5 Forge FC players who may decide the 2023 CPL Final

Forge roll into the 2023 CPL Final with a squad full of players who have made their names in big matches over the years between past finals, Canadian Championship matches and Concacaf appearances.

The vast majority of their squad have appeared in one, if not more, finals. In fact, four Forge players — Triston Henry, Dom Samuel, Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson and David Choinière — have appeared in all four CPL Finals.

Narrowing it down, however, here are five Forge FC players who could be difference-makers in the 2023 edition of the CPL Final.

Triston Henry, Goalkeeper

Entering his fifth CPL final, Forge goalkeeper Triston Henry has arguably been playing the best football of his CPL career this year. He appeared in all but one match this season for Forge and was twice named the CPL’s Goalkeeper of the Month this season, the only keeper to be honoured twice.

Henry kept a league-leading nine clean sheets over the course of the 2023 CPL regular season. Critically, he has also played every minute of the CPL finals, allowing just one goal in five CPL finals matches and making nine total saves.

With a demonstrated ability to make game-changing stops this season, this might be Henry’s busiest final yet, but he has shown this year that he is up for the challenge.

Manjrekar James, Defender

The Canadian international was Forge’s big add this offseason and lived up to the hype in his first CPL season as he was nominated for the league’s Defender of the Year award this past week.

James finished second in the league in recoveries among outfield players (184), third in passes completed (1474) as well as aerial duels won (59) and fourth in the league in overall duels won (159). He is a key member of the Forge team both with and without the ball.

What’s more, is that James will bring with him a wealth of big-match experience from outside the CPL. He has played, and scored, in World Cup qualifiers for Canada, while also appearing for Danish club Midtjylland in a UEFA Champions League match against Italian side Atalanta.

He has also shown an ability to get forward and create attacking moments himself in recent matches. He will be counted upon to be a rock at the back for Forge in this match, but he might just be a candidate to get on the scoresheet as well.

Alessandro Hojabrpour, Midfielder

When you’ve scored in back-to-back CPL finals, you pretty much automatically make this list. Hojabrpour scored the winner against Forge during the 2021 final to give his Pacific side a 1-0 win, before returning the favour last year by scoring the winner for Forge against Atlético Ottawa in the 2022 final.

For the majority of matches, however, Hojabrpour’s influence is more subtle if not still of vital importance to the way Forge plays. It is his defensive work and positioning that allows the team’s other midfielders, principally Kyle Bekker, to get further forward and add numbers in attack.

He is also essential to Forge being able to hold possession of the ball, as his 89.59 per cent pass accuracy is among the best in the league. Having also played a key role in Forge’s opening goal against Cavalry in the semifinals, Hojabrpour has consistently proven he is a player for the big moments.

Kyle Bekker, Midfielder

The Forge captain is showing absolutely no signs of slowing down in his fifth CPL season at the age of 33. In fact, he was one of the five players nominated for the league’s Player of the Year award after an outstanding campaign that saw him finish second in the league in assists, with seven, adding three goals.

Bekker will be especially motivated after missing last year’s final through suspension following his sending off during the second leg of the semifinal against Cavalry.

When he has been on the pitch, Bekker has been a Cavalry killer over the years, scoring seven goals and adding two assists against Forge’s biggest rival over the years. That was the case again in this year’s semifinal where his corner kick deflected into the net for the first goal, before he scored the winner himself.

There is nothing the Forge captain would love more than to break the hearts of Cavalry again in the 2023 CPL Final.

David Choinière, Attacker

He’s earned the nickname ‘Big Game Dave’ around Forge FC circles, and for good reason. With nine of his 21 goals for Forge coming in knockout matches, Choinière has scored some of the biggest goals in the club’s history.

That includes a goal late in the second leg against Cavalry during the 2019 CPL final, and again last season in the semifinals. He also scored in last year’s final against Atlético Ottawa. He has the second most goals of any Forge player against Cavalry, behind only Bekker, with five.

This season has been a tough one for Choinière, who missed the final ten games of the regular season through a leg injury that required surgery. His somewhat surprising return to the lineup and substitute appearance in the 1st vs. 2nd match on October 14 could be a game-changer for Forge in the 2023 Final, even if he is only able to make another late-game cameo appearance off the bench.