AGR's High Press: Cavalry pick up statement win vs. Forge | Benjamín Mora era begins at York United
The lead continues to grow at the top.
Quietly, Atlético Ottawa is starting to pull away, as their win this weekend ended up being more valuable than they could’ve expected, as no one else in the top five was able to win, widening Ottawa’s lead at the top of the table to seven points ahead of second place.
Yet to lose, they’ve put an early stranglehold on the race for first place, which is something to watch as the second round of games continues.
At the same time, that has created a fascinating secondary race, and that’s the battle for the spots behind them, with only three points separating second and sixth after this weekend.
Given that only the top five make the playoffs, it shows that the battle for that final fifth spot could be a fierce one, especially if seventh-place Valour and eighth-place Halifax start to pick up steam, with Valour not even that far off of doing so as they sit just four points behind six (Halifax is a bit further behind with eight points between them and sixth).
After one of the best regular season campaigns in the CPL’s history last year, it’s setting the table for a similar outcome in 2024, which is exactly what one would want to see heading into the start of summer. A tight table sets up some big matchups, of which there will certainly be a few more of those in the weeks to come, as there were over the last few matchdays.
Speaking of, here’s what stood out from the CPL’s latest matchday in this week’s “High Press”.
Cavalry gets statement win:
Cavalry’s streak of draws has finally come to an end, as they beat Forge to snap a streak of four straight draws, coming as part of a stretch where they also amassed six draws in seven games.
All of a sudden, it vaulted them into the CPL’s fifth and final playoff spot, putting them within two points of second, currently riding a streak of eight matches without a loss.
They weren’t winning, but they weren’t losing, and that allowed them to quietly remain in the race, as those points were starting to add up.
Despite that, they needed a win, and there was no better way for them to find that than with a statement 1-0 victory against rivals Forge.
Especially given that it came in a statement Cavalry performance at home, this will give them lots of confidence going forward.
Yet, that’s a credit to how they were able to find this victory at home, as they relied on some key aspects of their DNA to get the win over the line.
To begin, they shifted things defensively, employing a strict 4-4-2 off the ball, led by the pair of Tobias Warschewski and Sergio Camargo up front, followed by two compact banks of four behind them.
That ended up limiting space for Forge to stretch the field and create overloads out wide, while not allowing any opportunities for them to flood the midfield, either.
The tweak ended up working perfectly, as they kept Forge to just seven shots and 0.22 xG, with only one of those shots coming inside the box. For a team that loves to push forward and get into their opponent’s box, that Forge only had nine touches in Cavalry’s penalty area shows how successful their defensive approach was in this one.
Then, in possession, they went with a sort of 3-2-2-3 box, with Fraser Aird and Lleyton Brooks providing the width, and the midfield quartet of Camargo, Shamit Shome, Charlie Trafford and Diego Gutiérrez often making up the four. Then, to add a wrinkle, Trafford switched with centre back Daan Klomp on a few occasions, allowing Klomp to push into midfield to get onto the ball.
Through that, Cavalry ended up winning the possession battle slightly, as they were able to go toe-to-toe with Forge’s midfield, allowing them to complete 85.1% of their total passes, including 80.8% of their passes in the opposition half and 77.9% of their passes in Forge’s final third.
That opened up space out wide for Aird and Brooks, and Aird eventually made them pay for it, finding Warschewski with a cross that was dummied and helped on by Camargo, with Warschewski doing the rest for his fifth of the year (which ties him for first in the CPL).
GOAL 🐎
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 8, 2024
THE DEADLOCK IS FINALLY BROKEN! Tobias Warschewski puts @CPLCavalryFC ahead after finding Fraser Aird’s low cross ⚽️
Watch #CanPL LIVE on OneSoccer 🔴 pic.twitter.com/qkOdUR87QD
Overall, it was a pretty good offensive showing for Cavalry, too, as they had 16 shots, including eight inside of the box, for a total of 1.34 xG. In fact, they probably could’ve had a few more goals than they did, as they finished with four big chances, but they were only able to find one goal for those efforts.
