1995 Canadian National Soccer League season
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- Toronto Jets (regular season)
- St. Catharines Wolves (playoffs, 2nd title)
| Season | 1995 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
|
| League cup | St. Catharines Wolves |
| Matches | 30 |
| Goals | 98 (3.27 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Laszlo Martonfi (12) |
| Best goalkeeper | Joe Ciaravino |
| Biggest home win | St. Catharines Wolves 7-1 Hamilton White Eagles (September 6, 1995) |
| Biggest away win | Hamilton White Eagles 0-5 Toronto Jets (September 17, 1995) |
| Highest scoring | St. Catharines Wolves 7-1 Hamilton White Eagles (September 6, 1995) |
← 1994 1996 → | |
The 1995 Canadian National Soccer League season was the third season of the league under the Canadian National Soccer League name, and the seventy-third season in the league's history. The season began on May 26, 1995, with London City facing Scarborough Astros at Cove Road Stadium. The season concluded on November 2, 1995, with St. Catharines Wolves claiming their second CNSL Championship after defeating Toronto Jets in a two-game series.[1][2]
The CNSL lost its presence in Quebec and became solely located in the province of Ontario. The league also received some local competition with the advent of the Canadian International Soccer League (Puma League).[3] The league managed to recruit Parma FC, who were the 1994–95 UEFA Cup champions, for their All-Star match.[4]
Teams
Since the conclusion of the 1993 season, the CNSL went through a tumultuous period throughout the remainder of the 1990s. The territorial boundaries of the league were further reduced from the Montreal-Windsor corridor and became primarily restricted within the Golden Horseshoe area in Ontario. Both of the league's franchises in Montreal departed, with the Montreal Ramblers relocating to the American-based USISL Pro League under the name New Hampshire Ramblers, and Montreal Croatia folding.[5] The CNSL also experienced direct competition from the newly formed Canadian International Soccer League (Puma League), which received sponsorship from Puma.[6][3] The Puma League was centered around the Toronto area, with ethnically supported teams, and was able to attract Toronto Croatia into defect.[7][6]
The results of these events caused a decrease in league membership to six teams, with all the clubs being located in the province of Ontario.[8] After a twelve-year absence in the Hamilton region, the league returned with the acceptance of the Hamilton White Eagles.[9][10] The previous time the city was represented in the CNSL was in the 1983 season, when the Hamilton Steelers competed in the league. Former league commissioner and Toronto Italia owner Rocco Lofranco resigned, and the league took over the Toronto franchise.[11] Various reports claimed that Lofranco had intentions of acquiring the franchise rights of the Toronto Rockets to receive entry into the American Professional Soccer League, but the Rockets ownership refused to relinquish their territorial rights.[12]
| Team | City | Stadium | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton White Eagles | Hamilton, Ontario | Brian Timmis Stadium[10] | Lou Nagy[13] Lucio Bravo[10] |
| London City | London, Ontario | Cove Road Stadium | Ian Mahoney[14] |
| Scarborough Astros | Scarborough, Ontario | Birchmount Stadium[15] | Jorge Armua[16] |
| St. Catharines Wolves | St. Catharines, Ontario | Club Roma Stadium | Mark Konert[17] |
| Toronto Italia | Etobicoke, Ontario | Centennial Park Stadium | David Gee[18] |
| Toronto Jets | North York, Ontario | Esther Shiner Stadium | Vince Solomita[19] |
Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toronto Jets (C) | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 23 | 13 | +10 | 20 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | St. Catharines Wolves (O) | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 24 | 12 | +12 | 19 | |
| 3 | Toronto Italia | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 19 | 16 | +3 | 15 | |
| 4 | London City | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 15 | −5 | 13 | |
| 5 | Scarborough Astros | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 15 | −3 | 10 | |
| 6 | Hamilton White Eagles | 9 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 10 | 27 | −17 | 4 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
Playoffs
Finals
| St. Catharines Wolves | 1–1 | Toronto Jets |
|---|---|---|
| John Williams |
[[21] Report] | Tony Zanini |
| Toronto Jets | 1–2 | St. Catharines Wolves |
|---|---|---|
| Zomparelli |
Report | Moore Walker |
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St. Catharines won 3–2 on aggregate.
