NEWS
ALL SET FOR KICKOFF
Toronto mayor David Miller wears his soccer jersey following presentation by CPSL commissioner, Cary Kaplan. Islington Rangers Kevin Da Silva (left) and Raffaele Nesci helped in the proceedings.
Thursday, May 19--The Canadian Professional Soccer League will kickoff its eighth season this coming Victoria Day holiday weekend with the opening league game at Windsor Stadium on Saturday.
The CPSL, Canada’s only complete professional soccer league, has a 12-team formation in two conferences for a total 132 regular season games through to Sunday, October 2 and the regular season will be followed by playoffs leading to the CPSL Championship Final mid-October.
Details were revealed to a media gathering at Toronto City Hall today.
The new season begins with a new league commissioner. Cary Kaplan, a top Canadian sports business executive and once president of the American Hockey League’s Hamilton Bulldogs, has been appointed to replace former president Vincent Ursini. Laval Dynamites return after taking a year off and Brampton has new ownership. Last year’s Metro Lions have relocated from Scarborough to a new community under a new name. Brampton Stallions, under new owners Joe Fuliere and Kickers Sports Promotions, will represent that city to the northwest of Toronto, while Oakville Blue Devils launch in that community as the former Metro Lions. Oakville is under the ownership of Arnold Milan. The league has also announced the kickoff of its 2005 Open Canada Cup competition starting with eight of the top senior amateur teams in Ontario in a one-game knockout Preliminary Round at Cove Road in London, Saturday, May 22 and Sunday, May 23. The league’s first three league games of the season to be played during the month of May are: Sat, May 21 Windsor Stadium 7:00pm Border Stars vs London City Fri, May 27 Oshawa Civic Stadium 9:00pm Durham Storm vs St. Catharines Wolves Sun, May 29 The Soccer Centre 7:00pm Vaughan Shooters vs Toronto Croatia Toronto Croatia are the defending CPSL champions, having defeated Vaughan Shooters, 4-0, in the final last October 11, while Border Stars won the Open Canada Cup in 2004, defeating amateur team Ottawa St. Anthony Italia, a member of the Ottawa Carleton Soccer League, on penalty kicks following a 1-1 tie after 90 minutes and overtime.
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