Forge beat Pacific 3-0, clinch top-two finish
Noah Jensen, Lucas Cavallini and Ben Paton scored as Forge cut Cavalry's Shield lead to two points with three matches left.
· by Colin Radek · match report · shield race · playoffs · canadian championship
Forge took care of business at home on Wednesday, beating Pacific FC 3-0 to secure a top-two finish in the Canadian Premier League and, with it, the right to host the second leg of their semifinal tie in November.
The result also keeps the Shield race alive. Forge used their game in hand on Cavalry to cut the gap at the top to two points, and both clubs play on Thanksgiving Monday with two regular season matches after that.
The scoring took a while to arrive. Forge controlled the tempo from the opening minute and their mid-block repeatedly cut off Pacific's route into the final third, but 19 touches in the visitors' box over the first 40 minutes produced only two efforts that tested Eleias Himaras. The breakthrough came a couple of minutes before halftime, when Sami Keshavarz turned a pass back toward his own goal and found Noah Jensen unmarked at the top of the box. The Forge captain drove a low shot into the bottom left corner for his second goal of the season.
Five minutes into the second half it was two, Lucas Cavallini converting from the spot after Joshua Belluz caught Hoce Massunda in the box. Cavallini, who had missed a penalty in Vancouver two weeks earlier, struck it low into the bottom right corner. Belluz thought he had pulled one back with a header from a set piece with 20 minutes left, but an FVS review ruled Diego Konincks offside in the build-up. In stoppage time Anthony Aromatario played Ben Paton in behind, and Paton cut inside to finish for 3-0.
Jensen, wearing the armband, finished with four shots and four chances created. Asked about the run-in, he said the group is in a good position mentally. "We have a lot to play for, but we understand that us playing our best football is going to put us in the best position to win anything," he said.
Forge remain in the hunt for three trophies, with the Shield, the CPL playoffs and the Canadian Championship final against CF Montréal at Stade Saputo on Wednesday, October 21. Head coach Bobby Smyrniotis was not interested in framing it that way, saying the focus has to be on individual games and on being the best version of themselves.
Next up is the final home match of the regular season, against 905 Derby rivals Inter Toronto on the holiday Monday at 1 p.m. ET.