VUKOVIC STRIKES WINNER FOR WATERLOO…..Toronto Croatia, Serbian Eagles also win Sunday

Drazen Vukovic penalty kick winner for Waterloo
Drazen Vukovic penalty kick winner for Waterloo

SC Waterloo gained a 1-0 victory over London City, Toronto Croatia won 3-1 over Brampton City Utd, and Serbian White Eagles defeated York Region Shooters by the score of 2-1, three away wins in the CSL’s First Division Sunday.

Striker Drazen Vukovic scored the only goal to give SC Waterloo the victory over London City at the Hellenic Centre in London, a penalty kick at 41 minutes ordered by referee Tony Amaral following a foul in the box. Vukovic beat London goalkeeper Vladimir Markotic to clinch the three points in a game where both teams missed scoring opportunities.

Tihomir Maletic opened the scoring for Toronto Croatia in the game against Brampton City Utd at Victoria Park in Brampton, the goal coming at the 7 minutes, and defender Josip Keran headed into the net from the far post off a corner kick past Brampton goalkeeper Cristian Montero Valez to increase the lead to 2-0 at the 28 minute mark. It was 2-0 at the break.

Roberto Galle struck the third goal for Toronto Croatia at 80 minutes, and Brampton scored their only goal four minutes later from a penalty kick called by referee Marco Jaramillo. Goalkeeper Montero Valez scored from the spot to make the score 3-1 for the visitors.

Two Brampton players were ejected in the closing minutes – Alex Kawalit on receiving a second caution and Jean Tshimpaka was shown a red card by referee Jaramillo. It was a 3-1 at the final whistle.

Defender Branislav Vukomanovic put Serbian White Eagles ahead with a picture goal from a free kick 30 yards out at 44 minutes against York Region Shooters at the St. Joan of Arc ground in Maple, a 1-0 score at the interval.

Sahjah Reid made it 2-0 at 57 minutes, finding the net from close range past York Region goalkeeper Emanuelle Ammeltonis, and at the 88 minutes Dino Gardner headed into the net from a corner kick, a 2-1 final score in favour of the visiting Serbian White Eagles.

There were two games in the CSL Second Division with Brampton City Utd B defeating Toronto Croatia B 4-2 and York Region Shooters B winning their home encounter with Serbian White Eagles B, 3-2.

BURLINGTON 8-1 ROUT OVER NIAGARA……Another hat-trick for Vladimir Vujovic

Burlington-SCStriker Vladimir Vujovic scored his second hat-trick in less than a week to play a big part in Burlington’s 8-1 away victory at Niagara United, and in one other game in the CSL First Division Brantford Galaxy also scored an away victory, a 3-0 result over Toronto Atomic FC, two games in the Canadian Soccer League First Division Saturday.

Vujovic scored in the first half for Burlington, followed by two after the interval in the one-sided affair at the Kalar Sports Park, Niagara Falls. Amardo Oakley and Nenad Simic also struck first half goals for a 3-0 Burlington lead at half-time. Niagara reduced the lead to 3-1 when forward Mohammed Mohammed beat Burlington goalkeeper Elvis Mesic at the 49 minute mark, but Burlington dominated the remainder of the second half with Vujovic’s two goals to complete the hat-trick.

Nenad Simic found the net past Niagara’s goalkeeper Stefan Avramovic for his second goal of the night, and Erwin Uzunovic also scored twice.

Vujovic scored three first half goals in the Burlington 5-0 defeat of Brampton City Utd at Nelson Stadium, Burlington on May 31. Sasa Vidovic opened the scoring for Brantford Galaxy in the late game at Centennial Stadium, he found the net past Atomic goalkeeper Vasyl Shpuk after nine minutes and this was followed by a goal from Galaxy’s Zdenko Jurcevic at the 31 minute mark for a 2-0 Brantford lead, the score at half-time.

Jurcevic increased the Brantford lead to 3-0 at 49 minutes, the score at the final whistle.

