Ahead of this year's Canadian Premier League U-Sports Draft 199 students have declared themselves eligible for the selection process.
This year expansion side Vancouver FC will get the first two picks, in the first round.
Last year, former Oakville Soccer Club Midfielder Raine Lyn was drafted 4th overall by Valour FC of Winnipeg. He participated in pre-season training, but was not signed to the first team, later returning to the University of Cape Breton where he featured in 11 matches for the Capers.
This year there are 11 players who have past or presesnt connections to Blue Devils FC and the Blue Devils Academy. Oakville News caught up with Blue Devils Head Coach Duncan Wilde for insights on each player.
Mario McLennon - Toronto Metropolitan - Right Wing Back who spent half a season with Prostars this season before returning to the Blue Devils FC. Featured in reserves for several seasons, before making his way to the first team. Transferred to St. Francis University from Huntington in 2020 but was unable to play.
Mario returned to Canada and helped lead the Toronto Metropolitan University Men to the OUA Final where they lost to McMaster and an appearance at the U-Spots National Championships in Kamloops.
“He’s a 90-minute player” according to Blue Devils Head Coach Duncan Wilde, who continues to call him “combative and reliable”.
Luka Frankovich - Waterloo - Left Back - Luka really took his game to the next level in 2022. After receiving limited minutes in the previous season, he really made an impact as a regular starter for the Blue Devils this year. Duncan believes Luka is “the strongest left back in the league”.
Standing at a sturdy 6’0 he is a physically dominating presence on the back line, able to play multiple roles on the left side, defensively, and is incredibly versatile. Went the full 90 minutes in 16 of the 22 matches he played in League1 this season.
Ethan Cagalj - McMaster - Goal Keeper - Was named the BioSteel Maurader Male Athlete of the Week, on November 7th. Stopped 4 shots in the OUA Final. A keeper who is outstanding with his feet. His ability to get the ball back into play and find his teammates with a crisp pass is top-tier. According to Wilde “he’s probably got the best ball distribution I’ve seen in a young goalkeeper in quite a long time” continuing on to say, “he’s got more accuracy with his feet than some of my first team (outfield) players.”
He featured in 4 matches for the Blue Devils Premier Division season and only allowed a single goal during that time. He has spent several years in the Blue Devils Academy training with League1 Ontario starting goalkeeper Luke Birnstingl and goalkeeper coach Glen MacNamara.
He will be joining Hamilton United in 2023 to feature in a starting role as he looks to get more first-team experience.
Justin Baker- McMaster - Wide Midfielder - Spent a short period with the Blue Devils before heading to Simon Fraser University. Following Covid, he returned east and joined the Mauraders. A crafty midfielder with a deft touch on the ball. Very technical and able to use his low centre of gravity to move past opponents.
Matheus Mello - Waterloo - Midfielder - Played with the Blue Devils in 2022, Wilde calls him a “very technical” central midfield player with “great vision, and great range of passing.” He featured heavily for the Blue Devils this past year playing in 14 matches.
Sam Diltz - Goalkeeper- This 6’5, 205 lbs specimen joined the program in 2022 and then went on to lead St. FX to the Atlantic University Sports Finals in 2022. The X-Men lost to Toronto Metropolitan University in the Consolation Semi-Finals of the National Championship in Kamloops. “For a big man, he has great reaction times” allowing him to have the makings of a future professional, according to Duncan.
Diltz started this year with the Simcoe County Rovers before moving over to the Blue Devils and playing under Jordan MacMillan with the Reserve team. He will challenge for a starting spot on the Premier Division squad in 2023.
Farris Ammari - University of Toronto - Wide Midfielder - “He has pace, he attacks people, he disorganizes the back four, because he can attack from outside-in, and inside-out.” His movement and pace make him a tantalizing option for any offence.
Following a season in the reserves and then with the Blue Devils' first team, he moved out to Prostars for the 2022 Season. There he was one of the most dynamic attackers in the league. He helped Prostars to their highest points total in club history and a game in the playoffs.
Miles Green - McMaster - Striker - Miles was a member of the Blue Devils Senior Academy. He never suited up for the Premier Division Blue Devils, where he was an attacking midfielder. Wilde says that he is “dominant on the left side” and “very creative”. Miles was tied for Golden Boot in League1 Ontario this season netting 23 Goals in 20 matches with Hamilton United. He scored 6 Goals, and had three assists, in 7 Games for McMaster in the 2022 OUA Season.
Sebastian Guerrieri - Waterloo - Forward - Guerrieri played with Hamilton United in Leauge1 this season. Started with the Toronto Lynx Academy before the Lynx moved to Oakville, and graduated into the Blue Devils Reserve Team. Another dynamic attacker moved on to gain more experience. Gerreiri finished the USports Season with 12 Goals in 14 games for the Warriors.
Amir Shirazi - McMaster - Wide Midfielder- Amir played at Lynx and continued with the Blue Devils, attended the Annual Las Vegas Mayors Tournament with the Blue Devils before moving to join Sigma. He is from Oakville and was with the Blue Devils at the same time as Miles Green. Scored 11 Goals in 19 games with Hamilton United in League1 Ontario this season. Wilde believes that he has “improved tremendously, in the last 12 months” going on to say “he’ll be a player to watch in 2023”
Perry Zorbas- Waterloo - Right Back Played in the academy with Billy Steele, his father was a member of the Blue Devils Coaching Staff. He played with the Blue Devils Reserve team. Duncan says that Perry is “a good 1-1 defender” with “good positional sense”.
He left the academy to do his last bit of high school in Florida and has come back to play in League1 last year with Hamilton United.
The CPL U-Sports Draft will take place on Thursday December 15th at 3pm ET. You can watch it live on the Canadian Premier League's Youtube Channel