Canadian National Soccer League
Season1994
Champions
League cupSt. Catharines Roma
Matches played42
Goals scored115 (2.74 per match)
Top goalscorerRyan Gamble
Best goalkeeperPaulo Silva
← 1993
1995 →

The 1994 Canadian National Soccer League season was the seventy-second season for the Canadian National Soccer League. The season began on May 28, 1994, with Montreal Ramblers facing Toronto Croatia at the Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard. The majority of the season was contested by the reigning champions, St. Catharines Roma, along with Montreal Croatia, and Toronto Italia. The title was eventually won by Toronto Italia after defeating St. Catharines in the CNSL Championship final.[1][2] Toronto would also secure the double, which included the regular-season title.[3] St. Catharines Roma won the league cup.

The league lost its presence in Manitoba and was restricted in Ontario and Quebec. The league continued to operate as the only exclusively Canadian professional league within the country while the Canadian clubs in the American Professional Soccer League served as the highest tier league in the country's soccer structure.

Overview

The season saw a reduction in league membership as the boundaries of the league were restricted to Ontario and Quebec. The CNSL lost its presence in Manitoba as the Winnipeg Fury ceased operations due to heavy financial losses.[4][5] While the Eastern Division of Quebec was disbanded with only Montreal Croatia, and Montreal Ramblers operating in the province. Richmond Hill Kick was suspended midway through the 1993 season after several missed scheduled matches and failure in payment fees.[6] Toronto Rockets were awarded a franchise in the American Professional Soccer League to replace the Toronto Blizzard.[7][8]

After a dispute over philosophical differences with league commissioner Rocco Lofranco, the Windsor Wheels joined the United States Interregional Soccer League and relocated to Detroit, Michigan.[5][9] Another notable departure occurred near the conclusion of the season as Toronto Croatia withdrew after a dispute with the front office and the following season joined the Canadian International Soccer League (Puma League).[10][11] While at the live gate the league struggled in drawing consistent crowds, which according to Lofranco the 1994 FIFA World Cup played a factor in lowering the attendance numbers.[12]

Teams

Team City Stadium Manager
London City London, Ontario Cove Road Stadium Harry Gauss
Montreal Croatia Montreal, Quebec Stade du Parc Hérbert Simon Demo
Montreal Ramblers Montreal, Quebec Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard
Scarborough Astros Scarborough, Ontario Birchmount Stadium Jorge Armua[13]
St. Catharines Roma St. Catharines, Ontario Club Roma Stadium Mark Konert[14]
Toronto Croatia Etobicoke, Ontario Centennial Park Stadium
Toronto Italia Etobicoke, Ontario Centennial Park Stadium Peter Pinizzotto[15]
Toronto Jets North York, Ontario Esther Shiner Stadium Adam Pagliaroli[16]

Final standings

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Toronto Italia (C, O) 12 7 4 1 20 9 +11 18 Qualification for Playoffs
2 St. Catharines Roma 12 6 2 4 17 10 +7 14
3 Montreal Croatia 12 6 2 4 26 21 +5 14
4 London City 12 4 3 5 17 18 −1 11
5 Scarborough Astros 12 2 6 4 11 15 −4 10
6 Toronto Jets 12 3 4 5 10 20 −10 10
7 Montreal Ramblers 12 3 1 8 14 21 −7 7
Updated to match(es) played on September 10, 1994. Source: League Standings
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners

Playoffs

Quarterfinals

September 11, 1994 Montreal Croatia 3–5 Toronto Jets Montreal, Quebec
(Report) Stadium: Stade du Parc Hérbert
September 17, 1994 Toronto Jets 5–6 Montreal Croatia North York, Ontario
(Report) Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium

Semifinals

September 1994 Toronto Jets 0–1 Toronto Italia North York, Ontario
(Report) Stadium: Esther Shiner Stadium
October 9, 1994 Toronto Italia 0–0 Toronto Jets Etobicoke, Ontario
(Report) Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium

Final

October 12, 1994 St. Catharines Roma 0–1 Toronto Italia St. Catharines, Ontario
(Report) Stadium: Club Roma Stadium
October 15, 1994 Toronto Italia 3–1 St. Catharines Roma Etobicoke, Ontario
(Report) Stadium: Centennial Park Stadium

Cup

The cup tournament was a separate contest from the rest of the season, in which all eight teams took part. All the matches were separate from the regular season, and the teams were grouped into two separate divisions. The two winners in the group stage would advance to a singles match for the Cup. Originally Toronto Croatia participated in the cup competition, but near the conclusion of the season withdrew from both the regular season and cup tournament.

