| Forge FC vs. Vancouver FC July 1 at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT Hamilton Stadium in Hamilton, Ont. Watch Live: OneSoccer Tickets available here |
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Canadian Premier League action returns to Hamilton on Canada Day after the World Cup break, as Forge FC host Vancouver FC.
Forge resume their campaign for the CPL Shield, currently sitting on top of the league table with 25 points and a sparkling 8-1-1 record.
Before the pause, Forge put together a three-game winning streak, most recently topping the Halifax Wanderers 1-0 in Hamilton back on June 10. In that run of form, they also battered derby rivals Inter Toronto 4-1 and beat second-place side Cavalry 1-0.
The Hammers still have yet to concede a goal at home, as they continue to make Hamilton Stadium one of the CPL's toughest away venues.
Vancouver FC have won there once before, back in 2024; they'll aim to do so again in this first visit of the 2026 season.
Martin Nash's Eagles went into the break with some momentum, winning back-to-back games against Atlético Ottawa and Pacific FC.
Those wins were a welcome breakthrough for Vancouver, who until that point had been playing good football but struggling to put the ball in the net. Now, with strikers Terran Campbell and Lys Mousset starting to find their footing, VFC hope to start threatening more up front.
They're very much alive in the playoff race, even though they sit in seventh. Vancouver's 11 points have them just one back of the Halifax Wanderers for fourth place, and they're only three behind Ottawa in third.
Forge and Vancouver met once earlier this season in Langley, in a somewhat cagey match that Forge finally won with a 90th-minute winner by Maxime Filion.
Vancouver were frustrated to leave that game empty-handed, so they'll be keen on getting back at Forge in Hamilton.
It'll be a tough day for both sides, with temperatures north of 35 degrees Celsius expected at midday in Hamilton. It'll be a difficult match to take control of, but the two clubs will be hoping to grind out a result.
NEWS & NOTES
- Forge FC midfielder Anthony Aromatario will be ineligible for this game, as he serves a one-match suspension for yellow card accumulation.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Forge FC: Bertaud; Rama, Nimick, Batisse, Jevremović; Borges, Paton, Jensen; Massunda, Wright, Ampomah
Vancouver FC: Irving; Doner, Campagna, Field, Proctor; Traore, Toomey, Mezquida, Bah; Campbell, Mousset
KEY QUOTES
"The most important thing is we're focused on the things that make you good defensively. I think we can be better, because we can be better with the ball. I always talk about how one plays a vital role in the other; by us being better on the ball, we can make ourselves an even better team defensively as a group." - Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis
