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This third Canadian Premier League matchweek saw clubs shuffle around the league table as teams worked to reinforce what’s been working and patch out what isn’t. The past weekend’s action saw a whopping ten goals scored, and that’s with the final match finishing as the CPL’s first scoreless draw of 2024.

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Here’s an at-a-glance look back at all four matches:

York United 3 – 0 Vancouver FCFull recap here.

After a first half where neither side looked destined to score, York United came roaring out with a dominant second half display. Brian Wright doubled his club tally of goals in that half alone, bagging himself a brace while assisting a goal from Dennis Salanovic. Nash had urged his team to show urgency and organization following their 905 Derby loss last weekend, and the team responded in spades. Vancouver, meanwhile, looked like a team that had tired legs following their midweek cup loss to Cavalry.

York United Quick Take: This is the performance that would’ve been great to display with the packed house last week, but it’s better late than ever: the second half saw York United’s attack come alight, and fans will be quite happy with what they saw from the strong debuts of Juan Cordova and Frank Sturing.

Vancouver FC Quick Take: If you generate zero big chances in a match on the road, it’s probably not going to be enjoyable. This week saw the Eagles crash back to reality after entering the matchweek as table-toppers, but one expects some rest will do the team well.

Halifax Wanderers 1 – 3 Atletico OttawaFull recap here.

The Kitchen Party for the Wanderers Grounds home opener was spoiled by a strong Atletico Ottawa performance buoyed by an early red card to Lorenzo Callegari. While Halifax changed shape and seemed to cope well with the man differential, Atletico Ottawa exploited individual errors and proved quick to cross the ball into dangerous areas, going three goals ahead before Halifax finally got their first of the season – though by then, the party was over.

Halifax Wanderers Quick Take: Gheisar’s team has been slow out of the gate, but this was a hard match to judge: they did well before and after going down a man, but conceding three similar goals is never a good look. The alarm bells aren’t ringing yet, but it’s clear things aren’t clicking out east.

Atletico Ottawa Quick Take: The visitors took their time to control the game, but once the just-before-half sucker punch lead was taken, Ottleti never looked like they were going to relinquish control. It’s a solid away win against a team quite strong at home, with Ottawa proving devastating on quick counters. A classic Manny Aparicio side, that.

Forge FC 2 – 1 Valour FCFull recap here.

Forge went top-of-the-table after collecting three points at home against a visiting Valour side that looked stronger than it had been in the opening weeks, calling young Christopher Kalongo in to action on multiple occasions. Still, Forge answered back with a strong second half showing after going three-for-three in the opening games.

Forge FC Quick Take: The hammers were a little slow out of the gate this match, but enjoyed a stronger second half and, of course, a trademark late goal as a result. A particular highlight was Christopher Kalongo, who made six saves on the night and played a crucial role in the team collecting all three points over the weekend.

Valour FC Quick Take: While the club has succumbed to a third straight loss, there were plenty of positive signs on display against the reigning champions. The Valour attack looked well-organized and potent, though they were caught out twice by pushing their wing-backs forward – but you’ve got to take risks if you want to compete.

Cavalry FC 0 – 0 Pacific FC

The league’s first scoreless draw of the season came with some goalkeeper heroics from best ends of the pitch and some resolute defensive performances. While the game saw 27 shots in all (mostly from Cavalry), few of the shots came from great spots – and even less of them were on target. Pacific nearly snuck a late winner but the home vibes were well-protected in the mitts of Marco Carducci.

Cavalry FC Quick Take: It was a dominant display from the hosts, but they’re really missing the clinical nature of Myer Bevan: the club recorded twenty shots with just seven landing on target. Despite an xG of 1.23, Cavalry settled for a single point and needed some late game heroics from Marco Carducci.

Pacific FC Quick Take: Sean Melvin looked a capable stand-in for an ill-stricken Emil Gazdov, with James Merriman’s roster shifting a few faces in light of their Canadian Championship clash on Wednesday. It was a tough away match that saw the Tridents nearly score in the end, but they’ll probably be pleased with a point…and their third straight clean sheet.

Expect the league table to keep juggling teams as clubs find out what’s working and what isn’t. The reigning CPL playoff champions now lead the pack after Vancouver slid down three spots, while at the other end Halifax and Valour remain on zero points and an increasingly negative goal difference. York’s first win, of course, sees them climb into their perpetual ‘will they or won’t they’ edge-of-playoffs spot in the table, right where they left it last year.

Timed Exclusive On Patreon – Niko Giantsopoulos: ‘Now That I Left York, Vancouver’s Getting All Of Me’

Given that neither CPL side who had played a midweek cup match had the legs to grab a win over the weekend, it’ll be interesting to see how the other six teams set to play a cup match in the next few days will fare over next weekend.

The fourth matchweek will return to a one-game-per-day format: Cavalry will host Vancouver FC on Friday, and having just played this exact fixture in the Canadian Championship, it’ll be interesting to see how things pan out. Saturday will see Pacific host York, while Atletico Ottawa will prove a tough test for visiting Valour on Sunday. The fourth match won’t take place till next Tuesday, with Forge hosting a Halifax Wanderers side that still has a lot to prove.

Header Image Photo Credit: John Jacques

This is nothing new for Wanderers fans: starting the season for the club is like starting a 25-year-old Subaru. It will sputter, maybe even make some questionable noises, but at the end of the day, if you give it time to warm up, it’ll run.

Sure, Wanderers fans will want the club to start smoothly with no issues, but this is an attempt at finding some optimism for the 2024 season. With Atletico Ottawa visiting town for the home opener, many Wanderers fans were hoping that the sputtering engine would shift into gear and the slow, methodical climb up the table would start.

Instead, the Wanderers will need to re-insert the key into the ignition and try turning the car back on. Let’s dive in.

Game Recap:

Out of the gate, the key difference was an adjustment to the formation as Patrice Gheisar deployed a line-up with Dan Nimick and Julian Dunn playing in a back four instead of the back three we have seen in the past two games. Due to this change, Cale Loughrey found a spot on the bench, and he will have to bide his time to earn another opportunity after a rocky start to the season. Only time will tell if this is a long-term change in formation/philosophy from Gheisar or if it is a situational shift to match up against Atletico Ottawa.

From the start, this was the cleanest possession that the Wanderers have had all season. In tight spaces, players were making quick one-touch passes, allowing the team to progress up the field quickly and efficiently by breaking through the press. While not an example of this clean movement, the Wanderers found themselves in a great spot with a free kick in the fourth minute after Massimo Ferrin drew the foul while in transition.

One of the Wanderer’s most glaring issues this season is how wasteful they have been in dead-ball situations. Whether it be taking them too quickly and handing possession straight back or just misjudging crosses, defending set pieces has been quite easy for the opposing teams. In this case, Massimo Ferrin fired the ball up and over the wall, but goalkeeper Rayane Yesli was calmly able to control the ball. Sure, the chance wasn’t capitalized on, but at least the ball touched the goalie (silver linings).

15 minutes in and I could tell the players felt rested after returning home: the ball was moving quickly, our midfielders were finding space, and the grass at the Wanderers Grounds looked wonderful for an April game on the East Coast. As the story is for any team that is struggling to win but playing good football, they needed to capitalize on their chances otherwise they would likely be punished.

20 minutes into the game, disaster struck for the Wanderers: Lorenzo Callegari, arguably the purest midfielder to grace the Canadian Premier League gets, was caught out and his attempt to regain possession saw him raise his boot up high. It caught Aparicio in the chest, and while I doubt there was any malicious intent, it is hard to argue that it shouldn’t have been a red card. Sure, it could have been deemed a yellow because of the play’s non-aggressive nature, but whenever you catch a player high, you leave yourself at the referee’s discretion.

All of that hard work to build positive momentum immediately goes out to sea, swept away quickly by the Atlantic current. In an immediate reaction, the Wanderers took on a new shape, trying to be as compact and organized as possible while still having a few players in positions that could move forward to potentially catch Ottawa when disorganized and out of possession. Credit where credit is due, the Wanderers had quite a clean 19-ish minutes post-red card, as they were able to limit any major chances from Ottawa and forced them to be the aggressors. But, as with almost all goals which the Wanderers have conceded this season, an error in judgment leads to an opposing team goal. In this case, being too delicate in clearing the ball.

The mountain continued to grow instead of shrinking in front of the Wanderers, even though the players on the pitch seemed to be making some headway. They combined well, moved efficiently, and kept fighting even while being down a goal and a man. All of that to say the odds continued to be stacked against the club and they let in another goal. This time to Manny Aparicio in the 56th minute – a player whom so many HFX fans were begging for the club to sign.

Fast forward to the 73rd, and Ottawa adds another.

At this point, I was ready to turn off the TV, put on my rain jacket, and walk in the rain like a melancholy teenager in a Disney movie. But, in a brave effort, I kept watching, curious to see how the younger players would play. Unsurprisingly, they played with heart and effort, trying to capitalize on their chance to play and show that they deserved more minutes. I do not want to name names, but there was one starting player on the Wanderers that I have been deeply unimpressed with so far, and his effort level compared to the youngsters and substitutes was shocking.

On a more positive note, the Wanderers found a consolation goal in the 89th minute after Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare used his experience and passing ability to set up Riley Ferrazzo for his first professional goal. It was also the Wanderer’s first goal of the 2024 season.

All in all, not the best home opener for the Wanderers, but they will persevere, find their feet, and eventually show why many considered them to be amongst the favourites heading into this season.

Standings:

W/D/L: 0/0/3 (0 Points).

While the Wanderers aren’t technically in last place due to goal difference, they sit in a tie for last, with zero wins, zero draws, and three losses. This has been a dreadful start, and there is no real way to sugar coat it.

Milestones:

While I hesitate to add this section after the match, multiple significant milestones happened during this match, and I do not want to discount them:

Young Remi Agunbiade made his first professional appearance, playing seven minutes in a substitute appearance!

Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare recorded an assist, which gives him six in his Wanderers career. That is enough to tie him for first place in club history with Andre Rampersad, Zachary Fernandez, and Lorenzo Callegari. Gagnon-Lapare also made his fiftieth appearance for the club, making him just the tenth man to do so in club history.

Finally, Riley Ferrazzo scored his first professional goal and, in the process, scored the first goal of the 2024 season for the Wanderers. With that, he becomes the 35th player to score a goal for the Wanderers.

Next Game:

The Wanderers will take on League1 Quebec team CS Saint-Laurent in the Canadian Championship on Thursday, May 2 at 7:00PM AST. This single-leg tournament match is an important opportunity for the Wanderers to hit the reset button and start building some confidence because they look deep in a sophomore slump. Expect some rotation and experimentation, and for Patrice Gheisar to push a similar intensity to how John Herdman led out TFC versus the Simcoe County Rovers.

Header Image Photo Credit: Trevor MacMillan