The press room at Hamilton Stadium is a familiar spot for Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
Twice he has sat there after playoff eliminations, including one CPL Final. Sunday night, though, made it a second straight year the Cavalry FC coach has spoken after beating Forge FC in the playoffs.
On both occasions, a Tobias Warschewski goal was all Cavalry needed to beat the Hammers and advance to the Final.
A reporter hadn't even finished asking a question before Wheeldon Jr. began waxing about the German striker.
"The dragon slayer," he said.
Warschewski has now played four games in the CPL Playoffs, over two seasons with the Cavs. He has never lost, and he has scored in every single game. In fact, his five total goals make him the CPL's all-time leading postseason scorer.
It's clear that this time of year suits Warschewski. Increasingly, though, it seems that playoff time suits Cavalry in general.
Two years ago, the story was very different. In fact, prior to the 2024 campaign, they were 2-1-8 in the CPL Playoffs. They'd never beaten Forge when it really mattered, and they'd lost in the Final twice.
The CPL's original postseason rivalry had leaned heavily toward Hamilton. Even at the start of this year, a Forge win on opening day suggested they might restore their supremacy after faltering in 2024. But now, with three consecutive Cavalry wins against Forge in the playoffs, the narrative has flipped.
When Forge went to Calgary earlier this season, looking invincible with a 20-game unbeaten streak, the Cavs produced their best performance of the season so far. They triumphed 4-1 and handed Forge their first loss of the campaign.
"I told the lads, even after they beat us in the first game of the season here, we won't lose to them again," Wheeldon Jr. said on Sunday. "I just felt there was something shifting in the rivalry. We knew that coming here, we had to put in the performance that won it last year."
Cavalry have been playing with a chip on their shoulders this season. Although they're the defending North Star Cup champions, they've faced a fair share of doubters among media and fans. They stumbled a little over the first month of the season, not climbing into the playoff picture until matchweek five. Since week 15, however, they've been firmly in third place, never relinquishing that position despite the close pursuit of York United and the Halifax Wanderers.
They've been hit hard by injuries, too. Sergio Camargo — arguably the club's MVP during the regular season — has missed both playoff games and remains doubtful for the Final. Meanwhile, the likes of Bradley Kamdem, Eryk Kobza, Michael Baldisimo, Diego Gutiérrez and Shamit Shome have all missed at least 10 games this season.
Plus, two of their current starters — Daan Klomp and Goteh Ntignee — weren't even with the team until rejoining the club during the summer transfer window.
It's performances like Sunday's against Forge, however, that remind everyone how good Cavalry are.
"It's kind of back to our roots," Shome said postmatch on Sunday. "That's three finals in three years, all in different ways, different paths. We can show we can do it whatever way it takes, and we can hopefully carry this momentum on to the final."
This Cavalry squad has been built into a postseason machine over the past three years. Seven players who appeared in Sunday's semifinal also played in the 2023 and 2024 CPL Finals.
After failing in the playoffs several times in a row, Wheeldon Jr. and the Cavs have grown into a team who thrives under pressure, rather than breaks.
"We have so much continuity," Shome added. "We have guys from the last couple years who have been here, some new pieces that are hungry to play their role and contribute. In moments like this, grinding it out, defending the box with our lives, that's stuff that we've done before. We've done it against Forge last year in the semifinal to win, with the same result, the same way. We're relying on those experiences, it's just instinct now. We've trained for these moments, because we knew we'd be here and we'd have to be able to manage a game once we get that goal."
Wheeldon Jr. did tip his cap to Forge, both before and after the game on Sunday; he has repeatedly acknowledged Forge were the best team in the league this year, which led them to the CPL Shield. He heaped praise on his opposite number, Bobby Smyrniotis, saying that the Forge coach's trophy cabinet speaks for itself, and it remains a fact that to win a trophy in the CPL, you have to go through Forge.
But as the reigning champions, it'll take some serious effort to get the North Star Cup out of Cavalry's hands.
"It's our trophy to defend," Wheeldon Jr. said. "And we've got to do it the hard way on the road."
