TOP 5 MOMENTS of Forge FC vs. Cavalry FC's rivalry ahead of 2024 CanPL Final rematch 🔥
Cavalry and Forge will add the latest chapter to their rivalry this week, as they get set to meet in their second straight final and third final in six years at ATCO Field in Calgary on Saturday.
Their 32nd meeting all-time in six years, they’ve had some pretty memorable contests across those last 31 matches, which have included great goals, tough tackles and more.
Now, they’ll look to continue that in this final, which based on the past two finals, promises to have all sorts of fireworks.
The two top teams in the CPL since year one, they’ve continued to be the teams to beat as year six comes to a close, which is why they finished the standings in first and second place - the fourth time that has happened in the five full seasons the league has contested.
Yet, that’s a credit to both clubs, who have continued to set the standard for what’s possible in the CPL, pushing those around them to follow. That’s been reflected in their matchups, which are often fiercely contested, no matter the occasion, and this weekend is expected to be no exception.
Before looking ahead to this weekend, however, here’s a look back at the top five moments from this rivalry.
5. Cavalry’s 2023 surprise
The most impressive thing about this rivalry through 31 meetings? In 29 of those matches, both teams were split by one goal or less, as there have rarely been any blowouts.
Because of that, it made last year’s match on August 4th at ATCO Field quite the anomaly - on that day, Cavalry managed to come out and put together a historic win, as they beat Forge 3-0.
The first time either side had beaten the other by more than two goals (and even that two-goal margin has only happened once - coming when Forge beat Cavalry 2-0 on July 8th of 2021), it was a strong sign of intent from Cavalry, who ended up winning the CPL Shield not long after.
Led by goals from Eryk Kobza, William Akio and Fraser Aird, it felt like everything clicked for Cavalry on the day, and that allowed them to grab arguably the most memorable victory of their 2023 CPL Shield winning campaign.
Ultimately, Forge ended up getting the last laugh over Cavalry in the playoffs, but this victory won’t be soon forgotten among Cavalry fans, and it’s one they’d be happy to replicate in this final at ATCO Field.
4. The 2020 season opener far from home
When thinking about matchups between these two teams, a lot of the best moments have come in big games, such as playoff games, Canadian Championships and more.
Ironically, however, one of their best-ever matchups came in quite the inconsequential match - the opener of the 2020 CPL season on August 13th of that year. The opener of the “Island Games”, the league’s bubble campaign that was created as a solution to ensure a 2020 season amid COVID-19, this game seemed to mean more than most season openers.
Despite being played in an empty stadium in Prince Edward Island, the game seemed to have an extra spice to it, as it marked the long-awaited return of the CPL for the first time in almost a year, as the last CPL match was the CPL Final between Forge and Cavalry in November of 2019 (more on that in a bit).
And to Forge and Cavalry’s credit, they marked their return in style, as they combined for a very entertaining match. After Cavalry’s Dominick Zator opened the scoring in the 11th minute, Forge responded with a 26th-minute goal from Anthony Novak and a 71st-minute goal from Kyle Bekker to gain the lead late.
In the end, though, Cavalry ensured both teams would split the points, as Nathan Mavila scored a 94th-minute penalty to tie the match late, marking the end of the match in style.
In the end, this match ended up being quite inconsequential - both teams advanced to the next round of the bubble tournament - but in terms of games they’ve played, this is certainly up there in terms of the most memorable performances.
3. Cavalry wins first and only Canadian Championship meeting
For all of the times Forge and Cavalry have met, they haven’t had many meetings outside of the CPL, which makes it wild that they’ve played each other 31 times.
In two of those 31 meetings, however, they did meet in a competition outside of the CPL, and it came in two memorable matches in 2019, as they were drawn against each other in the 2019 Canadian Championship.
And there, interestingly enough, this rivalry was born across the two legs they played each other in during that tournament. Their first two meetings ever (they didn’t meet in the CPL for the first time until after this tie was over) ended up being two entertaining matches, as they drew leg one 1-1 in Hamilton before Cavalry claimed a 2-1 victory in leg two to win 3-2 on aggregate.
In particular, however, the leg one meeting ended up being the more memorable match. After Forge opened the scoring through Emery Welshmen, they almost doubled their lead off a corner, with Marcel Zajac hitting the crossbar.
At the other end, that opened the door for some late Cavalry drama, as Dominique Malonga was judged to have been denied a clear goalscoring opportunity by Forge goalkeeper Quillian Roberts after a scramble in the box, which gave Cavalry a penalty and Roberts a red card, meaning Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson had to step in goal to try save the spot kick.
There, Malonga held his nerve, slotting home, giving Cavalry a pivotal away goal.
Soon after, however, came the moment that forever sparked this rivalry - both teams got into an intense shoving match after the game, as the heat of the ending carried over off the field. From that point on, starting with leg two, matches between these two started to carry extra emotion, all sparked by that brouhaha in their first-ever meeting.
When looking ahead to this latest final, it’s important to remember where this rivalry started, coming over five years ago in that first leg on June 4th of 2019.
2. Forge wins first-ever final
If the first spark of this rivalry came in that 2019 Canadian Championship tie, it feels like the fire was ignited in the 2019 CPL final, as both teams met in the first-ever CPL final later that year.
A two-legged tie (the only time the final has ever been a two-legged affair), some wondered if the same sparks from the Canadian Championship tie might crop up again.
And certainly, that ended up being the case, starting with a fiery first leg in Hamilton - one that featured two red cards, one for Cavalry’s Joel Waterman and the other for Forge’s Tristan Borges.
In the end, Borges ended up making the difference before his dismissal, scoring the lone goal in a 1-0 win (only after he was denied on the penalty that came from the Waterman red card, and after Kyle Bekker and Daniel Krutzen hit the crossbar), giving Forge the edge heading into the second leg in Calgary.
There, despite dealing with an onslaught of Cavalry opportunities, Forge managed to hang on and secure their title with a 95th-minute insurance marker from David Choinière, becoming the first-ever CPL playoff champion with a 2-0 aggregate win. 
Honourable mentions: 2022 playoffs, 2024 playoffs
Before looking at #1, it’s worth remembering some entertaining playoff matches, for both teams.
For example, the 2022 semi-finals ended up being quite the matchup, as Forge narrowly advanced with a 3-2 win across both legs, surviving a second leg that featured a red card for each team with a key 2-1 win after a cagey 1-1 draw in leg one.
Then, this year, it’s also worth noting Cavalry made some history of their own in the playoffs, too, as their 1-0 win over Forge in the qualifying semi-final was their first-ever playoff victory against Forge, something that they’ll hope can give them plenty of confidence heading into this final.
1. Tristan Borges’ final winning Olimpico
Of course, when it comes to memorable matches between these two teams, it’s hard to ignore their 2023 final meeting, which takes up its rightful spot as the top moment on the list.
Arguably the most entertaining final matchup in the CPL’s five years, it was certainly the best match between these two teams in their history.
Coming on October 28th of 2023 at Tim Hortons Field, Forge were looking to lift their fourth North Star Cup, while Cavalry were looking for their first.
Their first meeting in a final since that 2019 battle, as they had met in two semi-finals since but not the championship match, this ended up being quite the matchup, too.
After an entertaining first 90 minutes which included dangerous chances for both teams, Cavalry looked to have the edge heading into extra time, as they had generated the more dangerous opportunities through the 90 minutes.
Because of that, when Ali Musse gave Cavalry the lead in the 101st minute of extra time, it felt like they’d find a way to hold on for their first-ever North Star Cup.
But from there, that seemed to wake something up in Forge. As a result, they found an equalizer in the 105+2nd minute, as Béni Badibanga scored a banger just six minutes after Musse’s marker to make it 1-1 heading into the second half of extra time.
Then, up stepped Tristan Borges for what has become not just the most memorable moment of this rivalry, but arguably in the league’s history. Having stepped up to take a corner in the 111th minute, he ended up curling the ball directly into the net for an ‘Olimpico’, one that ended up clinching the North Star Cup for Forge.
A moment that understandably went viral after, it was quite the ending to the match, as it’s harder to think of many better ways to clinch a final win.
Now, this week, both Forge and Cavalry would love for a similar finish in their favour, so look for them to channel the emotions of that final to put together an epic rematch in Calgary on Saturday.
