FC Supra du Québec and their supporters left Stade Boréale frustrated on Sunday, unlike the Cavalry players, who were "happy to take the three points and keep a clean sheet", as full-back Bradley Kamdem acknowledged.
Until the 88th minute, Supra held on for a hard-fought draw, managing to stifle a well-drilled and confident Cavalry side.
A penalty from Warschewski changed the final score, but also gave a completely different feel to the end of the match, which concluded in a bit of confusion.
Just minutes after the opening goal, what looked to be a foul by Niko Myroniuk on Omar El Kalkouli in the penalty area ignited the stadium, initially giving Supra a penalty, before the referee overturned his decision after an FVS review.
It was a chaotic and dramatic end to a match between two teams that have been in good form at the start of the season.
The match was enticing, the weather relatively sunny, and the crowd turned out for this first game at Stade Boréle, but the spectacle proved rather lacklustre.
In this duel between two teams that were in the top three at kickoff, opportunities to ignite the action were few and far between. The tactical discipline of both sides stifled any attacking chances.
“We knew Calgary was a team that liked to counter-attack, and we didn’t want to let them,” explained Diyaeddine Abzi. “We like to play football, but the game plan was different today.”
Indeed, Supra mostly defended, and Cavalry spent a long time searching for a way through.
In the first half, Cavalry established themselves in Supra’s half. However, the Alberta team ran into a well-organized defensive block, frequently reinforced by the Quebec forwards who dropped deep to support the collective effort, and by an active midfield that won back possession.
Abzi, on his left flank, effectively neutralized Ali Musse, while the density of players in the center of the pitch left too little space for the Cavalry to be dangerous. As a result, apart from shots from Warschewski and Sergio Camargo that posed no threat to Joakim Milli, chances were few and far between, and their dominance was fruitless.
Supra tried to capitalize on every counter-attack and looked dangerous near the opposition's penalty area, but without posing much of a threat to Nathan Ingham's goal, apart from a shot from Riad Bey that went wide in the 12th minute and a fine strike from Rea in the final seconds.
Faced with such adversity, FC Supra displayed great solidarity and unwavering determination, even though this led to several yellow cards.
As the clock ticked on, FC Supra managed to impose their game, aided by the second-half introductions of David Choinière, Omar El Kalkouli, and Bakary Kaboré, whose fresh legs made a significant impact in the latter part of the match.
However, Supra never found the key and suffered their second defeat of the season, in a match best forgotten.
BOX SCORE
Lineups
FC Supra du Québec: Milli; Auguste, Chrétien, Ferdinand, Abzi; Biello, Mlah (El Kalkouli 56'); Bayiha (Choinière 62'), Rea, Bey (Kaboré 62'): Condé (Marcoux 56')
Cavalry FC: Ingham; Pearlman, Laing, Klomp, Kamdem; Paton (Myroniuk 39'), Kobza; Musse (Elva 69'), Camargo (Antoniuk 69'), Ntignee; Warschewski (Baldisimo 90+1')
Goals
88' – Tobias Warschewski (Cavalry FC) (Penalty)
Cartons
12' - Yellow: Keesan Ferdinand (FC Supra)
44' - Yellow:Matisse Chrétien (FC Supra)
50' - Yellow: Safwane Mlah (FC Supra)
66' - Yellow: Diyaeddine Abzi (FC Supra)
81' - Yellow: Sean Rea (FC Supra)
84' - Yellow: Goteh Ntignee (Cavalry)
90+12' - Red: Alessandro Biello (FC Supra)
CPLSoccer.com Player of the Match
Diyaeddine Abzi, FC Supra du Québec
In a match where defenders largely prevailed over attackers, Abzi showed himself to be effective in his defensive interventions and often present offensively, not hesitating to get forward and combine with Riad Bey.
What’s next?
FC Supra host Ontario Premier League side Woodbridge Strikers in the TELUS Canadian Championship on May 8 at 7 p.m. ET. In the CPL, they travel to Forge FC on May 13 at 11 a.m. ET.
Cavalry FC travel to Pacific FC in the Canadian Championship on May 9 at 7 p.m. ET. In CPL action, they travel to Vancouver FC on May 17 at 9 p.m. ET.
For broadcast details of the 2026 CPL season, go to cplsoccer.com/watch.