2024 CPL Playoffs — Final
Cavalry FC vs. Forge FC
Nov. 9, 2024 at 1 p.m. MT / 3 p.m. ET 
ATCO Field in Calgary, Alberta
Watch Live: CBC, CBC Gem, cbcsports.ca, OneSoccer.ca & TELUS Ch. 980
Tickets available here

First 2019, then 2023 and now 2024. For the third time in the Canadian Premier League’s six-year history, bitter rivals Forge FC and Cavalry FC face off in the CPL Final on Saturday.

After the 2019 Final had legs in both Hamilton and Calgary, and the 2023 Final was played in Hamilton, the 2024 match will be hosted solely in Calgary for the first time, completing a compelling trilogy between the two sides.

The first two bouts went the way of the Hamilton club, who won the inaugural 2019 Final on aggregate before delivering a stunning counter-punch in the 2023 Final with a pair of goals late in extra time, including Tristan Borges’ famous Olimpico match winner, after Cavalry had initially taken the lead.

Now, in front of a sold-out crowd at ATCO Field, Cavalry will be looking to make history and finally lift the North Star Cup. Forge, meanwhile, will be searching for a different kind of history as they look to become the first club to do the double as regular season winners and playoff champions. The Hamilton club have won four of the league’s five CPL Finals — and will have appeared in all six.

RELATED: 3 reasons why Cavalry FC could win the 2024 CPL Final || 3 reasons why Forge FC could win the 2024 CPL Final

This will be the 32nd all-time meeting between the two clubs over their six-year history between the CPL Playoffs, regular season and the Canadian Championship. Only two of those matches have been decided by more than a single goal, showing just how fine the margins are when these two titans clash.

“We can talk about this being a trilogy, the third final, revenge match, you can talk about all that,” said Cavalry FC manager Tommy Wheeldon Jr in the prematch press availability. “I’ll tell you what it is, it’s an ongoing war. We’ll always be there. They’ll always be there. So this is just going to be another chapter of that. We’ve just brought it back to our home environment.”

ATCO Field has been a fortress for Cavalry over the years, perhaps more than any other home venue has been for any other Canadian Premier League club. They have played 80 matches in all competitions at home, boasting a strong record of 45 wins, 20 draws and just 15 losses.

This year, however, victories in Calgary haven’t come so easy, as they collected just five during the 2024 regular season, the fewest in club history. It has been even more difficult to beat the Calgary team at home this year, however, as only one CPL club has done it in 2024, York United back on July 13. Forge have just a single victory in their past seven trips to ATCO Field, which came in the 2023 CPL Playoff qualifying semi-final.

RELATED: ‘To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best’: Cavalry FC’s Wheeldon Jr., Carducci, Shome speak ahead of CPL Final || ‘We’ve got a few more trophies than they do’: Forge FC’s Smyrniotis, Bekker, Hojabrpour speak ahead of CPL Final

The big difference in this historic rivalry, however, has been the playoffs. Forge have won six of the eight all-time postseason meetings between the two clubs. Their first, and only, loss against Cavalry in the playoffs came on Oct. 27 in this year’s qualifying semi-final at Tim Hortons Field, 1-0 on a goal by Tobias Warschewski.

That loss forced the Hamilton club to take a bit of a longer road than usual to reach their sixth consecutive final, needing to rebound and defeat Atlético Ottawa by a score of 1-0 in the semi-final. It was just their second loss in their 15 previous playoff matches, with the other coming against Pacific FC in the 2021 CPL Final.

Cavalry will take a lot of confidence from that victory not just believing that they can beat Forge in the playoffs, but now knowing that they are capable of doing so. Tommy Wheeldon Jr. said that they had finally ‘slayed their dragon’, now they will have to beat them in back-to-back games for only the second time in club history, with the only previous instance of this taking place back in 2021.

“It’s like a hydra — you cut one head off, two appear,” said Wheeldon Jr. “I think we’ll talk about their team for years to come, but it’s up to us now. If you want to change a dynasty, someone has to stand in their way.”

What makes slaying that dragon a second time so daunting is the fact that no club in this country is more comfortable in knockout matches than Forge, who in their six-year history have played in 50 non-regular season contests between the CPL postseason, Canadian Championship and Concacaf competition. Cavalry are the next closest in Canadian club football, with Saturday’s final being their 30th such match.

“To win this trophy, at least for now, you have to go through Forge, and we take a lot of pride in that,” said Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis.

Forge are the only team to have ever won a CPL playoff match after allowing the first goal, something they did during last year’s final. After Ali Musse opened the scoring in extra time, Forge’s Béni Badibanga equalized before Tristan Borges’ heroics in the 111th minute.

RELATED: ‘A special player’: How Tobias Warschewski became the focal point of Cavalry FC’s attack in 2024 || ‘Machine in the middle’: How Alessandro Hojabrpour was crucial to Forge FC’s success in 2024

With how close the two sides have been both this season and in their history, two 15 minute periods of extra time could again be on the cards. Should that solve nothing, the two sides will head to the penalty spot for the first time in CPL Final history. Only one of the league’s 26 all-time playoff matches has gone to a penalty shootout, this year’s quarter-final between Atlético Ottawa and York United.

As a result of winning the qualifying semi-final, Cavalry had two weeks to prepare for this match allowing them not only time to work on tactical plans but also ensure their group is as healthy as possible heading into Saturday’s final.

For Forge, meanwhile, there are a number of fitness questions going into the game surrounding some of their key players, including Tristan Borges and Garven Metusala who both did not play during last week’s semi-final. However, they will get one important member of their side back as Daniel Parra’s suspension has ended and he will be available for selection on Saturday.

