1987 Canadian Soccer League season

Football league season

Canadian Soccer LeagueSeason| 1987

|

Champions| Calgary Kickers
Division Leaders| Hamilton Steelers (East)
Calgary Kickers (West)
Matches played| 80
Goals scored| 212 (2.65 per match)
Top goalscorer| Nick Gilbert (10)

1988 →

The 1987 Canadian Soccer League season was the first season of play for the Canadian Soccer League, a new Division 1 men's soccer league in the Canadian soccer pyramid.

## Format

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The schedule was not a balanced schedule based on the league principle of playing each club home and away due to travel concerns.[1] The league was divided into two four-team division with each team playing each team in their division four times, twice at home and twice on the road, and playing the teams in the opposing division twice, once at home and once on the road for a total of twenty games.[2] Following the season, the top three teams in each division would advance to the playoffs, with the division leaders earning a first round bye, to designate a national champion club.[1]

## Summary

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The Canadian Soccer League was the second attempt to create a national professional league in Canada. Many teams were existing franchises from the non-professional provincial leagues, while others had come from semi-professional leagues, including Edmonton (Western Soccer Alliance), Hamilton (Canadian National Soccer League), and Toronto (CNSL and NASL), while some teams, such as the Vancouver 86ers were new.[3] The league opened with a good start with sizable crowds and a fairly high level of play, but teams soon began to feel the financial pressure, particularly in the smaller markets.[3]

The league's inaugural match took place on June 7, 1987 in Aylmer, Quebec between the National Capital Pioneers and the Hamilton Steelers and finished in a 1–1 draw, in a steady drizzle, in front 2,500 spectators.[4][5][6]

The Eastern Division in 1987 consisted of National Capital Pioneers, Hamilton Steelers, Toronto Blizzard, and the North York Rockets. The Western Division comprised the Calgary Kickers, Edmonton Brick Men, Vancouver 86ers, and the Winnipeg Fury. Calgary and Hamilton won their divisions and both advanced to the finals in the playoffs. In the final, Calgary defeated Hamilton 2–1, at home, in a winner-take-all one game final.

## Regular season

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### East Division

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Pos | Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification

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1  | Hamilton Steelers | 20  | 10  | 6  | 4  | 32  | 22  | +10  | 26  | Playoff semifinals
2  | National Capital Pioneers | 20  | 7  | 9  | 4  | 22  | 15  | +7  | 23  | Playoff quarterfinals
3  | Toronto Blizzard | 20  | 6  | 8  | 6  | 22  | 27  | −5  | 20
4  | North York Rockets | 20  | 1  | 7  | 12  | 15  | 39  | −24  | 9  |

Source: Canadian Soccer History Archives 1987 CSL Stats

### West Division

[edit]

Pos | Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification

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1  | Calgary Kickers (O) | 20  | 11  | 5  | 4  | 32  | 22  | +10  | 27  | Playoff semifinals
2  | Vancouver 86ers | 20  | 9  | 3  | 8  | 37  | 27  | +10  | 21  | Playoff quarterfinals
3  | Edmonton Brick Men | 20  | 7  | 6  | 7  | 27  | 24  | +3  | 20
4  | Winnipeg Fury | 20  | 5  | 4  | 11  | 25  | 36  | −11  | 14  |

Source: Canadian Soccer History Archives 1987 CSL Stats
(O) Play-off winners

### Overall

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Pos | Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification

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1  | Calgary Kickers (O) | 20  | 11  | 5  | 4  | 32  | 22  | +10  | 27  | Regular season winner
2  | Hamilton Steelers | 20  | 10  | 6  | 4  | 32  | 22  | +10  | 26  |
3  | National Capital Pioneers | 20  | 7  | 9  | 4  | 22  | 15  | +7  | 23
4  | Vancouver 86ers | 20  | 9  | 3  | 8  | 37  | 27  | +10  | 21
5  | Edmonton Brick Men | 20  | 7  | 6  | 7  | 27  | 24  | +3  | 20
6  | Toronto Blizzard | 20  | 6  | 8  | 6  | 22  | 27  | −5  | 20
7  | Winnipeg Fury | 20  | 5  | 4  | 11  | 25  | 36  | −11  | 14
8  | North York Rockets | 20  | 1  | 7  | 12  | 15  | 39  | −24  | 9

