Another match day has come and gone. While the world is buzzing about Club World Cup this and Concacaf Gold Cup that, why not tuck into a bit of Canadian Premier League action before the weekend?
This past week, the walkout and playing of the Canadian anthem was done with the players wearing some very pretty “One Year Out” shirts, in preparation for the World Cup next year.
Halifax vs. Cavalry (1-1)
With prematch festivities out of the way, the two teams turned their attentions to a more pressing matter: Cavalry maintaining their strong streak and Wanderers looking to make a statement at home.
The Halifax formation has changed a little in each of their last games, this time placing Tiago Coimbra and Ryan Telfer up front, while Cavalry kept their spearhead of Tobias Warschewski, Ali Musse, and Jay Herdman, with Sergio Camargo coming up in the front this time.
The Wanderers made an early statement as a long punt forward found Coimbra and after a quick dodge, he found himself behind the Cavalry goal keeper, 1-0 at 8 minutes and barely a sweat broken. This seemed to have rattled Cavalry some, who took a while to get their composure back, tussling with a highly confident Wanderers side that proved more than up to the task of getting stuck in physically, as Halifax kept Cavalry from asserting themselves until very late in the first half.
The Cavs struggled to decisively pick apart the Wanderers defensive position, with attempts at drawing them out of position not quite paying off. Musse put in a serious shift working the flanks while Warchewski at times felt neutralized by the defence. However, half time would give Cavalry a chance to regroup.
A 1 goal lead is a precarious thing and when a team has been able to establish a lock on a nominally stronger team, the halftime break is often very dangerous. After a pair of hair raising chances immediately after the whistle blew (much to the chagrin of Warschewski who had an outstanding chance blocked), the game settled back into a more even back and forth, before a volley of attempts allowed Cavalry to equalise the affair 1-1 courtesy of Caniggia Elva.
With a win snatched from them, Halifax kept up a technically solid game, with the Cavs often feeling a bit disorganised in their drives. Despite the Wanderers throwing themselves at the Cavalry goal in the final minutes, victory was denied. Each team would take a single point home. A result that perhaps aggravates more than a loss, given the current standings.
Pacific vs. York (1-3)
With both teams tussling for the 5th spot and Pacific with a rather difficult run in their recent games, it was going to be a hotly contested match with conventional formations on each side (4-3-3 for Pacific, 3-4-3 for York).
The plan for Pacific appeared to be to manoeuvre the ball to Marco Bustos and use him as a launching point, as well as relying on his accuracy when taking set pieces. However, breakthrough would come from Aly Ndom, catching the ball as it bounced off a block and hammering it home at range, giving the Tridents an early 1-0 lead (and breaking a 4 game scoreless run, no doubt to considerable relief).
Pacific put up a sturdy and pretty energetic performance, but York’s greater footwork did begin to tell as the half wore on, though they were not able to convert this into much in the way of chances. Julian Altobelli fired off a few but the Pacific keeper was only obliged to work up a sweat once in the half. The whistle blew with Pacific hoping to hang on to their narrow lead and with tempers a bit frayed from a chippy experience, Pacific inflicting 10 fouls. Fans might debate whether they were deprived of a deserved penalty kick as well, or whether it was embellished and rightfully not awarded.
As a wise man has said, it’s the hope that kills you. Or in the case of Pacific, it turned out to be a combination of Luca Accettola at 52 minutes and Riley Ferrazzo at 60 minutes, leading to a 2-1 York lead. The latter goal happening in a moment of disarray as Pacific allowed both him and Altobelli to move freely in the penalty box.
Faced with another uphill battle, Pacific immediately called for substitutions with Josh Heard coming on in place of Bustos. I must admit, this was a sub that seemed puzzling, unless Bustos was nursing an injury that was not evident on camera, as Bustos seemed to be holding together most of the offensive effort. Heard would work hard in the position, but only minutes later, Pacific’s fate was sealed as Orlando Botello stole the ball in the midfield and fired it in from long range. 3-1 and a Pacific side left in disarray.
The final minutes saw desperate effort with the best chance for the Tridents coming, as Heard fired in a cross to find an attacker, which narrowly missed its mark. It was certainly not for lack of hard work on their side, but Pacific would walk to the locker rooms with another defeat on their record. The author would also like to note some rather questionable calls on behalf of the referee team, as more than one blatant foul appeared to go unnoticed.
Vancouver vs. Forge (0-2)
A game of contrasts, with Vancouver having to look back 5 matches for their last win, while Forge has not yet lost a game this season. The burden was certainly on the Eagles to pull something together, while the focus for Forge is on securing points to keep pace compared to Cavalry.
The first half from the perspective of Forge then was a mostly usual affair: Systematic play with a heavy focus on controlling the midfield and not allowing too many attempts in their own end. The biggest criticism is that despite a number of chances, accuracy in finishing just did not seem to be there, with a few obvious chances going by. Overconfidence? Bad luck? It is safe to be critical of a team that played a better half, but it is hard not to feel like Forge wasted their potential a little here.
On the Vancouver side of things, despite an initial burst of energy of Kunle Dada-Luke (who successfully appealed his suspension after his recent red card and thus was able to play) on the right flank, the team felt like they were lacking in initiative. It was often difficult to break out of their own half and the couple of attempts were quickly disarmed. This resulted in a side often playing back to the keeper for lack of a better option, with the flanking players getting little service or opportunity. Combined with a somewhat chaotic defence, saved by Forge just not having precision today, a scoreless first half did not bode well for the second, from VFC’s perspective.
The second half saw Forge pull ahead as an unmarked Kyle Bekker nailed a goal at 51 minutes. Despite this setback, Vancouver seemed to have a bit more spirit as the half wore on, though the coordination kept coming up short. As frustrations mounted, Vasco Fry committed a foul on Nana Ampomah, granting Forge a penalty kick and a 2-0 lead. Once more, a Vancouver side with nothing to show, and once more a Forge side with a clean sheet.
Ottawa vs. Valour (3-0)
Valour was going into this match with a mixed form, but against a team that beat them 5-2 the last time they faced off, and in their home fortress to boot. In spite of that, the visitors came loaded and ready to play a tough game of football.
Valour worked hard, with Kris Twardek and Kian Williams putting in serious effort and it may have been a bit of luck that they did not take an early lead. Even as Ottawa began to regain their balance and reassert possession, they were still being contested heavily, and created very little in the other end of the field. I have said before that if you are playing a stronger team, come in swinging and hope to keep them off balance and this seems to be what Valour came to do.
When I report on these games, I try to keep a neutral perspective. I don’t have a specific CPL club and I find all of the teams likeable. But sometimes you find yourself rooting for something. An underdog in the table playing the current leaders and putting forward a strong effort? It’s the sort of thing you want to see pay off. Sometimes those stories play out and sometimes they don’t. Four minutes into first half stoppage, a foul in the penalty box gave Ottawa a penalty kick. A stutter-step later, and Ballou Tabla gave Atletico the 1-0 lead. To make it worse for Valour fans, it was the only foul they conceded in the half.
A goal does wonders for morale, and the break allowed Ottawa to regain their composure and come out much more decisive. It took only a few minutes into the second half before Manny Aparicio was able to lob a ball forward to find Golden Boot leader Samuel Salter, and it was 2-0.
From here, while Valour kept in the fight, the energy seemed to have dissipated some, and the result did not seem in question any longer. The death blow was delivered by an unmarked Mendes Antinoro leading to a 3-0 final score. It must have been hard to swallow for Valour, but they did put forward a very respectable game, while Ottawa showed they can be rocked, but can also recover quickly.
CPL Golden Boot
We continue the hunt for the Golden Boot:
8 Goals – Salter (Ottawa)
7 Goals – Altobelli (York)
5 Goals – Rodriguez (Ottawa), Warschewski (Cavalry)
4 Goals – Camargo (Cavalry), Coimbra (Wanderers), Musse (Cavalry), Tabla (Ottawa)
3 Goals – Bitar (York), Egwu (Valour), Ferrazzo (York), Santos (Ottawa), Wright (Forge), Zanatta (Pacific)
Salter continues to soar, while we see both Coimbra and Tabla reach 4 goals. The race to 10 seems to be coming down to Salter and Altobelli, with Altobelli not managing any of the 3 goals York produced this week (though not for lack of trying).
Leave a comment with who you think will get there first.
Playoff Picture
Remember to enter the playoffs, a team has to finish fifth or better. The exact position also matters with the way the playoffs work. If you finish fourth or fifth, you have a four game path to the title. If you finish third, your path is only three games long.
The first and second finishers have a two game path, but can also survive losing their first playoff match (sending them to an additional game to stay in). Confused? Don’t be, we will explain more as we get closer, but for now, just know that you have to be in the top 5 to get in and the exact position does matter!
Up Next
Ottawa claimed a comfortable 3 points bringing, them to 24, with Forge keeping pace at 20 points. For Cavalry and Wanderers, the hope for both was to pull ahead of the other, but a tie on the pitch means a tie off the pitch, at 18 points each. York made precious ground with their win, reaching 13 points and now having a full 5 point advantage over Pacific and Valour, at 8 each, while Vancouver remains at 6.
Saturday the 21st, Halifax will host Vancouver at home. The prior encounter was a 2 goal win for Halifax. The Wanderers are in good spirits with a good sense of identity. That is difficult to say for Vancouver, where the recent form is starting to feel like a crisis. The Wanderers will no doubt be looking to keep pace with an aggressive Cavalry side and challenging Forge is not out of the question in the table. Meanwhile, I think it is safe to safe that Vancouver needs to begin posting results to start building any kind of morale.
In Alberta, Cavalry will take on Pacific. Pacific has 5 points to make up for the playoff bar, which is tough but not impossible, though doing it against Cavalry is never an easy ask, especially considering the beating they took from the Cavs last time. However, Cavalry is not invulnerable to a team that plays tightly and is not afraid to get tangled up.
Sunday’s matches feature Ottawa against York in the GTA. Their first outing this season was a feisty 3-2, and there is no reason I can see why it should not be another fine day of football. York is in an odd position where they have room both above and below them, making playoffs seem, if not secured, at least very likely.
Finally, Forge and Valour will throw down in Manitoba. It’s easy to say Valour is overpowered here, but they tied their first matchup, and Valour will certainly have much to prove. Egwu has made his mark 3 times this season. Surely there is another to be had?
(Images: Canadian Premier League)