The East Stands, best known as ‘The Kitchen’ at the Wanderers Grounds, is renowned for cooking up one of the best atmospheres in Canadian soccer. But on this day, September 5, 2022, the 100th game in club history, the mood was properly tense.

The Halifax Wanderers were mired in a season that would see them finish second bottom in the standings, scoring fewer goals than any team in the league. In fact, they scored just seven non-penalty goals in 14 matches at the Wanderers Grounds, and scored more than a single goal in a home match just three times.

During a 0-0 draw with Cavalry that September day, this came to a boiling point, as frustrated fans unveiled a banner that read ‘you quit, we quit’. It was a sampling of the sentiment felt by a fanbase that had so passionately supported this club since its inception but was still waiting for the Wanderers Grounds’ electric gameday atmosphere to truly translate onto the pitch.

“Results-wise it was pretty poor unfortunately,” said Wanderers midfielder Mohamed Omar to CanPL.ca of the 2022 season, “and I think we were even more disappointed just because we were all aware of just how important our fanbase is for us. Not being able to get the results we wanted for them was definitely frustrating.” 

Looking to change course, the club underwent a massive rebuild this past off-season, one that saw the club’s day one head coach, Stephen Hart, depart and the hiring of League1 Ontario Coach of the Year Patrice Gheisar. The 48-year-old, who had first stepped on the pitch at the Wanderers Grounds as the coach of Vaughan Azzurri in the 2019 Canadian Championship, had seen firsthand how special the atmosphere was on the East Coast. From his very first moments on the job, he spoke about the importance of building a team that gives those fans something to cheer about.

“You see it from the TV but to be honest, you don’t really understand the fan support and the love from the television,” Gheisar told CanPL.ca. “You’ve really got to be at the grounds to feel it. So as we went through the process one of the first things was obviously to state something as easy as let’s make the home the fortress. But the action point was going to be really difficult, how do you turn that around so quickly?” 

That action point eventually came in the form of a number, 30, as in the number of home points he wanted the club to achieve in 2023. It was an ambitious target. Only two clubs have ever achieved that lofty standard, Cavalry last season, and both them and Forge in the league’s inaugural year (in which the Cavs put up a league-record 35 home points combined between the Spring and Fall seasons). The best Halifax has managed in club history was 25 in 2021, a year in which they came within a point of the playoffs. Last year they managed just 18.

“I looked at some of the best home seasons that there has ever been, looked at those teams and said ‘well why did they have that’,” said Gheisar. “Well, they had great fan support, a unique field, whatever it may have been. So if the best home form is 35 points, then my goal should be 30… take advantage of being far from everybody, having grass and excellent fan support. Those are worth 10 points each.” 

With 22 home points in 10 matches so far in 2023, they are currently on pace to achieve that 30-point target. They have the most points per game, goals scored per game and fewest goals against per game of any home side in the league this season. The graphic below shows just how much improvement there has been for Halifax at the Wanderers Grounds this season, as they have gone from worst to first in the league in several key statistical categories at home.

Rebuilding the belief and excitement at the Wanderers Grounds has been central to what is turning out to be a special season in Halifax as the club looks to bring playoff football to the stadium for the first time — and potentially even more.

For Gheisar, building new foundations at the club meant an extensive review and overhaul of its roster. He first evaluated which players the club already had under contract, or were able to sign to an extension.

“Patrice gave me a call right away and spoke to me about his vision for not only for myself but for this group and all the things he wants to achieve with the club,” said Omar, “It kind of breathed a new life into not only me but all of us.”

Then it was about looking at the club’s needs and bringing in players that matched his vision for the side, both technically and culturally. That resulted in 15 new signings in January and February of this year. The club brought in players from several different levels, from Lorenzo Callegari who had spent time with PSG to NCAA standouts and finally to several members of Gheisar’s former League1 Ontario championship-winning Vaughan Azzurri.

