2002 Canadian Professional Soccer League season
| Season | 2002 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Ottawa Wizards |
| Regular Season title |
Ottawa Wizards (Eastern Conference) Toronto Croatia(Western Conference) |
| Matches played | 133 |
| Goals scored | 456 (3.43 per match) |
| Top goalscorer |
 Darren Tilley (Mississauga Olympians) |
| Biggest home win | OW 8-1 SCW |
| Biggest away win | NYA 0-8 MO |
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← 2001
2003 →
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The 2002 Canadian Professional Soccer League season was the fifth season for the Canadian Professional Soccer League. The season began on May 23, 2002 and concluded on October 20, 2002 with Ottawa Wizards becoming the first expansion franchise to win the CPSL Championship (known as the Rogers CPSL Cup for sponsorship reasons) by defeating the North York Astros 2-0. For the first time the final was hosted at Esther Shiner Stadium, which granted the hosts the North York Astros a wildcard match. As the league was divided into the Eastern and Western Conferences the Wizards clinched the Eastern title, while Toronto Croatia won the Western Conference. The expansion of the league saw the return of professional soccer to Hamilton, and the addition of another Toronto franchise. On February 26, 2002 the CPSL signed a player agreement deal with the Toronto Lynx of the USL A-League, which provided the Lynx access in order to use CPSL talent and provide players an opportunity to play at a higher level.
For the second straight season the CPSL expanded to 14 clubs to include the Hamilton Thunder and Metro Lions. Due to the increase of teams the CPSL management split the league into two Conferences the Eastern and Western. The Toronto Olympians moved to Erin Mills, Mississauga, which opened the Scarborough territory to the Metro Lions. Changes occurred in the York Region territory with Glen Shields changing their team name to Vaughan Sun Devils in order to fully represent the city of Vaughan. Meanwhile, their rivals the York Region Shooters were sold to Tony De Thomasis, and relocated the team to their original home at Highland Park in Aurora. While former Hamilton Bulldogs president Cary Kaplan was hired as a Management Consultant for the league.
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