milos Scepanovic, Milos Ljubenovic and Uros Stamatovic – who has moved on to be coach and manager –  have all left an indelible mark on the Toronto area-based club.

Budalic, the former captain and later appointed coach, is now enjoying an extended soccer career as assistant general manager at Orlando City of Major League Soccer.

The procession of players during the 2006 re-birth of Serbian White Eagles was highlighted with the presence of Dragoslav Sekularac as head coach. Sekularac,  a top player in Europe with Red Star Belgrade and making more than 50 appearances for the former Yugoslavia, arrived in Toronto to assist the new local team to become established in the tough CSL.

Dragan Bakoc, president of Serbian White Eagles, commented on the club’s success leading up to winning the CSL Championship victory on October 30:

“We are extremely happy with this year’s success of our team. Our players, coaches and community at large all contributed to winning this championship. My congratulations go to our players and coaches and a huge thank you to all in our community who contributed. A special thanks also, to the clubs of the CSL and the league management for their hard work and continuing progress in Canadian soccer,” he said.

Photo: Les Jones (Covershots)

A winning goal by striker Milos Scepanovic just inside extra time following a 1-1 deadlock at 90 minutes gave Serbian White Eagles the CSL Givova Championship following a hard fought encounter with Hamilton City at Birchmount Stadium Sunday afternoon.

Scepanovic  scored after moving through two Hamilton defenders to find the net from 8 yards past Hamilton goalkeeper Adrijan Becic in the second minute of extra time for a 2-1 victory. The deciding goal came after Hamilton took a 1-0 lead at 14 minutes on a goal by forward Domagoj Zubac, then Luka Bojic equalized  for Serbian Eagles  at 59 minutes when on the receiving end of goalkeeper  Becic’s  attempted clearance which rebounded off Bojic into the Hamilton net.

Scepanovic came close to scoring a second goal when near the end of the extra time, his drive was saved by Becic.

Serbian White Eagles had pressed most of the time during the overtime period, a contrast from the early exchange when Hamilton appeared to have the edge.

It was Serbian White Eagles’ second championship victory since winning the title in 2008 and the club’s fifth championship game having been a finalist in 2006, 2007 and 2009. Serbian White Eagles captured the CSL First Division title in 2015.

Uros Stamatovic, coach and GM of Serbian Eagles attributed the team’s strong second half to a determination to win. ”While I think fitness was a consideration, we showed a determination that paid off as the game progressed and that led to the two goals. The players really wanted to win and succeeded,” he said, while giving a mention to Scepanovic, Radenko Kamberovic, defenders Branislav Vukomanovic and Milan Kusic.

It is Hamilton City’s first year in the CSL following a relocation of the previous London City and while GM Kathleen Nurse considered her team had a strong game, she also showed disappointment at the early injuries, one of which forced team captain Nikola Stanojevic to be substituted.

“The injuries in a physical game obviously played a part, but the team played well and it was a close game to the final whistle,” said Nurse.

COMPLETE PLAYOFF SUMMARY

CSL Championship Final

Serbian White Eagles 2, Hamilton City 1 (after extra time)

at Birchmount Stadium

 Quarterfinals

York Region Shooters 5, Milton 0

Hamilton City 3, Scarborough SC 0

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

 Semifinals

Serbian White Eagles 1, FC Ukraine United 0

York Region Shooters 1, Hamilton City 1 (after extra time)

(Hamilton City won 3-1 on penalty kicks)

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Serbian White Eagles 2, Hamilton City 1 (after extra time)

CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

SC Waterloo and Toronto Atomic FC B gained a bye to the semifinals

Quarterfinals

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

Semifinals

York Region Shooters B 1, SC Waterloo B 0

Toronto Atomic B 2, Brantford Galaxy B 0

CSL Second Division Championship Final

York Region Shooters B 2, Toronto Atomic FC B 1 (after extra time)

 

Just when Hamilton City were feeling some disappointment at the team’s low finish in the regular season standings – sixth of eight teams in the CSL First Division – the side from Steeltown finds itself with an even chance to be crowned champions of Canada’s professional league.

There were earlier signals, however, that Hamilton was underachieving and capable of a much higher standing. Results such as the 1-0 victory over York Region Shooters in a late season game on August 19  – one of only two defeats suffered by the First Division winners in their 21-game season  – provided reason to consider Hamilton as a championship possibility.

