2024 CPL Regular Season — Match #102
Pacific FC vs. Cavalry FC
October 5, 2024 at 2 p.m. PT/3 p.m. MT
Starlight Stadium in Langford, British Columbia
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca & TELUS Ch. 980 // Tickets available here
The second match of Saturday’s Canadian Premier League doubleheader will take place at Starlight Stadium, when Pacific FC welcome Cavalry FC to town for another high-stakes match.
The Cavs have had Pacific’s number in recent years, not losing to the Tridents in CPL action since July 2022, a streak of nine matches in a row. The first two meetings of 2024 ended in draws — a scoreless draw in Calgary and a 1-1 in Langford — before Cavalry won 1-0 at ATCO Field in August.
The Cavs will be looking to continue that streak as they look to climb over Atlético Ottawa this weekend into the second spot in the table and more favourable playoff seeding, while Pacific will need a win to either try and strengthen their grip on fifth place, or win their playoff positioning back if Halifax Wanderers FC or Vancouver FC leapfrog them earlier on Saturday.
Both sides are coming off frustrating results last time out, with Cavalry playing out a 0-0 draw despite dominating Vancouver FC at home, unable to break down an Eagles side who prioritized keeping a clean sheet over trying to find the back of the net. Pacific, meanwhile, suffered a 1-0 defeat in Winnipeg on Monday on a late own goal, squandering their chance to build a four-point gap over any of the teams chasing them.
As a result, this match is very important for both sides, but especially the Tridents as they look to join Cavalry in the playoffs once again.
The hosts will be without Cédric Toussaint and Josh Heard through injuries for this match, while Pierre Lamothe misses out through suspension after picking up a pair of yellow cards last time out. Marco Domínguez returns from a suspension of his own, though, and will likely slot right back into the starting lineup in midfield.
Malcolm Shaw won’t play as he continues to work back from a MCL strain in his knee, but the Cavs have welcomed Fraser Aird back into the mix, and he will travel with the club to Langford for this match.
All CPL and Canadian Championship matches will be broadcast live on OneSoccer, available as a linear channel on Telus’ Optik TV (Channel 980) as well as online at OneSoccer.ca, through the OneSoccer app and on the fuboTV Canada platform.
3 THINGS TO WATCH
- Can the Tridents bounce back from defeat in Winnipeg?: Pacific had a chance in Winnipeg on Monday to really establish themselves in the fifth and final playoff spot, but a 1-0 defeat to Valour FC has them within two points of all three teams behind them entering the weekend — one ahead of Vancouver FC and Valour, and two ahead of Halifax Wanderers FC. The Tridents will need to bounce back in a big way on Saturday, against a Cavalry FC side they have not defeated in CPL action since July 2022. They could find themselves outside the playoffs looking in by the time Saturday’s match kicks off, with Vancouver visiting the Wanderers earlier in the day. The pressure is on for the Tridents to not let last week’s defeat, which came from a 76th-minute own goal, lead to a greater slide, or they run the risk of missing the playoffs for the first time since the inaugural 2019 season.
- Cavalry looking to climb into top two in CPL table: Cavalry FC enter the weekend third in the table, and have a chance to climb into the top two and get a more favourable seeding for the playoffs. The top two sides play in qualifying semifinal, with the winner going on to host the CPL Final, while the loser gets a second chance by dropping back to host the other semifinal. The third place team starts in the quarterfinals against the winner of the fourth vs. fifth match. Cavalry currently sit just one point back of Atlético Ottawa for second place, and with the capital city club not playing until Sunday, have a chance to leapfrog Ottawa and put the pressure on them to respond against York United. The CPL Shield isn’t officially out of reach either, but for Cavalry to repeat as regular season winners they will need to win all three of their remaining matches and hope Forge FC loses all three and Ottawa drops points as well — an unlikely scenario.
- Pacific lose Toussaint and Lamothe in midfield, but Domínguez returns: Pacific FC’s midfield will be slightly depleted for this crucial match at Starlight Stadium as Cédric Toussaint misses out with a knee injury suffered on Monday in Winnipeg and Pierre Lamothe misses out through suspension. Lamothe will miss one match after picking up two yellow cards in that match, while Toussaint is being considered “day-to-day” or “week-to-week” by head coach James Merriman, with the hope that he will be able to return sometime this season, especially if Pacific make the playoffs. The Tridents will receive a bit of a boost in midfield, though, as Marco Domínguez returns from a yellow card accumulation suspension served last week — and it is expected that he will jump right back into the starting lineup.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Pacific FC: Gazdov; Dada-Luke, Meilleur-Giguère, Ceceri, Greco-Taylor; Young, Domínguez, Yeates; Tîrcoveanu, Dyer, Zanatta
Cavalry FC: Carducci; Aird, Klomp, Field, Kamdem; Gutierrez, Shome; Musse, Camargo, Wahling; Warschewksi
ALL-TIME SERIES
Pacific FC wins: 8 || Cavalry FC wins: 15 || Draws: 6
Last meeting:
August 24, 2024 — Cavalry FC 1-0 Pacific FC
KEY QUOTES
“It’s a good challenge for us, especially at this time, but at the end of the day we’re more focused on where we’re at in this present moment and trying to stay in fifth place and stay above the line and get ourselves into playoffs. That’s the number one focus right now.” — Pacific FC head coach James Merriman
“The league placement, to finish in the in the top two, gives you two bites of the cherry in the playoffs and also a route in should anybody, like we almost did (in 2023), achieve the double. I think it’s really, really important if we want to get back into Concacaf that we show up in these last few games and put more points on the board.” — Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr