Cavalry FC tore up the script at ATCO Field on Saturday, handing arch-rivals Forge FC their first defeat of the 2025 Canadian Premier League (CPL) season in emphatic fashion.
A Tobias Warschewski brace, alongside goals from Ali Musse and Sergio Camargo, powered the defending champions to a 4-1 victory that snapped Forge’s staggering 20-match unbeaten streak.
Forge arrived in Calgary chasing history. The Hammers had dreams of staying on the path of completing the league campaign unbeaten, eyeing a first-ever “invincibles” season in CPL.
Instead, they were dismantled by a Cavalry side that pressed relentlessly, attacked with purpose, and showed why they remain the league’s defending champions.
“Massive respect to Forge for the season they put together, because it’s not just unbeaten in the league, they’re unbeaten in the CanChamp,” said Cavalry head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. “They’re an MLS-calibre squad. Bobby’s a terrific coach,” he added.
The win also reinforced Cavalry’s stronghold at ATCO Field. The Cavs have now lost just once in their past nine home games there against Forge across all competitions.
Fiery Cavalry seize the moment
Cavalry set an aggressive tone very early in the match. Inside 10 minutes, the Alberta outfit rattled the post and forced multiple saves from Forge goalkeeper Jassem Koleilat.
And when Warschewski found space at the edge of the box in the 13th minute, he made no mistake, drilling home to give the Cavs the lead that their dominance deserved.
The early goal did not stop the hosts as they kept taking the attack to Forge.
Ali Musse tested Koleilat twice from distance, while Diego Gutierrez went inches wide with a thunderous strike. By halftime, Cavalry had controlled both territory and tempo, leaving the Hammers chasing shadows.
After the break, the champions struck even more ruthlessly. Musse doubled the advantage in the 49th minute, finishing from close range after Warschewski’s effort was parried.
And then five minutes later, the German forward delivered the moment of the night when he executed a stunning solo run and 30-yard strike to make it 3-0, his second of the game.
Forge briefly offered hope through Nana Ampomah’s 61st-minute goal, but any momentum evaporated within a minute as Camargo coolly restored Cavalry’s three-goal cushion.
From there, the Cavs managed the game with maturity, ensuring that Forge’s historic run ended not with a fightback, but with a whimper.
Cavalry’s front four break Forge’s resilience
For Cavalry, this was the night their attacking quartet truly clicked.
Warschewski, Musse, Camargo, and the electrifying Goteh Ntignee pulled Forge apart with movement, pace, and clinical finishing.
“That front four playing at home, when they click, they click,” Wheeldon Jr. said.
“I’m just happy they play for me. Whether you’ve got Goteh running at you, Musse, Warschewski, Sergio, they’re all so exciting. That’s what fans come to watch.”
Forge, by contrast, were uncharacteristically sloppy. Known for their midfield control and sharp passing, the Hammers looked disjointed throughout.
“If you look at that first half, we’re passing the ball, we’re sloppy, we’re bad,” admitted Forge head coach Bobby Smyrniotis. “It has nothing to do with pressure, it has nothing to do with something happening. We just weren’t good on the ball. And that’s usually what we do very well.”
As the final whistle blew, there was no mistaking the symbolism. Cavalry had not only beaten their fiercest rivals but had also protected the legacy of their own record while reminding the rest of the league that the defending champions remain very much a force.
“We were just that good today, and it’s a great reminder of how good we are. We’re still the defending champions, and we needed to stop their run,” said Wheeldon Jr.
And what a stop it was.
On a night when history was within Forge’s grasp, it was Cavalry who seized it instead. The Hammers entered chasing records and hoped to equal Cavalry’s own seven-game winning streak from 2019. Instead, they left with their first (and heaviest) defeat of the season.
