2007 Canadian Soccer League season
Football league season
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The 2007 Canadian Soccer League season was the tenth since its establishment. The first match of the season was played on May 11, 2007, and ended on October 28, 2007. The season concluded with Toronto Croatia claiming their third championship by defeating rivals Serbian White Eagles 4-1 on aggregate making Croatia one of the most successful clubs in the history of the CSL & Canadian soccer.[1] Toronto Croatia also celebrated its 50-year anniversary in Canadian soccer by winning the CSL title after losing just one game in the 5-month long campaign, including an unbeaten streak in their international triumph of the Croatian World Club Championship.[2][3] During the regular season the Serbian White Eagles secured their second consecutive International Division title, while St. Catharines Wolves won their first National Division title.
St. Catharines Wolves (National Division)
| Season | 2007 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Toronto Croatia |
| Regular Season title | Serbian White Eagles (International Division) St. Catharines Wolves (National Division) |
| Matches | 110 |
| Goals | 376 (3.42 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Nicolas Lesage (Trois-Rivieres Attak) |
| Best goalkeeper | Claudio Perri |
| Biggest home win | 8–1 Canadian Lions v London City 8–1 Italia Shooters v London City 8–0 Toronto Croatia v London City |
| Biggest away win | 1–6 London City v Italia Shooters |
← 2006 2008 → | |
The league decreased in membership to 10 teams since the 2004 season, but reached an affiliation with the Montreal Impact of the USL First Division where the Impact formed the Trois-Rivières Attak to serve as a farm team.[4] The league experienced another major increase in match attendances with some clubs averaging over 1,000 fan support per game, with the Serbian White Eagles and Trois-Rivières Attak averaging the most.[5] The season was also notable with the introduction of the inaugural Locust CSL All Star Game played on July 28, 2007 at Windsor Stadium.[6]
Changes from 2006 season
The league decreased to 10 teams after the folding of the Caribbean Selects, and the hiatus of the Brampton Stallions.[7] The Stallions' ownership earlier announced their intentions of selling their franchise in late 2006 and ultimately joined the Ontario Soccer League amateur circuit in 2007.[8][9] Oakville Blue Devils moved to Scarborough, Toronto in order to become the Canadian Lions, and were transferred to the International Conference.[10] The CSL maintained its presence in Quebec with the owners of Laval Dynamites securing a deal with the Montreal Impact of the USL First Division to form the Trois-Rivières Attak which served as a farm team for the Impact.[11]
Teams
| Team | City | Stadium | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Lions | Toronto, Ontario (Scarborough) | Birchmount Stadium | Goran Miscevic[12] |
| Italia Shooters | Vaughan, Ontario (Woodbridge) | St. Joan Of Arc Turf Field | Tony De Thomasis[13] |
| London City | London, Ontario (Westmount) | Cove Road Stadium | Sean Gauss[14] |
| North York Astros | Toronto, Ontario (North York) | Esther Shiner Stadium | Rafael Carbajal[15] |
| Portuguese Supra | Toronto, Ontario (Etobicoke) | Centennial Park Stadium | Paulo Almos[16] |
| Serbian White Eagles | Toronto, Ontario (Etobicoke) | Centennial Park Stadium | Dušan Belić[17] |
| St. Catharines Wolves | St. Catharines, Ontario (Vansickle) | Club Roma Stadium | James McGillivray[18] |
| Toronto Croatia | Mississauga, Ontario | Hershey Centre | Milodrag Akmadzic[19] |
| Trois-Rivières Attak | Trois-Rivières, Quebec | Stade de l'UQTR | Marc Dos Santos[20] |
| Windsor Border Stars | Windsor, Ontario | Windsor Stadium | Pat Hilton[21] |
  Vaughan  London Mississauga Windsor St. Catharines  TORONTO Location of CSL teams outside of Toronto for the 2007 CSL season.  National Division  International Division
|
 Portuguese Supra North York Astros Serbian White Eagles Canadian Lions Italia Shooters Location of CSL teams in Toronto for the 2007 CSL season. National Division International Division
|
Final standings
International Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Serbian White Eagles (A, C) | 22 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 55 | 31 | +24 | 45 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | Toronto Croatia (A, O) | 22 | 10 | 11 | 1 | 42 | 16 | +26 | 41 | |
| 3 | Italia Shooters (A) | 22 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 44 | 17 | +27 | 40 | |
| 4 | Canadian Lions (A) | 22 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 40 | 36 | +4 | 27 | |
| 5 | Portuguese Supra | 22 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 31 | 42 | −11 | 17 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(A) Advance to a further round; (C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
National Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. Catharines Wolves (A, C) | 22 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 36 | 19 | +17 | 42 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | Trois-Rivières Attak (A) | 22 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 48 | 29 | +19 | 38 | |
| 3 | North York Astros (A) | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 32 | 55 | −23 | 20 | |
| 4 | Windsor Border Stars (A) | 22 | 5 | 4 | 13 | 33 | 49 | −16 | 19 | |
| 5 | London City | 22 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 15 | 82 | −67 | 11 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(A) Advance to a further round; (C) Champions
CSL Championship playoffs
| QuarterFinals 10 & 11 October 2007 | SemiFinals 20 & 21 October 2007 | CSL Final 27 & 28 October 2007 @ 5:00pm & 3:00pm Esther Shiner Stadium, Toronto, Ontario | ||||||||||||||
| 1 | Serbian White Eagles | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 8 | Windsor Border Stars | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 1 | Serbian White Eagles | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | `Italia Shooters | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 1 | Serbian White Eagles | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 3 | Toronto Croatia | 4 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 2 | St. Catharines Wolves (p) | 0 (10) | ||||||||||||||
| 7 | Canadian Lions | 0 (9) | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | St. Catharines Wolves | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Toronto Croatia | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Toronto Croatia (a.e.t.) | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 6 | North York Astros | 2 | ||||||||||||||
Quarterfinals
| October 13, 2007 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 3–0 | Italia Shooters | Trois-Rivières, Quebec |
| 4:00 ET | Lesage  22'Mayard 55'Kolić 88' |
[[22] (Report)] | Stadium: Stade de l'UQTR Attendance: 553 |
| October 14, 2007 | St. Catharines Wolves | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (9–10 p) | Canadian Lions | St. Catharines, Ontario |
| 4:00 ET | (Report) | Stadium: Club Roma Stadium Attendance: 500 |
| October 14, 2007 | Toronto Croatia | 4–2 (a.e.t.) | North York Astros | Mississauga, Ontario |
| 7:00 ET | Mario Pupić 64', 105' Fitzwilliams 90', 95' |
(Report) | Gil Vainshtein 17' Selvin Lammie 27' |
Stadium: Hershey Centre Attendance: 200 |
| October 14, 2007 | Serbian White Eagles | 2–1 | Windsor Border Stars | Toronto, Ontario |
| 7:00 ET | Budalić 26' Kokot 61' |
(Report) | Aaron Byrd 54' |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 250 Referee: David Barrie (Ontario) |
Semifinals
| October 20, 2007 | St. Catharines Wolves | 2–3 | Toronto Croatia | Toronto, Ontario |
| 4:00 ET | Danny Gallagher 41' Arnoldo Magnotta 59' |
(Report) | Fitzwilliams 11' Tihomir Maletic 28', 44' |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 175 Referee: David Barrie (Ontario) |
| October 21, 2007 | Serbian White Eagles | 2–1 | Trois-Rivières Attak | Toronto, Ontario |
| 5:00 ET | Kokot 6' Dragorad Milićević 25' |
(Report) | Lesage 84' |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 500 Referee: Isaac Raymond (Ontario) |
CSL Championship
| October 27, 2007 | Toronto Croatia | 4–1 | Serbian White Eagles | Toronto, Ontario |
| 5:00 ET | Jonathon Bustamante 12', 47' Mario Pupic 19' Fitzwilliams 70' |
(Report) [[23]] |
Dragorad Milićević 13' |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 300 Referee: Silviu Petrescu (Ontario) |