Toronto Atomic were reduced to 10 men at 83 minutes when Stas Katana was shown the red card by referee Davor Krasic following an altercation.

There were two games in the CSL Second Division Saturday, Toronto Atomic FC B defeated Brantford Galaxy B 2-1, and it was Niagara United B 1, Burlington SC B 1.

REMAINING GAMES IN THE CSL THIS WEEKEND: FIRST DIVISION

Sun June 7Hellenic Centre 4 pm London City vs SC Waterloo

Sun June 7 Victoria Park 5 pm Brampton City Utd vs Toronto Croatia

Sun June 7 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Serbian White Eagles

SECOND DIVISION

Sun June 7 Victoria Park  3 pm Brampton City Utd B vs Toronto Croatia B

Sun June 7 St. Joan of Arc 8.45 pm York Reg Shooters B vs Serbian White Eagles B

MILTON DROP SCARBOROUGH SC 4-1 FRIDAY…….Popovic leads way with two

milton Milton SC defeated Scarborough SC 4-1 at Downsview Park in north Toronto, the only game in the Canadian Soccer League Friday night.

Forward Dusan Popovic opened the scoring at the 27 minute mark for Milton, he found the net past Scarborough goalkeeper Mladen Kukrika and Popovic struck the second goal at 45 minutes for a 2-0 Milton lead at half-time.

Forward Radvan Ivkovic made it 3-0 for the visiting Milton side at 70 minutes and Rusmir Dizdarevic increased the lead to 4-0 at 78 minutes.

Scarborough made the score sheet at the 87 minute mark when Jose Goncalves De Sousa put the ball past Milton goalkeeper Zoran Pusica and the 4-1 score held until the final whistle.

REMAINING GAMES THIS WEEKEND:

FIRST DIVISION

Sat June 6  Kalar Sports Park 7 pm Niagara United vs Burlington SC

Sat June 6 Centennial Stadium 8.45 pm Toronto Atomic FC vs Brantford Galaxy

Sun June 7Hellenic Centre 4 pm London City vs SC Waterloo

Sun June 7 Victoria Park 5 pm Brampton City Utd vs Toronto Croatia

Sun June 7 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Serbian White Eagles

 

SECOND DIVISION

Sat June 6 LCI Soccer Complex 4 pm Toronto Atomic FC B vs Brantford Galaxy B

Sat June 6 KalarSports Park 9 pm Niagara United B vs Burlington SC B

Sun June 7 Victoria Park  3 pm Brampton City Utd B vs Toronto Croatia B

Sun June 7 St. Joan of Arc 8.45 pm York Reg Shooters B vs Serbian White Eagles B

TORONTO CROATIA HITTING STRIDE……The weekend games

Tihomir Maletic hat-trick against Toronto Atomic
Tihomir Maletic hat-trick against Toronto Atomic

There were signs Toronto Croatia are hitting their stride with last Saturday’s 4-2 defeat of Toronto Atomic FC, a win which follows an opening 3-0 victory against York Region Shooters, the current CSL champions, followed by a tie (Burlington 1-1) and a loss (Scarborough SC 2-1).

Tihomir Maletic hit three in the win over Toronto Atomic and Toronto Croatia will now visit Brampton City Utd on Sunday, and are expected to show even more improvement as the team moves closer to the end of the month visit to Europe to defend their Croatian World Club Championship of overseas Croatian clubs. The tournament is being played at Split in Croatia June 27 to July 5.

Brampton went down heavily last weekend, a 5-0 loss to Burlington at Nelson Stadium in Burlington and what is interesting about that game is the way the home side struck all five goals in the first half.  While it’s early days to draw any conclusions about that performance, it’s worth noting that Burlington are sitting on top of the standings undefeated and have conceded just three goals in the four games played so far. Burlington visit Niagara United on Saturday.

There will be a rare mid-week game in each division next week. It will be Brantford Galaxy against Niagara United on Wednesday, a First Division evening encounter at Lions Park in Brantford at 9 pm, with the respective reserve teams will playing the opener at 7.

THE WEEKEND GAMES

FIRST DIVISION

Fri June 5   Downsview Park  9 pm   Scarborough SC vs Milton SC

Sat June 6  Kalar Sports Park 7 pm Niagara United vs Burlington SC

Sat June 6 Centennial Stadium 8.45 pm Toronto Atomic FC vs Brantford Galaxy

Sun June 7Hellenic Centre 4 pm London City vs SC Waterloo

Sun June 7 Victoria Park 5 pm Brampton City Utd vs Toronto Croatia

Sun June 7 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Serbian White Eagles

 

SECOND DIVISION

Sat June 6 LCI Soccer Complex 4 pm Toronto Atomic FC B vs Brantford Galaxy B

Sat June 6 KalarSports Park 9 pm Niagara United B vs Burlington SC B

Sun June 7 Victoria Park  3 pm Brampton City Utd B vs Toronto Croatia B

Sun June 7 St. Joan of Arc 8.45 pm York Reg Shooters B vs Serbian White Eagles B

 

VLADIMIR VUJOVIC HAT-TRICK LEADS BURLINGTON TO A 5-0 VICTORY….heavy rains cut schedule

Burlington-SC

Burlington SC crushed Brampton City Utd with five goals before the interval, three by Burlington forward Vladimir Vujovic, for a 5-0 victory at Nelson Stadium, the only game played in the Canadian Soccer League First Division Sunday night.

There were two additional games scheduled and both were postponed. The London City vs Milton SC at the Hellenic Stadium in London where the playing surface was waterlogged, and a weather-related power outage at the SC Waterloo vs Scarborough SC game at Warrior Field in Waterloo  caused the second game to be called off during the afternoon.

Vujovic opened the scoring for Burlington at the 20 minute mark when he found the net from 20 yards past Brampton goalkeeper Cristian Montero-Valez and Burlington forward Nenad Simic made it 2-0 at 27 minutes.

The home side went ahead 3-0 at 33 minutes with a second goal by Vujovic,  and Vujovic completed a hat-trick from a corner kick, a 4-0 score at the 43 minute mark.

Midfielder Nicolas Mejia increased the Burlington lead to 5-0 at the 44 minute mark, the score at the break.

It was a scoreless second half with Burlington in control of the play, and Burlington missed two penalties – one in the first half at 22 minutes when referee Davor Kravic pointed to the spot following a foul inside the box and again in the second half at 63 minutes following a hand ball.

The game ended 5-0 in favour of Burlington SC.

There were two games in the CSL Second Division, Toronto Atomic FC B defeated Toronto Croatia B, 2-1, and Milton SC B played SC Waterloo B to a 1-1 tie.

TWO GAMES POSTPONED SUNDAY

logo-cslTwo games in the Canadian Soccer League have been postponed due to heavy rains.

Sunday’s CSL First Division game between London City and Milton SC scheduled for a 4 pm kickoff at the Hellenic Centre in London has been postponed due to heavy rains on the playing surface, while the SC Waterloo vs Scarborough SC game due to kickoff at 7 pm at Warrior Field in Waterloo, has been called of due to a power failure at the ground.

Both games will be rescheduled.

                                                  FIRST DIVISION

Sun May 31     Nelson Stadium 8 pm Burlington SC vs  Brampton City Utd

 

                                                SECOND DIVISION

Sun May 31    Karlovac Park  4 pm Toronto Croatia B vs Toronto Atomic FC B

Sun May 31    Jean Vanier Field 5 pm Milton SC B vs SC Waterloo B

 

 

 

MALETIC HAT-TRICK DEFEATS TORONTO ATOMIC ……Galaxy downs York Region

toronto-logoBrantford Galaxy defeated York Region Shooters 3-2 and Toronto Croatia striker Tihomir Maletic hit a hat-trick to lead his team to a 4-2 victory over Toronto Atomic FC, two games in the Canadian Soccer League First Division Saturday night.