Source: Canadian Soccer History Archives 1987 CSL Stats
(O) Play-off winners

## Playoffs

[edit]

Home team on top.

| Quarter-finals | | | Semi-finals | | | Final |

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|  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  |
| | | | 1W | Calgary (OT) | 4 | |
| West |
| | | 2W | Vancouver | 3 |
| 2W | Vancouver | 2 |

| 3W | Edmonton | 1 |
| | 1W | Calgary Kickers | 2 |
|  |
| | | 1E | Hamilton Steelers | 1 |
| | |

| |
| | 1E | Hamilton | 1 |
| East |
| | | 3E | Toronto | 0 |
| 2E | Ottawa | 1 |

| 3E | Toronto (OT) | 2 |

### Quarterfinal

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Vancouver 86ers v Edmonton Brick Men September 9, 1987 |  Vancouver 86ers | 2–1|  Edmonton Brick Men | Vancouver, British Columbia

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19:30 | Easton Jr. 48'
Mobilio 89' | [[7] Report] | Roy Viana  64' | Stadium: Swangard Stadium
Attendance: 3942
Referee: John Meachin

National Capital Pioneers v Toronto Blizzard September 10, 1987 |  National Capital Pioneers | 1–2 (a.e.t.)|  Toronto Blizzard | Aylmer, Quebec

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| Fred Juett  40' | [[8] Report] | Luis Lufi  59'
Troy Andeh  112' | Stadium: Aydelu Park
Attendance: 1100

### Semifinal

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Hamilton Steelers v Toronto Blizzard September 12, 1987 |  Hamilton Steelers | 1–0|  Toronto Blizzard | Hamilton, Ontario

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| Bunbury 80' | [[9] Report] |  | Stadium: Ivor Wynne Stadium
Attendance: 2000

Calgary Kickers v Vancouver 86ers September 13, 1987 |  Calgary Kickers | 4–3 (a.e.t.)|  Vancouver 86ers | Calgary, Alberta

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14:00 | Kern 10', 69'
Gilbert 87', 97' | [[10] Report] | Easton Jr. 23'
Mobilio 58', 63' | Stadium: Mewata Stadium
Attendance: 1683

### Final

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Calgary Kickers v Hamilton Steelers September 20, 1987 |  Calgary Kickers | 2–1|  Hamilton Steelers | Calgary, Alberta

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15:00 | Gilbert 12', 67' | [[11] Report] | Billy Domazetis  54' | Stadium: Mewata Stadium
Attendance: 5617
Referee: Mario Perrino

## Statistics

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### Top scorers

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Rank  | Player  | Club  | Goals

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1  |  Nick Gilbert | Calgary Kickers | 10
2  |  Domenic Mobilio | Vancouver 86ers | 9
3  |  Željko Adžić | Hamilton Steelers | 8
4  |  Norman Odinga | Edmonton Brick Men | 7
Han Kim | Winnipeg Fury
James Easton | Vancouver 86ers
7  |  Arnie Meers | Vancouver 86ers | 6
John Catliff | Calgary Kickers
Ivor Evans | Vancouver 86ers
Billy Domazetis | Hamilton Steelers
11  |  John Roumelis | National Capital Pioneers | 5
Ed McNally | National Capital Pioneers
David Bryne | Toronto Blizzard
Reference: [12]

## Honours

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The following awards and nominations were awarded for the 1987 season.[12]

### Most Valuable Player

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Player | Team

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Nick Gilbert | Calgary Kickers

### League All-Stars

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Player | Position

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Sven Habermann (Calgary Strikers) | Goalkeeper
Diego Castello (Edmonton Brick Men) | Defender
Greg Kern (Calgary Strikers) | Defender
Paul James (Hamilton Steelers) | Defender
Randy Ragan (Toronto Blizzard) | Defender
Željko Adžić (Hamilton Steelers) | Midfielder
Ray Hudson (Edmonton Brick Men) | Midfielder
James Easton (Vancouver 86ers) | Midfielder
Ed McNally (National Capital Pioneers) | Forward
Billy Domazetis (Hamilton Steelers) | Forward
Nick Gilbert (Calgary Strikers) | Forward

