The CPL Final trilogy sent a record crowd of Cavalry FC supporters home happy.
First half goals from Tobias Warschewski and Sergio Camargo saw Cavalry FC past Forge FC 2-1 to win the Canadian Premier League Final for the first time in front of a sellout crowd of 7,052 supporters on Saturday afternoon at Spruce Meadows’ ATCO Field.
“It’s surreal to do it in front of our fans,” said Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. “To be always Cinderella and to show the resilience to do it.”
Warschewski, the CPL Golden Boot winner, got back to his goal scoring ways early in the final. The German attacker drew a foul on the box on Forge FC defender Dominic Samuel.
He then stepped up to the spot and delivered a no-doubt kick into the top of the net.
Just six minutes later, Camargo was sprung free on an overlap on the left flank with winger Jay Herdman and made no mistake in tight for a two-goal cushion.
“The two gave us an opportunity there if a call went our way, went their way and it did, it tested us,” Wheeldon Jr. said. “We had to change and we had to adapt.”
Forge FC, a team with a proven track record of rallying back in playoff championship games, got right back in the game with centre back Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson poking in a low cross just seven minutes into the second half.
But there wasn’t much else available to the visitors as the top defensive team in the league shut the door.
2024 CPL FINAL HIGHLIGHTS: Relive all the dramas as @CPLCavalryFC make history and win their first-ever North Star Cup! 🐎🏆#CanPL I 📺 @onesoccer pic.twitter.com/vd0adflkjp
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) November 9, 2024
“The first half was high level, it was outstanding, it was entertaining, it was cutthroat, it was fun to watch, it was aggressive in our press,” the coach added. “Second half, look they’re the defending champions and they’re going to come out, but to lift it in front of our fans, our family, all the people that come with us it's a special moment.
"And most importantly, this is for the Southern family, our most important people here that believed in us, believed in supporting the game, believed in Canadians, O I couldn't be [more] thankful to them and also all of the fans that have shared this with us."
Saturday’s final marked the third time the teams have lined up in the championship match, with Forge claiming the 2023 title at home in Hamilton and 2019 championship at Spruce Meadows.
“They’re great champions,” Wheeldon Jr. said. “We felt we were the better team last year and the results don’t always go your way. To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best and we did.
“To be able to call ourselves champions you win on the last day of the season.”
Warschewski, a first year member of the Cavalry, was named the CPL Final MVP.
Goalkeeper Marco Carducci, a proud Calgarian, and Camargo are the only remaining players from the inaugural 2019 campaign and fittingly had their fingertips all over the championship.
"Sergio, being on being a teammate of mine the last few years is also a very dear friend," said Carducci. "And to do this with him, someone who's been here since the start, those are the things you can't really put into words. To see his reaction, to see how well he played, he was phenomenal for us in the first half, he got that goal, it felt like relief that we finally got over the hill and got it done.
"I got to hoist the trophy with my brothers behind me, with my family, friends all around, with 7,000 people who've been supporting us all year with the city at our back, it's extra special. We've been close before and that pain, that difficulty of not getting over the line lives in some of us who've been in those moments. It's a great sense of relief and a real privilege to be able to do it at home."
Cavalry’s coaching staff features additional members of the original team in former captain Nik Ledgerwood and defender Jay Wheeldon.
The Cavs gaffer tipped his cap to their influence in the result.
“The fact that they bled for the shirt, they felt the pain, now they can taste the champagne,” he said with a laugh.
"We've got to savour these moments. Winning is hard, we've been at the doorstep over and over, we won the regular season last year, but this is way more fun."
For more information go to cavsfc.com.