AGR's High Press: York ends Ottawa's undefeated run in style | Pacific's attack comes alive at key moment
One streak came to an end this weekend, but another remained intact, as Atlético Ottawa’s nine-game undefeated run in CPL play was snapped with a loss to York United, while Halifax extended their winless run to nine games with a draw with Forge.
Yet, those were just two of the four entertaining matchups that were on tap during the 10th matchweek of the 2024 CPL season, as goals were flowing, streaks were put on the line, and the league even went on tour.
Funnily enough, the one on-tour game ended up yielding no goals, as Vancouver FC and Cavalry battled to a 0-0 draw in Kelowna after there were 12 goals in the previous three games of the weekend, but even that match was a success - it ended up being played in front of just under 6300 fans at Kelowna’s Apple Bowl, showing the appetite for soccer in British Columbia’s interior.
Speaking of streaks, another one ended up continuing in that game, as Cavalry have now gone nine games undefeated, although seven of those nine games have been draws, with wins proving to be elusive.
But they’re not the only team struggling to rack up wins consistently, which is why just three points separate second and sixth place heading into matchweek #11, as other than Ottawa and the Wanderers at the extreme ends of the table, most teams have been unable to separate from each other in that pack.
Certainly, from a neutral standpoint, that’s not a bad thing - it only sets up more entertaining games, as the summer of 2023 showed. Now, it’ll be hoped that a tight battle for positioning can be maintained, although one thing’s for sure - some big games sit ahead for all teams, no matter where they lie in the standings.
Before looking too far ahead, however, here’s a look back at what stood out from matchweek #10 in the latest edition of “High Press”.
New-look York snaps Ottawa’s streak:
Certainly, it felt like Ottawa were due to lose a game eventually. Given the level of teams across the CPL, it was only a matter of time before Ottawa would have an off-game and see their lengthy unbeaten streak to start the year come to an end.
At the same time, that didn’t appear to be coming anytime soon, as everything was going Ottawa’s way over the nine games they didn’t lose. No matter the performance, they were finding ways to get points out of games, at home or on the road.
Because of that, it seemed like an eventuality that they would extend their streak to 10 games as they got set to host York United at TD Place. After dispatching that same York side 2-1 at home on CPL’s opening day, they were looking to build off what they showed in that game, where they didn’t have the best of performances but were able to come back from down 1-0 after some wasteful York finishing.
Especially given that York were now entering this second matchup with a new head coach, Benjamín Mora, who was set to helm just his second game behind York’s bench, it seemed like a road win from York might prove to be unlikely.
York certainly didn’t get that message, however, as they managed to surprise Ottawa with a 2-1 off the back of an excellent performance. Like in the first match, they took the lead, but they then made sure to do what they couldn’t in the opener - score a second.
Then, from there, they made sure to do what Halifax failed to do when put in a similar situation just weeks prior at TD Place, where they took a surprise 2-0 lead, and that’s to hang on to their lead, seeing the game over the line with a professional defensive performance.
Yet, that’s a big credit to Mora, who has immediately changed York’s defensive DNA in a short time since his arrival. 
It started tactically, as he stuck with the 5-3-2 that he employed in his first game in charge. One that sometimes morphed into a 4-4-2 or a 5-2-3 off the ball depending on where Ottawa had the ball, that gave York the ability to not get overloaded in the middle, while still ensuring they wouldn’t let Ottawa have free reign down the flanks, either.
In particular, the play of wing backs Max Ferrari and Orlando Botello was crucial in that set-up, as was the play of the midfield trio of Juan Córdova, Josué Martinez and Brem Soumaoro, who had a lot of work to do on and off the ball.
From there, an interesting tweak was the insertion of Elijah Adekugbe at centre back, as he was coming off a POTM performance in midfield during Mora’s first game, but that also offered a new wrinkle in possession, as he helped York’s possession with his passing ability.
Through that, York were not only more efficient and comfortable in possession, but more importantly, they were extremely solid off the ball, too, willing to work when they didn’t have possession, while also making sure to use their own possessions as opportunities to defend actively.
And that defensive improvement is important to highlight. It’s not surprising to see York score two well-taken goals as they did, with Brian Wright continuing his strong season by scoring goals #5 and #6 of the CPL season to climb to the top of the Golden Boot race, but the defensive improvements are just as key.
GOAL 👑@YorkUtdFC take a 1-0 lead over @AtletiOttawa as Brian Wright beats the 'keeper to the ball and taps home 😎
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
🔴 Watch #CanPL on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/9JIHphIYid
When York’s at their best, they’ve got goals in their lineup, as they do well to create chances (even if finishing them can sometimes be an adventure). Defensively, however, they’ve sometimes struggled to keep things tidy and organized, as seen by their numbers, as they’d conceded 16 goals in nine games before this win.
That’s likely why Mora has made that a point of emphasis to begin his tenure, and so far the results have shown that he’s got this team on the right track. A win over a team like Ottawa shows that, and they’ll hope it can now push them onto bigger and better things.
