The North York Rockets were a professional soccer team based in North York,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

that competed in the original Canadian Soccer League. They were one of four teams to participate in every season of the CSL. Upon the demise of the CSL, the Rockets joined the

Canadian National Soccer League The National Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada that existed from 1926 to 1997. Teams were primarily based in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The league was renamed to Canadian National Soccer League in 1993 following the foldi ...

History

Canadian Soccer League

The North York Rockets were formed by a group consisting of Gus Mandarino, Basil Policaro, Tony Ciamarra, Joe D'Urzo, Mario Rollo, and Mario Giangioppo to play in the inaugural season of the Canadian Soccer League in 1987. In their debut league match, the Rockets tied the Toronto Blizzard, by a score of 1-1. The Rockets's best result came in 1991 when they defeated the

Nova Scotia Clippers The Nova Scotia Clippers were a professional soccer team based in the original Canadian Soccer League. They were based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, but played their matches in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia at Beazley Field. They played only a single season ...

with a 9-1 goal aggregate to advance to the league cup semi-finals. The Rockets struggled in their first season, winning only one match, en route to a 1-7-12 record, finishing last in the league. The Rockets improved in the following seasons, qualifying for the playoffs in each of the next three seasons, although they were defeated in the first round of the playoffs each year. During the 1991 season, the Rockets finished third in the league, qualifying for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. The won their first and only CSL playoff series when they defeated the

by an aggregate score of 9-1 (5-1 and 4-0 victories), but were defeated in the semi-finals by city rival Toronto Blizzard. During the 1992 season, the Rockets finished in second place in the regular season, six points behind league leaders

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, but were once again defeated in the first round of the playoffs by eventual champions

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

Canadian National Soccer League

Following the folding of the CSL after the 1992 season, the Rockets joined the semi-professional

for the 1993 season, becoming known as the Toronto Rockets. They finished in first place in the Western Conference (and in he overall league table), qualifying for the playoffs where they defeated London City and Montreal Croatia in the first two rounds, but were defeated by St. Catharines Roma in the championship final.

American Professional Soccer League

After the 1993 season, the Toronto Blizzard, who had joined the US-based American Professional Soccer League in 1993, folded and were replaced by the Rockets, who inherited some of the Blizzard players and played under the name

Toronto Rockets The Toronto Rocket (TR) train is the fifth and latest series of rolling stock used in the Toronto subway system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Owned and operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), the trains were built by Bombardier Transpo ...

. The Rockets finished in last place with a 5-15 record, as well as the worst attendance in the league, drawing in fewer than 1500 fans per match. The club had planned to return for the 1995 season, but withdrew only days before the start of the 1995 season, due to a financial dispute with the league's front office.

Seasons

as North York Rockets as Toronto Rockets

Notable players

References

Resource

North York Rockets Official Program
{{Canadian National Soccer League Canadian National Soccer League teams Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992) teams Defunct soccer clubs in Canada Soccer clubs in Toronto North York