The 2019 Men's League1 Ontario season was the sixth season of play for League1 Ontario, a Division 3 men's soccer league in the Canadian soccer pyramid and the highest level of soccer based in the Canadian province of Ontario.
The league champion earned entry into the 2020 Canadian Championship, the top national tournament for men's soccer teams and the country's only direct path into the CONCACAF Champions League.
Changes from 2018
The men's division consisted of 16 teams, a decrease from 17 teams in 2018. Durham United FA returned from hiatus, while Sanjaxx Lions and Toronto FC III no longer participate.
For the first time ever, the L1O season did not include a cup competition which had previously been played alongside the regular season. Additionally, the group stage playoff format was changed to a more traditional knockout bracket with two-leg matchups in the quarter-finals and semi-finals.
Regular season Each team played 15 matches as part of the season; one match against all other teams. The top eight teams qualified for the league playoffs at the end of the season.
Playoffs The top eight teams from the regular season qualified for the playoffs. New in 2019, the quarter-finals and semi-finals feature a two-leg format. The two semi-final winners advance to the league championship; the winner of which earn entry into the 2020 Canadian Championship. Bracket
Statistics
Top goalscorers
RankPlayerClubGoals 1 Maksym Kowal Vaughan Azzurri 14 2 Connor Wilson FC London 11 3 Filipe Vilela Aurora FC 10 Leaford Allen Sigma FC 5 Francis Ameyaw Master's Futbol 8 Evan James Oakville Blue Devils 7 Niklas Bauer Aurora FC 7 Brandon Duarte Oakville Blue Devils Mathew Santos Woodbridge Strikers 10 5 players tied 6 Updated to matches played on August 18, 2019. Source:
Top goalkeepers
RankPlayerClubMinutesGAA 1 Praveen Ahilan Alliance United FC 1260 0.43 2 Lucas Birnstingl Oakville Blue Devils 1350 0.53 3 Kelvin Friseiro Woodbridge Strikers 630 0.86 4 Jared Maloney North Mississauga SC 1170 0.92 5 Anthony Sokalski FC London 1254 1.22 Updated to matches played on August 18, 2019. Minimum 540 minutes played. Source:
Honours The following awards and nominations were awarded for the 2019 season.
Awards Award Player Team RefMost Valuable Player Maksym Kowal Vaughan Azzurri Golden Boot Maksym Kowal Vaughan Azzurri Coach of the Year Duncan Wilde Oakville Blue Devils FCYoung Player of the Year Ryan Raposo Vaughan Azzurri Top Goalkeeper Lucas Birnstingl Oakville Blue Devils FC Top Defender Kenny Lioutas Alliance United Top Midfielder Nikola Stakic Alliance United
League All-Stars The following players were named League1 Ontario All-Stars for the 2019 season:
First Team All-Star Player Position Lukas Birnstingl (Oakville) Goalkeeper Adam Czerkawski (Master's FA) Defender Joe Zupo (Darby FC) Defender Kenny Lioutas (Alliance United) Defender Nikola Stakic (Alliance United) Midfielder Brandon Duarte (Oakville) Midfielder Ethan Gopaul (FC London) Midfielder Adel Rahman (North Mississauga) Midfielder Mohammed Reza Nafar (London) Forward Maksym Kowal (Vaughan Azzurri) Forward Leaford Allen (Sigma FC) Forward
Second Team All-Star Player Position Praveen Ahilan (Alliance United) Goalkeeper Duran Lee (Vaughan Azzurri) Defender Victor Gallo (Oakville Blue Devils) Defender Carlo Di Feo (Oakville Blue Devils) Defender Riley Ferrazzo (Aurora FC) Defender Justin Stoddart (Sigma FC) Midfielder Isaiah Johnston (Woodbridge) Midfielder Khody Ellis (Oakville Blue Devils) Midfielder Atchuthan Sivanathan (Alliance Utd) Midfielder Connor Wilson (FC London) Forward Felipe Vilela (Aurora FC) Forward
Third Team All-Star Player Position Matt Zaikos (Darby FC) Goalkeeper Francesco Sinopoli (Woodbridge) Defender Luke Rankin (North Mississauga) Defender Ali Jabara (Ottawa South United) Defender Michael Dirienzo (Unionville Milliken) Defender Satsumi Hirano (Durham United) Midfielder Jason Mills (Vaughan Azzurri) Midfielder Leonardo Ferreira Da Silva (Windsor) Midfielder Anorch Jeyathilaka (Toronto Skillz) Midfielder Francis Ameyaw (Master's FA) Forward Shaquille Agard (Master's FA) Forward
Reserve Division The league operated a reserve division for the first time in 2019, which would be a U21 division. Participation in the reserve division was optional for the League1 clubs. Two seasons were held - a Summer season and a Fall season. There were 10 teams in the summer session, which included two teams from Sigma FC and two teams from non-L1O clubs - Hamilton United Elite, who planned to enter L1O for the 2020 season and Oakville Soccer Club, while 5 teams participated in the fall session.
Summer season
Fall season
References
External links