Saint Lucian centre-forward Caniggia Elva netted for Cavalry FC in a dramatic season finale on October 18 in the Canada Premier League, helping the defending champions clinch third place, despite their lowest points total in the six-year history of the CPL. Elva was named player of the match, as the Cavs were held to a 2-2 draw away to bottom-of-the-table Vancouver FC. Halifax Wanderers and York United both lost their final games on Saturday afternoon.
The thriller at Willoughby Community Park really burst into life in the final third. Vancouver’s Tyler Crawford was shown a red card in the 60th minute, and Niko Myroniuk put the visitors ahead in the 78th minute. The hosts, however, responded with an 82nd-minute equaliser.
A lovely buildup resulted in the Cavs retaking the lead shortly after stoppage time began. A flick from Nicolas Wahling set up the 29-year-old Elva for his fourth goal of the season, as his shot flew beyond the Vancouver custodian, and into the bottom corner.
With the clock running down, though, the Cavs were unable to hold on to the lead. Thierno Rah was brought down in the box, and David Norman Jr converted the ensuing penalty to secure the draw for his team on the day. Elva’s three shots, five chances created, and two dribbles completed earned him player of the match honours.
“It’s very important because we know how we play in front of our home fans,” said Elva of the result. “That was the big thing going in, securing third place, and we’re just looking forward to next weekend playing in front of our fans and getting the boost we need in the playoffs.”
As the third seed, the Cavs earn the right to host the CPL quarterfinal at Spruce Meadows’ ATCO Field, next weekend against either Halifax or York. Forge FC defeated York United to lock up the CPL regular season title, but no team has ever won the double as regular season and playoff champions. North Star Cup holders Cavalry earned the CPL Shield as regular-season winners in 2023. This season, they earned just 42 points, five fewer than they tallied in 2022.
“I think everybody knows we’re still the defending champions in the back of their mind,” Elva said. “And in playoffs, we’re a completely different team, and we just look forward to next week. Going into this game, we’ve played Vancouver often, and we knew they were going to be organized defensively. For us, it was just work on what we need to do going into the playoffs. We knew it was going to be a tough match, and we got the point.”
