June 27, 2024...Preview: 'This Is The Most Important Game of the Season. Because It's The Next One'

PREVIEW: 'THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT GAME OF THE SEASON. BECAUSE IT'S THE NEXT ONE'

The Nine Stripes travel to Winnipeg for a clash with Valour FC tonight.

STEADY AS SHE GOES

York United FC will look to stretch their unbeaten run under new Head Coach Benjamín Mora to four games tonight as they make the trek to Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg to face Valour FC.

But, following back-to-back victories over the top two sides in the Canadian Premier League (away to Atletico Ottawa and at home to Pacific FC in their most recent outing), Mora is aware of the risk this particular fixture carries.

"It's a tricky one," he admitted in his pre-game press conference.

"You look at the table, you might see the last couple of results they've had and you can start thinking about various situations because of that. But that's not true. It's an illusion. The reality is they'll go out with everything they have. They have nothing to lose. They're at their home. They have good players. To us, this game is a final. Every game for us is a final. And if we don't think that way then we can't be champions. We can't be at the top. We'll go out and be concentrated and focused."

Valour have lost their last three games and currently sit seventh in the standings. After a lengthy spell on the road, they returned home in early June and managed a 2-0 win over Vancouver FC. Since then, they've lost twice on home soil: against Atletico and Pacific.

In comparison, The Nine Stripes have one defeat from their last seven games and come into this game with plenty of momentum: both collective and individual.

Despite Austin Ricci's sending off against Pacific, they conjured a 2-0 home win eight days ago at York Lions Stadium: their fourth victory in six games in their own backyard - the best home form in the league. Brian Wright now has seven goals and four assists from 9 league appearances: history-making numbers for the CPL.

Still, they've struggled on the road with three defeats in five. Mora's goal is to be in contention for the regular season crown and ultimately the CPL championship. That means consistency across the board. And he knows it's a process to get there. So, the focus is not on yesterday or tomorrow. Instead, he wants the players to only think about today.

"We're working on building the character of this team," he says.

"Luckily, the results have been on our side in the last few games. But we forget about that now. We only have one game. The next one."

back to 2024 York United FC menu