Oakville Blue Devils and East York Soccer Club were neck-in-neck for the U16 Boys 2023 MilkUP Ontario Cup, but it was East York who stepped up to the plate in a penalty shootout winning the match 5 - 4 over Oakville.  

There was no lack of scoring attempts in the first half – most coming from Oakville’s side - but both teams struggled with aim, only getting half of their shots on target.  

Oakville's Jackson Jones made the first scoring attempt in the 9th minute of the game, deflected by East York’s Demetrios Kokkorros. 

While Oakville had the most opportunities of the half, East York had the best one. The intensity built as East York’s George Droulias drove down the field for a shot in the 34th minute, but this time Oakville’s Brennan Restorick was ready for the big save.  

Oakville met that with another big scoring opportunity from Jackson Jones in the 38th minute, but he aimed slightly too far left, missing the net by a few feet. Sebatian Del Bono tried again for Oakville in the 43rd minute, but Kokkorros was ready again, tipping it with his foot 

After a few more attempts in the starting minutes of the second half, East York’s Aryan Valadkhani finally opened the scoring in the 69th minute of the match when he smashed a loose ball that fell to him after a long free-kick cross into the box. 

Oakville tied it up in the 88th minute thanks to some beautiful teamwork. Cole Zanel made a pass to Jones, who quickly tipped it over to Cameron Mulrooney. Mulrooney put it straight into the net. 

The game went into penalties as a result of the 1-1 draw. East York won 5-4 thanks to a big save from Kokkorros. 

Visit the 2023 MilkUP Ontario Cup Finals Match Centre for full coverage on all the games this weekend. 

Watch the full game on the Ontario Soccer YouTube Channel.

Visit the Ontario Soccer Facebook page for the full photo album.