| Halifax Wanderers FC vs. Forge FC May 2 at 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT Wanderers Grounds in Halifax, N.S. Watch Live: OneSoccer, CBC Gem Tickets available here |
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The top team in the Canadian Premier League so far visits the East Coast this weekend, as the Halifax Wanderers host Forge FC for the first time in 2026.
The Wanderers hope to offer a chilly welcome to the Hamilton side, as Vanni Sartini's side looks for its first home win of the campaign. After four weeks, Halifax sit fifth in the table with a 1-2-1 record, but they'd like to add another three points to the ledger quickly.
They've come close on a couple of occasions recently; in fact, in each of the last two games, Isaiah Johnston has scored a penalty to put the Wanderers in the lead. However, they allowed a late equalizer against Pacific for a 2-2 draw there, and last week they allowed FC Supra to score twice and leave them with no points.
Halifax's challenge this week will be a Forge FC side that gives very little away.
"The only thing we don't have to do is to accept the fact that they're going to be in control more than us," Sartini told reporters on Thursday. "When they will be in control, we need to be focused on our compactness and doing the basics well, being very hard to beat with our defensive line close to the midfield line, being ready to force them to play wide, being ready with the two strikers to press them."
The Hammers are in first place in the CPL with a 3-1-0 record, and what's most impressive about them is they haven't conceded a single goal yet.
In fact, they've only faced six shots on target in total — all of which have been expertly handled by Dimitry Bertaud — and they've given up just 2.3 expected goals.
With a new goalkeeper this year in Bertaud, as well as a new centre-back in Antoine Batisse, Forge still look as impenetrable as ever.
That said, coach Bobby Smyrniotis would surely like to be scoring more goals, with just four in four matches. He has chopped and changed a few things in his attacking setup, as he searches for the best way to spark his forwards. Still, the Hammers are fourth in the CPL in shots, chances created and expected goals, so they don't have too far to climb.
"We've got to take chances and be a little bit more bold in the final third. Look at last week against Pacific, in the first half we're there, we're in good situations, but maybe we're not as lethal, as direct as we need to be to go to the goal. We think, yeah, if we rotate the ball we'll get another chance, or we'll try it another way. Sometimes you've got to be a little bit quicker in the first attack."
These two sides met five times in 2025 (once in the Canadian Championship), and Forge won four, with a 0-0 draw as well. So, it wasn't the kindest matchup for the Wanderers, but with a new tactical identity under Vanni Sartini they'll be throwing those memories out the window.
After this clash, these teams will actually play again in a CanChamp tie the following weekend in Hamilton, but for now, this one game in Halifax is the sole focus for both.
NEWS & NOTES
- Vanni Sartini told reporters that Lorenzo Callegari is fit after missing last week's match, and Ryan Telfer could be available as well.
- Forge defender Rezart Rama is eligible to play after serving a one-match suspension (second yellow ejection) last weekend. Otherwise, Bobby Smyrniotis said there are no changes to the availability from a week ago.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Halifax Wanderers: Carducci; Linder, Meilleur-Giguère, Sow; Godinho, Johnston, Olguin, Zitman, Troisi; Kachwele, Bahamboula
Forge FC: Bertaud; Rama, Nimick, Batisse, Jevremović; Aromatario, Borges, Paton; Massunda, Wright, Babouli
KEY QUOTES
"It's going to be hard. A team that is top of the league, not conceding a goal. But we need to face the game, knowing that we play at our Grounds, knowing that if you want to get into the highest part of the standings, we need to take points, especially at home." — Halifax Wanderers head coach Vanni Sartini
"[Forge's defence] is a combination of different things. One is the individuals themselves, an excellent group of players, especially the group that has to pick up most of the defending including Dimitry [Bertaud]. And then just a fantastic commitment to team effort. That's what defending is. It's, how are you sharp in those moments? How do you move? How do you block lanes and make things difficult for opponents? Sometimes it's a matter of five to ten metres that players don't want to commit to. This is a group that really commits to it." — Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis
