The drive for five is finally complete. With a 6-0 victory over the Sheridan Bruins at the neutral site of Trent University, the Algonquin Thunder men’s soccer team is heading back to the National Championship tournament, a place they can call familiar territory.

Starting the championship at the friendly confines of the Thunder Yards, the team from Ottawa started their drive versus a tenacious St. Clair team from Windsor in their semi-final. “Against St. Clair, we just were not as focused as we needed to be,” recalled Algonquin Captain Mike Gagliano in reference to their 2-1 victory. “They won all of the battles and I really believe now that good teams find a way to win, because that is what we had to do to get by them.”

Prior to their championship final game, the skies in Ottawa opened up and caused the fields to be deemed unplayable and forcing the game to be relocated to the neutral site, eliminating the home turf advantage. While the rain may have wreaked havoc in Ottawa, Peterborough brought its own set of element issues. Wind to be exact. Cold, blustery winds.

It could have been a case of déjà vu for Algonquin. One year ago they found themselves in a similar situation when the National Championship game in Halifax was snowed out and the game needed to be rescheduled to a neutral site. In that game, they lost a heartbreaker in penalty kicks after holding a lead heading into extra time of the overtime.

“The game today was very similar to last year; we were missing a coach because Kwesi (Loney) couldn’t make it, we had the same bus driver from last year, it seemed like the same everything,” said Gagliano who had obviously thought about the parallels. “I was thinking about playing here and it was a huge bother for me coming into this game. I felt like I needed to avenge the loss form a year ago when I missed the penalty kick that ended the game. I wanted to get a win here (at Trent).”

This championship would not hold the same drama as Algonquin controlled the play in the first half and the Championship Final when scoring opened off the boot of Tournament All-Star Loui Legakis when he found the back of the net at the 18:20 mark. Legakis followed up his opening tally with the second goal of the game at the 37:00 minute mark. Edgar Soglo also found the back of the net to conclude the first half scoring in extra time, giving the Thunder a 3-0 lead heading into the break.

The second half saw a Sheridan Bruins team returned to the pitch with a renewed composure and the young team from Brampton/Oakville turned up the pressure on the Thunder, making the defending champs also step up their play. “Sheridan gave us a good game although the scoreboard didn’t show it,” said Legakis of Sheridan’s play. “I expect them to be better again next year. Once they settled down after the first half, they played right there with us.”

Despite the additional pressure, the Bruins were unable to contain the OCAA Player of the Year, Will Beauge as the third year player broke out and scored the first two goals of the second half. Corey O’Connell concluded the game’s scoring, solidifying Algonquin’s fifth consecutive provincial championship.

“We just didn’t come out to play from the opening whistle,” said a humble Sheridan Head Coach Tony Silvestri. “When you are playing an experienced team like Algonquin, who has won four championships in a row, it is hard to knock them off of that pedestal. We have brought this team a long way, but today experience won out over our youth. Next year we are hoping to keep all of our players and hopefully we will be on the winning side next year.”

This Algonquin team, who has been referred to as the deepest team they have ever assembled, would not be denied again. “I was really happy with how we played today,” said an elated Gagliano. “We were lights out. This season it took us a while to find a good balance on the team. Now we finally know exactly where we are as a team. We have battled injuries all season and we had to roll through different line ups in every game. Now we finally have momentum and everyone is feeling it.”

The drive for five was not the only history made with the victory. 2006-07 OCAA Athlete of the Year, Loui Legakis, and teammates Tristan Roscoe and Stephan LeMay, now have provincial championship rings for each finger on one of their hands, becoming the only OCAA athletes ever to earn five championships in a league sport. They now has an opportunity to earn their fifth national championship medals at Thompson River University in Kamloops, BC next week. “Of all of my championships, I think this one feels the best,” said Legakis, who found it hard to put the accomplishment into perspective. “We lost last year at Nationals when we thought we should have won. We wanted nothing more than to win this year and have a chance to redeem ourselves.”

Legakis, LeMay and Roscoe are not the only Thunder playerswho will not be returning next year. When Beauge suits up for the Thunder in BC, it too may be his last time in the blue and silver. He will be attending the MLS Professional Soccer Combine Camp in North Carolina this December with hopes of earning his chance to play at the next level. “I want to leave Algonquin with a big bang. Last year we should have won and we ended our season with a lot of disappointment. I want to redeem myself and now even more since this is my last year,” said the Tournament MVP.

Despite who is coming or going there is one thing for certain… this Algonquin Thunder team is a special group of players who have rallied around their first year Head Coach Mike Caruso, and each other, to reach their goals of winning this years League, Provincial and National championship titles. “We have tough draw at Nationals so we will have to be up for every game. There won’t be any letting up,” said Gagliano. With two goals down and one to go, the Captian simply summed up the attitude of his team heading into Nationals. “Bring it on.”

The Seneca Sting claimed their second consecutive bronze medal in Ottawa on Saturday defeating the St. Clair Saints 6-0.

OCAA Men’s Championship Tournament All-Stars

Algonquin – Loui Legakis
Seneca – Craig Williams
Sheridan – Shaun MacDonald
Algonquin – Tristan Roscoe – Top Goal Keeper

Tournament MVP: Will Beauge

Final Score:
Sheridan 0 Algonquin 6

Scoring:
First Half
Goal 1 - Algonquin scorer Loui Legakis (18:20)
Goal 2 - Algonquin scorer Loui Legakis (37:00)
Goal 3 - Algonquin scorer Edgar Soglo (Extra time)

Second Half
Goal 4 - Algonquin scorer Will Beague (60:00)
Goal 5 - Algonquin scorer Will Beague (80:00)
Goal 6 - Algonquin scorer Corey O'Connell (86:00)