| Forge FC vs. Halifax Wanderers Oct. 1 at 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT Hamilton Stadium in Hamilton, Ont. Watch Live: OneSoccer, CBC Tickets available here |
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Forge FC host Halifax Wanderers on Saturday at Hamilton Stadium, looking to gain back ground in the CPL Shield race.
After league leaders Cavalry lost to Atlético Ottawa midweek in the nation's capital, Forge can move three points closer to their rivals with a win on Saturday.
At worst, a win and they are six points behind Cavalry with a game in hand heading into the final four matches of their season. If Cavalry lose to Inter Toronto earlier in the day, the gap would be reduced to just three.
A victory on Saturday would also guarantee Forge a top two finish, guarenteeing them home field advantage for the second leg of the semifinal and a possibility to host the CPL Final for the first time since 2023.
The big news out of Hamilton this week, however, was off the pitch, with captain Kyle Bekker announcing his retirement. Bekker, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury will remain with the group as a key leader, but his presence on the pitch will be incredibly missed, especially this time of year.
The Wanderers are also looking to close a gap on Saturday, the one to the playoff line. With Vancouver FC not in action this weekend, they would reduce that gap to four points with a first-ever win in Hamilton with three matches remaining. One of those comes against the Eagles on Oct. 16 in Langley.
Halifax are winless against the Hamilton club in all competitions this season, but rightly feel as though they are getting closer to a breakthrough.
On their last trip to Hamilton, they were perhaps unlucky to not get a better result than the 1-0 loss they suffered on that day. When they hosted them in Halifax back on Aug. 3, it ended in a 0-0 draw.
Forge have been bleeding a lot of points through draws lately, picking up just a single point in three of their past four matches. That includes back-to-back 1-1 draws in their past two, in Calgary and Langley, where they led both times.
At this stage in the season, three points is the only positive result for both clubs, which means it will be a battle until the final whistle on Saturday.
NEWS & NOTES
- Forge FC goalkeeper Dimitry Bertaud remains on international duty with DR Congo, as does Andre Rampersad and Ryan Telfer of Trinidad and Tobago.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Forge FC: Bontis; Rama, Nimick, Batisse, Jevremović; Aromatario, Paton, Borges; Bourgeois, Cavallini, Massunda
Halifax Wanderers: Carducci; Alphonse, Meilleur-Giguère, Linder, Sow; Callegari, Olguin, Zitman; Johnston, Bahamboula, Arilla
KEY QUOTES
"We need to pick up maximum points. We've put in good performances over the past couple of weeks and allowed some good points to slip by us. That can't be what we're doing going forward if we want to reach the top of the table." - Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis
"We're doing what we can; we have our focus on the next game and controlling what we can control, and if Cavs do us a favour and drop a few more points then that's great." - Forge FC defender Dan Nimick