Martin Nash squatted down in the nondescript away dressing room at Tim Hortons Field as he addressed his players. On the whiteboard behind the York United manager were a few different tactical scribbles, the last remnants of a battle well fought with local rivals Forge FC.

The Aug. 12 derby had ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw, albeit with York feeling very hard done by a late handball call that had led to Forge’s Terran Campbell’s equalizer from the penalty spot. Adrenaline still coursing through his veins, Nash looked around the room as he began his post-match team talk.

“No one wants us to succeed, no one wants us in the playoffs,” said Nash. “It’s on us.”

That’s an example of the chip that York have come to develop on their shoulder during a playoff race where they have perhaps been the forgotten team. With all the hype coming out of Halifax, Ollie Bassett’s race for back-to-back Player of the Year awards, Pacific’s high-flying offence and the perennial dominance of Forge and Cavalry, headlines and air time have been focused elsewhere in the country.

York’s storyline this year has perhaps been more complicated; a season of ups and downs and off-field headlines have dominated their narrative. With just five matches remaining in their season, however, the Nine Stripes are still very much in the playoff picture. They currently sit in the fifth and final spot, tied with Halifax and Atlético Ottawa on points and ahead of the former in total wins, which is the first tiebreaker.

While they have played one more match than any other side in the league so far, with the exception of Forge, they hold a distinct advantage over the rest of the league during the final run-in: four straight matches at home. Starting on Friday against Valour, they then host three teams, Pacific, Cavalry and Atlético Ottawa, with whom they are directly competing for playoff positions.

Over the next four matches, York United have a chance to write their own story — one that they will hope that, perhaps against the odds, will end in playoff football.

For most clubs in the CPL, home field has been an advantage this season, but York might be the notable exception. The league’s best road team in terms of points accumulated, with 21, they have picked up a league-low 11 home points in 10 matches. In the process, they have scored the fewest goals in the league, just eight, at home.

That started early in the year as York lost their first three home matches of the season. They have also been held scoreless in half of their games at York Lions Stadium this year.

“It’s a shame that we haven’t been at our best at home,” said York United head coach Martin Nash to CanPL.ca. “I think we’ve been the architects of our own demise at home at times.”

York have certainly not made things easy on themselves at home this year. They have scored first just twice in 10 home matches this season, with only Valour scoring fewer first-half goals at home this season than their four. That has meant they’re chasing matches significantly more often than not.

The Nine Stripes recently went 77 days without a victory at home, a stretch they critically ended in a 2-1 victory over Vancouver FC on Aug. 25 in the team’s most recent home match. They built on that this past weekend with an arguably even bigger victory, also 2-1 over the Halifax Wanderers on the road.

Both wins have come from behind, as the Nine Stripes have truly shown desperation and fight to keep themselves afloat in the playoff race. While Nash would certainly like to see his team land the first punch in their upcoming matches, he thinks the attitude and willingness of his group to claw back in matches bodes well for this upcoming run.

The increase in effort has been evident throughout the squad of late. From attackers like Kévin Santos, Austin Ricci and Mo Babouli, who have been relentless in pressuring opposing backlines all over the pitch, to midfield maestro Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé rounding into top form. Defensively, the at-times suspect York United backline has been significantly better — in particular at seeing out matches, with players like Paris Gee and Noah Abatneh who have provided quality across a variety of positions.

“With these games, everything is on the line because we need points to get into the playoffs because we are battling from behind,” said Nash. “We have played an extra game than everyone else so for me these games are really important for us, maybe more important for us than other teams. We didn’t hide from the fact that these are massive games. I’ve said every game coming in is a cup final for us.” 

York have just one loss in their past five matches, which came away from home against the only club in the league to pick up more points than them during that stretch: Cavalry FC.

“I think we’re coming together at the right time,” said Nash. “You want to end the season strong and hopefully get into the playoff and give yourselves a chance.” 

Also helping the playoff push has been the number of key veteran signings the club made this year. York added 157 matches of CPL experience between Gagnon-Laparé, Jonathan Grant, Brian Wright and Elijah Adekugbe. Having a healthy Roger Thompson, Niko Giantsopoulos and Ricci has certainly helped in this regard as well.

“I think with our team as well we have a really good balance,” York defender Tass Mourdoukoutas told CanPL.ca. “We have a really good group of older players with a lot of experience who have played in some big matches and tough fixtures in their careers, so this isn’t anything out of the ordinary. We can definitely coach these younger guys into seeing our game.”

Those younger players, however, have also become crucial to another ongoing storyline in York’s 2023 season that remains a big factor in their postseason push: under-21 minutes.

After leading the league in this category last season, a large group of their eligible players aged out or moved on from the club this off-season. It didn’t help when key young players Markiyan Voytsekhovskyy and Eleias Himaras were injured early in the season, not to mention a hand injury for Noah Abatneh leaving York to scramble to make a number of signings. They still need 704 minutes in their remaining five matches to be eligible for the playoffs.

“We would have been a lot further ahead than we are now if we hadn’t gone that, I think it was about a four-week spell where we didn’t have a U-21 even on the bench, so it was tough,” said Nash. “But a few different guys have stepped up to claim U-21 minutes and are doing a good job of being able to get results with it, giving the team some confidence and to now not be the lowest team in U-21 minutes is nice. But we’ve still got a long way to go with it and guys are still going to have to keep stepping up and playing their minutes.”

With that being said, Nash said he likes where the group is at right now with multiple different reliable options. The same can be said of their position in the table, with in many ways the opportunity to control their own destiny. While as mentioned, almost every team in the race has a game in hand on them, that isn’t a complete disadvantage either.

“Other teams have to travel, we’ve played more games than other people too so they’re going to have to start playing that midweek fixture and they will have the heavy legs, they will have the travel,” said Mourdoukoutas. 

The goal now will be to make sure that when these team’s come into the lion’s den in York, the Nine Stripes make sure that their opponents don’t escape with any points that could prove critical in the league’s incredibly tight playoff race.

Martin Nash leapt into the arms of assistant coach Mauro Eustáquio in the York technical area and let out a roar. The otherwise quiet Wanderers Grounds was punctuated by elated exclamations from other York players and staff as Nash turned and pumped his fist wildly, before embracing midfielder Brem Soumaoro.

“Look what it means to Martin Nash and York United!” OneSoccer commentator Adam Jenkins exclaimed.

Nash quickly collected himself as he went to go shake the hand of opposing coach Patrice Gheisar, ending a rare display of emotion from the usually calm and collected gaffer. The reaction, however, after a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the Halifax Wanderers on Labour Day Monday, was justified.

York United are fighting for their playoff lives right now, and every point — especially every three — could mean the difference between finishing above the line or below it. Nash and his side made a late push last year, only to come up short with a few matches remaining in the season. This year, he and his group are desperate to make sure that doesn’t happen again, and that starts with taking care of business at home.

“We’re in a better position now going into the final run than we were last year,” said Nash. “But I think for us right now it’s collecting wins and being strong at home. We haven’t been consistent at home so now can we get some consistency at home over the next four games. We’ve got to have that same effort we give on the road. If we can do that then we have a good chance to make the playoffs.”

Mourdoukoutas echoed his manager’s sentiment.

“We’re just really looking forward to having what is now a month stretch at home and being able to put together and use the momentum we have from two wins in a row,” he said. “We look forward to our remaining fixtures, as we have shown we can beat anyone in this league.” 

For a team that have played back-to-back matches at York Lions Stadium just twice this season, this next month will provide a unique opportunity to finally make their home grounds a fortress. Whether or not they take it will make or break their 2023 season.