Reserves

Player | Position

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Don Ferguson (National Capital Pioneers) | Goalkeeper
David Norman (Winnipeg Fury) | Defender
Han Kim (Winnipeg Fury) | Midfielder
Zoltan Metzaros (North York Rockets) | Forward

Front office

Person | Role

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Bill Thompson (National Capital Pioneers) | Head Coach
Peter Welsh (Calgary Kickers) | Assistant Coach
Buzz Parsons (Vancouver 86ers) | General Manager

## Average home attendances

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Pos. | Team  | GP | Average Attendance

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1  | Vancouver 86ers | 20  | 5,977
2  | Winnipeg Fury | 20  | 4,023
3  | Edmonton Brick Men | 20  | 3,491
4  | Calgary Strikers | 20  | 2,949
5  | National Capital Pioneers | 20  | 2,122
6  | Hamilton Steelers | 20  | 2,032
7  | Toronto Blizzard | 20  | 1,814
8  | North York Rockets | 20  | 1,275
Total Attendance  | 160  | 2,817
Reference:[13]

## See also

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* Canadian Professional Soccer League (1983) – previous season of D1 soccer in Canada

## References

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1. ^ a b MacDonald, Archie (February 26, 1987). "Soccer rebirth". The Vancouver Sun. p. F3.
2. ^ Bunke, Trevor (June 7, 1987). "Pioneers Primed for Kickoff". The Sunday Herald.
3. ^ a b Litterer, Dave. "The Year in American Soccer - 1987". Sover. Archived from the original on March 3, 2009.
4. ^ Gomez, Boris (May 28, 1987). "Ravens become Ottawa pioneers". The Charlatan. p. 10.
5. ^ Lovegrove, Don. "CSL '87 Preview - Toronto-Hamilton Rivalry Renewed on Soccer Pitch". CSL Memories. Hamilton Spectator.
6. ^ "Histoire du Championnat et de la Coupe du Canada" [History of the Championship and the Canada Cup]. Impact Soccer (in French).
7. ^ Ireland, Joanne (September 10, 1987). "Final minute fells Brick Men". Edmonton Journal. p. 37.
8. ^ "Blizzard wins Eastern semifinal". Times Colonist. September 11, 1987. p. 4.
9. ^ "Steelers Eastern reps in CSL final". Times Colonist. September 13, 1987. p. 30.
10. ^ Stinson, Dan (September 14, 1987). "Upbeat 86ers' season winds up in gloom". Vancouver Sun. p. 9.
11. ^ Oliver, Vance (September 21, 1987). "Gilbert boosts Kickers to crown". Calgary Herald. p. 23.
12. ^ a b "1987 CSL Stats" (PDF). Canadian Soccer League.
13. ^ Jose, Colin (2001). On-Side - 125 Years of Soccer in Ontario. Vaughan, Ontario: Ontario Soccer Association and Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum. p. 130.

## External links

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* Canadian Soccer League 1991 Media Guide and Statistics
* 1987 CSL Stats

* v
* t
* e

Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992)

Teams|

* Calgary Kickers/Strikers
* Edmonton Brick Men
* Hamilton Steelers
* Kitchener Spirit/Kickers
* London Lasers
* Montreal Supra
* North York Rockets
* Nova Scotia Clippers
* Ottawa Pioneers/Intrepid
* Toronto Blizzard
* Vancouver 86ers
* Victoria Vistas
* Winnipeg Fury

Seasons|

* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992

International cups|

* Pepsi Cup (1990)
* Professional Cup (1992)

*[Pos]: Position
*[Pld]: Played
*[W]: Won
*[D]: Drawn
*[L]: Lost
*[GF]: Goals for
*[GA]: Goals against
*[GD]: Goal difference
*[Pts]: Points
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template