A relocation of the original London City Soccer Club which launched in that city in 1973 and which  changed ownership twice in recent years, brought the team to Hamilton with high level signings from Europe for some attractive home games at the Cardinal Newman ground at Stoney Creek . To reach the final, Hamilton defeated Scarborough 3-0 in the quarterfinals and York Region Shooters in a penalty kick decider in the semifinals.

“We had a difficult regular season but picked it up as we moved into the playoffs and we now look forward to the championship game at full strength and with confidence,” said Hamilton GM Kathleen Nurse.

Serbian White Eagles have also signed players from Europe and will be bidding for their second championship victory having won the title in 2008. The same organization goes back much further with a championship victory in the National Soccer League in 1974. Serbian White Eagles finished the regular season in fourth spot in the regular season standings, went on the defeat Toronto Atomic 1-0 in the quarterfinals, then FC Ukraine United 1-0 in the semifinals.

Dragan Bakoc, speaking for Serbian White Eagles, commented earlier in the week:  “We are looking forward to what we expect to be a difficult game with Hamilton, a team with some very good players with experience of big games in Europe. They  showed improvement toward the end of the season, but we are ready and with a good positive outlook, he said.”

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL  – How they got there !

Quarterfinals

York Region Shooters 5, Milton 0

Hamilton City 3, Scarborough SC 0

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

 Semifinals

Serbian White Eagles 1, FC Ukraine United 0

York Region Shooters 1, Hamilton City 1 (after extra time)

(Hamilton City won 3-1 on penalty kicks)

                                                CSL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Sun. Oct. 30 Birchmount Stadium 2 pm Serbian White Eagles vs Hamilton City

 

 

York Region Shooters, the leading contender for CSL championship honours,  were eliminated  by Hamilton City and Serbian White Eagles defeated FC Ukraine United,  two semifinal games in the CSL Championship playoffs Sunday night.

York Region finished on top of the table to take the First Division title at the end of the regular season, FC Ukraine United finished second.

Serbian White Eagles and FC Ukraine United were scoreless in the early semifinal at Esther Shiner Stadium in North York until Miroslav Jovanovic of Serbian Eagles beat Ukraine United ‘keeper Nazar Lytvyn with a low shot from 12 yards at the 71^st minute mark and the goal was enough to settle what had been a hard fought encounter throughout.

Ukraine United pressed for an equalizer in the last 20 minutes, a time during which Serbian Eagles were reduced to 10 men following the ejection by referee Ramee Arbaji of Djordje Jocic at 88 minutes. Jocic was shown the red card following a second caution.

York Region Shooters and Hamilton City were scoreless until late in the second half in the second semifinal played at the Joan of Arc Stadium in Maple. Midfielder David Guzman broke the deadlock shortly after entering the game as a substitute. Guzman took a cross from the right wing to beat Hamilton City goalkeeper Adrian Becic at 76 minutes to give York Region a 1-0 lead.

Hamilton City equalized just two minutes later when Frane Grbesa found the net past York Region goalkeeper Adrian Ibanez and the 1-1 score held until the end of regulation time and 30 minutes of extra time.

Penalty kicks were taken and Igor Krmar, Zdenko Jurcevic and Miroslav Cabrilo found the net for Hamilton City, while Richard West was the lone scorer of four penalties taken by York Region Shooters.

Serbian White Eagles and Hamilton City advance to the CSL Championship set for Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough on Sunday, October 30, a 2 pm kickoff.

CSL PLAYOFFS SUMMARY

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Sunday, October 30 Birchmount Stadium 2 pm Serbian White Eagles vs. Hamilton City

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS TO DATE

Quarterfinals

York Region Shooters 5, Milton 0

Hamilton City 3, Scarborough SC 0

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

Semifinals

Serbian White Eagles 1, FC Ukraine United 0

York Region Shooters 1, Hamilton City 1 (after extra time)

(Hamilton City won 3-1 on penalty kicks)

 CSL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Sunday, October 30 Birchmount Stadium 2 pm Serbian White Eagles vs Hamilton City

 CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

SC Waterloo and Toronto Atomic FC B gained a bye to the semifinals

Quarterfinals

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

Semifinals

York Region Shooters B 1, SC Waterloo B 0

Toronto Atomic B 2, Brantford Galaxy B 0

CSL Second Division Championship Final

York Region Shooters B 2, Toronto Atomic FC B 1

 Second Division soccer doesn’t necessarily mean second rate soccer.

