CPL round-up, May 17-20

Atletico Ottawa were the big winners in week 6 of the Canadian Premier League that saw both their rivals at the top of the table lose for the first time this season. Better still, the loss for Pacific FC came at the hands of the Ottawans, the Friday night clash on Vancouver Island won by a single goal from Swiss striker Ruben del Campo, his fourth of the season. The game was a fairly even affair, played in front of over 2,700 at Starlight Stadium, but del Campo's first-half strike from a difficult angle was too good for Pacific 'keeper Emil Gazdov. Forge FC went into Saturday's game with Vancouver FC with confidence, with the visitors having lost both their away games so far this season. Their match plan was shredded in the third minute, though, when Antonio Rocco Romero gave the Eagles the lead from close range and was further upset just before the half hour when Vasco Fry scored straight from a corner. Although they enjoyed the vast majority of possession, Forge seemed a step off and Kyle Bekker's 53rd minute strike turned out to be just a consolation in the end, the champions going down to their first domestric defeat of the season, a result that lifted Vancouver above them in the table.

Saturday's second game came from ATCO Field in Calgary, Alberta, where Cavalry FC and York United played out an entertaining 2-2 draw. Tobias Warschewski opened the scoring for the hosts from the penalty spot in the 24th minute after Max Ferrari was adjudged to have brought down Sergio Camargo, and it was lead they held through the hour mark before Austin Ricci levelled with a powerful strike after good work by Brian Wright. Wright himself put United into the lead six minutes later after a mix-up at the back for the Cavs, but they earned a point thanks to Malcolm Shaw's from a corner with eighteen minutes to go. The league's bottom two sides - HFX Wanderers and Valour FC - met at the Wanderer Grounds in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Monday afternoon for a special Victoria Day encounter that more than exceeded expectations such a basement clash might produce and attracted over 6,000 fans. After a goalless but busy first-half in which Wanderers hit the bar, the visitors finished a beautiful passing move to take the lead four minutes into the second, Diego Ressurreicao firing past Yann Fillion in the Halifax goal. HFX went in search of an equaliser and found one on 67 minutes when Ryan Telfer was bodychecked by Valour skipper Tass Mourdoukouttas in the box, Daniel Nimick stroking in the penalty, and the game could have gone either way after that. It went the way of the Winnipeg side, though, when another multi-pass move was finished by Jordan Swibel with fifteen minutes left on the clock to give Valour their first win of the season and lift them off the foot of the table.