2008 Canadian Soccer League season
The 2008 Canadian Soccer League season was the 11th since its establishment where a total of 16 teams from Ontario and Quebec took part in the league. The season began on May 16, 2008, and ended on October 26 with the Serbian White Eagles claiming their first championship by defeating Trois-Rivières Attak 2-1 in a penalty shootout.[1][2] This was the third consecutive year the White Eagles had reached the CSL finals losing respectively to Italia Shooters in 2006, and to rivals Toronto Croatia in 2007. While during the regular season Italia won their second division title with Trois-Rivières becoming the first Quebec team to claim the National Division title.[3]
| Season | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Serbian White Eagles |
| Regular Season title | Italia Shooters (International Division) Trois-Rivières Attak (National Division) |
| Matches played | 121 |
| Goals scored | 419 (3.46 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Daniel Nascimento (Brampton Lions) (18 goals) |
| Biggest home win | 9–0 Trois-Rivières Attak v Windsor Border Stars |
| Biggest away win | 0–7 London City v Brampton Lions 4–7 London City v Toronto Croatia |
← 2007 2009 → | |
The CSL added another team to the Peel Region after the relocation of the Canadian Lions to Brampton, Ontario to play as the Brampton Lions in the National Division. Toronto FC of the Major League Soccer established a relationship with the league by entering TFC Academy to the National Division, and TFC Academy II to the Reserve Division.[4] Further significant changes introduced by the league was the creation of the 5 team reserve division in the Toronto region to provide a developmental platform for young players in order to make the transition to the professional ranks.[5] The Ontario Soccer Association reached an agreement with the CSL to receive Operational Independence from the provincial governing body.[6] The league received more coverage from Rogers TV which would broadcast a CSL match on Friday nights.[7][8]
Changes from 2007 season
- The Canadian Lions of the International Division move to the National Division as the Brampton Lions.[5]
- Portuguese Supra change their name to Portugal FC.[9]
- TFC Academy, the U-18 Academy team of Major League Soccer's Toronto FC, and owned by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, enter the National Division.[10]
- Playoff format adjusted to seed division winners as #1 and #2, and the next top six teams seeded #3-#8 irrespective of division.
- The CSL added a 5 team reserve division involving teams in the Toronto region.[5]
- The Ontario Soccer Association grants the CSL 'Operational Independence' from the provincial governing body.[6]
- Rogers TV agreed to broadcast a CSL game of the week Friday night, reaching 800,000 Toronto homes. The final was broadcast across Ontario to 1.5 million households.[11]
Teams
  Vaughan  London Mississauga Windsor St. Catharines  TORONTO Brampton Location of CSL teams outside of Toronto for the 2008 CSL season. National Division International Division
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 Portugal FC North York Astros Serbian White Eagles TFC Academy Italia Shooters Location of CSL teams in Toronto for the 2008 CSL season. National Division International Division
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Final standings
International Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italia Shooters (A, C) | 22 | 13 | 3 | 6 | 50 | 32 | +18 | 42 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | Serbian White Eagles (A, O) | 22 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 43 | 23 | +20 | 41 | |
| 3 | Toronto Croatia (A) | 22 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 40 | 35 | +5 | 38 | |
| 4 | Portugal FC (A) | 22 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 44 | 31 | +13 | 34 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(A) Advance to a further round; (C) Champion; (O) Play-off winner.
National Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trois-Rivieres Attak (A, C) | 22 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 47 | 12 | +35 | 47 | Qualification for Playoffs |
| 2 | North York Astros (A) | 22 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 41 | 41 | 0 | 33 | |
| 3 | Brampton Lions (A) | 22 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 47 | 37 | +10 | 29 | |
| 4 | St. Catharines Wolves (A) | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 28 | 38 | −10 | 26 | |
| 5 | Windsor Border Stars | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 31 | 45 | −14 | 26 | |
| 6 | TFC Academy | 22 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 26 | 44 | −18 | 20 | |
| 7 | London City | 22 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 81 | −59 | 3 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(A) Advance to a further round; (C) Champion.