All CPL matches are available to stream on OneSoccer, FuboTV, or on TELUS Optik TV Channel 980.

3 THINGS TO WATCH

• Can Cavalry’s outstanding defence stifle Forge’s struggling attack?: If Cavalry FC are to lift the North Star Cup for the first time in club history, a big reason for that will likely be their league-best defence. Including the CPL postseason, Cavalry allowed just 27 goals in 29 matches this year. They also allowed the fewest shots on target during the regular season, 92, and the fewest expected goals faced, with just 24.27. Forge, meanwhile have been uncharacteristically struggling offensively coming into this match. Despite scoring a league-leading 45 times this season, those goals have dried up in recent weeks. Malik Owolabi-Belewu’s 53rd-minute winner against Atlético Ottawa in the semi-final is the only goal they scored in their past four matches. Forge have played four different attacking lineups over those four matches, begging the question as to who will start on Saturday, as well as who will lead the line.

• Who will win the league’s first-ever Final MVP?: There was a special surprise for Canadian Premier League fans at the 2024 CPL Awards night, as the league unveiled a new trophy, the Playoff Final MVP fuelled by Gatorade. The winner will be awarded a unique Inuit soapstone carving of a Narwhal crafted by artist Ruben Komangapik. So who will take home the honour on Saturday? Forge’s side is full of past playoff heroes, including Tristan Borges, David Choinière and Alessandro Hojabrpour, all of whom have scored twice in CPL Finals. On the Cavalry side of things, Ali Musse has been immense for them in big matches over the years. Having already collected the league’s Golden Boot, Tobias Warschewski has scored the winning goal in both of Cavalry’s victories against Forge this season, and will again be the club’s leading threat on Saturday. Finals, however, have a knack for creating unexpected heroes over the years, and this year there very well might be a new name added to the CPL history books.

• Who is fit and available for Forge FC?: While Cavalry’s lineup is expected to be pretty similar to that which they have deployed over the past few weeks, Forge’s situation is perhaps a little more fluid. The hero of last year’s final, and the 2024 Player of the Year, Tristan Borges, did not see the pitch during last weekend’s semi-final against Atlético Ottawa, and played just 61 minutes in the qualifying semi-final against Cavalry with his level of fitness ahead of the final remains a question. Meanwhile, Garven Metusala is expected to miss this match through injury, while after missing three matches through suspension, the match fitness of Daniel Parra is perhaps a question as well. In Metusala’s place, will Forge elect to start Malik Owolabi-Belewu or the more experienced Dom Samuel who has appeared in all five previous CPL Finals? Their front three, as well, brings questions as they have struggled to find an attacking rhythm in recent weeks. What is a huge benefit is almost all of the players they can plug in have plenty of experience in big matches, but whether or not they are in form to deliver in this one remains to be seen. “These are games where the most ready players play, and then from there, we can impact the game [with players] coming off the bench,” said Smyrniotis.

PROJECTED STARTING XIs

Cavalry FC: Carducci; Aird, Klomp, Montgomery, Kamdem; Gutiérrez, Shome; Musse, Camargo, Herdman; Warschewski

Forge FC: Koleilat; Duncan, Achinioti-Jönsson, Owolabi-Belewu, Parra; Hojabrpour, Bekker, Jensen; Choinière, Ampomah, Badibanga

ALL-TIME SERIES

Forge FC wins: 14 || Cavalry FC wins: 9 || Draws: 8

Last meeting:

Oct. 27, 2024 — Forge FC 0-1 Cavalry FC

PLAYOFF HISTORY 

2019 CPL Finals – Leg 1 — Forge FC 1-0 Cavalry FC
2019 CPL Finals – Leg 2 — Cavalry FC 0-1 Forge FC (0-2 agg.)
2020 CPL Island Games – Group Stage — Cavalry FC 0-1 Forge FC
2022 CPL Semi-Finals – Leg 1 — Cavalry FC 1-1 Forge FC
2022 CPL Semi-Finals – Leg 2 — Forge FC 2-1 Cavalry FC (3-2 agg.)
2023 Qualifying Semi-Final — Cavalry FC 1-2 Forge FC
2023 CPL Final – Forge FC 2-1 Cavalry FC (a.e.t)
2024 Qualifying Semi-Final — Forge FC 0-1 Cavalry FC

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Renzo Villanueva
ARs: Marie-Han Gagnon-Chretien, Graham Forsyth
4th Official: Yusri Rudolf

KEY QUOTES

“It could be the same opponent, but it’s a different battleground. There’ll be different players that weren’t there last year. We were in a different position in the league. Last year we were the league champions. This year we finished second. So as I said, they’re the best, we have to raise our game now.” — Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr.

“That ability to believe in each other, to enjoy these moments, I think that’s what’s gotten us to where we are, because we faced a lot of adversity early in the year. I think it was 15 weeks in, we weren’t even in the playoff picture. People were asking a lot of questions about this. Here we are. So we’ve embraced that mentality.” — Cavalry FC captain & goalkeeper Marco Carducci 

“I think [our] team have been much more consistent over the season. Much more consistent, much more battle challenged… that stability of our play this year, good performance in the Champions Cup, an excellent run in the Canadian Championship with some very good performances. I think that kept the fuel going. And that was something that was a little bit lacking last year.” — Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis

“I don’t know if you can be the villain if you’re winning all the time. I think it’s kind of flipped there, no? But we as a collective have had success here [at ATCO Field], and I’m a byproduct of that. “ — Forge FC midfielder Kyle Bekker