For the third time in six seasons, the Blue Devils FC's men head to the League1 Ontario Final. This season's grand showcase features a high octane match-up between the Blue Devils FC and Guelph United, whose style of play is very similar.
Speed and strength will be on display, with dashes of magic sprinkled in between as these two evenly matched squads do battle for the third time this season.
At the first match in Oakville, things took a turn for the worse early on for the Blue Devils. Defensive midfielder Marcus Channer was forced to leave the pitch, pouring blood from a massive cut across his brow. Before the Blue Devils could get a player on to replace him, the visitors capitalized on their numbers advantage and raced up the field to score. A bewildered Blue Devils' side drifted through the rest of the game like phantoms. By the time the final whistle had blown, Guelph's three-pronged attack of Alex Zis, Jace Katsopolous, and Tomaz Skublak had put five unanswered goals past Luke Birnstingl.
"Anything that could go wrong, went wrong," lamented Head Coach Duncan Wilde after the match. "It happens in football, you know, we didn't bring our gameplan at all, and they played the very best gameplan I think they could have laid down."
After that match, the players banded together and promised each other that losing would not happen again. The loss also gave Head Coach Duncan Wilde pause to think about bringing in some reinforcements.
Ahead of the next match-up with Guelph, an away game for the Blue Devils, Wilde negotiated the return of attacking midfielder David Valestegui who was on the team in 2015, and the addition of centre back Adam Czerkawski, captain of 2019 Champions - Masters FA.
By the time the two teams met again at the University of Guelph stadium, the new additions had fully integrated. They would prove vital in the ensuing 1-0 victory. Czerkawski helped the back line completely shut down Guelph's attack, while the lone goal in the match would come from a 40-yard diagonal ball from Valestegui to Mathew Santos. The long pass caught Guelph on the wrong foot. Santos put a ball on a platter for club-leading goalscorer Leaford Allen with several players out of position. The 26-year-old deftly leveraged his body weight on the defender to turn on him and guide the ball over the line—poetry in motion.
Guelph has not only been dangerous in attacking but also challenging to score on. Svyatik Artemenko has been outstanding in goal. He allowed 1.25 goals per game, good enough for third in the league, just behind Luke Birnstingl with 1.22. Had Artemenko not made an early stop from point-blank range in the first game, maybe things might have been different. His legend grew even more last week, as he scored the game-winning penalty goal in an 11-round penalty shootout with defending champions Masters FA in the semi-finals. However, the loss of Alex Zis through injury will leave Guelph feeling a little short-handed, as he is a major cog in their offensive machine and did severe damage in the first game. The Guelph strategy of isolating the midfielder on the right side of the pitch, dragging players out of position was difficult for the Blue Devils to counteract.
"I think that if we're on top of our game, and we do our part and have the same intensity we have every day in training, with the same desire, I think it will be more a question of what will they do?" - Victor Gallo, Blue Devils FC Captain.
A birth in the 2022 Canadian Championship awaits the winners of this game and the chance to take the pitch against one of Canada's 11 professional sides. The League1 Ontario Men's Championship game will be held at the Ontario Soccer Centre Stadium in Woodbridge with a 4 pm kickoff. The Blue Devils Women will be taking on Woodbridge at 7 pm following the conclusion of the men's match. Both games will be streamed live for those who are unable to attend in person. Please go to www.league1ontario.com for further details on the broadcast or ticket purchase.