With week seven of the 2022 CPL season in the history books, we have now officially reached the quarter season mark in the season. Jostling for position ahead of the next seven games and beyond are the eight teams below, and before we go into week eight, here is where I think they stand in the CPL quarter-season power rankings.
8. FC Edmonton
Season Record: 0-3-5
Goals For: 5
Goals Against: 15
Clean Sheets: 1
Leading Scorer: Tobias Warschewski (2)
It’s been one step forward one step back for Alan Koch’s side so far. This team will play well in a game and then suddenly, a lapse of concentration, or a cheap giveaway, and suddenly, they’re a goal down. Edmonton’s defence plays with a lot of pressure on their shoulders. This team doesn’t tend to create many chances from open play, and has failed to score more than one goal in a game in any of their first eight matches.
Twice already this season, the Eddies have gone an entire game without registering a shot on target, and of their five goals scored, two have been penalties. It all adds up to a lot of busy afternoons for Edmonton keeper Andreas Vaikla, who so far has made a league-leading twenty-five saves, with many of those saves being very impressive. Edmonton will be desperate to get their first win soon, and they’ll be hoping players like Tobias Warschewski, Mamadi Camara, and Shamit Shome will be able to help carry them over the line, and give their suffering fans something to celebrate.
7. HFX Wanderers
Season Record: 2-2-3
Goals For: 7
Goals Against: 10
Clean Sheets: 2
Leading Scorer: Cory Bent, Akeem García, Samuel Salter (2)
HFX could very easily be higher up the list, but in short, this team has shot themselves in the foot so far in 2022. Left without a clinical finisher after João Morelli was ruled out for the season with an injury, HFX has only scored three goals in the games they’ve failed to win. They will often control midfield battles thanks to the prowess of duo Andre Rampersad and Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé, but their forwards just haven’t been clinical enough, and it’s costing them points.
To make matters worse, goalkeeping hasn’t always been reliable for HFX, with notable mistakes from Christian Oxner against Cavalry and Pacific, leading to points being left off the board. Meanwhile, their other option Kieran Baskett didn’t cover himself in glory against Forge. HFX will have to solve their issues at either end of the field quickly in order to get their stalling season back on track.
6. Valour FC
Season Record: 2-2-2
Goals For: 11
Goals Against: 7
Clean Sheets: 2
Leading Scorer: Moses Dyer (3)
Valour are perhaps the most difficult team to gauge so far this season. So far, they’ve drawn away to Edmonton (1-1), put up a valiant performance down to ten men away to Pacific (2-3), stunned Ottawa with a 6-1 win away from home, they easily could’ve lost their home opener to HFX (0-0), were again lucky to defeat York 1-0, and then equalized late on away to Cavalry, only to concede again and lose the game 2-1. This team feels like a bonafide middle of the pack side that leaves us unsure of what to expect on a weekly basis.
The consistency has been in the form of penalty-saving extraordinaire Jonathan Sirois. The reigning CPL goalkeeper of the year has so far saved all three penalties he has faced, and five of his last six, a record that’s almost unheard of in professional soccer. When Sirois isn’t called upon, Valour knows from their 6-1 win over Ottawa what they’re capable of. Players like William Akio, Moses Dyer, and in particular, Sean Rea can give defences problems, this team just has to find some consistency as the season goes on.
5. Atlético Ottawa
Season Record: 3-2-2
Goals For: 8
Goals Against: 11
Clean Sheets: 2
Leading Scorer: Brian Wright (3)
A grinding win against Edmonton was enough to see Ottawa end what was the league’s second-longest winless streak and propel them to third in the table, but I’m not entirely convinced of this side just yet. Ottawa has been their own worst enemy at times. Away to York, they failed to hold onto a late lead against ten men and then followed it up with an incredibly frustrating loss against Pacific, where they were very wasteful in front of goal. Of course, we can’t fail to mention the collapse against Valour, everything that could’ve gone wrong did go wrong, as Ottawa lost 6-1 at home, and the score very easily could’ve been higher.
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Two of their three wins have come against teams lower than them in this power ranking, and I don’t think over the course of a season they can complete at top of the table, but they can put up a good fight for the fourth spot. Ottawa has talented players like Ollie Basset and Ballou Tabla. At the back players like Drew Beckie and keeper Nathan Ingham have helped the club concede just five goals in six games (not including the disaster against Valour). Upfront, while Malcolm Shaw and Brian Wright have both gotten on the scoresheet this season, Atlético will be hoping they can be more clinical going forward to help them maintain a playoff push.
4. Forge FC
Season Record: 2-2-2
Goals For: 11
Goals Against: 6
Clean Sheets: 2
Leading Scorer: David Choinière (3)
Forge went into their game against HFX under a lot of pressure having just one win in five games, but showed the form that many thought they had in them, to comfortably win 4-0 and climb up the CPL table. It’s been a slow start for their standards, but they’re right in the middle of the pack now and an on-form, Forge is a side no one wants to play.
Plenty of core players like Triston Henry, Daniel Krutzen, Kyle Bekker, David Choinière, and Tristan Borges remain who know what it takes to win in this league. They have been complemented by Terran Campbell, Alessandro Hojabrpour, and Aboubacar Sissoko, who have all had an impact so far. Despite being nine points back from Pacific, Forge has two games in hand on the league leaders, and with the two set to play in Hamilton soon, don’t be surprised if Forge shoots up the table.
3. York United
Season Record: 2-3-2
Goals For: 6
Goals Against: 5
Clean Sheets: 3
Leading Scorer: Osaze De Rosario (3)
Somewhat a surprise package, York has rebounded well from an opening day loss to HFX to lose just one of their last six, and even then they would count themselves very unfortunate to lose 1-0 away to Valour. York has a plethora of attack-minded players and many of them such as Isaiah Johnston, Sebastián Gutiérrez, and Osaze De Rosario, have all produced great individual performances and moments to put York in a strong position.
The key to this side is fullback Diyaeddine Abzi, who has not only been part of a league-best defence of just five goals conceded, but has been a creative spark down York’s left flank all season, putting in performances that have should have bigger teams taking notice in a weekly basis. With a defence of Abzi, Rodger Thompson, Dominick Zator, Chrisnovic N’sa, and goalkeeper Niko Giantsopoulos, this is a United team that can go into every game they play, confidently in having a chance to win.
2. Cavalry FC
Season Record: 3-2-2
Goals For: 11
Goals Against: 8
Clean Sheets: 2
Leading Scorer: Joseph Mason, Ali Adem Musse (3)
After a slow start with just one point from their opening three games, a defining feature of Cavalry has been their resilience. In a game they had to win, Cavalry defeated league leaders Pacific with ease and haven’t looked back. They dispatched Edmonton with ease to cement their dominance in the fixture, then scored a last-second equalizer on the road to HFX, and then again scored late to secure all three points against Valour.
While Julian Roloff played well to start the season, the return of first-choice goalkeeper Marco Carducci has coincided with Cavalry’s run of form with the keeper pulling off many important saves en route to conceding just three goals all season. Cavalry’s defence has also kept the door locked tight, surrendering just eleven shots on target in their last four as opposed to thirteen shots in their first three games. Further upfield José Escalante, Ali Musse, and Jean-Aniel Assi have given opposition defences plenty of headaches, and upfront to finish the chances have been both Joe Mason and Myer Bevan who have combined for five goals in the league, and seven in all competitions. Cavalry knows that a successful season means bringing the shield back to Calgary, and they’ll expect to be in the thick of it come the end of the season.
1. Pacific FC
Season Record: 5-2-1
Goals For: 10
Goals Against: 7
Clean Sheets: 3
Leading Scorer: Alejandro Díaz (5)
There’s been plenty to happy about on Canada’s west coast so far. Despite losing several key players and even their head coach Pa-Modou Kah before the season began, James Merriman’s side has stormed the league so far with a league-leading seventeen points from eight games.
A spine of goalkeeper Callum Irving, centre-back Amer Đidić, midfielders Manny Aparicio, and striker Alejandro Díaz have all been crucial for the Pacific Islanders so far. With even more talent like Kunle Dada-Luk, Marco Bustos, and Josh Heard also in their side, expect this team to stay near the front of the pack for more championship glory, providing they can replicate their impressive form in Langford away from home as the season goes on.
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