2024 CPL Regular Season — Match #97
Forge FC vs. York United FC
September 28, 2024 at 4 p.m. ET
Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca & TELUS Ch. 980 // Tickets available here

One last 905 Derby in the 2024 regular season could go a long way toward determining which side lifts the Canadian Premier League Shield this year, as title contenders Forge FC and York United square off at Tim Hortons Field.

Forge are undoubtedly the front-runners to win this year’s regular season crown, currently sitting atop the table with a 13-5-6 record and 44 points. That means they’ll begin matchweek 25 with a five-point lead on second-place Atlético Ottawa. The Hammers have already clinched a playoff spot, doing so with a flourish in a 3-1 win over Vancouver FC last Saturday.

That contest saw Forge’s biggest stars combine for a strong attacking outburst, with David Choinière’s goal and assist enough to earn him CPL Player of the Week honours.

However, York see themselves as potential challengers to Forge’s place at the front of the pack. The Nine Stripes are fourth place with 36 points — eight back of Forge — but they’re on the precipice of clinching their own postseason berth. A win on Saturday, or several other results around the league falling their way, could ensure that York return to the playoffs for a second straight year.

The Nine Stripes’ title ambitions took a blow last Friday, when they lost 2-0 to Cavalry FC at home. It was one of the more lacklustre performances they’ve had under Benjamín Mora, but a full week (plus an extra day) of preparation should mean they come out firing for some redemption this time.

All involved will be hoping this match is more entertaining than the prior meeting between these two sides, where neither looked much like scoring in a 0-0 draw at York Lions Stadium. Before that, these teams had met three other times in 2024, with Forge scoring three goals and winning on each occasion. So, the latest clash was the closest York have come, but they need more than that if they’re to take all three points at Tim Hortons Field for the first time since June 2023. That game was actually the only time York have beaten their Hamilton rivals in the last two years, but they’ll be desperate to do so again.

Unfortunately for York, they’ll have to try and do it this week without three of their international contingent. Mexican players Jorge Guzmán, Oswaldo León and Orlando Botello are all unavailable due to suspension — the former for a red card against Cavalry and the latter two for yellow card accumulation.

Meanwhile, Forge are largely in good health, and they get Daniel Parra back from suspension this week too. Bobby Smyrniotis said Friday the only definite injury concern is Terran Campbell, who remains out, but otherwise he should have a full squad to pick from.

Is this the week Forge truly pull away in the regular season race? Or do York United have one more trick up their sleeve to get back into the hunt?

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

•  York looking to spark Wright: York’s leading scorer and assist provider Brian Wright returned to the lineup last week after a three-game absence, but he still wasn’t quite at 100 per cent. The striker was held to just 26 touches and one shot against Cavalry, as his teammates struggled mightily to get the ball to him, but his coach Benjamín Mora admitted Wright still was a little out of sync with the rest of the attack. Despite his absences, Wright is still second in the CPL in both goals (nine) and assists (six), and he could still challenge for the all-time record for goal contributions in a season — the current mark is Tristan Borges’ 17 in 2019, and Wright is at 15 with four games to play. Individual accolades aside, though, York desperately need Wright to get back to the unstoppable attacking machine he was in July and August if they’re to make a serious push for silverware this year.

• Klonaridis debut nearing? Photos on Forge’s social media accounts this week have shown recent signing Victor Klonaridis getting comfortable in training with the club after arriving about two weeks ago. Without much time remaining in the season, Bobby Smyrniotis wants to get the veteran attacker involved soon; Klonaridis could be a major help, either on the wing or in the striker role (depending on which of those spots Béni Badibanga occupies). The 32-year-old Greek-Belgian forward comes to Forge with an incredible wealth of experience in Europe, having won trophies in Greece and played at top levels in other countries including France and Türkiye. When Klonaridis takes to the pitch for Forge, he’ll be just the second ever Canadian Premier League player to have played a UEFA Champions League group stage match (of which he’s played five, with AEK Athens in 2018). The first, of course, was another Forge player in Manjrekar James, who played one game for Danish side Midtjylland in 2020. Smyrniotis confirmed on Friday that Klonaridis is available for selection on Saturday, noting that he’s been “very good” in training this week.

• York face selection headache at the back: With Oswaldo León and Orlando Botello suspended, Benjamín Mora will not have an easy job picking his defence for this match. That’ll be especially true if Noah Abatneh and Frank Sturing remain unavailable to injury, as they have been for two and five weeks, respectively. Nyal Higgins and Elijah Adekugbe may, by necessity, be the centre-back pairing, and it’s possible Max Ferrari moves to the left side to cover for Botello at fullback. That might mean Juan Córdova dropping into right-back from midfield, which opens up another hole in the centre of the park. York’s squad was already a little thin due to injuries, so this trio of suspensions has not come at a good time for the club; it’ll be interesting to see how exactly Mora chooses to manage the problem. One possible wrinkle: Mora hinted he’s been trying out recent newcomer Kembo Kibato at left-back in place of Botello, which might allow York to keep Córdova in midfield and Ferrari on the right.

PROJECTED STARTING XIs

Forge FC: Koleilat; Cissé, Achinioti-Jönsson, Metusala, Parra; Choinière, Bekker, Hojabrpour, Jensen, Borges; Badibanga

York United: Vincensini; Ferrari, Higgins, Adekugbe, Kibato; Martínez, Baldisimo, Márquez; Babouli, Wright, Jimoh

ALL-TIME SERIES

Forge wins: 15 || York United wins: 7 || Draws: 3

Last meeting:

Aug. 24, 2024 — York United 0-0 Forge FC

KEY QUOTES

“We know we’re playing a hungry team in York that brings the best; the games are good, doesn’t matter what the scorelines are, it’s always a good game and a tough game for both teams. But like with any game, there’s a path to three points. We’ve identified that, and we just have to make sure we execute here at home, where we’ve had a good record.” — Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis