Final Score: Halifax Wanderers FC 2-2 Pacific FC
Goalscorers: Ferrin 60′, Mekideche 79′; Dyer 67′, Meilleur-Giguère 90+6′
Game of the 2024 season: 92
CPL match: 576

Match in a minute or less

Pacific FC are back in a playoff spot after gaining a point from Wednesday night’s dramatic 2-2 draw with the Halifax Wanderers.

What had been a fairly straightforward contest turned on its head in the 31st minute, when Wanderers defender Dan Nimick was sent off for receiving a second yellow card. The disadvantage didn’t take the wind out of Halifax’s sails much, though, as they would be the first team to score: Massimo Ferrin hit an outrageous volley off the crossbar and in to put his team ahead in the 60th minute.

Moses Dyer equalized for Pacific a few minutes later by pouncing on a ball spilled by Wanderers keeper Yann Fillion. However, it wasn’t long before Halifax restored their lead thanks to Nassim Mekideche’s header to finish a well-taken free kick by Lorenzo Callegari.

Just when it looked like the Wanderers were going to hold on for a crucial three points, however, Pacific found another equalizer. The ball dropped into the box and Thomas Meilleur-Giguère flicked it over the top of a defender, then put his foot through it in the air to beat Fillion and stun Halifax, claiming a point for the Tridents.

Three Observations

Captain Meilleur-Giguère plays hero to save Pacific

It’s not necessarily a performance the Tridents will be thrilled with, but they leave Halifax with a point — and perhaps more importantly, the Wanderers haven’t made up any ground on them.

Pacific ended the game with a lead in the shot count — 14 to Halifax’s 11 — but six of those 14 came in the 80th minute or later, after they had conceded the go-ahead goal. The way they came to life after falling behind both times was impressive; particularly in the final 10 minutes of the game, they launched an absolute barrage at the Wanderers’ penalty area and finally found their goal.

However, the periods of the match where the score was level were disappointing from Pacific, who did very little to make use of the extra space the numerical advantage afforded them. Assistant coach Armando Sá — taking the reins for this game with head coach James Merriman suspended — pointed out postmatch that it’s not always easy to dominate an opponent that has gone down to 10 men.

Indeed, after the red card the Wanderers did play a little more transitionally, changing the game from what Pacific might have prepared for in their tactics. Still, Pacific were laboured on the ball for much of the game, occasionally struggling to string passes together or giving the ball away too cheaply.

“We tried to attack the wide areas with numbers, we got some two-v-ones there. We got a lot of situations, but they surprised us with that goal,” Sá said. “But the boys again, they fought. The reaction is there.”

The best news for Pacific, above all, is that the ball is finally going in the net for them. The eight goals they’ve scored in their last three games is just over half the total they’d scored in the first 20.

Several of Pacific’s players and coaches have pointed to Moses Dyer’s arrival from Vancouver FC as a catalyst for their attacking turnaround — Dyer scored again on Wednesday, which makes it three consecutive games with a goal for the Kiwi forward. Likewise, Dario Zanatta seems to have finally found a rhythm, perhaps due to the partnership he’s building with Dyer.

“Everyone understands the position that we were in the last couple months,” midfielder Steffen Yeates said. “I think it’s started to click again with the addition of Moses Dyer, his energy that he brings to the team, as well as Zanatta finding his form as well, being clinical in the box and being in the right positions. I think we’ve always had that ability to get to a different position and hopefully continue on.”

However, the hero on Wednesday was of course Meilleur-Giguère. Wearing the captain’s armband, he came up in an absolutely crucial moment with an astonishingly good finish for a centre-back. He’s been a saviour for Pacific on several occasions this year, but usually at the opposite end of the pitch. This time, he contributed a goal that could eventually be the difference between making or not making the postseason.

The Tridents are back above the playoff line, with a one-point cushion over Vancouver and four points on both Halifax and Valour. They no longer have a game in hand after tonight, but they do control their own destiny going forward — although with three more tough road games, and matches against each of the top four, it won’t be an easy run-in for Pacific.

Halifax attack remains brave after Nimick red card

The Wanderers came into this game with a clear plan to be the more aggressive side, in an effort to strike early against a Pacific side dealing with the effects of midweek travel across the country. After a few moments of feeling things out early on, Halifax did take over and soon began threading together some good chances via quick passing moves into the box. They came close to scoring on a few occasions in the first 30 minutes, denied twice by Emil Gazdov.

