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Vaughan Only One Point Away From Winning East Division After 5-1 Result Over Aurora

By Anthony Gallo, 09/18/16, 3:00PM EDT

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Vaughan Azzurri were able to keep a strong hold on first place in League1 Ontario's east division, with their 5-1 win over Aurora United FC.

A brace from Jason Mills (16', 52') and goals from Joseph Di Chiara (73'), Mario Kovacevic (79') and Jarek Whiteman (84') were the difference over a young Aurora United team.

The Azzurri dominated possession in the first, holding Aurora to very few shots and chances, and keeping the ball in Aurora's defensive third.

Jason Mills was able to give his side the early lead off a cross that found him in the box, as he fired a shot over Aurora's Alexander Jakma.

Mills was not done yet, scoring his second of the night after weaving through the United backline and keeper in the box and later rocketing a shot over everybody.

Aurora were able to pull one back two minutes after Mills' goal, but after some tactical changes, Vaughan once again took over and didn’t look back.

Azzurri head coach Carmine Isacco said after the match that he didn't have tell his team much to get them fired up, mentioning that they know they need wins to clinch first in the east.

"We didn’t have to tell them much. We have a veteran team out there today, [and] they got the job done," said Isacco.

The Azzurri coach said he would've liked his team to score more frequently in the first, but did praise the whole team's effort. Isacco also singled out the fantastic play of Joseph Di Chiara, who helped give his side a two goal lead late in the game.

"The third goal was fantastic. He [Di Chiara] is a pro, he should be somewhere else other than here and hopefully sooner than later he gets more opportunities," said Isacco.

Di Chiara was able to grab his fourth goal of the season off a nice run down the right side, pulling the ball back with his right and switching to his left, rifling a curling shot top corner over the Aurora keeper.

Aurora did have a much younger squad compared to Vaughan, bringing in six new players and having the majority of their U-21 team with them.

Aurora coach Don Ferguson, who coaches the Aurora United U-21 side, said after the match that even with result not going their way, he was very pleased with how his younger team coped with a strong Azzurri side.

"I can't say any bad things about our team. I thought our team did very well today and I am very proud of the young fellas."

"I thought we played some nice football today. We had some young players in today, our under 17 team, and they did very well."

When asked about what he thought  the momentum for his side after recent callup Conor Woodroffe scored his first League1 Ontario goal, Ferguson said the change in tactics allowed the away side to counter more easily.

"Once that third goal went in, we made some changes and changed a bit of the formation and that made a difference, they [Vaughan Azzurri] started to dominate."

With their win over Aurora, Vaughan needs a single point to clinch first position in the east division and book a place in the League1 Ontario Men's Championship Final on October 15.