June 6, 2025...Preview: Cavalry FC vs. York United | CPL Match #38 (from canpl.ca)
PREVIEW: Cavalry FC vs. York United | CPL Match #38
06/06/2025
Written by: Mitchell Tierney
2025 CPL Regular Season — Match #38
Cavalry FC vs. York United
June 8 at 4 p.m. MT / 6 p.m. ET
ATCO Field in Calgary, Alberta
Live: OneSoccer //
On Sunday evening, York United travel to Calgary for the first time this season to take on Cavalry FC at ATCO Field.
York United were the only CPL club to win a match at ATCO Field last season, and search for another statement victory
at the stadium.
It would be their third straight in league action, following a 1-0 win at home against Vancouver FC, and a 2-0 victory against
Halifax Wanderers in the 2025 CPL on Tour match in Québec City this past weekend. York have only won three consecutive CPL
matches on one occasion in club history, in late May 2023.
That most recent victory moved York above the playoff line, two points above sixth-place Pacific FC, a position they will look
to consolidate with another victory on Sunday. A win would also put them closer to the top four, only one point behind Cavalry,
albeit with one more match played.
Cavalry, meanwhile, have not lost since the most recent meeting between the two sides, a 2-1 victory for the Calgary club back
on May 2 at York Lions Stadium. They rattled off three straight wins, and clean sheets, after that, before drawing 1-1 with
rivals Forge this past weekend.
Sunday's match will feature two of the league's top attackers this season, both of whom scored in the first meeting between
the two clubs. Tobias Warschewski opened the scoring back on May 2, to kick off an outstanding month of May, where he tallied
four goals and added three assists. York's Julian Altobelli, meanwhile, responded in that game with one of a co-league-leading
seven goals he has scored this season.
A big goal for York on Sunday will be trying to slow down Warschewski and Cavalry's other key attackers, especially in transition.
Cavalry scored 14 goals in five matches during the month of May, and the Nine Stripes know that limiting their opportunities
in front of goal will go a long way toward victory on Sunday.
Cavalry will have to contend with the international window as they select their squad for Sunday's match. Caniggia Elva
(San Lucia), Shamit Shome (Bangladesh) and Mihail Gherasimencov (Moldova U-21) are all unavailable as a result.
Without Shome in particular, Cavalry will again rely heavily on 21-year-old Max Piepgrass. Last time out against York United,
Piepgrass played his first CPL minutes since 2021, and has since carved out a consistent role in the Cavalry midfield.
The Nine Stripes will be without full-back Riley Ferrazzo for Sunday's match through a yellow card accumulation suspension.
They also have international absences, as Gabriel Bitar is currently representing Lebanon, while Shola Jimoh is with
the Canadian U-17 team in Spain.
3 THINGS TO WATCH
How can Cavalry deal with international absences?: As a result of the international window, Cavalry FC will need to make
at least a pair of changes to their starting lineup from last weekend against Forge due to international duty. Shamit Shome
and Mihail Gherasimencov are both with their national teams, and so is Caniggia Elva, a second-half substitute in that match.
Perhaps the most important of the three is Shome, who has been the heart of Cavalry's midfield this season. But Gherasimencov
has also started three of Cavalry's past four games in all competitions, including scoring against Pacific FC on May 17. Elva,
meanwhile, just returned from injury but is a key piece in Cavalry's attacking depth. "I think this is great for me as a manager
now to see which of our players coming in are going to be there if needed in the run-in," said Cavalry FC manager
Tommy Wheeldon Jr. "I always look at the early part of the season as figuring out who's got the most consistency, who can
handle the pressure in one-goal games."
York's backline looks to be taking shape: Coming into the match with back-to-back clean sheets, there has been a clear
improvement in York United's defensive performance of late. The underlying numbers tell the same story. With just 0.25 expected
goals conceded against the Halifax Wanderers, and 0.66 against Vancouver FC, York's past two games have been the lowest xG totals
they've allowed all season. The improvement has largely resulted from the return of Frank Sturing and Elijah Adekugbe to the
team's back three alongside Oswaldo León. But it has also come from a team-wide commitment to being more difficult to beat
and more concentrated in the key moments of the game. Now, on Sunday, they test themselves against one of the league's top
offensive teams.
Big road stretch for York United: This coming week is going to reveal a lot about where the Nine Stripes are as a club at this stage
in the season. Their depth, preparation and mentality will be tested significantly during a busy week of action. First,
it is Sunday's clash in Calgary with Cavalry FC. Then, they head to Ottawa for the first leg of their Canadian Championship
quarter-final against Atlético Ottawa on Wednesday. Finally, it's back out to the west coast to Langford, BC for a match
against Pacific FC next Saturday. Seeing as these are important games in both the league and the cup, it will be intriguing
to observe how Mauro Eustáquio balances his squad -- and what sort of results they achieve.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Cavalry FC: Carducci; Aird, Laing, Montgomery, Wähling; Piepgrass, Daley; Musse, Camargo, Herdman; Warschewski
York United: Urtiaga; Sturing, Adekugbe, León; Ferrari, Yeates, Kibato, Botello; Reid, Ferrin, Altobelli
ALL-TIME SERIES
Cavalry FC wins: 15 || York United wins: 4 || Draws: 3
Last meeting:
May 2, 2025 — York United 1-2 Cavalry FC
KEY QUOTES
"It's going to be a great day on Sunday. All we're looking forward to doing now is putting the best version of ourselves forward
and try to continue to climb the ladder. And that's it. These are interesting weeks now, Forge against Halifax. We're against
York, and then we play Halifax next week. So we know how big three points are. It helps us climb the league and get closer
to Ottawa, who've led the league very, very well so far this season." - Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr.
"I remember a physical game [against York], a lot of tackles flying in. Good away performance from us. Excited to play them
at home this time." - Cavalry FC midfielder Max Piepgrass
"We tend to always get on the scoresheet. We knew what we had to fix was on the defensive side, and that was something that
we not only hammered when things weren't going well, but even now, we want to be an organized, solid team defensively. If you
keep a clean sheet, you're that much closer to winning the game." - York United head coach Mauro Eustáquio
"I don't think it's any secret that Calgary away is my favourite game of the year. Obviously, I get to go home and see friends
and family, and they're a great team, so always makes for a good occasion. They're in good form. They've been doing well over
the month of May, and I think the last two games showed who and what we could be. So I think it sets up for the neutral a very
good game." - York United captain Elijah Adekugbe
back to 2025 York United FC menu
.
.