Check out a game at Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough  late Saturday afternoon.

The CSL Second Division championship decider between Toronto Atomic Reserves and York Region Shooters Reserves was a demonstration of how far soccer in Canada has progressed in recent years as several young players on both teams – young teens to late teens –  showed skills beyond their years.

Just so happened the game turned into a highly entertaining encounter for reasons other than good skills, while the fans were treated to a game in doubt right to the final whistle. The entertaining soccer included three goals that counted, another that didn’t when called offside, a missed penalty, shots saved by the woodwork, a player sent off early, two more ejected later  following some rough and tumble, all in an extended game that went 122 minutes in all.

When referee Mike Bradley blasted the final whistle, it was York Region Shooters B 2, Toronto Atomic FC B 1, after extra time.

Atomic had more shots on goal in the first half of the well-played encounter which ended scoreless and with one player shown a red card – Atomic defender Vadim Gorbunov was shown that colour after referee Bradley pulled two yellows on the player for reasons which included Unsportsmanlike Conduct.

Toronto Atomic’s Hassan Abdulmumini struck the first goal following a corner kick at 54 minutes, a cross which ended up at the midfielder’s feet and close to be tapped past York Region goalkeeper Adam Majer.

Abakar Mahamat equalized for York Region Shooters at 75 minutes, a spectacular series of events from a free kick from 20 yards that was saved, rebounded, hit the crossbar then driven into the net by Mahamat past Atomic goalkeeper Andriy Kulik.

It was 1-1 at the end of 90 minutes and the game went into overtime which saw two players red carded at 103 minutes for Violent Conduct. York Region Shooters’ defender David Romano was the first to go and Ihor Fedishyn was also shown the red card after both players became aggressive in a manner not part of the game.

Mahamat scored his second goal to put York Region into 2-1 lead at 106 minutes and minutes later Toronto Atomic were awarded a penalty which was taken by Igor Melnyk and saved by Majer. The 2-1 score held until the final whistle.

Coach of York Region Shooters, Eddy Carowel, praised his players following the trophy presentation, insisting it was a team effort that brought the result against a side that had ended the regular season with 11 points more than his team in the regular season just ended.

“We have a young team and it was very much a team effort. The players kept it up right to the end – I thought they played great and deserved the win”, said Carowel.

CSL PLAYOFFS SUMMARY

The weekend games:

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP SEMIFINALS

Sun. October 23, Esther Shiner Stadium 5 pm FC Ukraine United vs Serbian White Eagles

Sun. October 23, St. Joan of Arc Stadium 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Hamilton City

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS TO DATE

Quarterfinals

York Region Shooters 5, Milton 0

Hamilton City 3, Scarborough SC 0

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

 

CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

SC Waterloo and Toronto Atomic FC B gained a bye to the semifinals

Quarterfinals

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

Semifinals

York Region Shooters B 1, SC Waterloo B 0

Toronto Atomic B 2, Brantford Galaxy B 0

CSL Second Division Championship Final

York Region Shooters B 2, Toronto Atomic FC B 1

 

Semifinals of the CSL Championship will be played this coming Sunday, October 23 when FC Ukraine United will meet SerbianWhite Eagles at Esther Shiner Stadium in North York at 5 pm and York Region Shooters will take on Hamilton City at the St. Joan of Arc Stadium in Maple, a 6.30 pm start.

York Region are First Division winners in the regular season just ended and are hoping to repeat their CSL Championship victory of 2014, while Hamilton City is bidding for the overall league title for the first time.

Serbian White Eagles won the CSL Championship in 2008 and their opponents, Ukraine United, are in their first year of professional soccer, ending the regular season in the First Division runner-up position and now making this initial bid for CSL post season honours.

The Second Division Championship Final which ends the season for a division of four reserve teams from the First Division clubs together with SC Waterloo and London City, will be played at Esther Shiner Stadium this coming Saturday, October 22 and the finalists are Toronto Atomic B and York Region Shooters B.

Toronto Atomic reserves ended their regular season in second spot in the Second Division, then defeated Brantford Galaxy B in the semifinal, while York Region Shooters reserves finished fourth of six teams, then defeated SC Waterloo in the semifinal.  The 1-0 victory by York Region over top of the table team SC Waterloo on October 16 is a consideration in attempting to decide which team will finish on top of what promises to be an exciting season-end finish.

