The playoffs are officially set in the Canadian Soccer League; it has been a very interesting season and has thrown up some very intriguing matches for the Quarterfinals. In this article I will break down each of the pairings and giving a prediction of who will advance but before I do there are a few aspects of the playoff format to keep in mind.
The Quarterfinal stage will be played as a two legged tie with the higher seed able to choose whether they play the first legs at home or away. The Semifinal stage will a single elimination match to be played at the ground of the higher seed, the teams that make the Final will play on a neutral site and to crown the 2011 CSL Champion.
Here are the Quarterfinal matches:
#1 SC Toronto Vs. #8 York Region Shooters
The top seed SC Toronto take on York Region Shooters in the first Quarterfinal match and look odds on favorites to win it all. SC Toronto formerly known as FC Portugal have dominated the table for much of the season, becoming the first team to reach 40, 50 and 60 points. In fact, in the CSL era their 63 points season is the highest point total in league history.
That being said they face a York Region Shooters team that has been hanging around all season, starting out on a good pace and well amongst the Top 4 places but took a rapid nosedive and just hung on for a playoff position. Both of their regular season meeting have been very close, the first taking place on September 25, 2011 and ending in a 2-2 draw while the second was five days later and ended in a 2-1 win for SC Toronto.
Key Players for SC Toronto: FWD Alexandros Halis,
FWD Jarek Whiteman, and FWD Andrea Lombardo
Key Players for York Region Shooters: FWD Kadian Lecky,
MID Desmond Humphrey
I’m trying to find a reason to go with York Region Shooters in this one and I can’t seem to find one overwhelming aspect of the match that goes in their favor, SC Toronto are top of the table for a reason and I take them in this tie.
Prediction: SC Toronto.
#2 Toronto Croatia Vs. #7 Mississauga Eagles FC
This tie sees one of the “new kids on the block” Mississauga Eagles FC take on an experienced campaigner in Toronto Croatia, a team that made it to last season’s Semifinal stage. This match may look like an easy one for the Croatians on paper but I don’t believe Mississauga will be an easy out as most seem to think.
The one aspect of their squad that stands out is their ability to finish games stronger then they start. It doesn’t always mean they win matches but there have been many occasions where the team was in a losing position and scraped out a draw or was on the verge of sharing the points and took all three with late game heroics.
Toronto Croatia are another one of those workmen-like sides based around one or two skilled players, this formula has served them well in the past and may just be what gets them one step further to the CSL Championship. The match that I remember between these two is a late season affair on September 18, 2011 where Mississauga Eagles were in a 1-1 draw and scored a goal in the 77th min from the penalty spot to seal all three points.
Key Players for Toronto Croatia: FWD Tihomir Maletic,
FWD Hugo Hererra DEF Halburto Harris
Key Players for Mississauga Eagles FC: MID Joey Melo,
MID Shaun Brown, MID Matthew Macri
Their always seems to be an upset or two in this round and I peg this match as one of those instances, it won’t be easy but Mississauga has proven they don’t quit late in matches regardless of the situation or opposition.
Prediction: Mississauga Eagles FC.
#3 Capital City FC Vs. #6 Montréal Impact Academy
Of all the Quarterfinal matches this is the pairing that would be considered a “must watch”. Not only does it have new boys on the block Capital City FC, who have played a good brand of soccer and are one of the leagues in form sides, against Montréal Impact Academy the only team based outside Ontario and on talent alone are arguably the cream of the crop but it congers up memories of their infamous meeting back on June 19, 2011.
This game saw 13 yellow cards, 4 red cards, Capital City FC coach Shaun Harris ejected from the match and other disciplinary action after the fact. However, through following the match on twitter, reading articles and listening to interviews, it was more down to a “card happy” referee that painted himself into a corner carelessly brandishing cards.
Montréal Impact Academy had a ten match unbeaten streak early in the season but the combination of call ups to the FIFA U17 World Cup and injuries saw them play many away matches at far from full strength and saw a massive dip inform, their slide down the table from 1st place to 6th place has been simply amazing to watch.
Capital City FC had an impressive twelve match unbeaten run early in the season themselves and is one of the reasons why they hung around the top four places, keeping the majority of their squad fit and the “mystery factor” that other teams had to face going into matches also played their roles. The other regular season match between the two sides was August 21, 2011 and ended 3-0 to Capital City FC.
Key Players for Capital City FC: DEF Joel Bagby, FWD Will Beauge,
MID Emir Zrnic
Key Players for Montréal Impact Academy: GK Maxime Crepeau,
DEF Ismail Benomar, MID Wandrille Lefevre
This is a tough one to call, while I was very high on Montréal Impact Academy this season even through there struggles I’m going with Capital City FC. They have had fewer injuries to deal with and play a good brand of attacking soccer, hopefully we don’t see a repeat of their first regular season meeting.
Prediction: Capital City FC.
#4 Brampton City United FC Vs. Serbian White Eagles
The match I’m most interested in for obvious reasons (in case you don’t know by now I’m the Brampton City United Head of Media) is Brampton City United against Serbian White Eagles. However, though I’m both a fan and media member for the Brampton club I have to say even with the likely option of taking the 2nd Leg at home this match is far from a cake walk.
Serbian White Eagles took four of a possible six points from the Peel Region side and have the ability to grind opposition down over 90 min or in the case of a two legged tie 180 min. A prime example of this came against Brampton City United on July 31, 2011, away from home, down 3-1 and down to ten men the Serbians managed to fight out a 3-3 draw. My lasting memory of that match wasn’t anything on the field but the experience of Serbian White Eagles and their ability to work the referee, as seven or eight players stood in front of the entrance before the second half waiting for the referee to come out, then surrounded him and engaged in intense debate.
For Brampton City United it simply comes down to squad depth, when this team is at full strength they arguably play the most attractive style and are capable of beating any team in the league. That being said they are far from full strength at the moment and even more concerning they have this habit of not killing teams off, the previous example aside there have been umpteen instances where Brampton City United is leading by two or three goals and decide to “take their foot of the gas” and let opponents hang around.
Brampton City United unlike others finds players to fit their system and not the other way around, so when injuries come they can slot another player in any position and he knows the job. It really comes down to what Brampton City United can accomplish away from home, another aspect they struggle with at times. The other regular season fixture was June 24, 2011 and ended 3-1 to Serbian White Eagles.
Key Players for Brampton City United FC: FWD Richard West,
MID Andrew Da Silva, DEF Giovanni Anisi
Key Players for Serbian White Eagles: FWD Alex Braletic,
MID Milos Scepanovic
As much as I’m hoping to be wrong I’m going with Serbian white Eagles in this tie. Their experience and grinding style may just be too much for an injury depleted Brampton City United.
Prediction: Serbian White Eagles
As the playoffs progress I will give an update what has taken place and give new predictions for the Semifinals, if any of you are in the area where these matches are taking place I urge you to check them out.
Kamal Hylton is Owner/Freelance Soccer Writer at Hylton Sports Media,
he specializes in covering Youth Development in Canada and the
CONCACAF Region as well as European leagues such as Bundesliga, Serie A and UEFA Champions League. Follow him on Twitter to view all
his work.
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