Welcome to As It Stands. At the start of each week through the end of the season, we’ll bring you this easy-to-digest wrap-up of everything you need to know from the weekend that was in the Canadian Premier League, and keep tabs on how each team is progressing in its hunt for silverware.

Three weeks to go, and we still can’t know for sure who is going to be playing where in the 2024 Canadian Premier League playoffs.

We do know that Forge FC are front-runners for the regular season title; they beat 905 Derby rivals York United 2-0 on Saturday night and therefore finished the weekend seven points clear of the pack.

Later that night, last year’s CPL Shield winners Cavalry FC were held goalless at home by Vancouver FC, who emerged from ATCO Field with a potentially useful 0-0 draw.

Sunday afternoon’s game in the capital saw Atlético Ottawa likewise held to a draw at home, in this case by Halifax Wanderers as Lorenzo Callegari and Nassim Mekideche combined once again for a 79th-minute equalizer.

Finally, there was another Monday night clash in Winnipeg, where Valour FC and Pacific FC squared off in a six-pointer for the final playoff spot. After a sluggish opening, Valour were first to break through as Kevin Ceceri accidentally redirected a cross into his own goal, giving the hosts the only goal of the match.

There wasn’t much movement in the standings, save for Valour jumping back in front of Halifax. Still, here’s how things stand after matchweek 25:

Four teams have now clinched playoff spots officially, the latest being York United who did so on Monday night when Pacific lost to Valour.

Something even bigger could be confirmed next weekend, though: Forge FC are able to clinch the regular season title as early as next Sunday afternoon. If they defeat Valour in Winnipeg, the Shield is theirs, no matter what Atlético Ottawa, Cavalry or York do.

Of course, Princess Auto Stadium hasn’t always been kind to Forge — they’ve won just once against Valour in Winnipeg since 2019 — but with the thought of silverware, and a guaranteed Concacaf Champions Cup spot, on the line, they might be more up for it than usual.

The race for the fifth and final playoff spot is potentially even more exciting, though; Pacific, Vancouver, Valour and Halifax are separated by just two points. Any of those four could find themselves in fifth after this weekend if they win. This race is as close as it’s ever been, and all four sides could genuinely be the one to make the playoffs.

 Monday Reading

If the playoffs started today…

It’s almost certain at this point that Forge will be one of the two sides capable of hosting the CPL Final, but there’s still just four points between second and fourth. Any of Ottawa, Cavalry or York could conceivably climb into at least second, at which point they’d be just one win away from a final on home turf.

Awards Watch

This is a difficult season to predict awards for, with many worthy contenders in every category but perhaps no major standout likely to run away with multiple pieces of hardware, like Daan Klomp or Ollie Bassett did in the last two years.

The Goalkeeper of the Year award is a tough one to pick; we had three clean sheets this weekend, one each for Callum Irving and Marco Carducci in their 0-0 draw, plus one for Jassem Koleilat — who has been outstanding for Forge, but has split duties with Chris Kalongo and thus might not have played enough for the awards conversation. Meanwhile, Emil Gazdov seems like a major contender as well — and therefore, perhaps also a front-runner for the Best U-21 Canadian?

Coach of the Year will surely come down to the wire; if Forge run away with the title, then surely it’s the year for Bobby Smyrniotis to finally claim the award? Or could he be pipped by Benjamín Mora, if York go on a mini-run and finish in second or third? Also, don’t count out either Afshin Ghotbi or Phil Dos Santos, if Vancouver or Valour squeeze into the playoffs in the next couple of weeks.

Breaking down the run-in

A few massive six-pointers are on the horizon for this week. Halifax Wanderers and Vancouver both remain in the hunt for fifth, and could theoretically jump into a playoff spot with a win against the other on Saturday. Meanwhile, the other two fifth-place contestants Pacific and Valour have tricky home games against Cavalry and Forge, respectively.

Perhaps the biggest game of the week, though, is York United hosting Atlético Ottawa; both sides are desperate to at least finish second, and a win for Ottawa could pretty much ruin York’s chances of hosting that final.

Home matches are listed in bold, and away matches are listed in italics.

York United	Pacific FC	Valour FC	Vancouver FC
Forge FC	Halifax Wanderers	Atlético Ottawa	Cavalry FC
Vancouver FC	Valour FC	Pacific FC	York United

Cavalry FC	Forge FC	Halifax Wanderers	Atlético Ottawa
York United	Vancouver FC	Valour FC	Pacific FC
Forge FC	Cavalry FC	Atlético Ottawa	Halifax Wanderers

U-21 Minutes Update

Still only three clubs have crossed the 2,000-minute threshold, but most of them should get over the line within the next week or two. Cavalry have added a major chunk in the last two weeks with 18-year-old Michael Harms making his first two starts of the season.

Meanwhile, Valour continue to add minutes little by little, but a start or two for Abdul Binate in the last three weeks would get the job done for them. Halifax need to average just over 105 U-21 minutes per game in the last three matches, so expect Jefferson Alphonse and Tiago Coimbra to be heavily involved.

Coming up next…

Saturday, Oct. 5

Halifax Wanderers FC vs. Vancouver FC (3 p.m. AT/12 p.m. PT)
Pacific FC vs. Cavalry FC (2 p.m. PT/3 p.m. MT)

Sunday, Oct. 6

Valour FC vs. Forge FC (1 p.m. CT/2 p.m. ET)
York United FC vs. Atlético Ottawa (5 p.m. ET)

(Watch all games live on OneSoccer)

Photo of the Week

Who you pointing at, Amer? (Manny Aparicio, probably).