Following a scoreless first half at Lions Park in Brantford, forward Zdenko Jurcevic opened the scoring for the home side from a penalty kick after referee Goran Babic  called a foul inside the 18 yard line, the goal coming at the 55 minute mark.

Brantford’s Kyle Grootenboer put the ball into his own net past goalkeeper Luka Besenic  to tie the game 1-1 at 64 minutes, and eight minutes later York Region Shooters went ahead 2-1 on a goal by Michael Binns.

Galaxy tied the game 2-2 when defender Stuart Heath put the ball into the Shooters’ net following a free kick taken just outside the 18 yard line. Heath tapped the ball in following a collision involving York Region goalkeeper Adrian Ibanez and a defender, the goal coming at the 74 minute mark.

Brantford forward Aleksa Markovic struck the winner at 76 minutes, a 3-2 score at the final whistle.

Tihomir Maletic opened the scoring for Toronto Croatia with two quick goals at 34 and 35 minutes,  a 2-0 lead for the home side at the Loyola HS Stadium in Oakville.

Darren Chambers made it 3-0 at 42 minutes, finding the net past Atomic goalkeeper Semeniuk Oleksandr,  it was a  3-0 Toronto Croatia lead at the break.

Melnyk Ihor scored twice for Toronto Atomic at 47 and 49 minutes to reduce the home lead to 3-2, but Maletic scored a third goal for Toronto Croatia to complete the hat-trick at the 90 minute mark, a 4-2 lead that held to the final whistle.

Melnyk  was ejected near the end of the game after being shown a second yellow card.

There were three games in the CSL Second Division Saturday, Brantford Galaxy B defeated York Region Shooters B, 2-1, Burlington SC B scored a 2-1 victory over Brampton City Utd B, while Serbian White Eagles B and Niagara United B played to a 1-1 tie.

REMAINING GAMES THIS WEEKEND:

FIRST DIVISION

Sun May 31     Hellenic Centre  4 pm London City vs Milton SC POSTPONED – Ground conditions

Sun May 31     Warrior Field 7 pm SC Waterloo vs Scarborough SC – POSTPONED – Power failure at the ground

Sun May 31     Nelson Stadium 8 pm Burlington SC vs  Brampton City Utd

 

SECOND DIVISION

Sun May 31    Karlovac Park  4 pm Toronto Croatia B vs Toronto Atomic FC B

Sun May 31    Jean Vanier Field 5 pm Milton SC B vs SC Waterloo B

 

 

Tihomir Maletic hat-trick defeats Toronto Atomic
Tihomir Maletic hat-trick defeats Toronto Atomic

SERBIAN WHITE EAGLES DOMINATE NIAGARA UNITED 7-1 FRIDAY

white-eaglesSerbian White Eagles’ Milan Kusic led the way with two goals in a resounding 7-1 defeat of Niagara United in the only game played in the Canadian Soccer League First Division Friday night.

Kusic opened the scoring at Centennial Stadium in Etobicoke with a well-taken header from a corner kick just after the opening whistle, recorded as the first minute of play.

Defender Mirko Medic made it 2-0 for the home side four minutes later, also heading into the net from a corner kick and at the 11th minute mark Niagara United reduced the lead to 2-1 with a goal by defender Lucas Folino.

Midfielder Milos Ljubenovic found the net for Serbian White Eagles, beating Niagara goalkeeper Matthew Greco to make it 3-1 at 24 minutes and Milan Kusic scored his second to increase the score to 4-1 at 35 minutes, the score at half-time.

Forward Luka Maric increased the home lead to 5-1 at 60 minutes and Milos Scepanovic struck from the penalty spot after referee Goran Babic ordered the kick taken when Scepanovic was brought down in the box at the 71st minute mark, a 6-1 lead.

Serbian Eagles’ forward Timothy Zakrasek rounded the scoring to 7-1 at 77 minutes, the score at the final whistle.

There was one other game scheduled for the First Division, Milton SC vs Scarborough SC, which was postponed due to ground conditions.