But that’s the biggest thing to watch now - how they build off this. Certainly, a win like this can be huge for Mora’s “proof of concept” tactically, which will only help him with buy-in from his players. Now, however, they’ll have to build from here as teams start to get an idea of what to expect from this York side going forward.
At the same time, York will worry about that when it comes, as they relish this victory. They know it’s early days in this process, but they’re on the right track, as this win showed.
GOAL 👑👑
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
Brian Wright strikes again for @YorkUtdFC early in the second half to give his team a 2-0 lead over @AtletiOttawa ✌️
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As for Ottawa, they won’t be too worried about this loss, as they didn’t have a poor performance - they just struggled to generate high-quality chances despite getting into good areas. In most games this year, that hasn’t been an issue for them, so they’ll feel this is an anomaly instead of a sign of what’s to come, although they’ll now have to make sure this loss isn’t the start of a slump.
Pacific finds much-needed offence at a crucial time:
It’s been the big question for Pacific this year - do they have enough goals in their lineup to be a title contender?
They certainly have the credentials of a team that will battle to make the playoffs, as they proved with a strong start to the year defensively, in which they went five games without conceding, but even as they navigated that stretch of games, questions about their offence lingered, as they scored just five goals across that stretch.
It wasn’t much of a problem for them, to be fair - when you don’t allow any goals, you just need a goal to win, but it was going to be interesting to see what would happen to Pacific if their defence started to slip up.
And over the last few weeks, they’ve started to see the answer to that question. Not only did some of the defensive luck they had earlier in the year begin to dissipate, but injuries and suspensions have hit them hard, too, as they’ve struggled to put their first-choice back line in recent weeks.
As a result, they ended up sitting with a record of 0W-2D-2L in their last four games after their hot five-game start, scoring just two goals and conceding four goals.
Because of that, it put them in an intriguing position as they headed into their most recent match, which came against Valour this past weekend. There, the injury woes continued for them - they were forced to turn to their third goalkeeper, Daniel Zadravec, after an illness to Emil Gazdov and an injury to Sean Melvin forced their hand in goal.
Given that Zadravec was making his professional debut after five years with UNBC in U-Sports, it put a lot of pressure on Pacific to support him, both defensively by making life easier for him, but especially offensively, as there’s no better way to help out a goalkeeper then by giving him run support.
And to Pacific’s credit, they responded to that test, as they quickly scored two first-half goals through Sean Young and Andrei Tîrcoveanu, and looked likely to add to that tally.
GOAL🔱🔱
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
After some great build-up play from @Pacificfccpl, Andrei Tîrcoveanu slots one home from a tight angle to make it 2-0 over Valour
Watch #CanPL LIVE on OneSoccer🔴 pic.twitter.com/tzucZAH7Tk
In particular, Tîrcoveanu was pulling the strings for Pacific, looking dangerous every time he touched the ball, showing the sort of creativity and attacking spark he was expected to provide when he signed for the club but hadn’t been able to provide as he acclimatized to his new surroundings. 
But then, Pacific faced a big test after that hot start, as Valour woke up and tied the game through two goals of their own, coming from Shaan Hundal and Jordi Swibel, both of which Zadravec had no chance of saving, meaning Pacific now had to do something they hadn’t done all year to win - score three goals.
Against a Valour side with all of the momentum in their favour, that was a tall task to navigate.
Yet, Pacific then had a stroke of luck in the 75th minute. After a perfect ball into the box from Adonijah Reid on a free kick, his ball struck the head of Hundal and went in, giving Pacific that elusive third goal, and a lead they wouldn’t give up.
GOAL🔱🔱🔱@Pacificfccpl have regained their lead over Valour on an own goal, as Shaan Hundal heads the ball into the wrong net on a free kick to make it 3-2 for Pacific
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
Watch #CanPL LIVE on OneSoccer🔴 pic.twitter.com/rXVI7xLpPK
With that, it ensured Pacific would be rewarded for one of their stronger offensive showings of the season. Having generated 2.17 xG on 13 shots, doing well to create five big chances, that was the sort of performance that usually yields goals and wins, and they made good on it.
Plus, they’ll be pleased that they did so despite not having Aymen Sellouf in their starting lineup, either, as he’s typically been key to most of Pacific’s offensive success this year. That’s a credit to Tîrcoveanu, certainly, but the return of Reon Moore from suspension was also a big factor, while Josh Heard did well to compliment that trio up front.
If they can now drop Sellouf into that mix, there’s a lot of potential for them to build off this offensive showing, and that’s without considering what other names like Reid or Dario Zanatta can also bring.
Yet, that’s the thing to watch with Pacific - they’ve got goals in this lineup on paper, but finding them has been elusive this year, for a multitude of reasons, from player availability to a lack of chemistry.
Perhaps this game was just what they needed to change that, however, and they’ll look to build off that in the weeks to come.
Massimo Ferrin offers hope to the Wanderers attack:
When looking at the Wanderers slump, there are a lot of factors to look at when attempting to diagnose what has gone wrong to start the year.
From their struggles defensively to some key absences, and an overall lack of confidence, those are just some of the reasons some will turn to. In particular, the defensive side is arguably the biggest thing they’ll need to tweak, as they’ve not only allowed several goals off simple defensive breakdowns, but those goals have often come at extremely inopportune moments in matches, too, such as early or late in halves, or when the Wanderers have momentum.
At the same time, while they’ll know that fixing the defensive side of their game will be crucial if they’re to turn this around, the offence is certainly worth looking at, too. Having scored only eight goals after this week, which is the lowest in the CPL, it shows that the Wanderers have struggled to pour in the goals at the same rate as they did in 2023 when they had 39 goals, good for third-most in the league.
Despite that, it’s not as if they’re struggling to create chances or dangerous attacking opportunities, either. When diving into their underlying numbers, that much is clear, as they’re second in xG for with 14.35, fifth in shots with 101, and fifth in touches in the box with 165, which certainly suggests it’s a surprise to see them at the bottom of the goal-scoring charts.
What that shows, however, is that a lack of finishing has hurt the Wanderers, as they’ve been unable to turn their opportunities into goals, underperforming their xG by over six goals, which is significant.
In particular, the big thing that has sunk them is a lack of goals from their attacking players.
Yet, a quick look at the team’s top scorers list ahead of this match gives an idea of how stark things have been, as Riley Ferrazzo and Massimo Ferrin each have two goals apiece, while four other players have one goal.
Because of that, it makes what happened in their most recent match against Forge quite interesting. Certainly, the game itself was a point of frustration for the Wanderers, as they drew 2-2 late after grabbing a 2-1 lead they seemed to have no intention of relinquishing, but the goals themselves stood out.
Why? They came from two well-taken goals from Ferrin to open his 2024 account, who first scored after a nice run from recent arrival Clément Bayiha, before dispatching a penalty he won himself to complete his brace.
GOAL ⚓️@HFXWanderersFC responds quickly after going down to @ForgeFCHamilton, as Massimo Ferrin rounds out a quick-fire attack to spare the penalty shout 😎
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
🔴 Watch #CanPL on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/P1DxuBByIu
That’s key, as Ferrin’s had a quiet start to 2024 after an electric debut 2023 CPL season in which he scored eight goals, as he battled injuries to start the year.
GOAL ⚓️⚓️@HFXWanderersFC go up 2-1 vs. @ForgeFCHamilton as Massimo Ferrin converts from the penalty spot 😎
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
Can they hold on and get their first W of 2024?
🔴 Watch #CanPL on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/amB9H1cPnQ
In this game, however, he looked a lot like the player he was for the Wanderers in 2023, as he had three shots and two dribbles to go along with his brace in a lively performance. With other #9 options Christian Volesky, Tiago Coimbra and Ryan Telfer sitting with two goals combined between them, one could wonder if Ferrin could earn a run of games up front now.
Given that he had a good run of games as a false nine for Halifax last year, that could be a solution to help Halifax’s offence, and his goals in this match are a prime example of that. 
Because of that, keep an eye on Ferrin going forward, as he’ll look to use this performance as a springboard for what’s to come. If the Wanderers are to turn this thing around, Ferrin is among the players they’ll lean on the most to help them do that, and he showed why in this game.
Certainly, that’s not to say there aren’t other players to keep an eye on, such as Dan Nimick, who has missed the last few games through injury, or Lorenzo Callegari, but ideally, the Wanderers will get all of them ticking in the weeks to come.
Perhaps, Ferrin’s performance in the game can help jumpstart his team in that quest, as they continue to chase that first win.
GOAL 🔨🔨@ForgeFCHamilton break @HFXWanderersFC hearts in the 93rd minute as Kwasi Poku finds a late equalizer; Only minutes away from their first win, and only minutes left before splitting points now for Halifax 🥲
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) June 15, 2024
🔴 Watch #CanPL on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/BUADMsus0y
Who caught my eye? Kadin Chung
Despite the 0-0 draw, Chung was a lively presence at right back for Vancouver in that game, putting in a big shift off the ball.
Quietly, he’s continued to have a strong season, showing big growth defensively, in particular, while still maintaining the same presence he’s always had offensively.
In a game like this, where he won 9/11 duels, and made seven recoveries, two tackles, one block and one interception, he certainly showed that defensive presence, helping Vancouver keep a dangerous Cavalry side quiet.
What to watch: Cavalry vs Atlético Ottawa
Having seen their nine-game undefeated run come to an end, it’s interesting to see Atlético Ottawa now take on a team also riding a nine-game undefeated run in Cavalry.
Typically, these two teams can combine for some dramatic matchups, so one has to imagine this one should be quite the clash, especially given that Cavalry will be protecting their streak, while Ottawa will be looking to put the sting of their first loss behind them.
Because of that, Saturday’s clash in Calgary should be a good one, as both teams battle for what could be a massive win for both of them, especially for the hosts.
