July 11, 2023...Weekly Rewind by League1 Ontario staff (from League1 Ontario website)

Weekly Rewind
By League1 Ontario staff, 07/11/23, 11:15AM EDT

BOTH REIGNING L1O CHAMPIONS BOTH DROP POINTS AS THE PLAYOFFS EDGE CLOSER IN L1O.

Alliance United avenge trophy defeat

It was an impressive win on Friday night by Alliance United in the Women’s Premier Division as they beat NDC Ontario 1-0. The teams last met in the 2022 final where NDC ended up 3-1 winners, but Madison Mariani’s second-half strike was enough to secure three points for the away side this time.

The result leaves Alliance United in fourth, one point behind the reigning champions in second, and as the only team to have so far beaten NDC in their two seasons in L1O having been victorious in their regular-season encounter last year. NDC have won once in their last four games, having had a 100 per cent record from their nine matches prior.

Our other Women’s Premier Division fixture saw Woodbridge Strikers beat Darby 2-0. Jessica Lisi continued her fine form in front of goal to score a brace and take her tally for the season to 12.

Darby were also in action in the men’s division on Friday night as they hosted North Mississauga. Lee-Victor Massunda found the back of the net in each half to give the visitors a two-goal lead, but Kashiff Collins was the hero for Darby as his brace rescued a point.

Wins for the top three

The Men’s Premier Division top three all came away with victories on Saturday, keeping the battle tight at the top of the table.

Leaders Scrosoppi held on to top spot with a commanding 4-0 win over Unionville Milliken; Tomasz Skublak started and ended the scoring for his side to help take them to their 11th victory of 2023. Blue Devils’ trip to North Toronto Nitros proved a much tougher test, but Mathew Santos and Adam Czerkawski gave them a two-goal cushion and while the hosts pulled one back, the Oakville team held on for the three points.

Third-placed Guelph United also gave an impressive display as they put six past Master’s FA. Five players got on the scoresheet in what was their biggest margin of victory of the season: 6-0.

ProStars hosted Electric City, but it was the visitors who strengthened their playoff chances with a dominant 5-1 victory and moved into the top six as other teams around them dropped points. Benjamin Vyfschaft stole the show, scoring a six-minute hat-trick and four goals in total to propel his side to victory.

There was also action in the Women’s Premier Division on Saturday as six teams took to the field. Electric City and North Mississauga both secured the wins they needed in the battle for the final playoff spot; the former scored four goals against Tecumseh in a comfortable victory, while the Panthers secured a surprise 2-0 victory over third-placed North Toronto Nitros who defeated Simcoe on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, Guelph Union kept their hopes of a top-division spot on the Road to 2024 alive with a 4-1 win over Hamilton United, who had also been defeated 5-1 by BVB IA Waterloo in midweek.

The Azzurri extend their lead

Thanks to Alliance United’s victory on Friday night, Vaughan Azzurri knew a win against BVB IA Waterloo would see them extend their lead at the top of the Women’s Premier Division standings. The Azzurri made the most of the opportunity with Nia Fleming-Thompson scoring a 22-minute hat-trick in the first half before both teams scored twice after the break. The 5-2 victory leaves the table-toppers in a strong position ahead of their midweek clash with NDC Ontario.

Simcoe County Rovers beat Unionville Milliken 1-0 in a close game. The hosts left it late but Adriane Devlin grabbed the winner in the 81st minute to keep the pressure on the teams in the playoffs. Blue Devils won 1-0 at home to Burlington; Stefanie Young was the match-winner to keep Blue Devils two points behind the top six.

FC London’s victory away to ProStars keeps them level on points with both Blue Devils and Simcoe County Rovers. Charlotte Cromack scored twice for the visitors in their 4-1 win, having also netted against Burlington in a 2-0 success on Wednesday.

In the Men’s Premier Divison, Sigma lost ground in the race for the playoffs after their 3-0 defeat to Alliance United – a game that was part of a doubleheader with the Canadian Premier League. Sigma now find themselves in tenth, three points behind sixth, while Alliance United are in fifth, with Atchu Sivananthan having now scored against Sigma for two seasons in a row.

Windsor City put on a prolific display for their fans, scoring six goals against BVB IA Waterloo. Owen Antoniuk had a game to remember, finding the back of the net on four occasions to lead his side to victory.

Simcoe County Rovers beat champions Vaughan Azzurri in a five-goal thriller, winning 3-2 to move into fourth place. There was another 3-2 contest as FC London scored a trio of goals for the second game in a row having won 3-0 against Waterloo on Wednesday; Santiago Fonseca grabbed a brace for the visitors and scored in the 86th minute to win the game against Burlington.

St Catharines Roma Wolves got the better of hosts Woodbridge Strikers. The home side had beaten Blue Devils earlier in the week and took the lead early on in this game, but a Michael Solomon hat-trick was enough to give St Catharines Roma a 3-2 win.

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