That was enough for them in this game, however, and that’s a credit to their defence. Yet, that’s been a big bright spot for them this season - after this game, they’ve still conceded the fewest xG with just 6.94, over one less than second-place Ottawa. Therefore, while they’d conceded the fourth-fewest goals, they were due a defensive performance like this, having only claimed one clean sheet despite their underlying numbers, making this one a long time coming.
But this shows why this win is so key. Cavalry’s performances were indicating that they were due a win, but they just needed to stick with it and get one over the line.
And no better way for them to get back on track with a win against Forge, which can be the perfect catalyst for them to find form in the summer as they typically love to do. That’s one thing a rivalry match is always good for - a jolt to the system, one that Cavalry may end up benefitting from if they can build off this win.
York begins Benjamín Mora era:
A fascinating storyline heading into this weekend was over at York United, where Benjamín Mora was set to make his coaching debut for York after replacing Martin Nash last week.
Having had such a short time to work with his players, and a depleted squad, how could his team look in his first game in charge?
Turns out, pretty decently, all things considered, as they shared the spoils in a scrappy 2-2 draw with Vancouver. A result they’ll probably be pretty frustrated with given that they led twice in it, those frustrations would quickly dissipate when considering the circumstances, especially surrounding their squad, as they were missing several regulars.
Interestingly, Mora immediately changed his team’s shape, employing a 5-3-2 out of possession, one that shifted into a 3-1-4-2 in possession. By using a back three of Oswaldo Léon, Frank Sturing and Noah Abatneh, Mora immediately leaned on his team’s strength in that area, while freeing up full backs Max Ferrari and Kadin Martin-Pereux to play more aggressively as wing backs. Along with the presence of three midfielders, he seemed to want to give York more balance across the pitch with these changes.
He had to ask some players to play some new roles, with full back Juan Córdova tasked to play as a midfielder, while winger Markiyan Voytsekhovskyy was deployed as a striker, but his team ended up making it work despite it.
Despite going up against a solid Vancouver FC side, York were able to hold their own at both ends, putting in a good shift defensively thanks to the extra body at the back, while their wing backs were an asset in possession.
In particular, their first goal was a good sign of why, as Martin-Pereux was able to sneak in behind Vancouver’s defence, before finding Voytsekhovskyy with a cutback into the box for a goal.
GOAL 👑
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 9, 2024
Markiyan Voytsekhovskyy finds Kadin Martin-Pereux's low cross to put @yorkutdfc ahead in our @TonyBet_Canada MOTW 🔥
Watch #CanPL LIVE on OneSoccer 🔴 pic.twitter.com/kgmTWtbG5p
Naturally, there were some growing pains offensively, especially with the absence of some key pieces up front, and that was shown in the fact that York finished with just three shots and 0.19 xG (making their two-goal tally look more impressive), but they did get into some good areas, just unable to find the final pass into the box.
Defensively, however, they were quite solid. They allowed 1.51 xG on nine shots, but that’s because of a penalty they conceded on a handball, meaning they only conceded 0.72 xG on eight shots when removing that from the equation, which is pretty strong.
And that’s the big thing to watch. There’s no doubt that this team can score goals, especially when everyone’s healthy. That they found the net twice on limited chances in this game shows that.
#CANPL. BANGERS. ONLY. 👑👑
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 9, 2024
TAKE A BOW, JUAN CORDOVA! The @yorkutdfc full-back scores an absolute beauty to put his side back in the lead vs. @VanFootballClub 💫
Goal of the season contender? ⚽️🤔
Watch our @tonybet_canada MOTW LIVE on OneSoccer 🔴 pic.twitter.com/9TJZkKheZW
But their defence has often been an area of concern, making it interesting to see if Mora’s arrival and a potential permanent switch to a back five could be what York needs to solve that.
Because of that, keep an eye on his team’s progression as he starts to get a chance to work with his full complement of players in the weeks to come, as his first impression was a good one. 
