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It’s the big one! North Toronto take on FC London in an all-Premier Division clash for the Women’s L1 Cup.

The Women’s L1 Cup Final on Wednesday, July 31 will see two top-flight teams, North Toronto and FC London, taking to the field at Ontario Soccer Centre to be the first team to win the competition’s silverware since 2018.

Here’s a breakdown on the two finalists.

Road to the final: North Toronto

North Toronto have had an impressive run-up to the final. They have shown defensive excellence in the cup, only conceding one goal, but await arguably their biggest challenge in the competition in a high-flying FC London side.

After a bye in the First Round, North Toronto overcame Alliance United 1-0 in the Round of 16 thanks to a 73rd-minute Kaia Rice goal. Then, with a goal from Ivymae Perez and a penalty from the ever-reliable Jade Kovacevic, they knocked out a challenging Woodbridge Strikers side 2-0 in the quarterfinals.

North Toronto secured their place in the final in extremely dominant fashion – a 9-1 victory over Darby that ended the Championship side’s impressive cup run and chances of glory. Goals came from five different scorers with Kovacevic scoring a hat-trick and Rice netting a brace.

Road to the final: FC London

Like their opposition, FC London have also conceded only one goal in the Women’s L1 Cup. Their eye-catching run began by cruising their way into the quarterfinals with a dominant 4-0 display over BVB IA Waterloo, with a Julia Benati brace.

A mixed run of league form did not impact their performance in the cup as they dismantled Guelph United 4-1, conceding only in the 74th minute after already being four goals to the good.

The semifinals brought a tighter scoreline against Simcoe County Rovers as Benati and Ally Rowe scored to place FC London within touching distance of L1 Cup silverware once again, having previously lifted this trophy in 2017 alongside their second of four Women’s Premier Division titles.

Last meeting

The two sides last clashed in June in the Women’s Premier Division, and North Toronto overcame FC London 3-0. Jade Kovacevic opened the scoring early in the fifth minute, leading the visitors into a one-goal advantage at the break.

Quintin Tostevin then found the net in the 48th minute before Kovacevic got her second 23 minutes later. It was all too late for a comeback, but Kimee Liu came up with the consolation goal to give the home crowd something to celebrate.

FC London however have gone on and won every game since in the division and cup competition, with North Toronto losing their last two matches heading into the final.

Key player: Jade Kovacevic (North Toronto)

The forward is the second-top goalscorer in the Women’s Premier Division with 15 goals and has also turned up the heat in the L1 Cup with four goals in the competition so far.

It is also worth remembering that Kovacevic was responsible for putting two past FC London in their last meeting, so it will be interesting to see if she can have the same impact in the final.

Key player: Julia Benati (FC London)

Benati is joint-third in the Women’s Premier Division scoring charts, netting 11 times this season for FC London while pulling the strings in the middle of the park.

Her cup form does not differ from Kovacevic as she has also scored four goals in the competition, and proved to have an effective partnership with striker Ally Rowe.