Article content
Big. Larger. Larger …
Here’s how Cavalry FC views the Vancouver Whitecaps’ three visits to Calgary over the years.
Article content
Big? In the Cavalry’s inaugural season, when the local club shocked the Major League Soccer team with a scoreless draw against curious Calgarians as part of their loss to the Whitecaps in a deep race for the 2019 Canadian Championship.
Larger? In the 2022 Cup, when the Cavs tied again (1-1 this time) with the West Coast blue blood, proving that the first time was no fluke even though the hosts were eliminated that game on penalty kicks.
Advertisement 2
Article content
And the biggest? Why does that happen? Tuesday at the Canadian Championship Action at ATCO Field (7 p.m., OneSoccer, OneSoccer.ca), as Cavalry lines up against a Whitecaps team that is at the top of its game as one of the best teams in MLS.
“I think this one is special,” Cavalry commercial and marketing director Mason Trafford said ahead of the much-anticipated home match of the two-match Cup second-round series.
“I think he’s probably in the top three, to be honest,” Trafford continued. “Just because of where we are this year, as we’ve been in the Concacaf Champions Cup, being the regular season shield holders, and now we’re in the quarterfinals of our domestic cup competition at the national level.
“To me, it’s like if you’re a kid or a minor football family, anyone who has football roots, you should be here. I told my clubs, ‘You have to cancel your practice.’
“This is like territory where you can cancel your practice. When are you going to be able to pay 40 bucks and see how you can see it here, like 10 feet from the guys? Guys like Sam Adekugbe, who is a Calgary superstar, are back with the Whitecaps. He is great. That’s enough to go down.
Midday news summary
Article content
Advertisement 3
Article content
“And the other thing that’s different now is that the Whitecaps are big.”
The proof is not only in their 5W-2D-2L record at the start of the MLS season, but also in the attention they are attracting on their 50th anniversary.
A club-record crowd of 32,465 fans packed BC Place on Saturday night for an MLS regular-season match against Austin FC.
“Yeah… it’s kind of crazy there,” said Trafford, who made 37 appearances for the Whitecaps in 2008-09. “We are playing against a team that is a legitimate MLS contender. We are facing a team that has completely changed. Even last year, their own fans were turning against them: people were throwing away season tickets. They have completely done a 180 degree turn.
“So I think the team we’re going to play is good, really good.”
That’s not to say the Cavalry can’t keep up.
They know they can, and they are rising to the Whitecaps’ challenge, as they have done in the past in their Canadian Championship matches in an attempt to win the coveted Voyageurs Cup.
Remember that as part of that 2019 run to the semifinals of that competition, the Cavs shocked the host Whitecaps 2-1 to oust the Vancouverites from the competition.
Advertisement 4
Article content
Like that year, this is a home-and-away, all-goal quarterfinal, with Game 1 here on Tuesday and the second leg scheduled for BC Place on May 21 (8:30 p.m., OneSoccer, OneSoccer.ca).
“We had that wonderful result at the Voyageurs Cup in 2019, where we went into BC Place, came out victorious and moved on,” said Cavalry President Ian Allison. “And then in other games with the Whitecaps over the years, they have been one-goal or PK affairs. So it’s not intimidating by any means. I think it’s respect.
“Their roots go much deeper than ours and go back a few decades, but here in the foothills we are fast producers. You have to approach these games with respect and not fear and then believe in your process and recognize that you have great leadership in your club, like we do.”
To that end, Cavalry general manager and head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. leads his charges into Cup competition having gone undefeated in their last three games overall, including a 1-0 win in the first round over visiting Vancouver FC in the Canadian Championship.
And while the cold, wet weather could play a role against a team that plays its games indoors, the coach knows where he stands against the Whitecaps.
Advertisement 5
Article content
“They’re stronger, deeper, more established and they played the season a lot earlier than us,” Wheeldon said. “So they should have every advantage.
“We are certainly the underdogs, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do it again; we have done it before. I’m excited that we’re in the hat for this game. I look forward to welcoming the Whitecaps here. We are going to make it as difficult as we can. But we know they are in shape. We respect it, but it doesn’t scare us.”
“Yeah…everyone’s excited about this,” added Cavalry veteran Charlie Trafford. “It’s fun to go up against them with two legs. We sniffed it out a bit in Concacaf (Champions Cup) against an MLS team (Orlando City SC). We left disappointed in ourselves. I thought we had good performances, but we are leaving with bad results.
“This way everyone feels more prepared to reach that level again.”
Article content