The CSL Championship Final is being played at Birchmount Stadium on Sunday, October 30, a 2 pm kickoff, following the CSL Awards banquet which takes place Saturday afternoon, October 29. Tickets for both events can be obtained by calling the CSL office at 905 607-0600.

CSL PLAYOFFS SUMMARY

The weekend games:

 SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Sat. October 22, Esther Shiner Stadium 3 pm Toronto Atomic B vs York Region Shooters B

 CSL CHAMPIONSHIP SEMIFINALS

Sun. October 23, Esther Shiner Stadium 5 pm FC Ukraine United vs Serbian White Eagles

Sun. October 23, St. Joan of Arc Stadium 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Hamilton City

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS TO DATE

 Quarterfinals

York Region Shooters 5, Milton 0

Hamilton City 3, Scarborough SC 0

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS TO DATE

SC Waterloo and Toronto Atomic FC B gained a bye to the semifinals

Quarterfinals

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

 Semifinals

York Region Shooters B 1, SC Waterloo B 0

Toronto Atomic B 2, Brantford Galaxy B 0

 

 

York Region Shooters and Hamilton City advanced to the semifinals of the CSL Championship playoffs Sunday, York Region scoring an emphatic 5-0 victory over Milton SC while Hamilton City defeated Scarborough SC 3-0.

Gerard Ladiyou opened the scoring for York Region Shooters at the St. Joan of Arc Stadium, the goal coming at 4 minutes, Ainsley Deer made it 2-0 at 13 minutes, Anthony Bahadur increased the lead for the home side to 3-0 at 17 minutes and Tristan Frankson scored for a 4-0 lead at 23 minutes, the score at the interval.

Striker Richard West found the net for York Region at 52 minutes for a 5-0 score which held to the final whistle.

Timotej Zakrajsek scored first for Hamilton City at Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough, the goal coming at 23 minutes, forward Zdenko Jurcevic made it 2-0 for the visitors with a goal from the penalty spot following a foul in the box at 31 minutes, a 2-0 score at halftime.

Frane Grbesa completed the scoring for Hamilton at 78 minutes a 3-0 victory for Hamilton.

The reserve teams of York Region Shooters  and Toronto Atomic will meet in the CSL Second Division Championship final following the 1-0 defeat by York Region Shooters B over SC Waterloo and 2-0 victory by Toronto Atomic B over Brantford Galaxy B Sunday.

Simon Petersen scored the only goal for York Region Shooters B at Woodside Park, finding the net at the 12^th minute mark and the goal held up through to the final whistle.

Luija Johnson struck the first goal at 20 minutes for Toronto Atomic  B in the game at Centennial Park and Michael Fayehun made it 2-0 at the 90^th minute.

The CSL Second Division Championship Final venue will be announced early the week of October 17.

CSL PLAYOFFS SUMMARY

CSL Championship – Quarterfinals games played Sunday, October 16

York Region Shooters 5, Milton 0

Hamilton City 3, Scarborough SC 0

Quarterfinal games played October 15:

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

FC Ukraine United, Serbian White Eagles, York Region Shooters and  Hamilton City advance to the CSL Championship semifinals to be played the weekend October 21-23, venues to be announced.

CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP 

SC Waterloo and Toronto Atomic FC B gained a bye to the semifinals played October 16

CSL Second Division Championship – Semifinal games played October 16:

York Region Shooters B 1, SC Waterloo B 0

Toronto Atomic B 2, Brantford Galaxy B 0

Quarterfinals played October 9

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

York Region Shooters B and Toronto Atomic B advance to the CSL Second Division Championship Final, the venue to be announced.

 

 

FC Ukraine United and Serbian White Eagles advanced to the semifinals of the CSL Championship playoffs with quarterfinal victories Saturday night, Ukraine United with a decisive 3-0 result over Brantford Galaxy and Serbian White Eagles with a narrow 1-0 score over Toronto Atomic FC.

Oleksandr Muzychuk was the first to score for Ukraine United at Esther Shiner Stadium in Toronto, taking a right wing pass from midfielder Kostiantyn Derevlov to find the net past Galaxy ‘keeper Luka Besenic to score from 6 yards, the goal coming close to the halftime whistle and it was 1-0 at the break.

Oleh Shutov made it 2-0 for the home side at 49 minutes, a free kick from outside the box that caught the top left corner leaving Besenic with no chance for a save.

Derevlov struck the third goal for Ukraine United driving the ball into the net past substitute goalkeeper Jeff Martins following a breakaway at the 80^th minute mark.

Krum Bigishkrov missed narrowly for Brantford on two occasions in what was otherwise a deserved victory for Ukraine United, a 2016 expansion team in the CSL.

Striker Milos Scepanovic scored the only goal for Serbian White Eagles in the game with Toronto Atomic at Centennial Stadium, the goal coming at 60 minutes following a scoreless first half. Scepanovic picked up the ball following a miscue in the Atomic defence and found the net from four yards past goalkeeper Vasyl Shpuk.

PLAYOFF SUMMARY

CSL Championship – Quarterfinals

FC Ukraine United 3, Brantford Galaxy 0

Serbian White Eagles 1, Toronto Atomic FC 0

Ukraine United and Serbian White Eagles advance to the semifinals to be played the weekend October 21-23

Remaining quarterfinal games: 

Sun. October 16 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Milton SC

Sun. October 16 Birchmount Stadium 7.30 pm, Scarborough SC vs Hamilton City

CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP 

Results to date:

SC Waterloo and Toronto Atomic FC B gain a bye to semifinals October 16

Quarterfinals played October 9

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

Winners advance to the semifinals October 16:

Upcoming semifinal games:

Sun. October 16 Woodside Park 6 pm SC Waterloo B vs York Region Shooters B

Sun. Oct. 16 Centennial Stadium 7 pm Toronto Atomic B vs Brantford Galaxy B

 

York Region Shooters  will be aiming this weekend to begin a repeat of their outstanding performance of 2014, a season when the team just north of Toronto won the CSL First Division and went on to capture the CSL Championship.

York Region are at home to lowly Milton in the quarterfinals of the championship this coming Sunday and just three games away in their attempt to achieve the trophy presentation.

With just two defeats and conceding a remarkably low 10 goals in the 21-game regular season schedule, the Shooters enter the playoffs title favourites to again win Canada’s top league.

Much can be said of expansion team FC Ukraine United which finished the runner-up in the First Division table following a tough schedule against some seasoned campaigners. York Region were tops in being the team to concede the least goals,  while Ukraine United excelled in goalscoring in this, their inaugural year in the CSL, scoring the most goals in the top division and having two strikers in the top five positions in the First Division goalscoring chart.

Ukraine United are at home to Brantford Galaxy in Saturday’s quarterfinals, and while the visitors struggled most of the season, finishing 7th of 8 in the standings, they are capable of an upset reminiscent of their surprise championship victory of 2010.

The championship semifinals are set for the weekend October 21 – 23 and the CSL Championship will be played at Birchmount Stadium on Sunday, October 30, a 2 pm kickoff.

The weekend playoff schedule:

CSL CHAMPIONSHIP – Quarterfinals

Sat. October 15 Centennial Stadium 7.30 pm,  Serbian White Eagles vs Toronto Atomic

Sat. October 15 Esther Shiner Stadium 4 pm,  Ukraine United vs Brantford Galaxy

Sun. October 16  St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Milton SC

Sun. October 16 Birchmount Stadium 7.30 pm, Scarborough SC vs Hamilton City

CSL SECOND DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP – Semifinals

Sun. October 16 Woodside Park 6 pm SC Waterloo B vs York Region Shooters B

Sun. October 16 Centennial Stadium 7 pm Toronto Atomic B vs Brantford Galaxy B

 

 

York Region Shooters defeated Brantford Galaxy 4-1 to complete their regular season on top of the First Division, FC Ukraine United finished the season with a 6-3 victory over Milton SC to take second spot in the table and Serbian White Eagles ended their season on a winning note, a 2-1 result over Scarborough SC, three games that ended the Canadian Soccer League regular season Sunday.

Midfielder David Schipper opened the scoring at 13 minutes for York Region Shooters in the game against Brantford Galaxy and Camaal Reid made it 2-0 at 38 minutes, a 2-0 score at the break.

