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NEWS
LONDON CITY, WIZARDS CLASH IN WILD CARD KNOCKOUT AT COVE ROAD IN LONDON FRIDAY NIGHT
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London City, seen here in action against Mississauga Olympians, will have a Wild Card opportunity for a semi-final berth on Friday, September 27 as host of the CPSL League Cup.
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London City will take on the high-flying Ottawa Wizards in what is for both teams a one-game cruel knockout Wild Card game in the curtain opener of what promises to be a super weekend of professional soccer at the Cove Road ground in London starting on Friday night. Both teams face the prospect of having to play a gruelling three games at what is expected to be high paced encounters if they are to get through the Wild Card game and the semi-final in the inaugural CPSL Canada Cup. The Wild Card game is intended to provide the host team with a one game opportunity to enter the semi-finals. Game time on Friday is 8.30 p.m. and the winner will meet Brampton Hitmen in the second semi-final the following night at 8.15 p.m. The first semi-final between Vaughan Sun Devils and Toronto Croatia goes at 5.45 p.m. in the evening. The games are expected to be well attended at Cove Road with five teams playing some of the best soccer in Canada. Many young players at London this weekend appear to be destined for national team honours and some are seeking a place in the glamour teams of Europe. Some have already experienced soccer in other countries, particularly, the U.K., Europe and South America. The final goes on Sunday at 3.15 p.m.
The CPSL Canada Cup Final (previously the League Cup) weekend is one of the two most important events on the CPSL calendar and is followed by the Rogers Cup CPSL Championship weekend which this year is being held at Esther Shiner Stadium in North York, the home of the North York Astros. The federal government is a major supporter of the CPSL and the name change is a reflection of that relationship. The hosting of the CPSL League Cup by one of the 14 teams in the CPSL was suddenly up for grabs when Hamilton Thunder withdrew from the project just over a week ago. Hamilton was to use two venues�Brian Timmis Stadium and the Mowhawk Sports Complex for the four games, but advised the league that the club was not in a position to continue the project. Five CPSL clubs immediately applied to host the event and Ottawa Wizards and London City emerged as the two favourites. CPSL team owners decided over the weekend that London City be awarded the event. London has a strong reputation for organization, having staged several important tournaments in recent years, including a championship series two years ago and the CPSL All Stars vs. Maritimo of Portugal exhibition game last year. The ground and adjacent facilities are some of the best in the league and new lighting and a scoreboard are two of the improvements in recent times. THE COMPETITION All 14 CPSL teams entered the competition in May and two home and away rounds of knockout competition based on the winner advancing on total goals aggregate were played. In keeping with the cup rules, London City were given the Wild Card opportunity to progress to the semi-finals with a one-game knockout.
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