2020 CPL regular season (The Island Games) — Match #14
Pacific FC vs. Valour FC
August 25, 2020 at 8:00 p.m ET/9:00 p.m. AT
UPEI Artificial Turf Field in Charlottetown, PEI
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca

Both Pacific FC and Valour FC have plenty of motivation ahead of their meeting at The Island Games on Tuesday.

For Valour, fresh off a 0-0 draw with York9 FC, it’s a chance to solidify their hold on third place in the overall standings and move within a point of second-place Forge FC and three points behind table-toppers Cavalry FC as the first round enters the home stretch. For Pacific, who is coming off a heartbreaking loss to Forge, it’s an opportunity to collect their first win and earn three points that would see them leapfrog Valour for third in the table at a crucial juncture in the season.

Conceding late goals has cost Pacific valuable points through its first three matches of the campaign, while Valour has found its defensive form in its last two outings after suffering a loss in its opener. Can Valour keep alive its shutout streak, which now stands at 237 consecutive minutes?

Also of note, Tuesday’s tilt marks the first time Marco Bustos will face Valour since leaving the Winnipeg-based club in the off-season to sign with Pacific.

Bustos led Valour in scoring with seven goals in the 2019 CPL season before leaving as a free agent for the west coast.

“Once we step on the field it’s time to battle,” said Valour co-captain Dylan Carreiro, one of the few holdovers from last year’s squad. “Marco was obviously a teammate from last year, but he’s not on the team this year. Once the game starts you just switch it on and make sure you are competing and battling.

“We’ll be on the same field and it will be a bit different not seeing him in Valour colours, but we know we have a task to do and that’s to get a result and keep pushing. That’s our main focus.”

Many members of Valour weren’t with the team last year, so Bustos will be facing plenty of new faces on Tuesday night. Still…

“It gives a different taste to the game when you’re playing against a (former team),” Bustos told the Winnipeg Free Press. “Obviously, Valour had a big turnover on the squad so I’m not playing all my teammates from last year, but there are a decent amount of them.

“It’s fun, but I take every game the same way, whether it’s against my friends or guys I don’t know. I always want to win and on the field, no one’s a friend and I’m playing with my teammates. Off the field, it’s a different story.”

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3 THINGS TO WATCH

• Terran Campbell still searching for goals: Last season, Pacific FC’s Terran Campbell finished second in the Golden Boot race with 11 goals. This season, the 21-year-old Canadian is searching for his first goal after making three appearances for the Tridents totalling 166 minutes of playing time. Campbell has had good looks on goal and he’s come close to scoring at The Island Games, including hitting the crossbar in the loss to Forge FC. But at some point he’s going to have to convert if Pacific is to climb the table and clinch a second-round berth.

• Valour’s solid defensive foundation: After giving up two goals in its opening loss, Valour has posted consecutive clean sheets – not bad for a team that had the worst defence in the CPL last year. Toronto FC loanee Julian Dunn and Andrew Jean-Baptiste have played all 270 minutes, providing Valour with a solid foundation in the heart of defence. “Our backline was solid (vs. Y9) as we’ve shown in the tournament, we’ve been getting better and better and giving up fewer chances,” goalkeeper James Pantemis said.

• Pacific need to put in a full 90: The Tridents have conceded late goals in two of their three matches at The Island Games, dropping a valuable three points in the process. Concentration has been missing in the dying minutes as tired Pacific players have desperately tried to hold on for a result. They can’t afford to switch off against Valour. “It’s disappointing, since for sure, we had some great spells,” Pacific midfielder Jamar Dixon said after the loss to Forge.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

“We will show our resilience in the coming games, it is a tough loss, but you’re playing against the champion. We’re proud of our players because we went toe-to-toe with the champions – nothing wrong with that.” – Pacific FC coach Pa-Modou Kah, after the Forge game.

“It’s a slog. This is a tournament that is going to be survival of the fittest. It’s like ‘Survivor;’ we’re on an island and we want to keep ourselves in it as long as we can. Four points from three games in six days. Ottawa had an extra day’s rest than us. York had an extra day’s rest than us and all three games in the heat on three of the hottest days since we’ve been here… you couldn’t write a worse script for the conditioning.” – Valour coach Rob Gale, after the York game

ALL-TIME SERIES

Pacific wins: 3 || Valour wins: 1 || Draws 1

PREVIOUS MEETING

October 19, 2019: Pacific FC 2, Valour FC 0

REFEREES

Referee: David Barrie
ARs: Lyes Arfa & Jason Olinski
4th Official: Myriam Marcotte