On Saturday afternoon at ATCO Field, Cavalry FC host Valour in a match which could have significant playoff implications for both sides.
With a win or a draw on Saturday, defending CPL champions Cavalry punch their ticket to the CPL Playoffs for a seventh consecutive season.
A loss for Valour, and they face mathematical elimination should the Halifax Wanderers defeat Pacific FC earlier on Saturday, and York United defeat Vancouver FC on Sunday. The Winnipeg club currently sit ten points out of the fifth and final playoff spot with five games remaining.
Valour were eliminated from playoff contention on the final day of the season last season, coincidentally in a 2-1 loss to Cavalry FC.
After Cavalry took the first two meetings of the season, 4-0 at ATCO Field back on May 25, and 2-1 on July 20, Valour won the most recent meeting on July 29 by that same 2-1 scoreline.
The visitors are coming off of unquestionably their biggest result of the season, a stunning 2-1 victory over top-of-the-table Forge FC this past Thursday. Having also defeated Vancouver FC 5-2 the match prior, they have lost just once in their past five during a late-season surge to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Starting Saturday in Calgary, they still have matches against the three teams they could still mathematically catch, heading to York Lions Stadium next week to play fourth-place York United and then hosting Halifax Wanderers on October 11. Whether or not they can pull off a miraculous run to make the postseason, Valour could still have a huge impact during the run-in.
Calgary has traditionally been an incredibly difficult trip for Valour, however, as they have won just once in club history at ATCO Field, a 4-2 win back on October 30, 2021. As aforementioned, that is evidenced by their earlier trip to Spruce Meadows this season, where they were defeated 4-0.
Cavalry's attack appears to have come to life again at this important juncture in the season, particularly at home. They have scored 12 times in their past three matches at ATCO Field, including a 3-1 victory over Halifax this past Saturday.
That was a key result in their current battle to secure a third-place finish, which would mean a home playoff game and avoiding the mid-week knockout match between 4th and 5th to open the CPL postseason. They are currently three points ahead of fourth-place York United. The Calgary club has never finished lower than third in a CPL season.
The Calgary side will likely be without Diego Gutiérrez against his former side, while Maël Henry and Mihail Gherasimencov are game-time decisions, and central defender Callum Montgomery is out.
Can Cavalry secure a playoff spot and their place in the table, or will Valour keep their dreams alive?
3 THINGS TO WATCH
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New-look Valour backline finding defensive solidity: An incredibly important factor in Valour's ability to keep their playoff hopes alive has been their recent recruitment. In particular, across their backline, where loans for goalkeeper Emil Gazdov and central defender Diego Konincks have had instant impacts. Gazdov has quickly come up with some timely saves, reminding the league why he was its Golden Glove winner last season. Konincks, meanwhile, scored on his first start in a 1-1 draw with Pacific FC, and has been a fixture in the backline since. Quality on the ball, and without it, he has formed an excellent partnership with Gianfranco Facchineri. Both of these players will be crucial once again to Valour getting a big result on Saturday. "Iron sharpens iron," said Valour FC head coach Phil Dos Santos. "So for me, it's just normal that by adding quality pieces, you're going to elevate the overall standard of your game."
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Can Cavalry find consistency at key stage in the season?: At a point in the season where Cavalry FC would be hoping to reach their peak performance, their recent form guide reads a bit like a rollercoaster. This past week, they defeated Halifax 3-1 at home. The week prior? A 3-1 loss to York United on the road. Before that came arguably their best performance of the season, which followed a 2-2 draw with Atlético Ottawa in the nation's capital, where they blew a two-goal lead. Cavalry would love nothing more than to follow up a strong performance against Halifax with another one against Valour, and win back-to-back games for the first time since they last played Valour at home -- on May 25.
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Kianz Froese, the league's most in-form attacker: A huge factor in Valour's recent victories has been the play of Kianz Froese. After becoming just the second player in CPL history to record three assists in a match in a 5-2 victory over Vancouver FC, he followed that up with a two-goal performance, and was named the league's Player of the Week. He now has three goals and three assists since joining Valour in June, with an impressive 0.92 goal contributions per 90. At a time of year when goals are as important as ever, Froese is providing them for Valour, and has quickly proven to be another incredibly crucial and impactful signing for the Winnipeg club.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Cavalry FC: Carducci; Aird, Laing, Klomp, Kamdem; Kobza, Shome; Musse, Camargo, Ntignee; Warschewski
Valour FC: Gazdov; Alarcón, Facchineri, Konincks, Antonoglou; Ohin; Twardek, Ressurreição, Froese, Faria; Morgan
ALL-TIME SERIES
Cavalry FC wins: 15 || Valour FC wins: 4 || Draws: 6
Last meeting:
July 29, 2025 — Valour 2-1 Cavalry FC
KEY QUOTES
"They'll come in here with belief. I think it'll be a more open game, they'll be trying to win the football match. And obviously, we're stubborn when it comes to results here at home, we'll be trying to do our thing. So I think it'll make for a really good one for the neutral " – Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
"I think my message in the last few games, has been 'attack their attack', try to match it. Go at teams, play without fear, and it's worked well for us, so I don't think it changes. We're in the time of year where, right now, we just go for it." – Valour FC head coach Phil Dos Santos
"I think it's a challenge that we all know is a really hard one, but not impossible. So, therefore day to day, we give it our all, and we'll see, we'll see where it ends. " --- Valour FC defender Diego Konincks
