2020 CPL regular season (The Island Games) — Match #10
York9 FC vs. Valour FC
August 22, 2020 at 1:00 p.m ET/2:00 p.m. AT
UPEI Artificial Turf Field in Charlottetown, PEI
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca and CBC

We’re only 10 matches into the CPL regular season, so it’s way too early to push the panic button.

Still, York9 FC might be feeling a little hot under the collar ahead of their game against Valour FC on Saturday at The Island Games.

Picked by several notable pundits to contend for the North Star Shield this season, Y9 has had to settle for back-to-back draws in their first two games of the season, including a 1-1 stalemate vs. Pacific FC their last time out.

Jim Brennan’s side currently sits fifth in the table, so there’s still plenty of time for them to make up ground and claim a top-four finish and move on to the second round. But if they fail to pick up points against Valour, their job becomes a little bit tougher and the pressure intensifies.

Valour, on the other hand, is riding high after a convincing 4-0 win over Atlético Ottawa saw them climb to third in the overall table.

Of course, Valour scored all four of their goals after Ottawa was reduced to 10 men, and Rob Gale’s side looked rather anemic in their opener against Cavalry FC, so it’ll be interesting to see how they do against a quality Y9 side that’s a bit desperate for points.

RELATED READING: Jose Galán’s emotional goal celebration for Valour an early highlight of Island Games

3 THINGS TO WATCH

• Y9 looking for a clean sheet: Three goals conceded in two games isn’t a disastrous defensive record. But it’s clearly not good enough for Y9 coach Jim Brennan, a former defender during his playing career. “We need to get better. You look at our first match, we conceded at the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half, and then in the 91st minute (vs. Pacific) we’ve conceded,” Brennan stated.

• TFC loanee Julian Dunn shines in CPL: Thus far, Julian Dunn has made a seamless transition into the CPL. On loan with Valour from Toronto FC, the 20-year-old has played a full 180 minutes over two games and effectively quarterbacked the defence. Valour coach Rob Gale lauded his performance vs. Cavalry, and stated he should be getting regular minutes in MLS.

• More changes from Valour?: Ten newcomers featured in Valour’s starting 11 for their first game of the season vs. Cavalry. Against Ottawa, coach Rob Gale made five lineup changes, with Austin Ricci leading the attack, Masta Kacher featuring prominently on the left wing, and Brett Levis moving to fullback. Will Gale stick with the same starting 11 against York9? Or will he make significant lineup changes for the second straight match?

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

“Mentally, we’ve got to be right and finish games off, but we’re getting those chances. We just need to be a little bit better defensively.” – York9 FC coach Jim Brennan.

“When you lose that first game, everybody is not happy with that performance. But we know what we have. We know we have a good team this year, but you need results. We played a good, solid game and the result (vs. Ottawa) was totally fair. We needed it.” – Valour midfielder Jose Galán

ALL-TIME SERIES

Y9 wins: 2 || Valour wins: 2 || Draws 0

PREVIOUS MEETING

October 16, 2019: Valour FC 0, York9 FC 4

REFEREES

Referee: Carly Shaw-Maclaren
ARs: Lyes Afra & Jason Olinski
4th Official: Juan Marquez