Any momentum they had been building, however, was ripped away with Dan Nimick’s sending off. The domino effect of losing Nimick was that Halifax had to bring off Sean Rea in order to bring on another centre-back in Jefferson Alphonse. It won’t have been an easy decision for Patrice Gheisar to make; Rea had been extremely lively in the first half-hour, nearly scoring with an outstanding volley that Gazdov had to parry out to the side. Rea had also created two chances and won three duels in his half-hour of work.

So, Halifax had to operate in attack without one of their key pieces, meaning fewer bodies forward. That led them to resort to longer passes and more build-up in transition, where they could create some space for themselves.

Gheisar, having taken some time to let the dust settle on the late equalizer, was full of praise for his team and the way it played, mentioning that even though the result wasn’t the three points they wanted, it was the kind of performance that can help build momentum.

“I think they were magnificent,” he said. “Honestly, I just felt inspired by watching them. Pacific’s a terrific team, but I don’t think if you showed up at the 40th minute you’d be able to tell we were a man down.”

The Wanderers did truly look like the more likely team to score for most of the game outside of the last 10 minutes. They were aggressive and committed men forward, with Giorgio Probo in particular doing an excellent job in midfield of linking the defence to the attack, which was harder to do without Rea in front of him.

This is not a time of year where moral victories count for much, and the singular point for Halifax in this match doesn’t do them a ton of good — they’re still seventh, with three points to make up behind Pacific — but it did nonetheless feel like a different, more confident team to the one that lost at Starlight Stadium just two weeks ago.

New-look Wanderers defence deserves credit despite late goal

This game was very close to being a story of the Halifax Wanderers putting in an outstandingly resilient defensive performance, turning away wave after wave of pressure in the final 10 minutes to hold on for a possibly season-defining victory.

Instead, it’s not quite that, but a lot of the individuals in that group deserve immense praise for the way they’ve played, not just on Wednesday but in the last two games. Halifax have played 150 of the 180 minutes of the last two matches without Dan Nimick, who had been the club’s most heavily-used and dependable centre-back. In that time, they’ve held Forge FC — the league’s highest-scoring team — without a goal, and they nearly held on with 10 men for another victory.

To begin with, Nassim Mekideche has not had an easy job coming into a new team, having signed for the Wanderers last Friday and immediately playing back-to-back 90-minute shifts within a few days of each other. He had not been playing at all at his prior club in Tunisia, so to see him dropped into the fray in high-pressure matches in a playoff race, and perform as well as he has been, is remarkable. He has provided Halifax with a different kind of presence at the back, with his stability on the ball and his strength in the air.

Meanwhile, 21-year-old Jefferson Alphonse was thrown into this game in the first half and forced into a difficult position, but he too put in an excellent shift — even though he was the defender Meilleur-Giguère flicked the ball over before the goal. Alphonse made 10 clearances and won two aerial duels, anchoring the middle of defence well.

Finally, the fullbacks were outstanding. Zachary Fernandez, playing on his weaker left side, was up and down the pitch with exceptional workrate all night. He won 12 duels and had three successful dribbles when he moved the ball forward himself.

Clément Bayiha was perhaps the best player on the pitch, though. He’s not usually a right-back, but Gheisar has deployed him in that role in the last two games and it’s been a revelation. Already, Bayiha earned a spot in the Team of the Week for his performance against Forge, but he was even better against Pacific, winning eight tackles and 12 duels.

“I’m starting to question myself,” Gheisar quipped postgame when asked about Bayiha. “I think that should have been his role from day one, he was fantastic. Here’s a young man that joined us after preseason, he will play any position we ask him to. He will give you the highest level of workrate, he has high-speed running, he wins his individual duels. I was really, really impressed and happy with him.”

In a match where Pacific were specifically targeting the wide areas, Halifax’s fullbacks proved up to the challenge.

CanPL.ca Player of the Match

Clément Bayiha, Halifax Wanderers

The fullback was immense for the home side, helping them react well after going down to 10 men. He won a staggering 13 duels and won possession 12 times, winning seven tackles along with two interceptions. For most of the second half, many of Pacific’s attacks ended up spoiled at the feet of Bayiha.

What’s next?

Both sides are on the road this weekend, as the Wanderers head to Winnipeg to play Valour FC on Saturday, Sept. 21 (2 p.m. CT/4 p.m. AT), while Pacific go to the nation’s capital to play Atlético Ottawa on Sunday (2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT).