Fresh off clinching a spot in the 2025 CPL playoffs, the Halifax Wanderers take the long trip out to Langley on Sunday for a fourth and final clash of the regular season with Vancouver FC.
Willoughby Community Park was the site of their most recent road victory, which came all the way back on May 17, a 2-0 win. Since then, the Wanderers have collected just two points on the road in eight matches -- scoring just six goals in the process.
That is in sharp contrast to their home form, as the Wanderers have lost just twice, and scored 17 times, in their past eight matches in Halifax. That included a solid 3-0 win over Pacific this past Sunday. Now, as they look to secure a home playoff game they will need to start picking up points again away from the Wanderers Grounds as well.
Vancouver, meanwhile, are coming off their first home win of the CPL season, 2-1 over York United this past weekend.
They defeated Halifax by that same score in the most recent meeting between the two clubs back on August 4 at the Wanderers Grounds. Matteo Campagna and Hugo Mbongue scored for Halifax before Thomas Meilleur-Giguère pulled one back late for the hosts.
For the Eagles, however, a significant amount of their focus is undoubtedly going to be on this coming Wednesday's Canadian Championship final against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Already eliminated from playoff contention in the Canadian Premier League for a few weeks now, that match is the team's clear priority.
Still, they will want to go into the final off the back of a good performance, and with momentum. They are also keen to not finish bottom of the table this season -- currently sitting six points behind rivals Pacific who are in seventh. They proved last weekend against York that they still have the mentality and ability to beat opponents who are playing for significant points in the table.
That is certainly the case for Halifax, who sit just two points ahead of York United in fourth place. They are also only four behind third-place Cavalry FC, and would certainly love to better their spot in the table before the end of the season.
The Wanderers will be without key full-back Adam Pearlman for this match as he is suspended due to yellow card accumulation. Pearlman has been a fixture in the Wanderers team this season, starting 23 of their 24 matches thus far.
Can the Wanderers break their road winless streak, or will Vancouver FC continue to play spoiler during The Chase?
3 THINGS TO WATCH
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Can red-hot Rea continue to be the difference maker for the Wanderers?: Particularly at home, the Wanderers have been one of the best attacking teams in the league over the past few weeks and crucial to that has been a new system that sees Vitor Dias and Sean Rea playing as dualling number 10s below the striker. In particular, Rea has been outstanding of late, being named the league's Player of the Week last week for a dominant performance that included a goal and an assist in a 3-0 win over Pacific FC. It was his first league goal since scoring on the opening day of the season. Against Vancouver on Sunday, look for Rea to continue that fine form, and be the main attacking threat for the visitors.
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Who gets an opportunity for Vancouver with the CanChamp final looming?: There's no sense dancing around which of Vancouver FC's two matches this week will be their focus, the 2025 TELUS Canadian Championship final against the Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday. With a mind toward that it will be interesting to see how they line up on Sunday night. Martin Nash said that he will definitely rotate his side, with two matches in six days, but just how much rotation remains to be seen. When they played in Victoria against Pacific prior to their semi-final second leg against Atlético Ottawa, for example, the Eagles chose to rest key players Nicolás Mezquida and Thierno Bah. Jay Herdman, for example, who is cup-tied dating back to his time with Cavalry and therefore cannot play in the final, could see big minutes in a game like this as a result. Who will they rotate on Sunday, and who might get a late season opportunity to impress before the biggest match in Vancouver FC's club history?
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Can the Wanderers find goals on the road?: In their past five matches away from home, Halifax have managed to score just three times, being shut out on three of those occassions. For a team that has now scored 11 times in their past three home matches, making sure those goals come on the road with them will be vital during their final two road matches of the campaign. Critically, after he returned to the bench last weekend against Pacific FC, the club's leading goalscorer Tiago Coimbra should be available for selection. The young striker scored a late goal the last time the two clubs met in Langley back in May.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Vancouver FC: Irving; Dada-Luke, Campagna, Enyou, Crawford; Powell, Norman Jr., Fry, Fotsing; Campbell, Ndiaye
Halifax Wanderers: Yesli; Mekidèche, Meilleur-Giguère, Alphonse; Baï, Callegari, Johnston, Timoteo; Rea, Días, Telfer
ALL-TIME SERIES
Vancouver wins: 4 || Halifax Wanderers wins: 5 || Draws: 2
Last meeting:
August 4, 2025 — Halifax Wanderers 1-2 Vancouver FC
KEY QUOTES
“We're in a good moment at the minute. But you want to stay there, you want to stay in the good moment, especially before Wednesday.” – Vancouver FC interim head coach Martin Nash
“The run we're having, just the boost from the CanChamp while we're leading into [the Final] it's just like emotiions are great, everyone's pushing forward, and I think it's going to be great for the game on Sunday.” – Vancouver FC midfielder Vasco Fry
“I think the last time we played Vancouver, we underestimated them. We ended up losing at home. You could see they've beaten several teams, they just beat York last week, so they've turned around and been very good at home...it's going to be a difficult game.” – Halifax Wanderers head coach Patrice Gheisar
