Cup competitions in soccer are infamous for their giant-killing moments, where little-known teams from lower leagues have been known to lurk up from the depths to knock off teams from higher divisions or leagues. Heavy lies the head that wears the favourite’s crown in cup games.
Pacific FC, of the professional Canadian Premier League, knows it can take nothing for granted today when it meets the upstart TSS Rovers of Burnaby, from the semi-pro League1 sa国际传媒, in the quarter-finals of the Canadian Championship for the Voyageurs Cup tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Starlight Stadium.
Rovers, defending League1 sa国际传媒 champions, already recorded a giant-slaying moment when they stunned Winnipeg’s Valour FC of the CPL 3-1 in the opening round last month at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby. Pacific FC had its own David moment when it beat the Vancouver Whitecaps of Major League Soccer in the 2021 quarter-finals at Starlight Stadium before credibly losing 2-1 to Toronto FC of MLS at BMO Field in the semifinals.
“We’ve seen [upsets] from Champions League to the FA Cup,” said PFC head coach James Merriman.
“The Voyageurs Cup is one match [elimination] and you don’t look any further than that. We are humble enough as a group, and respect the spirit with which TSS played Valour, and we are fully prepared and right-minded for this game.”
PFC outlasted Cavalry FC of Calgary on penalties in its all-CPL opening-round game. The winner of the PFC-TSS quarter-final will advance to the Cup semifinals to play the winner of a quarter-final tonight between the Whitecaps of MLS and York United of the CPL.
Both PFC and TSS have to be salivating at the thought of an all-sa国际传媒 semifinal against the Whitecaps, that is if the ’Caps survive York United. Nobody can afford to think ahead in Cup competitions.
Rovers, captained by former PFC striker Matteo Polisi, are coming in after a 1-0 League1 sa国际传媒 loss last weekend to the Victoria Highlanders.
“That was a poor game and I think everybody was thinking about this game,” said TSS head coach Will Cromack.
PFC beat Atletico Ottawa 4-1 last weekend in the nation’s capital in its best performance of the CPL season.
“We took a ton of confidence from that game,” said Merriman.
To help support the emerging Canadian soccer pyramid, meanwhile, PFC has provided a link in which TSS Rovers, Victoria Highlanders and Nanaimo Harbourside fans can buy tickets to tonight’s game with $5 of the purchase price going to their clubs in League1 sa国际传媒
“It’s important we move the game forward in this country,” said Merriman.
“It’s going to be a special night for soccer in sa国际传媒”
But not too special for upstart TSS, he hopes.
“All the clichés about underdogs are true. This is nothing like normal. It’s an outstanding opportunity and we are leaning into it,” said Rovers bench boss Cromack.
“We believe. But we have no illusions we are coming in as favourites. We have to be perfect. We can’t play the moment, just the players in front of us.”
The Canadian Championship for the Voyageurs Cup features sa国际传媒’s 11 pro soccer teams — three in MLS and eight in the CPL — and the defending champions of League1 sa国际传媒, League1 Ontario and League1 Quebec. This year’s Voyageurs Cup |champion will earn a berth in the 2024 CONCACAF Champions League.
“One of our goals has been to get back to CONCACAF and this is one of the paths we have to do that for 2024,” said Merriman.
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