May 5, 2022...PREVIEW: York United vs. Forge FC - 2022 Match #17 (from canpl.ca website)

 
PREVIEW: York United vs. Forge FC — 2022 Match #17
2022-05-05
byMITCHELL TIERNEY, DIGITAL CONTENT PRODUCER (@MITCHELLTIERNEY)
2022 CPL Regular Season — Match #17
York United vs. Forge FC 
May 6, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. ET
York Lions Stadium in Toronto, Ontario
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For the second straight weekend, the Canadian Premier League has a 2021 playoff semi-final rematch 
on the schedule. After Cavalry was able to get a measure of revenge on Pacific FC for ending their 
season last year, York United will be looking to follow in their footsteps against Forge FC on Friday 
night at York Lions Stadium.

Forge emerged 3-1 winners during that sem-final day back in November, ending what was an impressive 2021 
season from a very young York side. Since then, a lot has changed for the Nine Stripes, 
including the man in charge.

But while Friday will be just his fifth match at the helm of York United, Martin Nash is no stranger 
to Forge. During his time as an assistant with Cavalry, he was on the touchline for several big matchups 
against the Hamilton outfit, including the 2019 Canadian Premier League final. Now as a head coach, 
the match will be a good measuring stick for his group early in the season.

“It is a good test for us to see where we stand against who has been the best team in the CPL for 
the first three years,” Nash told media on Thursday.

Nash and York are coming off of a wild 2-2 draw with Atlético Ottawa, where a stoppage-time goal 
from Dominick Zator was enough to rescue a point. After dropping their season opener against Halifax, 
York is undefeated in their last three matches.

The York team will be looking to extend that run, while one of its players looks to continue a streak 
of his own. The De Rosario name is no stranger to records and recognitions, and Osaze De Rosario could 
extend that fact to another generation.

With legendary father Dwayne in the stands at York Lions Stadium last weekend, Osaze converted 
a penalty, making it three straight games with a goal. Should he score on Friday, he would tie 
Forge FC’s Tristan Borges’ league record of four consecutive games with a goal.

“He’s got great energy, works really hard, he has the ability to finish from short and long so he can 
score all types of goals,” said Nash about what has made De Rosario one of the most prolific strikers 
in the league so far this year. “He’s been big because we were without Lowell [Wright], and he was 
our only striker for a couple of games and once he got his chance he’s played really well. He’s scored 
three goals in his first three starts, so we are hoping he can continue that tomorrow”.

When asked if preserving his teammate’s record gave him any more motivation to shut down De Rosario, 
Forge defender Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson chuckled. “I don’t really think about that kind of stuff, 
I never want to concede goals, so that’s all the incentive I need for not having them score”.

De Rosario isn’t the only player chasing history this weekend. After scoring a brace two weekends ago 
against FC Edmonton, Terran Campbell is just a single goal away from tying former Eddies striker 
Easton Ongaro for the Canadian Premier League goals record when combining playoffs and the regular 
season. Campbell has scored 24 goals in all Canadian Premier League competitions to date.

Having started their season earlier than any other club in the league with Concacaf Champions League 
duty back in February, Forge had a rare week off as their match this past Sunday against Valour was 
postponed due to League Covid Protocols. They are coming off their first win of the season, 
a dominant 3-0 win over FC Edmonton.

Since meeting each other in the league’s opening fixture back in 2019, a 1-1 draw, Forge has generally 
had the upper hand in the rivalry. Their playoff win last year was the eighth time they have defeated 
the Nine Stripes, while York has defeated Forge just four times in its history.

“We know with York it is always a tough game, I think they always raise their level when they play 
us as well, it is a bit of a derby,” said Achinioti-Jönsson. “So the games are usually exciting.”

