CanPL Power Rankings: Potent Forge FC lead the pack after Matchweek 4 | Presented by tonybet
Quietly, it’s already almost been a month since the start of the CPL season, which kicked off on April 13th.
Now, four matchdays into the season, we’ve got a much better idea of who are the teams to watch in the race for a title, and who has work to do if they’re to join that race over the next few months.
Therefore, while the hard work is about to start for all the teams, as titles aren’t awarded in April, those at the top will feel confident that they can keep pace as the chasing pack tries to narrow the distance, making the next few months crucial.
With that in mind, here's a look at who is in form, and who is pushing to get back in the race, in the latest CPL Power Rankings, presented by tonybet:
> Usually, Forge FC aren’t known for fast starts to the CPL season - in fact, this year is the first time they ever won their opening match of the CPL campaign. Yet, that first game, and those they’ve played since, indicates that this could be a special year for Forge. Their offence is clicking, their defence is rock-solid, and they’ve had some standout individual performers including Tristan Borges, Daniel Parra and Chris Kalongo, among many others - those are all recipes for this to continue.
> Heading into the year, Pacific FC had a lot of questions to answer after losing some key pieces in the offseason. Safe to say, they’ve mostly answered them so far, as they’ve been excellent to start the year. Paced by their strong defence, as they’re yet to concede in four matches, they’ve also got the difference-makers to hurt you at the other end, which is a good combination. Typically, teams built like that tend to do well - there’s a reason why “defence wins championships” is a known adage - so look for them to build off this, too.
GOAL 🔱🔱
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) May 5, 2024
Oh, that’s BEAUTIFUL 🤩
Adonijah Reid doubles @Pacificfccpl’s lead after an unreal through ball from Andrei Tircoveanu ⚽️
Watch #CanPL on OneSoccer 🔴 pic.twitter.com/MsKLUn0wOg
> It was a "super" offseason for Atlético Ottawa, and they’ve had a super start to the season to match it. Led by their stars - new and old - they’ve got offensive juice that they didn’t have in their ranks before, but are still defending quite well. Plus, their depth is a big asset, as they can insert substitutes or rotate their squad between matches and still look dangerous, which will pay off for them as the year goes along. That will be huge as they look to push for trophies.
> Things started out a bit slowly for Cavalry FC, but they’ve now got their first win of the 2024 CPL season after a 3-1 win over Vancouver FC this past weekend. Defending incredibly well, with their underlying numbers the best in the league, their offence finally caught fire, which is huge: When at their best, this Cavalry side is dangerous at both ends, is flexible tactically and plays with a chip on their shoulder. That’s not a fun combination to go up against, as Vancouver can attest to.
> What to make of Vancouver FC? First, they started the year with two convincing wins over Valour and Halifax at home but then followed it up with losses to York United and Cavalry on the road. Now, they’ll need to see if they’re closer to the team they showed at home, or more like the one they showed on the road. They’ve certainly got talent and depth that they didn’t have in their expansion year, are much more solid defensively and can be dangerous offensively, but consistency will be key if they’re to push up the table and contend with those above them.
> Much like in 2023, York United’s big battle is also to find consistency, as it’s hard to know what version of themselves will show up for each game. There’s been good, such as their road performance vs Ottawa on opening day where they lost despite a strong showing, or their home win over Vancouver, but losses to Forge and Pacific were ones to forget. On their day, this York side can be one of the best in the league, able to play free-flowing soccer, but they can also look like a shell of themselves on others. As a result, their big challenge is to find a way to show the former on a more regular basis, as they’ve got the talent to be a top side if they can do so.
GOAL 👑👑👑
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) April 27, 2024
Brian Wright is ON FIRE 🔥@yorkutdfc secure the 3 points in fashion as the forward gets his 2nd goal of the night against @vanfootballclub ⚽️⚽️
🔴 Watch #CanPL on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/foFEIB1mdF
> It’s been a start to 2024 to forget for Valour FC, who are without a point to start the season, and still a month away from their first home game. Along with a 7-0 thumping in the Canadian Championship from Ottawa, there hasn’t been a lot of positives for Valour to digest so far. At the same time, their performances have actually been pretty solid across their four league games - small defensive errors have been their downfall, as have been a lack of goals at the other end. Naturally, those two factors are a big part of winning games, but given that they’re doing a lot of the other things right, they’ll feel that they’re closer to finding form than most will give them credit for, especially when they finally return home and get fully healthy after dealing with several early-season injuries.
> Who would’ve seen this coming? The Halifax Wanderers, sitting at the bottom of the CPL to start 2024, and fresh off elimination to a League 1 Canada side in the TELUS Canadian Championship? Not most onlookers, as the majority of them had the Wanderers as a CPL title favourite after a strong 2023 season. They’ve been unable to reach those heights so far, however, although they’ve put up some solid performances. But that’s exactly why they’re in such a weird position right now - they’ve been playing well, but opponents seemed to have figured them out, and the Wanderers' execution at both ends has been what’s killing them. That puts them in a tough spot when trying to fix this - do they double down on what’s worked in the past and hope they work through this slump, or do they panic and try and change things? There are benefits to both, but with most fans pushing for them to do the latter, it’ll be an intriguing test of the patience of this team’s decision-makers as they head into a crucial month of May.
