Everywhere in the Beautiful Game universe, a regional derby—pronounced dar-by in soccer-ese---match has massive implications.
So here comes Sunday afternoon (2 p.m. OneSoccer) in Toronto when Forge FC puts its early-season undefeated streak –two opening blank-sheet wins, a 1-1 home draw last weekend -- on the line at York Lions Stadium against the rebuilding York United.
The Nine Stripes and the Hammers; the closest geographic rivals in the entire CPL.
Despite Forge-Cavalry emerging as the league’s prominent conflict, there have always been high hopes that Forge-York might eventually resemble gridiron football’s Labour Day, which also hurls the town teams of Toronto and Hamilton against each other.
It’s a work in progress because Forge shot out of the CPL gates early and stayed ahead, reaching all six of the league championship finals and winning four, while York struggled at times and failed to make the playoffs in half of their first six seasons.
But new ownership, who moved here from Mexico, took over just five months before the opening kickoff last year and committed long term to the team, the league and to seeding the Toronto-area market which, of course, is huge.
The team finished fourth overall last year and were beaten heartbreakingly by Ottawa Atlético in a classic post-season play-in on penalty kicks after York’s 16-year-old sensation Shola Jimoh had tied the game 2-2 in the 94th minute.
York kept some of its new players from last year but dispatched many more and brought in CPL experience as part of numerous changes this term.
“We were basically starting from scratch last year,” says Ricardo Pasquel York’s president and general manager. “It’s night and day from where we were a year ago. We’re building a community, we’re creating a fan base, we’re creating many local programs, working with local businesses. We’re engaging with local players and coaches.
“It’s not just a matter of having a very good ticket strategy. There are a bunch of things we’re in the process of implementing which hopefully down the road will create a good family situation and get some butts into the stadium. We’re slowly building but, again, it involves many strategies.”
Two of the best strategies in a crowded sports marketplace are winning and playing entertaining soccer, which usually translates as “offence.” York has beaten Vancouver, lost to improved HFX Wanderers and lost the most riveting game of the young season 3-2 to high-scoring Ottawa, which echoed last year’s playoff.
York has scored five times in its three games, third most in the league, and their 18 shots on target are second only to Atlético’s staggering 24.
And attacker Julian Altobelli is the talk of the league in the opening month, as the only player with three goals. The 22-year-old forward had run out of contract with TFC’s second team, and, so far, the MLS side’s loss has been the CPL side’s gain.
“We had him in mind early last year,” Pasquel says. “We were in touch with some of the coaches he had growing up in the area, and throughout the year, we made sure we saw a few of his games. And when TFC made the decision to not put him on the first team…. a minute later we were calling his agent, letting him know we were interested. If you look at the talent he has on the field, it reflects perfectly what we wanted on the pitch. It’s only been three games, but we are encouraged by what we’ve seen.”
Then there’s the dynamic Jimoh who has yet to play 90 full minutes this year as York’s new head coach Mauro Estáquio, promoted from interim status, nurtures him. Jimoh, who’s from Brampton, is already on the senior men’s national team’s radar and was a core member of Canada’s U-17 squad last year. Like Forge’s Kwasi Poku, he’s likely to eventually be transferred to another league for a significant sum.
“You have to realize the kid turned 17 just a couple of weeks ago. He’s got to develop physically,” Pasquel says. “We don’t want him overdone. We have a plan for him…how do we envision him starting the season, and now we’re going to start using him 60-70 minutes. “We can go on forever about the quality that he has. Physically, he has to develop, but the mental part is through the roof, and the talent. Hopefully, he can go to more established leagues fairly soon so he can develop into a Canadian National Team player.”
Forge FC Head Coach and Technical Director Bobby Smyrniotis pays far more attention at this time of the year to his team than to opponents but does appreciate York’s deliberate approach in handling Jimoh.
“I think that’s an important thing,” Smyrniotis says. “Sometimes when a player comes in and has a couple of good games there’s a lot of hype, and it’s a little bit of a process to make sure the players develop in the right way. And the most important thing is players staying humble, and I think they’re doing a good job of that.”
Regarding Altobelli. “He’s a player I’ve seen through TFC II. He’s a typical goal poacher; a guy who’s good in the box with service in the right areas. Good work rate. Get the ball in the right moments, and you’ve got a guy who hovers in those areas, you’re going to score goals. Early in the season, he looks like that guy for them, even though he comes off the bench or he’s playing off the shoulder of the striker (Adonijah) Reid.”
Although it’s still a small sample size and Smyrniotis has always emphasized that you can’t determine league trends until you’ve played every team at least once, he says of York, “We’ve been able to watch them over the first three games: they’re an energized group. They’re an organized team that steps on the field with a clear tactical plan. “
“And they’re a team that’s obviously changed quite a bit from last year. Two of their most productive offensive players are wearing orange this year with us, in Brian Wright and Mo Babouli.
“So, they’ve gone for a bigger shift, a younger team, a team with a lot more local players and that always adds something to these games. You have more of a familiarity between the two teams with players who’ve played with and against each other in the past.”
But Forge’s focus is still on their own play and methodology. They have shown encouraging evolution in their two main goals; being more effective in finishing set pieces and receiving more aggressive offence from the back end in tandem with aggressive defence from the front end. And they did not allow a goal for more than three hours of play to open to the season.
“These first round of games, like I’ve talked about, we just need to make sure we keep our attention on details,” Smyrniotis says. “I think that’s one thing that slipped from us in the last game against Valour. Maybe the energy was a little bit lower, and the tactical execution wasn’t there like it was in the first couple of games. Sometimes that’s a good learning moment early in the year: ‘if you don’t do that then the result can be random.’
“Going into the York game we have a very clear idea of what we want to do and, to be honest, it’s one of the pitches where we play some of our best football.’”
HAMMERS AND NAILS:
- The Barton Street Battalion will send a busload of supporters to York Lions Stadium on Sunday
- Alex Achinioti-Jönsson ranks seventh in CPL, Khadim Kane is eighth and Mo Babouli 14th
- Achinioti-Jönsson is one of only three players to play all 270 minutes so far, although Cavalry’s Tobias Warschewski hasn’t been off the field in his club’s two games
- York’s Riley Ferrazzo is third in CPL tackles, while Forge’s Kane is sixth
- Forge goalkeeper Jassem Koleilat has allowed only one goal and leads league keepers in passing accuracy
- Bobby Smyrniotis says Brian Wright’s first goal as a Forge should fortify his confidence but also that Wright has done a huge number of things well, including stretching the field to create room for others.