Make your match picks prior to kickoff at canpl.ca/predictor for a chance to win prizes, including 
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3 THINGS TO WATCH

York’s attack continues to add weapons: De Rosario’s prolific scoring record has made at least 
one roster decision very easy for Nash so far this season. Picking who starts alongside him going 
forward, however, will be tricky as the York coach is blessed with a wealth of attacking options. 
Lowell Wright, Austin Ricci, Max Ferrari, and Oliver Minatel, to name a few, are all elite 
attacking players in the league. His decision will be made slightly easier tomorrow as Minatel 
is set to miss out with a hamstring injury, while Ferrari is a game-time decision. Going forward, 
however, it will get even more difficult as the team adds highly-touted Argentine attacker 
Lisandro Cabrera, who is finally flying into Canada tomorrow and could be available as early 
as Tuesday in the Canadian Championship. Finding the right balance with that group will be crucial 
to unlocking its attacking potential. De Rosario, Ricci and Wright, in particular, can play 
multiple positions interchangeably which will make them a nightmare for opposing defences. “They 
have shown that they are a dangerous team, they are a dangerous team in different facets of the 
way they attack, with their wide play and counterattacking play,” said Forge manager Bobby Smyrniotis, 
later adding, “that’s the biggest thing we are looking forward to is that challenge that they bring, 
they are a team that brings a lot of energy to the field”. One last thing to watch from the York 
offence is their proficiency on set pieces. Zator’s goal against Ottawa came off a late free-kick, 
and York lead the league in chances created from set-pieces with 13.

Forge deal with an unexpected weekend off: Forge players were all geared up and ready to fly out 
to Winnipeg this past weekend when they got the news that the match was going to be postponed. 
While the unexpected bye week did allow Forge to get a little healthier, with Symrniotis saying 
they are “90%” back to fitness, there are definite challenges with having time off after just 
three matches played. “You want rhythm early in the year,” Symrniotis told media on Thursday. 
“I don’t like a lot of rest. We’re used to going quite often with games. That then makes this one 
a little more interesting. We’ve had time to work on a few different things that we wanted 
to work on”. Both Symrniotis and defender Alex Achinioti-Jönsson did mention that the team was able 
to have a good couple of weeks of training, ramping up the intensity this past weekend to keep match 
fitness. One final benefit, however, according to Achinotti-Jönsson is that Forge does have quite 
a busy schedule coming up with the Canadian Championship starting on Wednesday so the chance to rest 
wasn’t fully unwelcome.

A good test for the York defence: Last year, without question the biggest flaw in York’s game was 
their ability to defend. They allowed the third-most goals in the league last season with 39, 
and actually overperformed their expected goals against which were second-worst at 48.83. Only 
Atlético Ottawa allowed more passes into their box than York did last season. They have been much 
better so far this season, something Smyrniotis was quick to point out in his pre-match presser. 
York is tied with Forge and Halifax for the fewest goals (four) conceded so far this season, 
and have also only allowed four big chances against. “Just a little bit of organization, simplifying 
some things, making sure everyone is on the same page,” said Nash when asked about where he has 
seen improvement from his backline. “It is getting better, I think, every week. We aren’t giving 
a lot of chances away and we hope to do the same tomorrow”. Forge, however, is their biggest 
defensive test yet, a side that already this year has shown an ability to carve open opponents 
in several different ways.

ALL-TIME SERIES
York United wins: 4 || Forge FC wins: 8 || Draws: 1
Previous match:
November 21, 2021  — Forge FC 3-1 York United

KEY QUOTES

“[Forge] have had a lot of time to work and freshen up, but it can be a good and a bad thing. It can 
mean they come out hungry and flying or they can be just a little bit off it and have to get back 
their rhythm. They are an experienced team so I’ll expect them to come out flying and we will have 
to match that from the get-go.” — York United Head Coach Martin Nash

“The games have always been excellent. [York] has always been a tough team for us to play. Like with 
every year there is change over in squads, and things change a little bit this year. York has 
a new head coach, a different approach to how they go about the games and I think that’s what 
we are looking forward to most tomorrow night.” — Forge FC Head Coach Bobby Smyrniotis

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