The Durham Storm were a Canadian soccer team that last played in the Canadian Professional Soccer League (CPSL) in 2005. The club was founded as the Toronto Olympians in 1998 and played in Toronto, Ontario through 2001, before being renamed the Mississauga Olympians for 2002 and 2003. The team relocated to Oshawa, Ontario in Durham Region for the 2004 and 2005 seasons and was renamed Durham Storm .
33-487: The team won three consecutive regular season championships from 1998 to 2000 and won the league playoffs, earning the CPSL Championship once in 1999. They also finished as regular season runners-up in 2001, and were two-time Rogers Cup finalists in 1998 and 2000. Despite the early success, the team's performance went downhill from 2002 onward, and the franchise eventually folded after the 2005 season. In 1998,
66-559: A perfect season followed by the Toronto Olympians since the 1999 season . After the regular season, the top eight finishers qualify for the play-offs. Those then consist of quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the championship final. Except for the 2007 final, which was contested over two legs, the final is played like one match only. The winner of the Canadian Soccer League 's CSL Championship determines
99-695: A goal coming from Titus. The final was contested between Toronto Olympians and Toronto Croatia, where Croatia upset the Olympians by a score of 2–1. For their efforts Kouzmanis was awarded the Golden Boot for the second time in his career, Bayete Smith was given the Defender of the Year and the team was awarded the Fair Play Award. On June 20, 2001, it was reported that head coach David Gee purchased
132-681: A postseason berth. The club was also eliminated from the Open Canada Cup tournament after losing 2–1 to AEK London, an amateur team; the season would mark an end of era as their status as a powerhouse within the league. For 2004, the club was sold and relocated to the east end of the Greater Toronto Area , moving to Oshawa, Ontario to play out of the Oshawa Civic Stadium . The club would be re-branded again, taking their name from Durham Region (of which Oshawa
165-532: A powerhouse status as both champions and top contenders with the Serbian White Eagles as the prominent challengers. The re-emergence of the White Eagles re-sparked the traditional rivalry between Croatia and Serbia, which caused the 2007 championship final to be divided into two matches to segregate the fans. Toronto Croatia currently holds the record amount of six championships and holds
198-535: A two-game final which involved the Olympians and the St. Catharines Wolves . The first match resulted in a goalless draw, while the second match ended in a 3–0 victory for Toronto. In the postseason the Olympians faced the North York Astros in the semi-finals which concluded in a 5–1 victory for Toronto with goals coming from Daryl Holmes , Berdusco, John Matas, and Kouzmanis. The finals consist of battle between
231-639: Is a part), to become Durham Storm . In their first season in Durham, the club would finish last in the Eastern Conference with a record of 2 wins, 1 draw and 17 losses. Followed by a disappointing season in 2005 finishing last place (6th) in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 1 win, 1 draw and 20 losses. On December 12, 2005, the club had its franchise revoked by the CPSL. Canada Barbados China England New Zealand Saint Vincent and
264-554: Is presented to the individual who has shown allegiance, commitment and support to the league and its member clubs. The Referee of the Year award is voted on by the CSL Referee Committee. The Fair Play and Respect Award is awarded to the club which, in the opinion of the CSL Discipline Committee, has demonstrated good discipline on the field of play and has exhibited a high level of respect for
297-747: Is the most successful team, winning a record sixth cup in 2015 . Throughout its history, the championship has had several title sponsors from the Primus Cup in 2000, the Rogers Cup from 2001 to 2009, and the Givova Cup from 2010 onwards. In the initial years, the championship finals were dominated by Toronto Olympians , and Ottawa Wizards , who had financial support from corporations such as Coffee Time , and Oz Optics Ltd. St. Catharines Wolves , and Toronto Croatia two well-established former Canadian National Soccer League (CNSL) clubs were
330-691: The Canadian Professional Soccer League was formed as a result of a merger between the Canadian National Soccer League and the stillborn Ontario Professional Soccer League with the Toronto Olympians entering the league as a new franchise. The Olympians were owned by Tom Michalopoulos , which as a result allowed the club to receive sponsorship money from Coffee Time which Michalopoulos founded. The organization brought in former Toronto Lynx general manager and assistant coach David Gee to coach
363-487: The Montreal Impact . The 1999 season was a repeat of the previous year with Toronto recapturing the regular season championship once more while making history by becoming the first club in the CPSL to go undefeated two consecutive seasons. Four of Toronto's players led the scoring charts with Berdusco leading while Kouzmanis, Thomas, and Matas taking the rest of the top four positions. The club finished once more with
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#1732801674544396-600: The Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago Rogers Cup (soccer) The Canadian Soccer League championship final or CSL Championship is the post-season match of the Canadian Soccer League (CSL) and is the successor to the CNSL Championship . The winner is crowned champion in the same manner as in other North American sports leagues (i.e. via a playoff following a regular season ). This differs from other top soccer leagues around
429-819: The attainment established the Scarborough side as a powerhouse within the league. At the CPSL Awards Banquet the Toronto Olympians received four awards – the organization received the Fair Play Award, David Gee for a consecutive year received the Coach of the Year, Elvis Thomas received the Canadian Soccer League MVP Award and Eddy Berdusco won the CPSL Golden Boot. While Elvis Thomas made history by holding
462-436: The best offensive and defensive record in the league. The Olympians defended their Open Canada Cup title successfully by defeating Toronto Croatia by a score of 3–0. They would face Toronto Croatia again this time in the playoff final where the Olympians would mark another milestone in CPSL history by becoming the first club to win a treble within the league. The match resulted in a 2–0 victory with goals from Thomas and Handsor,
495-462: The club from Coffee Time Donuts meanwhile retaining his position as head coach and general manager. He announced plans to move the franchise to Mississauga after struggling to gain revenue from ticket sales. Throughout the season the Olympians failed to recapture any of the major trophies finishing second behind the Ottawa Wizards in the standings. In the postseason Toronto was eliminated in
528-470: The distinction of being first CPSL player to be called up for the Canadian national soccer team , while playing in the league. The 2000 season marked more achievements for the club by successfully defending their three consecutive regular season titles, and still maintaining the best offensive and defensive record. The Olympians would win the double once more by successfully defending the Open Canada Cup for
561-417: The distinction of being the first club to successfully defend the title in two consecutive seasons from 2014 till 2015. As the league expanded beyond the Greater Toronto Area and Ontario border a television agreement was reached with Rogers TV , which granted the company naming rights to the championship. In 2010, Givova became the title sponsor for the league and championship. Meanwhile, another milestone
594-617: The end of the season with the exception in 2008 , 2009 , and 2010 where they were given out before the CSL Championship final. In 2010, the league began distributing awards to the Second Division for the first time. The league's MVP award. The Golden Boot is the league's leading scorer. First introduced in 2004 as the CPSL President's Award, but was renamed in 2006 in honor of Harry Gauss . The award
627-594: The first and second place teams St. Catharines and Toronto – the match finished as a 2–2 draw which led to penalties where the Wolves denied the Olympians the chance of a treble by winning the game 4–2 in a penalty shootout. At the conclusion of the season Gus Kouzmanis was awarded the CSL Golden Boot and David Gee received the Coach of the Year at the CPSL Awards Banquet. For the 1999 season Gee signed Canadian international Elvis Thomas and Phil Caporella from
660-487: The following season after defeating the Olympians 2–0. In 2000, the championship received its first title sponsorship from Primus and witnessed the emergence of the Ottawa Wizards after the league's major expansion run in 2001. The heavily invested Wizards would dominate the next three seasons with an eventual championship in 2002. After a series of disputes with the CPSL board of directors, Ottawa withdrew from
693-466: The game four times during their history. Canadian Soccer League MVP Award The Canadian Soccer League Awards is an annual awards ceremony for several individual performances at the end of the season. The event was established in 1998, when the Canadian National Soccer League merged with the stillborn Ontario Professional Soccer League to form the Canadian Professional Soccer League . The ceremony has been traditionally held at awards banquet at
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#1732801674544726-480: The nascent league the Scarborough side dominated the season going undefeated and posting the best goal scoring record and as well the fewest goals conceded. Kouzmanis, Berdusco, and Gong Lei each finished as the top three goalscorers for the season. Their undefeated season resulted in a double which included the regular season championship and the Open Canada Cup . The Open Canada Cup finals was played out in