Ollie Bassett thriving in a new role for Ottawa:
Ollie Bassett has played a few different roles for Ottawa since his arrival ahead of the 2022 season. That year, he played as more of a box-to-box midfielder in Ottawa’s flexible 4-5-1, scoring eight goals and adding three assists en route to winning the CPL’s Player of the Year and Player’s Player of the Year award thanks to his solid all-around performances.
Then, last year, his role shifted to become more of a #10, one who almost played like a second striker at times, and he scored 11 goals and added four assists in that role en route to co-winning the CPL’s Golden Boot award with Cavalry’s Myer Bevan.
This year, his role has shifted again, however, as he’s been given more of a free role in the attack, playing somewhere in between those two roles. He’s not the box-crasher he was in 2023, but he’s not as quite involved box-to-box as he was in 2022, either, sitting as a sort of tempo-setting #10.
And so far, he’s thrived in that role, helping Ottawa to their hot start, as their 2-0 win this weekend over Valour extended their undefeated run in CPL play to nine games, extending their lead atop the table.
GOAL 🏠
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 9, 2024
Ollie Bassett puts @atletiOttawa ahead in Winnipeg from the penalty spot ⚽️
Watch #CanPL LIVE on OneSoccer 🔴 pic.twitter.com/WDpMURX5cA
Once again, Bassett shone in that Valour win, scoring the winner on a penalty, but his overall performance is what stood out from his play. He was very involved in the attack, finishing with 69 touches, but he was efficient with the ball, completing 50 out of 54 passes, creating four chances, operating as more of a playmaker. 
Then, the week before, he was more of a final action player, as he had 79 touches, and completed 47 out of 53 passes, but also scored from open play and had six shots to go along with three chances created in a 2-2 draw with Halifax.
Yet, that shows the flexibility that he now has in the attack. Thanks to the arrival of Manny Aparicio and Aboubacar Sissoko in Ottawa’s midfield, they take care of the box-to-box duties in Ottawa’s midfield, on both sides of the ball.
From there, that frees up Bassett to play freely, bringing what he feels the game needs, which can vary. Sometimes, it’s been goals, other times it’s been creativity, and sometimes it’s a bit of both, as seen in his two goals and two assists he now has in CPL play.
Through that, he’s played a big role in supporting Ottawa’s high-flying attack, who leads the league with 17 goals.
Because of that, don’t be surprised for him to push back into POTY and PPOTY conversation like he was in 2022, as he’s benefitted massively from the tweaks Ottawa has made to their team, which has allowed their star midfielder to find his feet in a perfect role for his skills, as the last few weeks have shown.
Plus, most importantly, he’s not relied upon heavily to influence the game, either, which has actually helped him as it’s given him even more freedom to just do his thing, and these past few weeks have shown how that can benefit Ottawa.
Who caught my eye? Eryk Kobza
In a strong Cavalry defensive performance, Kobza was a standout, putting in a strong showing on both sides of the ball. He wasn’t the most active in his defensive numbers, but his positioning was a big reason for that, as he and the rest of Cavalry’s back line did well to take away space from Forge.
Along with a strong performance in possession, as he completed 62 of 69 passes and made 12 passes into the final third, he played a key role in this big Cavalry win, showing why he can be one of the best defenders in the CPL on his day. 
What to watch: Forge FC vs Halifax Wanderers FC
Interestingly, this weekend features the last time two teams will meet for the first time this year, as Forge and Halifax get set for their first meeting of 2024. After their first-round meeting was postponed due to Forge’s success in the Canadian Championship, this matchup has been a long time coming and should have no shortage of storylines.
To begin, there’s the fact that Forge is looking to pick up a win to continue what has been a strong start, this most recent loss to Cavalry aside, as they look to push back up the table.
Meanwhile, the Wanderers are still looking for their first win of the season, still without a win through eight games. Given that they actually had a winning record last year against Forge, they’ll see this game as the perfect opportunity for them to turn things around, as a win like this could be huge for their confidence.
Because of that, this game should be one to watch, as the Wanderers look to put a nightmare start behind them, while Forge aims to return to winning ways once again.