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 St. Catharines Roma (C) 4 3 0 1 5 3 +2 6 Qualification for Playoffs
2 Montreal Ramblers 4 2 1 1 8 5 +3 5
3 Toronto Jets 4 0 1 3 4 9 −5 1
Updated to match(es) played on September 10, 1994. Source: Cup Standings
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Toronto Italia 5 5 0 0 14 0 +14 10 Qualification for Playoffs
2 Montreal Croatia 5 3 1 1 6 5 +1 7
3 London City 6 1 2 3 4 8 −4 4
4 Scarborough Astros 6 0 1 5 1 12 −11 1
Updated to match(es) played on September 10, 1994. Source: Cup Standings
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Final

Toronto Italia1–0St. Catharines Roma
Report
St. Catharines Roma3–0Toronto Italia
Report

Individual awards

The 1994 CNSL annual awards only presented four awards with Toronto Italia receiving the majority of the accolades. The Golden Boot and Rookie of the Year were given to Italia forward Ryan Gamble, who would later go onto higher endeavors in the USISL D-3 Pro League, and USISL A-League. Peter Pinizzotto was named the Coach of the Year after achieving a treble with Italia. He would ultimately spend time with the Toronto Lynx, and Montreal Impact.[15] The final receipt was Scarborough Astros Brazilian import Paulo Silva, with his third Goalkeeper of the Year award. Silva would later serve as the goalkeeping coach for the Toronto Lynx under Pinizzotto.[17]

Award Player (Club)
CNSL Golden Boot Ryan Gamble (Toronto Italia)
CNSL Goalkeeper of the Year Award Paulo Silva (Scarborough Astros)
CNSL Rookie of the Year Award Ryan Gamble (Toronto Italia)
CNSL Coach of the Year Award Peter Pinizzotto (Toronto Italia)

References

  1. ↑ "Soccer". Newspapers.com. The Gazette. October 17, 1994. p. 22. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  2. ↑ "CSL Past Champions – Canadian Soccer League". Archived from the original on 2020-09-15. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  3. ↑ "Canadian National Soccer League 1993 to 1997" (PDF). Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Soccer - Winnipeg Fury". Newspapers.com. The Province. August 10, 1993. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  5. 1 2 Hull, David (September 3, 1993). "Wheels' management pleased overall with first season". Newspapers.com. The Windsor Star. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  6. ↑ "Kick Gets Boot". Newspapers.com. Calgary Herald. July 13, 1993. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  7. ↑ Glover, Robin (July 8, 1994). "APSL Toronto vs Seattle". www.rocketrobinsoccerintoronto.com. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  8. ↑ Phillips, Randy (March 11, 1994). "Impact kicks off season on July 1". Newspapers.com. The Gazette. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  9. ↑ Hull, Dave (November 10, 1993). "Wheels add Detroit team". Newspapers.com. Windsor Stars. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  10. ↑ "Pro Soccer in London, Ontario". 2001-05-02. Archived from the original on May 2, 2001. Retrieved 2019-12-13.
  11. ↑ Fanfair, Ron. Stars Soccer Review. - Aldwynable. Caribbean Stars Inc. p. 88.
  12. ↑ Hull, Dave (August 5, 1994). "CNSL wants a team in Windsor". Newspapers.com. Windsor Star. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  13. ↑ "North York Astros Soccer Club Powered by Goalline Sports Administration Software". 2009-06-01. Archived from the original on June 1, 2009. Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  14. ↑ Jeanneret, Mark (1 November 1996). "Konert steps down as Wolves' coach". St. Catharines Standard. pp. C2.
  15. 1 2 "Hall of Fame | YRSA". www.yrsa.ca. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
  16. ↑ Miolla, Piero (2020-07-08). "Il lucano Michele Gioia, definito il "Giovinco degli Anni '90" nel racconto di Nicola Sparano". il Caleidoscopio (in Italian). Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  17. ↑ "The Team". www.lynxsoccer.com. Archived from the original on April 22, 2001. Retrieved 2019-12-13.
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