| October 28, 2007 | Serbian White Eagles | 0–0 | Toronto Croatia | Toronto, Ontario |
| 3:00 ET | (Report) [[24]] |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 900 |
Format change for Rogers Cup finals
Due to Toronto Croatia and the Serbian White Eagles playing for the Championship Cup, the CSL decided to change the format to a two-leg game rather than the standard knockout. The first game was played on Friday, October 27, and was played in front of only Croatia fans, with the team serving as the home side. The next day, October 28, the White Eagles was the home side, and their fans were the only ones permitted at the game.[25][26][27][28]
All-Star Game
| July 28, 2007 | National Division All Stars | 0 - 5 | International Division All Stars | Windsor, Ontario |
| 7:30 pm | [[29] Report] | Pereira 12', 17' Viciknez 62', 70' Milos Scepanovic 81' |
Stadium: Windsor Stadium Attendance: 700 |
2007 scoring leaders
- Full article: CSL Golden Boot[30]
| Position | Player's name | Nationality | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nicolas Lesage |  Canada |
Trois-Rivières Attak | 20 |
| 2 | Gabriel Pop[31] |  Romania |
Serbian White Eagles | 18 |
| 3 | Evan Milward | Canada |
Canadian Lions | 15 |
| - | Darko Kolić |  Serbia |
Trois-Rivières Attak | 15 |
| 5 | Aaron Byrd |  United States |
Windsor Border Stars | 14 |
| 6 | Saša Viciknez | Serbia |
Serbian White Eagles | 13 |
| - | Antonio Stranges[32] | Canada |
St. Catharines Wolves | 13 |
| 8 | Kadian Lecky[33] | Canada |
Italia Shooters | 10 |
| 9 | Helio Pereira |  Brazil |
Portuguese Supra | 9 |
| - | Carlo Arghittu | Canada |
St. Catharines Wolves | 9 |
| - | Tihomir Maletić |  Croatia |
Toronto Croatia | 9 |
CSL Executive Committee and Staff
A list of the 2007 CSL Executive Committee.[34]
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Commissioner: | Cary Kaplan | Canadian |
| Executive Director: | Stan Adamson[35] |  English |
| Director of Discipline: | Clifford Dell[36] | Canadian |
| Director of Officials: | Walter Kirchner | Romanian |
| Marketing Manager: | Brian Krinberg | Canadian |
| Office Manager: | Janet Leonard | Canadian |
| League Administration/PR: | Chelsea McAllister Nadler | Canadian |
| Referee-in-Chief: | Hugh Elliott | Canadian |
| Legal Counsel: | Ira Greenspoon | Canadian |
| Financial Auditor: | John Morgan | Canadian |
Individual awards
The annual CSL awards ceremony was held on November 4, 2007 at the La Contessa Banquet Hall in North York, Toronto.[37] For the second straight season the International Division teams accumulated the majority of the awards.[38] Trois-Rivières Attak went home with the most awards with 3 wins. Former Montreal Impact player Nicolas Lesage received both the Golden Boot and MVP, and the club was given the Fair Play award. The league champions Toronto Croatia produced both the Defender and Rookie of the Years. Domagoj Sain became the first player in CSL history to win the Defender of the Year three times. Former 2.HNL veteran Tihomir Maletic was chosen as the Rookie of the Year.
Claudio Perri, former Atlanta University alumni was named the Goalkeeper of the Year after helping St. Catharines Wolves post the best defensive record throughout the season. James McGilivary was recognized with the honor of Coach of the Year after leading St. Catharines to their first trophy the National Division title in five years. The President of the Year award was renamed the Harry Paul Gauss award in honor of Harry Gauss, and its inaugural recipient was Bruno Ierullo. Joe Fletcher, who later went on to officiate matches at the international level and Major League Soccer was recognized with the Referee of the Year award.[39]
| Award | Player (Club) |
|---|---|
| CSL Most Valuable Player | Nicolas Lesage (Trois-Rivières Attak) |
| CSL Golden Boot | Nicolas Lesage (Trois-Rivières Attak) |
| CSL Goalkeeper of the Year Award | Claudio Perri (St. Catharines Wolves) |
| CSL Defender of the Year Award | Domagoj Šain (Toronto Croatia) |
| CSL Rookie of the Year Award | Tihomir Maletić (Toronto Croatia) |
| CSL Coach of the Year Award | James McGilivary (St. Catharines Wolves) |
| Harry Paul Gauss Award | Bruno Ierullo (North York Astros) |
| CSL Referee of the Year Award | Joe Fletcher |
| CSL Fair Play Award | Trois-Rivières Attak |