Defender Odain Simpson increased the lead for the home side to 3-0 at 59 minutes and David Guzman made it 4-0 at 66 minutes. Brantford’s Dragan Milovic reduced the lead to 4-1 at 86 minutes, the score at the final whistle.

York Region Shooters completed the regular season with an impressive 16-2-3 WLT record to win the First Division, while Brantford Galaxy finished the regular season with a 3-9-9 record for 18 points and seventh in the standings.

Striker Sergii Ivliev opened the scoring for FC Ukraine United against SC Milton at the Jean Vanier Field, the goal coming at six minutes and Kostiantyn Derevlov made it 2-0 with the first of three goals at the 20th minute mark. It was 2-0 at the interval.

Derevlov increased the lead to 3-0 for Ukraine United at 48 minutes and Ivliev made it 4-0 at the 53^rd  minute mark.

Milton’s Scott Daniel Tristan reduced the lead to 4-1 at 56 minutes, Danny Jirta made it 4-2 at 60 minutes and Lucky Maghore reduced the lead further  for Milton,  a 4-3 score at 64 minutes.

Oleksandr Muzychuk increased the score to 5-3 for Ukraine United at 70 minutes and Derevlov completed the scoring at 6-3 and his hat-trick at the 80^th minute mark.

Ukraine United ended their inaugural regular season with an impressive  9-6-6 record for 33 points for second position in the standings , while Milton completed its regular season schedule with a 4-13-4 record for 16 points, finishing at the foot of the standings.

Milos Scepanovic struck twice at 70 and 77 minutes for Serbian White Eagles, while the home side scored at 75 minutes, a goal by Adrian Cann following a hard fought scoreless first half and into the second half that brought three goals in seven minutes at Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough.

Scarborough ended the regular season with a 9-8-4 record for 31 points for third position in the table, while Serbian White Eagles ended with a 9-9-3 record for 30 points to be fourth in the standings.

Quarterfinals for the CSL Championship are:

York Region Shooters vs Milton SC

FC Ukraine United vs Brantford Galaxy

Scarborough SC vs Hamilton City

Serbian White Eagles vs. Toronto Atomic FC

Games will be played the weekend October 14 to 16 leading to the semifinals October 21 to 23 and the final at Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough on Sunday, October 30.

The Second Division playoff quarterfinals for the Second Division Championship were also played Sunday:

CSL SECOND DIVISION PLAYOFFS

Quarterfinals:

Brantford Galaxy B 3, Serbian White Eagles B 2 (after extra time)

York Region Shooters B 1, London City 0

Semifinals – to be played weekend October 14 – 16

SC Waterloo vs York Region Shooters B

Toronto Atomic FC B vs Brantford Galaxy B

 

 

A goal after 15 minutes of overtime by midfielder Rade Parenta broke a 2-2 deadlock at 90 minutes to give Brantford Galaxy B a 3-2 victory over Serbian White Eagles B in the quarterfinals of the CSL Second Division Sunday. In a one other Second Division quarterfinal playoff game later in the evening at the St. Joan of Arc ground at Maple, York Region Shooters B scored a 1-0 victory over London City to advance with the Galaxy to the semifinals.

Galaxy centre forward Pat Wilson struck two goals at 27 and 40 minutes, while Zarko Tomic found the net twice for Serbian Eagles, at 30 and 68 minutes at the Kiwanis Field at Brantford.

Ricardo Miguel Lonseca found the net past London City goalkeeper Adam Kadri to score the lone goal at 70 minutes for York Region Shooters B.

Brantford Galaxy B will be away to Toronto Atomic FC B and SC Waterloo will host York Region Shooters B in the semifinals.

 

York Region Shooters won their 15^th game of the season with a narrow 1-0 victory over Milton SC, the only game played in the Canadian Soccer League Friday night.

Attacking midfielder Anthony Bahadur struck the only goal of the game at the 89^th minute at the Jean Vanier Field, finding the net past Milton ‘keeper Vladimir Vujasinovic on a breakaway.

It was an even contest for much of the time following the ejection of Richard Edwards of York Region for Violent Conduct at the 35th minute mark. Milton came close to scoring when Adnan Smajic caught the woodwork twice.

Bahadur was also the lone goalscorer when York Region Shooters defeated FC Ukraine United 1-0 on August 28

York Region Shooters improve their season record to 15-2-3 WLT for 48 points, holding a dominant position 17 points clear of second place team Scarborough. Milton has a 4-12-4 record for 16 points at the foot of the standings and both teams have one game remaining in the CSL First Division, to be played on Sunday.

