August 18, 2023...Preview: Cavalry FC vs. York United - 2023 Match #81 (from canpl.ca)
PREVIEW: Cavalry FC vs. York United — 2023 Match #81
2023-08-18
by MITCHELL TIERNEY, DIGITAL CONTENT PRODUCER (@MITCHELLTIERNEY)
2023 CPL Regular Season — Match #81
Cavalry FC vs. York United
August 20, 2023 at 3 p.m. MT/ 5 p.m. ET
ATCO Field in Calgary, Alberta
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca & TELUS Ch. 980 //
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York United will take what has been a barnstorming road show in recent weeks out west on Sunday as they visit Cavalry’s
ATCO Field.
The Nine Stripes are coming off back-to-back rollercoaster 3-3 draws, first with Atlético Ottawa in the nation’s capital,
and then last weekend against Forge FC at Tim Hortons Field.
While it has been entertaining for the neutral, as evidenced by his recent Mic’d Up segment, York United head coach Martin
Nash would probably prefer his team be a little bit more in control of these matches, especially once they take the lead.
“I thought the performances were good as a whole,” said Nash. “[But] when we made errors we compounded them and the ball
ended up in the back of our net too often. So, we want to keep the same cohesiveness in attack and just be a little bit
better in the defensive end.”
After the recent 3-3 draws, York will be looking for a different type of three, as in points, in Calgary this weekend
after recently dipping below the playoff line and into sixth place. With five teams making the post-season this year,
York are two points behind the Halifax Wanderers and have played one more game.
Sunday’s match will pit one of the league’s best road teams against one of its best home sides, as the Nine Stripes have
the most points collected on the road in the league, with 18 this season. Cavalry, meanwhile, have a league-leading +7 goal
difference at home and have lost just one of nine matches at ATCO Field this year.
Cavalry missed out on an opportunity to go to the top of the CPL table last Friday after blowing a 2-0 lead on the road
in Winnipeg in a 3-2 loss to Valour. They have now dropped 15 points from winning positions this season.
A return to Spruce Meadows, however, is the perfect place to lick those wounds as they have lost to York just once
in Calgary in club history. The other eight meetings at ATCO Field, including the last meeting between the two sides
on June 24, have all ended in victory for the Cavs.
For the third time in the past four matches, Cavalry will be without leading goalscorer Myer Bevan through suspension,
as this time the New Zealand international has picked up a one-match ban for yellow card accumulation. The Cavs will
also be without Goteh Ntignee who is week-to-week with a thigh injury that was more serious than originally thought.
York’s Matthew Baldisimo, meanwhile, still has one game remaining on his suspension after receiving a red card against
Halifax, while Osaze De Rosario remains suspended as well. Jonathan Grant and Eleias Himaras will be out longer term
but York are otherwise looking healthy heading into this fixture.
All CPL matches are available to stream on OneSoccer, FuboTV, or on TELUS Optik TV Channel 980.
3 THINGS TO WATCH
Holding onto leads will be top of the mind for both sides: If the past few weeks had played out slightly differently,
this could essentially be a top-of-the-table clash on Sunday afternoon at Spruce Meadows. Had Cavalry held onto a 2-0 lead
in Winnipeg they would be the league leaders right now. As aforementioned, they lead the league in another aspect
instead — points dropped from winning positions with 15 this season. For York, they blew two separate leads against
Atlético Ottawa, before squandering a late lead in Hamilton as well. Had they held on for those two victories they would
be third in the table right now, and they are now tied for second in the league in points dropped from winning positions,
with eight. Should either of these two sides take a lead on Sunday, doing a better job of either holding or building on,
that lead will be top of mind. “We just made poor decisions which snowballed into the ball ending up in the back of our
net,” said Nash of the club’s past two matches. “So I think it just comes down to concentration, communication and just
staying alert.”
Cavalry well rested after much-needed long week between games: After a difficult trip to Winnipeg last Friday, Cavalry
were given the luxury of a longer rest than usual as they prepare for Sunday’s contest at home — with eight days in between
matches. Over the course of a long season maximizing these opportunities, be it to rest injured or fatigued players or just
have extra time to work on tactical progressions is important. Heading into a stretch where Cavalry play five straight
matches against teams currently in the top six, coming in rested and refreshed will be important for a critical stretch
in their season. “I think it was a really good week to recalibrate and the reason being is we’ve got two more games before
we go into the last round of games so it was an opportunity to take a day or two extra, for the players, for the staff,
recalibrate and go again,” said Wheeldon Jr.
Noah Abatneh leading the way as York accumulates U-21 minutes: The Nine Stripes have taken a big step forward towards their
required 2,000 U-21 minutes in recent matches, and a big part of that has been 18-year-old central defender Noah Abatneh.
The Canadian youth international has logged three straight 90-minute appearances. He actually made his first start with
York United in the last match between Cavalry and York. Having spent time in the youth academies of Lazio and A.S. Roma
in Italy, as well as appearing for the Canadian U-20 national team, the potential has always been there for Abatneh.
Now he is starting to show it at the professional level. “I think he’s got good composure, he reads the game well,” said Nash.
“He is willing to learn, always asking questions and I think he’s just got a great attitude. He has fit in really well,
and he’s just going to keep progressing I think. He’s got all the tools it takes.”
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Cavalry FC: Carducci; Aird, Kobza, Klomp, Kamdem; Daley, Trafford; Fisk, Camargo, Akio; Musse
York United: Giantsopoulos; Ferrari, Abatneh, Mourdoukoutas, Gee; Gagnon-Laparé, Soumaoro; Bayiha, Santos, Babouli; Wright
ALL-TIME SERIES
Cavalry FC wins: 10 || York United wins: 3 || Draws: 2
Last meeting:
June 24, 2023 – Cavalry FC 2-1 York United
KEY QUOTES
“Been watching York lately and they are somewhat unpredictable. They can score goals, but then they are also conceding goals.
So it will be interesting to see, they may change something now. They have conceded six on the road, but they have also
scored six on the road. Knowing Nashy he will probably have something ready and prepared for us.”— Cavalry FC head coach
Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
“For me, it is always a big game, I think it is big for Tommy too. They have been fun battles these last two years so far.
I’m not sure where the series lies right now but they have been great games. I think our guys really enjoy going to Cavalry
and playing. It’s a great atmosphere.” — York United head coach Martin Nash
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