One of those players was Massimo Ferrin, a dynamic attacker who was named League1 Ontario MVP and won the league’s Golden Boot, scoring 23 times in 15 matches. Ferrin said he had no idea that Gheisar would be the next coach of Halifax when they had a routine call over the winter to discuss a number of CPL options Ferrin was weighing. The coach heard his player out, before essentially dropping the mic at the end of the call.

“He pretty much ended it off by saying, ‘Well, all of that isn’t going to mean too much because we’re going to Halifax together’,” said Ferrin to CanPL.ca with a chuckle. “That was kind of the start of everything.”

With that much roster turnover, it was essential that the group got on the same page quickly. Before taking to the field on the East Coast, that meant a trip down south to Florida for preseason.

“Going to Florida I thought was so important,” said Gheisar. “Obviously, it’s not easy for our organization and ownership to say ‘Sure, go to Florida for two weeks’. There’s a financial and planning aspect but it was so necessary because we were together 24/7 for 17 days. That really brought the group together.” 

The trip included a lot of hard work, as the club were training twice a day and were able to play multiple matches against sides like Inter Miami II. Just as crucial, however, was the time off the field the group spent together. Instead of hotels, Halifax opted to put the players up in houses, about eight players to a house. Each night brought with it new teambuilding activities, be that each house cooking for the team (Aidan Daniels, who Omar calls “Master Chef,” was the standout in this challenge), a basketball tournament or a movie night, it was all about quality time spent together.

“Come the end of this year we are all going to look back on it and say that’s where this group really got its success, was getting to know each other and getting close with each other off the pitch,” said Omar of the trip, “because we really know that’s what helps on the pitch.”

Still, there was plenty of work to be done when the team finally hit the pitch to start the season on April 15. Things got off to a really promising start when they tied 2022 regular season champs Atlético Ottawa on the road, before tying 2022 playoff winners Forge FC in their second match. Then they tied again, and again… and again. Including a 3-1 loss to Atlético Ottawa in the Canadian Championship, Halifax went winless in their first nine matches of the season.

“So we started well, but the more and more ties that came along — it was crazy I will never forget it — brought more and more pressure to the group,” said Gheisar. “For me, it brought glimpses of self-doubt.”

Gheisar says he wishes there was a more Hollywood moment that provided the turnaround, a victory perhaps that brought the group together. Instead, he believes it was a crushing loss to York United at home that really turned the tide of the club’s season.

“When we got our butts kicked is when we really said, okay that’s enough,” said Gheisar. “Hunger, driven, let’s get after it, that’s when we really picked up. I feel like maybe our story needs a better answer, for me to tell you a great day, or a good day that we kickstarted everything. But unfortunately, our story, it was a really bad day to make us push even harder and go to places we’ve never gone to before.” 

“It might have been a little bit of a blessing in disguise,” said Ferrin of the York loss. “That gave us that anger that we used in a positive way to kind of motivate ourselves and pick up some momentum.”

That York match also started an important part of the reconnection between the players and the fans in Halifax.

“We said after the York game no matter what guys, win or lose, at home, you are going to go greet every fan,” said Gheisar. “Our guys after every game, win or lose they go around the stadium giving high fives, smile and we say thank you for your support.”

This was particularly important for players like Omar, who had felt like the team had let its fans down in the past. When he and his teammates pull on their Wanderers shirts, they represent something bigger than themselves. Omar has had the privilege of captaining this group on a few occasions this season, something which makes the 24-year-old incredibly proud.

“I think it was very important for us as the couple of returning players that were here just to kind of breathe that into this new group and remind them of just how important our home support is,” said Omar, “and remind them how important it is that everything we do we are doing not just for ourselves but for the city of Halifax and for our fans.” 

On June 10, nearly two months into the season, Halifax finally recorded their first victory, a cathartic 2-0 triumph over Valour FC in front of their fans at the Wanderers Grounds. Since then, they have been on an absolute tear, winning eight of their last 13 matches and losing just three.

In doing so, they have been playing a thrilling brand of football, with solid keeper Yann Fillion in the net able to build out from the back through Defender of the Year candidate Daniel Nimick, dominate the midfield with the likes of Omar and Callegari, and be dynamic in attack through players like Ferrin. Above all, however, this year’s success in Halifax has truly been a team effort.

Their recent dominance has been especially evident at home, where they have won seven of eight home matches during that 13-game stretch. As the victories started to pile up, especially in dramatic fashion like Nimick’s late penalty winner against defending champions Forge in late June, the atmosphere at the stadium has only gotten better and better.

“Once [we started winning], a great bond started to happen with our fan support,” said Gheisar. “I would tell you, there were a lot of scars from the past. There was a lot of reluctance from the past but all of a sudden came a couple of games that were sold out, it was amazing, and then it was back-to-back-to-back sold out. You started to see the fans had started to believe in this group, they started to forgive the past and they started to believe in this group.” 

That belief didn’t just come from fans either, Gheisar says it became crucial to the club’s recruitment as well. He had been in conversation with players like Doneil Henry and João Morelli for a while, but when the club started to string together results on the field the interest from both in being a part of this special group increased.

The pair, along with Jordan Perruzza on loan from Toronto FC, were added to the roster in Halifax over the summer window. All of these players have only added to the team’s quality, both on and off the pitch.

“The last thing we wanted was for someone to come in with a cape and say, ‘I’m your saviour’,” said Gheisar. “We needed someone who was going to say, I’m going to help you all take one step forward. Because 23 steps is better than me taking 10 steps forward.” 

Despite all the new faces in Halifax this season, the squad’s cohesion has been incredibly impressive. It is a sign that the overarching culture and identity of the club have been effective.

“Right now we have 18 new players, and it’s crazy to think that,” said Gheisar. “And I really challenge anyone who watches us, win or lose, you don’t think that we have 18 new guys. I’m not saying we are the finished product, we have a lot still to work on. But our guys have bought in, they are committed.”

As it stands, the Wanderers are in fourth place, in an incredible four-team tie with 2nd place Pacific, Atlético Ottawa and Forge. They sit just four points behind league-leaders Cavalry. Especially with the table as close as it is, the group is taking things one step at a time, but they have never been more confident in what they can accomplish.

“Our goal as a team is not to just make the playoffs at this point,” said Omar. “We want to be finishing in one of the top spots and we know how much can come from that. We know that whoever wins the league it is an automatic berth to Concacaf. We know what finishing in first or second place can mean in terms of going directly to the CPL playoff final. There is that added motivation in the back of our minds but we are taking it one game at a time and we are enjoying the ride.” 

Gheisar, however, is cognizant of not wanting to put too much pressure on his young group. He knows how fine the margins are right now in the CPL standings, and that his side could just as easily finish top of the table as they could miss the playoffs with the way things stand.

“You are at the end of the race, you are running, you are at the very front of the line with another five or six runners,” he said. “Now it is maybe not your running technique, but it is really about your motivation and heart. We are looking to make this city proud and bring something to it that it is starving for.” 

For Massimo Ferrin, a big part of that motivation is also just how special a playoff match in Halifax would be. The club’s lone ‘playoff’ appearance came during the Island Games in P.E.I., where they went to the Final before losing to Forge. This means the Wanderers Grounds have never hosted a playoff match before.

“I can’t even imagine a playoff game here, being able to host one because the energy that we have at almost every single one of our home games is incredible,” said Ferrin. “To have the fanbase be able to experience a home playoff game would be incredible. The energy that I think we would have as a team kind of building off of them would be something I’m not sure many of us have felt before playing this sport.”

On Monday, the Wanderers will welcome York, the club who humbled them 3-0 at home back in May, to Halifax. Including that meeting, they play four of their final seven matches at home. Eight more points from those four home games and they will reach that 30-point goal set before the season. If they can accomplish that, the most thrilling chapter of this incredible story the club is writing on the East Coast this year is still yet to be written.