Milton are at home to FC Ukraine United and York Region Shooters host Brantford Galaxy in their final regular season games on Sunday and the last regular season game has Scarborough SC vs. Serbian White Eagles at Birchmount Stadium, an 8 pm kickoff.

The Second Division regular season has been completed and playoffs for teams in that division kickoff on Sunday with two quarterfinal games. Brantford Galaxy B host Serbian White Eagles B  at the Kiwanis Field in Brantford, a 1.30 pm kickoff, and York Region Shooters B  are at home to London City at the St. Joan of Arc ground in Maple, a 4 pm start.

Midfielder Terry Dunfield led Toronto Atomic with three goals to a 4-3 victory over Serbian White Eagles and Scarborough had an easy 4-0 win over Milton for two rare midweek games in the CSL First Division Wednesday night.

Defender Branislav Vukomanovic opened the scoring for Serbian White Eagles, finding the net past Toronto Atomic goalkeeper Ihor Vitiv at 9 minutes at Centennial Stadium in Etobicoke.

Terry Dunfield equalized for Atomic from the penalty spot following a foul in the box at 35 minutes and referee Havier Prior pointed to the spot again at 43 minutes for a similar infringement.  Dunfield beat  Serbian Eagles’  ‘keeper Goran Skaric a second time for a 2-1 Atomic lead and the score at halftime.

Serbian White Eagles equalized 2-2 at 69 minutes, a goal by midfielder Goran Svonja and this was followed by Dunfield’s third goal from a free kick that caught the top right corner from 25 yards to put the home side in front, 3-2. Dunfield completed the hat-trick with his 8^th goal of the season.

Ihor Mihalevskyy increased the lead to 4-2 for Atomic, a free kick from 20 yards at 89 minutes and Serbian Eagles reduced the lead to 4-3, a goal by Luka Bojic at 95 minutes and just before the final whistle.

It was Atomic’s eighth win and final game of the regular season, finishing with an 8-7-6 WLT record for 30 points and presently tied for third place in the standings with Ukraine United. Serbian White Eagles are with a 8-9-3 record for 27 points and remain in fifth spot in the table with one regular season game remaining.

Midfielder Dobrin Orlovski struck first for Scarborough, finding the net past Milton goalkeeper Vladimir Vujasinovic at 17 minutes at the Jean Vanier Field.

Aleksander Stojiljkovic scored his eighth goal of the season to make it 2-0 for the visitors, the goal coming at the 43^rd minute and it was 2-0 at the interval.

The prolific Adis Hasecic increased the lead to 3-0 for Scarborough, his 11^th of the season at 54 minutes and Stefan Stojiljkovic  made it 4-0 for Scarborough at 87 minutes, the score at the final whistle.

Scarborough move into second position  in the standings with a 9-7-4 record for 31 points with one game remaining in the regular season, while Milton are at the foot of the standings with a 4-11-4 record for 16 points and two games to play in the regular season.

The CSL First Division regular season will be completed this coming Thanksgiving Day holiday weekend and playoff quarterfinal games will be played the weekend October 14 – 16.

All eight First Division teams will be in the CSL championship playoffs to kickoff the weekend October 14 to 16 and these quarterfinals first round games lead to the CSL Givova Championship final at Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough on Sunday, October 30, a 2 pm kickoff.

The top four in the final regular season standings will have home field advantage in the quarterfinals and semifinals. York Region Shooters have secured first place in the First Division table, to play at home against the bottom team, while the runner up in the standings will host the seventh place team, the third place team will be at home to the sixth team in the table and the fourth team will host the fifth team in the standings. It will be 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6 and 4 vs 5 schedule in the first round quarterfinals.

The Second Division Championship playoffs get underway this coming Thanksgiving Day weekend with two games on Sunday  when Brantford Galaxy B (3) host Serbian White Eagles B (6) at the Kiwanis Field in Brantford, a 1.30 pm kickoff, and York Region Shooters B (4) are at home to London City (5) at the St. Joan of Arc ground in Maple, a 4 pm start.

These are teams 3,4,5 and 6  in the six-team Second Division, the two top teams, SC Waterloo – the Second Division winner – and Toronto Atomic FC B, having received a bye to the semifinals.