REMAINING GAMES THIS WEEKEND:

                                                       FIRST DIVISION

Sat May 30      Lions Park  7 pm  Brantford Galaxy  vs  York Region Shooters

Sat May 30      Loyola HS Stadium  7.30 pm Toronto Croatia vs Toronto Atomic FC

Sun May 31     Hellenic Centre  4 pm London City vs Milton SC

Sun May 31     Warrior Field 7 pm SC Waterloo vs Scarborough SC

Sun May 31     Nelson Stadium 8 pm Burlington SC vs  Brampton City Utd

 

                                                      SECOND DIVISION

Sat May 30     Lions Park  4.30 pm  Brantford Galaxy B vs York Region Shooters B

Sat May 30     Nelson Stadium 5 pm Burlington SC B vs Brampton City Utd B

Sat May 30     Eglinton Flats  6 pm Serbian White Eagles B vs Niagara United B

Sun May 31    Karlovac Park  4 pm Toronto Croatia B vs Toronto Atomic FC B

Sun May 31    Jean Vanier Field 5 pm Milton SC B vs SC Waterloo B

 

 

 

CSL CONTINUES TO DEVELOP OVERSEAS CONNECTIONS…..The Manchester City visit

York Region Shooters' Tony and Cyndy De Thomasis, with Manchester City's Manuel Pellegrini in Toronto this week.
York Region Shooters’ Tony and Cyndy De Thomasis, with Manchester City’s Manuel Pellegrini in Toronto this week.

The Toronto FC vs Manchester City friendly on Wednesday  was really an event that represents everything Canadian soccer fans want more of, more of the world’s top soccer on Canadian soil.

Manchester City, funded generously from the United Arab Emirates by Sheik Mansour – who also owns MLS expansion team New York City FC –  is quickly becoming one of the top clubs of the world with a blend of talented, and expensive  players from home and abroad.

MLS teams are becoming, well, competitive with the likes of Manchester City, and the soccer-specific natural grass BMO Field offers the third component to deliver the very good exhibition football that is in short supply these days.

There are, of course, many side-bar stories attached to such an attractive event and the Canadian Soccer League keeps one eye on the Manuel Pellegrini connection with Toronto, an attachment forged by Carlos Rivas, the former Chilean star who came to Canada following a time when he was the pride of his country, scoring the winning goal against Ecuador that put Chile into the 1982 World Cup.

The Carlos Rivas-Pellegrini friendship goes back to their days when both played for Chile. Both were born in Chilean capital of Santiago.

Tony De Thomasis, owner of the CSL’s York Region Shooters, who has expended much energy and financial resources to see young Canadians with promise get a chance at the big time, is part of that equation, having worked with Rivas in local soccer, Carlos Rivas arrived in Canada in 1984 and soon established the Carlos Rivas Soccer School in north Toronto. With De Thomasis, he keeps a keen eye open for any young player deserved of a recommendation to Manuel Pellegrini and others in Europe.

The threesome had a chance to talk during the quick visit by the English Premier League side and that continues to reinforce a relationship that paves the way for young Canadians identified as being special enough for a referral overseas.

 

 

 

 

BRAMPTON, YORK REGION SCORE SUNDAY VICTORIES…..Toronto Croatia recover for 1-1 tie

Brampton City Utd scored a convincing 4-1 home victory over London City, York Region Shooters enjoyed a decisive 3-0 win over Milton SC and Toronto Croatia recovered from a 1-0 deficit to tie Burlington SC 1-1, three games in the Canadian Soccer League First Division Sunday.

Forward Ardit Xhameni struck two first half goals to put Brampton into a 2-0 lead at the Avondale Stadium in Brampton, the goals coming at 15 minutes and 44 minutes for a 2-0 score at the break.

London City reduced the lead to 2-1 with a goal from Alex Eby at the 50 minute mark and at 77 minutes London were reduced to 10 men when referee Milomir Tomic  showed a second yellow card to Aldin Kozica.

Brampton forward Jean Tshimpaka found the net past London goalkeeper Vladimir Markotic at 80 minutes for a 3-1 lead, and Tshimpaka scored a second goal at 91 minutes for a 4-1 result at the final whistle.

Burlington SC took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Vladimir Vujovic against Toronto Croatia at Nelson Stadium in Burlington, the goal coming at the 13 minute mark for a 1-0 score at the interval.

Darren Chambers found the net from 10 yards at 59 minutes to tie the score for Toronto Croatia and the 1-1 tie held to the end.

York Region Shooters’ striker Richard West scored the only goal in the first half for a 1-0 home lead against Milton SC  at the St. Joan of Arc ground at Maple and West added a second at 69 minutes from a breakaway, taking the ball to the 6 yard line before beating Milton goalkeeper Zoran Pusica from close range.

York Region forward Michael Binns increased the score to 3-0 at 76 minutes, the final score.

SECOND DIVISION

Toronto Atomic FC B 3, Brampton City Utd FC B 1

Burlington SC B 3, Toronto Croatia B 1

York Region Shooters B 0, vs Milton SC B 5

 

 

NIAGARA UNITED DEFEAT GALAXY SATURDAY….. Atomic, Scarborough play to a scoreless tie

Niagara United won their first game of the new season with a 3-2 defeat of Brantford Galaxy, while new teams Toronto Atomic FC and Scarborough SC played to a scoreless tie, two First Division games in the CSL Saturday.

Niagara took a 1-0 lead at the 13 minute mark when forward Mohamed Mohamed beat Brantford Galaxy goalkeeper Luca Besenic at 13 minutes at the Kalar Sports Park in Niagara Falls, a 1-0 home lead at half-time.

Lucas Folino made it 2-0 at 60 minutes and Niagara intercepted a Galaxy pass when Mohamed struck a second goal, giving the home side a 3-0 lead at the 75 minute mark.

Brantford attacked well to get back into the game late in the second half and forward Zdenko Jurcevic found the net twice, his first goal from the penalty spot at 79 minutes and he put the ball past Niagara ‘keeper Matthew Greco for his second goal at the 86 minute mark, reducing the Niagara lead to 3-2, a score which held to the final whistle.

Toronto Atomic and Scarborough SC played to a scoreless tie at Centennial Stadium in Etobicoke, a game with few opportunities, but well-played mostly in the midfield. Both teams remain undefeated.

There were two games in the CSL Second Division Saturday when Brantford Galaxy B scored a 3-2 edge over Niagara United B and Serbian White Eagles B were held to a 2-2 by the visiting SC Waterloo B.

Remaining games this weekend:

FIRST DIVISION

Sun May 24 Avondale Stadium 5 pm Brampton City Utd vs London City

Sun May 24 Nelson Stadium  6 pm Burlington SC vs Toronto Croatia

Sun May 24 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Milton SC

    SECOND DIVISION

Sun May 24 Avondale Stadium 3 pm Brampton City Utd B vs Toronto Atomic FC B

Sun May 24 Nelson Stadium 8 pm Burlington SC vs Toronto Croatia B

Sun May 24 St. Joan of Arc 8.45 pm York Region Shooters B vs Milton SC B

 

Niagara-United

HASECIC STRIKE ENOUGH FOR WATERLOO….Defeat Serbian Eagles Friday

A goal at 64 minutes by Waterloo midfielder Adis Hasecic was enough to give the Southwestern Ontario team a 1-0 victory over Serbian White Eagles at Centennial Stadium in Etobicoke, the only game in the Canadian Soccer League Friday night.

While other opportunities to find the net in a game which centred around the midfield were few and far between, midfielder Milos Ljubenovic and forward Luka Maric of Serbian White Eagles both came close to putting the ball past Waterloo goalkeeper Imad Hakura and change the outcome of what turned into a close encounter to the end.

Maric’s miss in front of an empty net at 82 minutes gave the home side the best chance to tie the game, but it was 1-0 in favour of the visitors when referee Marco Jaramillo blew the final whistle.

