| Final Score: Atlético Ottawa 3-0 Cavalry FC Goalscorers: Salter 18', Tabla 72', 80' Game of the 2025 season: 97 CPL Match: 692 |
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Match in a minute or less
Saturday's match, played at TD Place, wasn't short of entertainment: a total of 34 shots were fired towards goal, Sam Salter extended his Golden Boot lead and Atlético Ottawa goalkeeper Nathan Ingham stood tall during a late penalty to secure his side's 3-0 victory over Cavalry FC. Head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr.'s squad had its chances, playing better than the score indicated, but they were unable to match the shooting prowess of Ballou Tabla, who scored a brace, and Salter.
Three Observations
Atlético Ottawa continue to have Cavalry's number
Cavalry head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. stated a fact post-match that shouldn't be swept aside: Atlético Ottawa is the only club in the CPL they've failed to defeat this year. It's certainly not from lack of trying.
And it's not like Saturday's 3-0 victory felt like an inevitability for head coach Diego Mejía’s squad but the record after their fourth and final encounter with the Calgary-based club tells the story of a one-sided affair. Atlético Ottawa end their regular season series having won three out of four contests and having scored 10 goals to Cavalry's three. Despite looking to dispel their history pre-match, citing various styles of play and coaches in the nation's capital, Wheeldon Jr.'s record now stands at 11 losses, four wins and five draws across 20 matches versus Atlético Ottawa in what can only be described as one of the little quirks of football.
Cavalry started the match strongly, causing issues for Ottawa's build up, but were unable to capitalize on any of their chances early. Striker Tobias Warschewski managed the first real shot on net but, like many of his club's attempts on the day, was unable to get enough on it to really challenge goalkeeper Nathan Ingham.
After a tenous 15-minutes, Atlético Ottawa grew into themselves and started to dictate play, ultimately finishing the match with 56.4 per cent possession. Golden Boot leader Salter added to his account in the 18th minute as he pounced on a fumbled ball by Cavalry's Levi Laing and broke towards goal, jettisoning goalkeeper Marco Carducci with some fine footwork before depositing it into the net.
Ballou Tabla's two goals — scored in an eight minute span between the 72nd and 80th minute — put the match to bed and, briefly (before Forge's win later on Saturday), Ottawa at the top of the CPL table with 51 points.
Missed opportunities sink Cavalry's hopes
The score wasn't indicative of Cavalry's efforts as they sent a whopping 21 shots Ingham's way across the match. However, be it Warschewski, Ali Musse or Caniggia Elva, no one in green was able to put the ball into the back of the net.
The answer to their goalscoring woes, it should be noted, lies in the fact that only three shots were on target. Their 1.99 xG tells the story of players who should have done more but, as a resullt of Atlético Ottawa's dogged defending and the nuances of the game, were unable to finish.
This was best exemplified in Elva's penalty, which he took in stoppage time to try and crack Ottawa's cleansheet. His shot was decently struck and headed towards the bottom right corner but Ingham managed to propel over to make a fantastic save.
"I don't think the score was reflective of the game, unfortunately. Credit to Ottawa, they were more clinical than us in the boxes and, case in point, the penalty save by Nate (Ingham) at the end," Wheeldon Jr. told media.
"We can look at the score line, we can look at possession, but the reality is they took their chances, we didn't. So, when I look to the bench, it's how can we increase our xG, goalscoring, whilst also taking a gamble. I think today we took a gamble, it didn't work out and they took their chances."
Atlético Ottawa registered 13 shots but eight were on target.
Salter and Tabla showcase their talent in clinical fashion
Mejía spoke at length pre-match about how he wants to push his players to higher levels, be they youngsters on his backline or more seasoned attackers like Salter and Tabla. His attacking system has given the aforementioned more freedom and they've rewarded their coach all season, not to mention on Saturday as they scored all three goals.
Salter's opener in the 18th minute was highlighted by the 25-year old striker's football IQ as he recognized Laing was in a compromised position and swept in to steal the ball. His run and subsequent finish, which left Carducci in his wake, was that of an attacker at the peak of his powers. There's a reason the Québec-born Salter has 18 goals in league play, setting the CPL single-season goalscoring record.
But Tabla has also come into his self playing as a roving No. 10, combining with a number of players this year. It's given him the freedom — as exemplified with his two goals — to read the play and pounce when opportunitiy arises.
"I'm adapting myself to whoever plays on my side. Whether it's Gabby (Antinoro) or Kévin (dos Santos), I know how they want to receive the ball, I know the pockets they want to receive it, how they want the ball behind the defender," Tabla told reporters when asked about his role this year. "That's how I play and that's how I enjoy myself."
Although his first goal was deflected off Cavalry's Fraser Aird, Tabla made no mistake collecting a pass from Salter in the 80th minute before rifling it to the bottom left corner to make it 3-0.
With his eighth and ninth goals, Tabla now joins teammates David Rodríguez and Salter as three of the top five goalscorers in the league.
What They Said
"Imagine when you have your captain defending your goal with the youngest defensive line in the history of this team, imagine how proud I feel about my captain. I think he deserves this performance. Nathan (Ingham) is not only our goalkeeper and our captain, he's a leader inside the locker room and we need to follow guys like him to try and be a better team." — Atlético Ottawa head coach Diego Mejía
"We had a game plan and we tried to stick to it ... We still created our moments when it was 0-0, when it was 1-0, when it was 2-0, when it was 3-0, we still created moments where we could've punished Ottawa and we just didn't. We take that on the chin." — Cavalry FC midfielder Shamit Shome
CanPL.ca Player of the Match
Ballou Tabla, Atlético Ottawa
Tabla stepped up when it counted, sealing an important victory for his club and helping them to pursue their goal of claiming the CPL Shield. With two goals, three shots and some creative touches in the box, the 26-year old seized his opportunities.
What’s next?
Both sides are on the road next week as Atlético Ottawa faces Valour FC (3 p.m. ET/ 2 p.m. CT) and Cavalry visits Pacific FC (3 p.m. PT/4 p.m. MT) on Sunday, October 5.
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