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PREVIEW: HFX Wanderers vs. Cavalry FC
September 5, 2022
Canadian Premier League

2022 CPL Regular Season — Match #91
HFX Wanderers FC vs. Cavalry FC
September 5, 2022 at 3 p.m. AT/2 p.m. ET
Wanderers Grounds in Halifax, Nova Scotia
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca & TELUS Ch. 980 // Tickets available here

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Another busy week in the Canadian Premier League wraps up in Halifax, Nova Scotia on Monday afternoon, with HFX Wanderers hosting Cavalry FC at Wanderers Grounds.

Both sides approach this match with similar form over the past four matches, both losing twice and winning twice in that span. For Cavalry it’s been loss-win-loss-win, and for the Wanderers it’s win-loss-win-loss. Last weekend both sides played in tight matches, but ended up on opposite sides of one-goal differences.

In Calgary, the Cavs were hosting York United, a team that they have struggled against at times this season. The match kicked off, but after an uneventful start to the contest, the referee halted play due to lightning in the area. After an hours-long weather delay, Cavalry came back out sharper and would take all three points thanks to a Jose Escalante winner ten minutes after halftime.

Across the province at Clarke Stadium, the visiting HFX Wanderers were less successful against the hosts FC Edmonton. After Azriel Gonzalez scored 21 minutes into the match to give the home side the lead, Sam Salter scored again from the penalty spot, tying things up at 1-1 going into half time.

A quick brace around the hour mark quickly thrust The Eddies back into the lead, as their star attacker scored in the 59th and 62nd minutes to give them some cushion. They’d need it, as Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé’s well-struck shot in the 84th minute hit the post before hitting the goalkeeper Darlington Murasiranwa and ending up in the back of the net, officially listed as an unfortunate own goal.

The Eddies would leave with a 3-2 victory, just their third win of the season.

With just six matches to go for both HFX Wanderers and Cavalry FC, including Monday’s contest, both teams will be looking to finish strong. Eleven points back of fourth-place Pacific FC entering the weekend and sitting behind the much-closer Valour FC, playoff hopes are beginning to slip away for the Haligonians, but as is the case with the end of the season for all clubs, players will want to finish the season on a high note, especially those fighting to win a contract for next season.

Cavalry currently sit in second place, just three points back of Atlético Ottawa for first place in the table. Victory on Monday would put them in a tie on points at the top, and give them some breathing room in the battle for fourth place that’s beginning to heat up.

Make your match picks prior to kickoff at canpl.ca/predictor for a chance to win prizes, including the grand prize of a trip to the 2022 CPL Final! To learn more about ComeOn!, click here.

All CPL matches are available to stream on OneSoccer, or on TELUS Optik TV Channel 980.

3 THINGS TO WATCH

  • Cavalry among the top teams looking to hold off Valour FC: The playoff picture is even tighter than it was a few weeks ago, with the teams on the outside looking in finding some good form. Valour FC is the main challenger to the current playoff picture, sitting just a few points back of fourth place Pacific FC and third place Forge FC ahead of their match on Sunday against the Hamiltonians. The outcome of that match will be very important to the playoff picture as most teams enter their final five or six matches of the year, and the teams currently at the top — Forge, Pacific, Cavalry FC and Atlético Ottawa — will need to be consistently better than Valour. Cavalry are just four points clear of Valour entering this weekend, so picking up some points in Halifax would give them much-needed wiggle room. “It’s exciting, isn’t it?,” said Cavalry boss Tommy Wheeldon Jr on Sunday. “For the first proper season we’ve had — and this is the first iteration of its kind where there’s no Spring and Fall [Seasons], no bubble and then east and west — this is the first regular season. In a parity league with a balanced schedule, this should happen. It’s been no surprise to me, having played every team, that everyone on their day has quality, and I think [the playoff race] is great for the league. I think it’s exciting, and will make for a great run in because everybody’s got a say in it.”
  • HFX motivate to bounce back after last week’s defeat: A week ago, HFX Wanderers suffered a 3-2 defeat to FC Edmonton. It was a disappointing result for the Wanderers, losing to the team in last place after defeating the reigning champions, and it’s a result that the squad will be looking to bounce back from in front of their excellent home fans on Monday. Head coach Stephen Hart said to CanPL.ca on Sunday that the defeat at Clarke Stadium was partially down to a lack of effort on his team’s part. “I told the players that the only thing fans usually ask of players is that they give 100%, and that when they walk off the field they know they’ve given everything,” said Hart. “There were quite a few players short of that, they know it, some of them apologized to their teammates. They have to do better, they really do.”
  • Baskett getting some important minutes in net, Oxner to miss out through injury again: Christian Oxner has missed the last couple of Wanderers matches with an injury, and is expected to again to be watching from the sidelines again on Monday afternoon. Hart confirmed on Sunday that Oxner, along with a few other unnamed players, weren’t able to train, but that last-minute fitness tests would be done to confirm their availabilities. Baskett has looked sharp in these two matches, including a clean sheet against Pacific FC. In the Wanderers’ 3-2 loss to FC Edmonton last week, he was beaten by three moments of quality that his defenders are just as much to blame for, although he’ll of course want those goals back. “Kieran has stepped in and he’s done quite well,” said Hart. “Obviously he’s a young goalkeeper, he needs way more games and all of these games can only serve him well in the future.”

ALL-TIME SERIES

HFX Wanderers wins: 1 || Cavalry wins: 8 || Draws: 4

Previous match:

July 14, 2022 Cavalry 3-0 HFX Wanderers