Hasecic’s goal, with a drive from 8 yards inside the right post followed a move down the middle of the field with forward Drazen Vukovic playing a part.

The victory is Waterloo’s second in three games played, while Serbian White Eagles have yet to open their account in the new season, they have two ties and a loss.

The remaining games in the CSL this weekend:

FIRST DIVISION

Sat May 23 Kalar Sports Park 7 pm Niagara United vs Brantford Galaxy

Sat May 23 Centennial Stadium 8.45 pm Toronto Atomic FC vs  Scarborough SC

Sun May 24 Avondale Stadium 5 pm Brampton City Utd vs London City

Sun May 24 Nelson Stadium  6 pm Burlington SC vs Toronto Croatia

Sun May 24 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Milton SC

    SECOND DIVISION

Sat May 23 Kalar Sports Park 4 pm Niagara United B vs Brantford Galaxy B

Sat May 23 Eglinton Flats 6 pm Serbian White Eagles B vs SC Waterloo B

Sun May 24 Avondale Stadium 3 pm Brampton City Utd B vs Toronto Atomic FC B

Sun May 24 Nelson Stadium 8 pm Burlington SC vs Toronto Croatia B

Sun May 24 St. Joan of Arc 8.45 pm York Region Shooters B vs Milton SC B

 

 

 

 

 

NEW TEAMS MAY NOT TAKE A BACK SEAT AFTER ALL…..The Weekend Games

Scarborough players line-up before start of game which ended with a 2-1 Scarborough victory  PHOTO: Paul S. Hendren
Scarborough players line-up before start of game which ended with a 2-1 Scarborough victory
PHOTO: Paul S. Hendren

At the risk of stating the obvious, that it’s a bit early in the season to start making predictions, it would appear the early results suggest the new teams in the CSL may just be unwilling to take a back seat while the CSL schedule moves along into what promises to be an interesting new season.

First year Toronto Atomic FC and Scarborough SC come together at Centennial Stadium Saturday night, both teams unbeaten from their opening season two games.  Atomic are on top with two wins, but probably the biggest surprise of the first two weeks was Scarborough’s 2-1 victory over Toronto Croatia, with nine CSL championships and two Croatian world club titles to its name and the most consistent side to be at, or close to, the top of the table in recent years.

When it was suggested to Scarborough GM Kiril Dimitrov that his team did well to defeat such a good team,  he responded with confidence and without hesitation:  “But we are a good team, too.”

Toronto Croatia will be in Europe at the end of June to defend their Croatian world club championship title win of 2011, but this coming Sunday night they will be at Nelson Stadium for a 6 pm evening encounter with Burlington. Current CSL champions, York Region Shooters, are looking for their first win of 2015, at home at the St. Joan of Arc ground in Maple where they take on Milton SC.  That’s a 6.30 pm start, also on Sunday.

The weekend games:

     FIRST DIVISION

Fri May 22  Centennial Stadium 7 pm Serbian White Eagles vs SC Waterloo

Sat May 23 Kalar Sports Park 7 pm Niagara United vs Brantford Galaxy

Sat May 23 Centennial Stadium 8.45 pm Toronto Atomic FC vs  Scarborough SC

Sun May 24 Avondale Stadium 5 pm Brampton City Utd vs London City

Sun May 24 Nelson Stadium  6 pm Burlington SC vs Toronto Croatia

Sun May 24 St. Joan of Arc 6.30 pm York Region Shooters vs Milton SC

    SECOND DIVISION

Sat May 23 Kalar Sports Park 4 pm Niagara United B vs Brantford Galaxy B

Sat May 23 Eglinton Flats 6 pm Serbian White Eagles B vs SC Waterloo B

Sun May 24 Avondale Stadium 3 pm Brampton City Utd B vs Toronto Atomic FC B

Sun May 24 Nelson Stadium 8 pm Burlington SC vs Toronto Croatia B

Sun May 24 St. Joan of Arc 8.45 pm York Region Shooters B vs Milton SC B