One For the History Books: Guelph United Secures 2021 League1 Championship
November 7th, 2021- Vaughan, Ontario - After 13 games worth of heart-pounding, non-stop action over a delayed 2021 League1 Ontario season, one of the league’s newest sides, Guelph United, has secured their first ever league title and a berth into the 2022 Canadian Championship. A 3-1 over their divisional rivals, the Oakville Blue Devils, the #UnitedFront have secured their place in the L1O history books as the first ever club to win a championship in their inaugural season.
The lead up to this final match up saw Guelph and their Oakville opponents tie in their season series with one win a-piece as Guelph took the first game 5-0 back on August 29th, with the Blue Devils responding on October 17th with a 1-0 victory. The rest of the season would see the two squads place 1st and 2nd in the L1O Men’s West division, sending both squads to the semi-finals. The Semi’s did not disappoint in terms of entertainment as it would take Guelph 90 minutes plus 11 kicks from the spot to lock in their finals berth; a 2-2 draw with the reigning L1O Champs Masters FA sent the game to penalties with the UnitedFront’s Svyatik Artemenko (#1) netting the winning kick. As for the Blue Devils, their path to tonight’s match would see them oust the supposed favourites, Vaughan Azzurri, as the former would win 2-1 over the only undefeated team in the men’s premiership with Leaford Allen (#25) playing the hero for his side.
Tonight’s finals, hosted at the Ontario Soccer Centre brought together two goliath’s of clubs who dominated the West division all season long with their rivalry being the source of much anger on the field, and even a few bookings. However, it wouldn’t take long for Guelph to leave their mark as in the 19th minute, Jace Kotopoulos (#9) would open the scoring with his 16th of the season, all but confirming his Golden Boot title. Jace’s goal would be quickly followed up by Tomasz Skublak’s (#8) 11th of the season in the 26th minute as a beautiful through ball by Dion Stergiotis (#15) gave Skublak the chance to sneak through the Blue Devils’ defence and touch it past Devils keeper Lucas Birnstingl. The match would remain tense and fraught until the 79th minute when a challenge in the penalty area by Devils Captain Victor Gallo (#6) led the referee to point to the spot; the ensuing penalty kick, taken by Kotsopoulos, would seal the fate of the Oakville side as Jace would net his second of the night. Although a 92nd-minute goal by the Blue Devils’ Leaford Allen would break the UnitedFront’s clean sheet, it would not be enough to salvage this match for Oakville’s finest.
After 1,260 minutes, 12 wins, two losses, and one tense penalty shootout, Guelph United FC have earned the right to stitch a star over their crest as they enter the history books as the 2021 League1 Ontario champions. This victory will now see the Guelph side compete against Canada’s best from the PSLQ (D3), MLS (D1), and CanPL (D1) for the 2022 Voyageurs Cup; the draw to determine who Guelph will face in the first round of the Pan-Canadian tournament will be conducted at a later date. victory party will be held to honour and celebrate the victorious side and to thank all of Guelph United’s loyal fans in our inaugural season. Keep an eye on the UnitedFront’s social media’s and website for more details!