2008 scoring leaders
- Full article: CSL Golden Boot[13]
| Rank | Player | Nationality | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Nascimento | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada |
Brampton Lions | 18 |
| 2 | Andrew Loague | Canada |
London City | 14 |
| Selvin Lammie[14] | Canada |
North York Astros | 14 | |
| 4 | Dragan Radović |  Montenegro |
Serbian White Eagles | 12 |
| 5 | Hayden Fitzwilliams |  Trinidad and Tobago |
Toronto Croatia | 11 |
| 6 | Saša Viciknez |  Serbia |
Serbian White Eagles | 10 |
| Danny Amaral | Canada |
Portugal FC | 10 | |
| Jonathan Hurtis |  France |
North York Astros | 10 | |
| 9 | Tihomir Maletić |  Croatia |
Toronto Croatia | 9 |
CSL 2008 Playoffs
| QuarterFinals 10 & 11 October 2008 | SemiFinals 17 & 18 October 2008 | CSL Final 26 October 2008 @ 5:45pm Esther Shiner Stadium, Toronto, Ontario | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | St. Catharines Wolves | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 7 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Portugal FC | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Toronto Croatia | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Portugal FC | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 2 (1) | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Serbian White Eagles (a.e.t./PSO) | 2 (2) | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Italia Shooters (a.e.t.) | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Brampton Lions | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Italia Shooters | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Serbian White Eagles | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Serbian White Eagles (a.e.t.) | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | North York Astros | 1 | ||||||||||||
Quarterfinals
| October 10, 2008 | Italia Shooters | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Brampton Lions | Toronto, Ontario |
| 8:00 ET | Marco Terminesi  114' |
(Report) | Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 100 Referee: Manuel Orellana (Ontario) |
| October 10, 2008 | Toronto Croatia | 1–2 | Portugal FC | Mississauga, Ontario |
| 8:00 ET | Tihomir Maletić 16' |
(Report) | Mike DiLuca 60' Danny Amaral 70' |
Stadium: Hershey Centre Referee: Joe Fletcher (Ontario) |
| October 11, 2008 | Trois-Rivières Attak | 2–0 | St. Catharines Wolves | Trois-Rivières, Quebec |
| 3:00 ET | Jean-Louis Bessé 28' Nicolas Lesage 65' |
(Report) | Stadium: Stade de l'UQTR Attendance: 1500 |
| October 11, 2008 | Serbian White Eagles | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | North York Astros | Toronto, Ontario |
| 8:00 ET | Miloš Šćepanović 10' Alex Braletić 116' |
(Report) | Franco Lalli 74' |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 120 Referee: Vito Curalli (Ontario) |
Semifinals
| October 17, 2008 | Italia Shooters | 0–3 | Serbian White Eagles | Toronto, Ontario |
| 8:00 ET | (Report) | Nikola Budalić 40' Alex Braletić 62' Miloš Šćepanović 82' |
Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium Attendance: 180 Referee: Yusir Rudolf (Ontario) |
| October 18, 2008 | Trois-Rivieres Attak | 7–0 | Portugal FC | Trois-Rivières, Quebec |
| 3:00 ET | Mohamed Sylla 26' Pierre-Rudolph Mayard 41' Pierre-Rudolph Mayard 43' Mohamed Sylla 58' Nicolas Lesage 75' Francois Boivin 77' Hector Contreras 87' |
(Report) | Stadium: Stade de l'UQTR Attendance: 1500 |
CSL Championship
| Trois-Rivieres Attak | 2–2 | Serbian White Eagles |
|---|---|---|
| Nicolas Lesage 70' Jean-Phillipe Étienne 103' |
Report | Alex Braletic 61' Saša Viciknez 95' |
| Penalties | ||
Massimo Di Ioia  Alex Surprenant Andrew Olivieri  Jean-Phillipe Étienne Davy Uwimana |
1 – 2 | Miloš Šćepanović Mirko Medić Saša Viciknez Nenad Stojčić Dragorad Milićević |
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.svg.png.webp){kind=small}
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Assistant referees:
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CSL Executive Committee and Staff
A list of the 2008 CSL Executive Committee.[15]
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Commissioner: | Cary Kaplan | Canadian |
| Executive Director: | Stan Adamson[16] |  English |
| Director of Discipline: | Clifford Dell[17] | Canadian |
| Director of Officials: | Tony Camacho |  Portuguese |
| League Coordinator: | Brock Robinson | Canadian |
| Office Manager: | Janet Leonard | Canadian |
Individual awards
The annual CSL awards were presented before the CSL Championship final on October 26, 2008.[3] All the awards were taken by the National Division teams with the Brampton Lions, North York Astros, and Trois-Rivières Attak receiving the most awards with 2 wins each.[18] Daniel Nascimento of Brampton was chosen by the league as the MVP, and received the Golden Boot. After recording the best defensive record with Trois-Rivières, former Montreal Impact player Andrew Olivieri was named the Goalkeeper of the Year. Trois-Rivières were also recognized with the Fair Play award for being the most disciplined team throughout the season.
The Defender of the Year was given to Carlos Zeballos of North York. After improving his craft in Europe, Rafael Carbajal returned to the North York Astros to achieve the club's highest finish in their club's history. TFC Academy produced the Rookie of the Year with Adrian Pena. While Isaac Raymond was given the Referee of the Year, and down the road in 2015 was appointed the Manager of Canada's Referee Department for the Canadian Soccer Association.[19]
| Award | Player (Club) |
|---|---|
| CSL Most Valuable Player | Daniel Nascimento (Brampton Lions) |
| CSL Golden Boot | Daniel Nascimento (Brampton Lions) |
| CSL Goalkeeper of the Year Award | Andrew Olivieri (Trois-Rivières Attak) |
| CSL Defender of the Year Award | Carlos Zeballos (North York Astros) |
| CSL Rookie of the Year Award | Adrian Pena (TFC Academy) |
| CSL Coach of the Year Award | Rafael Carbajal (North York Astros) |
| CSL Referee of the Year Award | Isaac Raymond |
| CSL Fair Play Award | Trois-Rivières Attak |
Reserve Division
| Season | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Italia Shooters Reserves |
| Matches played | 40 |
| Goals scored | 155 (3.88 per match) |
← NSL 1990 2009 → | |
In 2008, the league formed the Reserve Division to build a developmental structure within the CSL. The previous time a reserve division was in operation was in the 1990 season in the predecessor league.[20] The intentions of the division was to provide clubs with a supply chain of players with additional playing time, and establish a developmental platform for players in order to make the transition to the professional ranks.[21][22] The original 5 members of the division were from the Greater Toronto Area with a schedule running from June 2, 2008 to October 6, 2008.
Teams
| Team | City | Stadium |
|---|---|---|
| Italia Shooters Reserves | Maple, Ontario | St. Joan Of Arc Turf Field |
| North York Astros Reserves | Toronto, Ontario | Esther Shiner Stadium |
| Portugal FC Reserves | Toronto, Ontario | Esther Shiner Stadium |
| TFC Academy II | Vaughan, Ontario | Ontario Soccer Centre |
| Toronto Croatia Reserves | Mississauga, Ontario | Hershey Centre |
Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italia Shooters Reserves (C) | 16 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 55 | 15 | +40 | 37 |
| 2 | TFC Academy II | 16 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 47 | 13 | +34 | 37 |
| 3 | Toronto Croatia Reserves | 16 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 19 | 36 | −17 | 16 |
| 4 | North York Astros Reserves | 16 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 18 | 38 | −20 | 14 |
| 5 | Portugal FC Reserves | 16 | 3 | 2 | 11 | 16 | 53 | −37 | 11 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion.
References
- "October 26, 2008 CSL Final Trois-Rivieres Attak vs Serbian White Eagles (from CSL media release)". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
- Зубовић, Милан (Zubović, Milan) (2008-10-30). "Бањолучанин Ратомир Бороја тренер у ФК Српски бели орлови: Канада обојена у српску тробојку" [Banja Luka resident Ratomir Boroja coach at FC Serbian White Eagles: Canada painted in Serbian tricolor]. Glas Srpske (in Serbian). Retrieved 2020-11-26.
- Glover, Robin. "October 26, 2008 CSL Finals Pregame Award Ceremony (by Rocket Robin)". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
- Adamson, Stan. "March 28, 2008 CSL Canadian Soccer League Schedule announced". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
- "February 5, 2008 CSL New-Look Canadian Soccer League (from CSL media release)". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2008-10-01. Archived from the original on 2008-10-01. Retrieved 2017-01-25.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2009-06-19. Archived from the original on 2009-06-19. Retrieved 2017-01-25.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2008-08-19. Archived from the original on 2008-08-19. Retrieved 2017-07-31.
- "Portugal FC Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2009-05-12. Archived from the original on 2009-05-12. Retrieved 2017-01-25.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- "May 15, 2008 MLS Toronto FC Academy to compete in CSL (from Toronto FC Media Relations)". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
- Glover, Robin. "May 13, 2008 Canadian Soccer League (CSL) Press Conference (by Rocket Robin)". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2008-05-18. Archived from the original on 2008-05-18. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2008-12-18. Archived from the original on 2008-12-18. Retrieved 2017-01-23.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- "Canada Soccer". canadasoccer.com. Retrieved 2018-10-06.
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2009-02-18. Archived from the original on 2009-02-18. Retrieved 2017-01-24.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- "2001 - May 8 - Stan Adamson". web.archive.org. May 8, 2001. Archived from the original on November 24, 2001. Retrieved 2019-08-27.
- "2001 - April 17 - Message from DOO; Volunteers; Dell". web.archive.org. April 17, 2001. Archived from the original on November 8, 2001. Retrieved 2019-08-27.
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2009-05-31. Archived from the original on 2009-05-31. Retrieved 2017-06-10.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- "Canada Soccer appoints Isaac Raymond new Manager, Referee Department | Canada Soccer". www.canadasoccer.com. Retrieved 2017-06-10.
- Laskaris, Sam (April 12, 1990). "Soccer's Strikers take new coach". Toronto Star. p. N14.
- "Canadian Soccer League Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2008-12-01. Archived from the original on 2008-12-01. Retrieved 2017-01-25.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- Gossai, Amit (2008-06-05). "Croatia tames the Lions | Mississauga.com". Mississauga.com. Retrieved 2017-08-12.