759-655: The newly franchise. Gee's roster consist of a mixture of CNSL alumni and players with USL A-League experience. He brought in the likes of Eddy Berdusco , Dino Lopez , Loukas Papaconstantinou – former Lynx players Gong Lei , Ian Carter , Peyvand Mossavat , and the Toronto Supra 's 1997 championship finalist squad players Paul Moore , Chris Handsor , and Gus Kouzmanis . The newly formed club received territorial rights in Scarborough and would call Birchmount stadium their home venue. In their debut season in
792-541: The playoff competition after securing an undefeated regular season in 2003. As a result, this created an opportunity for various clubs to contend for the championship with the Brampton Hitmen claiming the title. After the decline and departure of the Olympians, Wizards, and Wolves a shift occurred with Croatia and York Region Shooters (then as the Vaughan Shooters, later as Italia Shooters) achieving
825-519: The prominent challengers in the early years. The inaugural championship was contested between the 1997 CNSL champions St. Catharines and Toronto Olympians with the Wolves securing the title in a penalty shootout. St. Catharines would conclude their golden decade in 2001 with their second championship acquired against Toronto Supra . While the Olympians appeared in the first three CPSL Championship finals, but only managed one victory in 1999 against Toronto Croatia. The Croatians would avenge their defeat
858-687: The road. As the City of Mississauga prevented the team from using the change rooms at Erin Mills Twin Arenas due to renovations. New additions were added to the club as Gee resigned from his position as head coach and transferred the responsibilities to Darren Tilley and CPSL's 1999 Coach of the Year Tony Laferrara. The Olympians struggled on the field as they finished second last in the Western Conference failing to secure
891-497: The season was spent battling for the Western Conference title between Toronto Croatia. Mississauga would receive reinforcements during the later half of the season in player loans from the Toronto Lynx – receiving Barbados international Ryan Lucas , David Diplacido , Adrian Serioux , Shawn Faria , Brian Ashton , and signing Trinidad and Tobago international Hayden Fitzwilliams . The Olympians would eventually finish second in
924-432: The season's league champion. The playoff tournament is organized by the league after the regular season in a format similar to other North American professional sports leagues . The first CSL Championship final was played on October 14, 1998. As of 2017, the record for the most championships is held by Toronto Croatia with six cup titles. The record for the most championships lost is held by Scarborough SC , who lost
957-606: The semi-finals by Toronto Supra by a score 3–2. They featured in a Consolation Final match against Ottawa and won the match 5–2. In 2002, the move to Mississauga was completed and their home venue was relocated to Erin Mills Twin Arenas. Gee made several major changes to the roster replacing the majority of veterans with younger athletes. He would retain the likes of Darren Tilley, Paul Moore and Daryl Holmes, while signing promising players like Marko Bendenikovic , Kevin De Surpa , Aaron Benjamin , and Joevannie Peart . The majority of
990-550: The standings and qualified for a playoff berth. Their postseason came to a quick conclusion by being defeated by the North York Astros by a score of 3–0. At the CPSL Awards Banquet the club received the Fair Play Award, while Darren Tilley was awarded the Golden Boot and the CPSL Rookie of the Year. The 2003 season brought further troubles for the organization as the club was forced to play all their home matches on
1023-477: The third consecutive season. In the finals Toronto would face St. Catharines and win the match by a score of 1–0, thus establishing a dynasty for the club. For the postseason Gee strengthen his squad with players like Darren Tilley , and Trinidad and Tobago internationals Densill Theobald and Rick Titus . In the semi-finals the team faced the Glen Shields Sun Devils and won the match 1–0 with
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1056-578: The world which consider the club with the most points at the end of the season to be the sole champion. It is a Non-FIFA championship match that was previously sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) but is now affiliated with the Soccer Federation of Canada (SFC). The league hosted its inaugural championship, on October 14, 1998. The CSL Championship is traditionally held in early October. Toronto Croatia
1089-476: Was achieved by Trois-Rivières Attak the farm team to the Montreal Impact as it became the first Quebec club to capture the championship in 2009 after defeating Serbia in a 3-2 penalty shootout. Other single champions have included the likes of the Oakville Blue Devils , Brantford Galaxy , and SC Waterloo Region . In 2014, York Region became the second club in the league's history to produce
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