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Photo Credit: Grant MacKinnon
Forge 1-0 Supra: Paton Hammers Hosts Through
By For the second time in club history, Forge will compete in a Canadian Championship final. This time, they will do so in a full competition.
The Hamiltonians edged Supra du Quebec 1-0 in the second leg of their semifinal, winning the series 2-1 on aggregate. They await the winner of Wednesday’s semi between the Vancouver Whitecaps and CF Montreal (first leg 1-1).
Flashback: Late Krutzen Equalizer Sees First Leg In Draw
Forge’s latest league match ended 3-0 on Saturday at home to Atletico Ottawa. Coach Bobby Smyrniotis chose to maintain the same starting 11 from three days prior.
For Supra, currently seventh in the CPL, they were beaten 2-0 by the HFX Wanderers in their weekend match. Three changes were made from the weekend as the expansion team freshened things up for their trip to Hamilton.
The visitors had the first big chance seven minutes in. Leading scorer Loic Kwemi created enough space to have a shot from a difficult angle. However, Dmitry Bertaud was in the right spot to make a reaction stop and keep his side on level terms.
The Forge shotstopper was again required a minute later. Off a corner, the ball bounced kindly for Ibrahim Conde to have a hit. Despite the power on the striker’s shot, Bertaud was there to keep it out.
After the shaky opening 10 minutes, the home side grew into the game. Midway through the half, they went ahead. Rezart Rama sent Maxime Bourgeois forward with a pass, with the latter marauding towards the box. His cutback found Ben Paton, who had only been on the field for a matter of moments. The midfielder made no mistake in finding the bottom corner with his first-time shot.
The Hammers nearly doubled their advantage not long after. Bourgeois was at it again, feeding the ball through to Aghilas Sadek. Although facing a tough angle, the youngster went for goal. Joakim Milli had no chance, but was saved by the crossbar.
Conde had another effort on goal moments before the interval. Unfortunately for him, the shot was too central, making it an easy gather for Bertaud.
The second half did not have many clearcut goalscoring chances. Forge’s best opportunity came with 20 minutes left. Ismael Oketokoun’s cross went to Hoce Massunda, but before the attacker could get a shot off, Zachary Brault-Guillard got back and made a timely intervention to avoid his team going down by two.
Supra pushed players late on in the game as they tried to force extra time. The last chance came in stoppage time. A cross into the middle of the area found Matisse Chretien, who swung a foot out to try and put it in. Bertaud made the initial stop, with Riad Bey failing to direct his follow-up into the empty net. While the visitors sent an FVS challenge for a penalty in the buildup, the referee stuck to his initial decision.
The final whistle blew moments later, giving Forge the win. They will keep an eye on the other Canadian Championship semifinal on Wednesday in Montreal to determine where they will be playing next month’s final. The winner of the match between CFM and the Whitecaps will be the host.
As for domestic action, Forge will have no time to rest on their laurels as they make the trip back out to Calgary for a massive game on Saturday. Three points will be vital for the Hammers if they are to defend their regular season title.
Supra, eight points back of the final playoff berth, heads to the nation’s capital for a clash versus Atletico Ottawa, the side they knocked out in the CanChamp quarterfinals.
Header Image Photo Credit: Grant MacKinnon
