June 13, 2003
NEWS
MISSISSAUGA OLYMPIANS HAVE ROVING TENDENCIES
With Thursday’s game at Brian Timmis Stadium between Hamilton Thunder and Mississauga Olympians postponed due to a waterlogged ground, Mississauga Olympians will be taking the opportunity to rest up given all of the traveling they are facing in their busy CPSL schedule, a schedule with a twist.
It has been said the Olympians have roving tendencies and that a name change to reflect their wandering is overdue.
In earlier times, the name Rovers was adopted by soccer teams in many parts of the world, often as a result of the excessive travel necessary when a team’s ground was out of commission—or the team was without a home ground at all.
These are much later times, but today Mississauga Olympians of the CPSL’s Western Conference find themselves without a home and having to travel to each and every one of the other 12 member clubs to complete their 2003 home (and away) schedule.
Owner and president David Gee, who formed the team as the highly successful Toronto Olympians with the backing of Coffee Time president Tom Michalopoulos in 1998, last year moved his team out of Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough, to the Twin Arenas ground on the western edge of Mississauga and marked the move with a name change of that community. This year, due to reconstruction of dressing rooms in the main building, the Olympians are without a home.
“It was one of those unfortunate things that left us with little choice but to move to another ground, or play all of our home games away,” explains Gee who examined several possibilities from Etobicoke to Markham to Kitchener before deciding how to organize the Olympians’ 2003 schedule.
“The league and the clubs were just great in working out a solution—even if every home game is away,” he said.
This Sunday night Mississauga Olympians have their home opener against Toronto Supra at Centennial Stadium in Etobicoke—Supra’s home ground. It’s an 8.30 p.m. kickoff.
In other games over the next few days, London City are at home to North York Astros at Cove Road on Friday night, an 8.30 p.m. kickoff, Vaughan Sun Devils return home to face Brampton Hitmen the same night, an 8.30 p.m. start at Dufferin Clark, while on Saturday, Ottawa Wizards are at the OZ Stadium at home to Toronto Croatia, a 4 o’clock kickoff.
In Quebec on Saturday, Laval Dynamites open their season at home in Vanier Stadium to meet Durham Flames and the Dynamites are also at home the next day, Sunday, to Toronto Croatia at 3 p.m.
On Monday, North York Astros host Metro Lions at Esther Shiner Stadium, an 8.30 p.m. kickoff.
.
.