Cup
The cup tournament (known as the Umbro Cup for sponsorship reasons) was a separate contest from the rest of the season, in which all six teams took part. All the matches were separate from the regular season. Teams played each other once home and away in the Cup competition, and the first and second place teams would play a singles match for the Cup.[27]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scarborough Astros | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 21 | 8 | +13 | 22 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | St. Catharines Wolves (C) | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 10 | +5 | 17 | |
| 3 | Toronto Jets | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 9 | +3 | 15 | |
| 4 | Toronto Italia | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 20 | 21 | −1 | 14 | |
| 5 | Hamilton White Eagles | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 16 | 25 | −9 | 8 | |
| 6 | London City | 10 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 23 | −11 | 6 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions
Matches
| June 5, 1995 | Toronto Italia | 1–5 | Scarborough Astros | Etobicoke, Ontario |
| Jin Rii |
Report | Gary DeLeon Lazlo Martonfi Michael Marshall |
Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium Attendance: 700 Referee: Julio Chewacco |
| June 6, 1995 | St. Catharines Wolves | 2–1 | London City | St. Catharines, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Club Roma Stadium |
| June 12, 1995 | Toronto Italia | 2–3 | St. Catharines Wolves | Etobicoke, Ontario |
| Maradona |
Report | Moore Tony Carbonara |
Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium Attendance: 300 |
| June 16, 1995 | London City | 0–1 | Toronto Jets | London, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Cove Road Stadium |
| June 18, 1995 | Scarborough Astros | 2–2 | Hamilton White Eagles | Scarborough, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Birchmount Stadium |
| June 21, 1995 | St. Catharines Wolves | 3–1 | Hamilton White Eagles | St. Catharines, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Club Roma Stadium |
| June 22, 1995 | Toronto Jets | 1–3 | Scarborough Astros | North York, Ontario |
| Gioia |
Report | Gary DeLeon Carvelles |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 400 |
| June 23, 1995 | London City | 0–2 | St. Catharines Wolves | London, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Cove Road Stadium |
| June 27, 1995 | St. Catharines Wolves | 0–2 | Toronto Jets | St. Catharines, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Club Roma Stadium |
| June 30, 1995 | London City | 3–3 | Hamilton White Eagles | London, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Cove Road Stadium |
| July 2, 1995 | Hamilton White Eagles | 0–3 | Toronto Jets | Hamilton, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Brian Timmis Stadium |
| July 9, 1995 | Hamilton White Eagles | 2–1 | St. Catharines Wolves | Hamilton, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Brian Timmis Stadium |
| July 9, 1995 | Scarborough Astros | 1–1 | Toronto Italia | Scarborough, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Birchmount Stadium |
| July 14, 1995 | London City | 1–3 | Toronto Italia | London, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Cove Road Stadium |
| July 16, 1995 | Scarborough Astros | 1–1 | St. Catharines Wolves | Scarborough, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Birchmount Stadium |
| July 17, 1995 | Toronto Italia | 1–1 | Toronto Jets | Etobicoke, Ontario |
| Maradona |
Report | Tom Perks |
Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium Attendance: 700 Referee: Tony Camacho |
| July 18, 1995 | St. Catharines Wolves | 0–1 | Scarborough Astros | St. Catharines, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Club Roma Stadium |
| July 23, 1995 | Scarborough Astros | 1–0 | Toronto Jets | Scarborough, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Birchmount Stadium |
| July 27, 1995 | Toronto Jets | 3–1 | Hamilton White Eagles | North York, Ontario |
| 20:00 | Orlando Rizzo Jack Zomparelli Robert Marcucci |
Report | Zoran Zubic |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Referee: Hugh Elliot |
| August 6, 1995 | Hamilton White Eagles | 1–2 | Scarborough Astros | Hamilton, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Brian Timmis Stadium |
| August 7, 1995 | Toronto Italia | 4–2 | London City | Etobicoke, Ontario |
| 20:00 | Mike Palmitta Maradona Crljen Nick Maxwell |
Report | John Bottineau Ian Mahoney |
Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium Attendance: 400 Referee: Mike Fretanovich |
| August 20, 1995 | Scarborough Astros | 4–0 | London City | Scarborough, Ontario |
| Laszlo Martonfi Hanna Audley Taffe |
Report | Stadium: Birchmount Stadium Referee: Glen Sharkey |
| August 21, 1995 | Toronto Italia | 1–3 | Hamilton White Eagles | Etobicoke, Ontario |
| 20:00 | Nick Maxwell |
Report | Sasa Vukovic Zoran Zubic Tommy Fiore |
Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium Referee: Frank Marcello |
| August 24, 1995 | Toronto Jets | 0–0 | Hamilton White Eagles | North York, Ontario |
| 20:00 | Report | Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 100 |
| August 25, 1995 | London City | 1–1 | Scarborough Astros | London, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Cove Road Stadium |
| August 27, 1995 | Hamilton White Eagles | 2–3 | London City | Hamilton, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Brian Timmis Stadium |
| August 29, 1995 | St. Catharines Wolves | 3–1 | Toronto Italia | St. Catharines, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Club Roma Stadium |
| August 31, 1995 | Toronto Jets | 1–2 | Toronto Italia | North York, Ontario |
| 20:00 | Jack Zomparelli |
Report | Igor Ciric Mike Palmitta |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 200 Referee: James Bainbridge |
| September 10, 1995 | Hamilton White Eagles | 1–4 | Toronto Italia | Hamilton, Ontario |
| Report | Stadium: Brian Timmis Stadium |
| September 28, 1995 | Toronto Jets | 1–1 | London City | North York, Ontario |
| 20:00 | Marco Antonucci |
Report | John Bottineau |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 40 Referee: Gord Arrowsmith |
Finals
| St. Catharines Wolves | 0–0 | Scarborough Astros |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
| Scarborough Astros | 0–0 (a.e.t.) | St. Catharines Wolves |
|---|---|---|
| Report | ||
| Penalties | ||
| Hanna Laszlo Martonfi Ednie Tavares |
0 – 3 | Gary McGuchan Moore Campbell |
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Assistant referees:
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St. Catharines won 3–0 on penalties.
All-Star game
The all-star match was held in Toronto, Ontario, at Varsity Stadium, and the league arranged for Parma FC, the 1994–95 UEFA Cup champions, as the opposition for the match.[30]
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