Halifax Wanderers send a message in 1-1 draw with Cavalry, earn first point of the season

The first half was a boxing bout dressed like a football match — all grit and measured jabs — and the Halifax Wanderers were without one of their prized pugilitists.

In many ways, Saturday's marquee tilt between the Wanderers and Cavalry was exactly the type of match begging for a gamebreaker like Lorenzo Callegari, who has been head coach Patrice Gheisar's talisman in midfield, but he was unavailable due to suspension.

But it wasn't long until Cavalry head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. lost his own midfield stalwart, subbing off Charlie Trafford at half-time for precautionary reasons following an escalating series of challenges between Trafford and seemingly every Wanderers player.

Instead, it was 24-year old Italian Giorgio Probo who proved to be Halifax's offensive catalyst, coming off the bench in the 72nd minute to deliver as suave a performance as has ever graced the Wanderers Grounds. His equalizing goal is certainly a highlight but its Probo's measured passing and skillful misdirection that will have impressed fans and opponents alike.

Speaking to reporters post-match Probo said the draw was a step in the right direction following Halifax's rocky start to the season.

"Sometimes it's just the small steps and I think we're in a good way," he said.

"Even if it was not our best game, we had some moments. We played good football and getting a goal gives us some hope. We know Cavalry was one of the best teams last season and probably still one of the best teams this season. We got a point in a tough situation and we know during the season we can definitely do better."

Despite a quick turnaround from their Canadian Championship match against the Vancouver Whitecaps earlier in the week, Cavalry's heavily rotated squad looked confident in the opening minutes and heavily pressed Wanderers midfielders Andre Rampersad and Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé any time they had the ball. The Wanderers struggled to build under Cavalry's torrent but rounded into form as the match progressed, matching physicality with physicality. A total of six yellow cards were handed out in the first half alone. Wanderers goalkeeper Yann Fillion, making his fourth league start and fifth in all competitions, stood tall under Cavalry's opening pressure, making a fantastic diving stop on Trafford in the 16th minute.

Trafford was substituted to start the second half.

Cavalry attacker William Akio opened his account in the 58th minute, converting on a deadly cross from Sporting Lisbon loanee Lucas Dias to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

Looking for the equalizer, Gheisar made two substitutions around the 70-minute mark, bringing on Probo and Riley Ferrazzo and he was almost instantly rewarded as Massimo Ferrin put a header into the back of the net but it was disallowed after a foul was spotted. A few short minutes later, defender Dan Nimick put a cross in which Probo redirected into the back of the net past Cavalry keeper Jack Barrett, who made his first professional start.

Although the match ended in a draw, it was a fair result given the effort on both sides. Cavalry possessed more of the ball but the Wanderers had the better opportunities, with five big chances created.

Wheeldon Jr. said he was pleased with the result given his squad's travel schedule and rotation, with the likes of Fraser Aird, Diego Gutierrez, Callum Montgomery and Marco Carducci starting on the bench.

"The good thing is we didn't lose coming here against a team that's had more time to prep," he said. "I thought we were the better side for the most part, but Halifax finished strong and we tried to make the changes to nullify them because in a one-goal game, you’re always going to give them fresh hope if you don’t put them away.”

Gheisar felt similarly, praising his players for their effort against the defending regular season champions.

“I was really proud of the guys,” said Gheisar. “Even in a 1-1 tie, you’re saying in your head, the one shoulder is like ‘Just take the point, get on the board,’ and the other shoulder is like ‘No, go for the win.’ So I was happy to see us go for the win. The attitude of the guys to not put their head down, and go; I couldn’t have asked for more from everybody that started and the players that came off the bench, I’m really proud of them.”

With the draw, the Wanderers improved to 0-1-3 on the season and sit seventh on the table ahead of Valour, who is their next opponent on May 20.

From the Notebook:

1. Gheisar wanted to send a message post-match and it took me by surprise as I kicked off his press availability. I was the only reporter in the room at the time of Gheisar's availability and asked the following: "Patrice, I guess this is probably one of the harder weeks you've had in your time since you became the Wanderers coach, there was a long lead up to the game, you ended up delivering something at home in front of the fans. How are you feeling after getting your first point on the board and getting a draw, which is obviously a step in the right direction?" He replied: "I come from a different world. It hasn't been a hard week. I feel like it's you guys that are destroying these poor guys. I think there's a lot of negative comments and we're not playing poorly. I have to remind everyone: (Cavalry's) the league champions by 13-points and we missed five big chances. I'm not going to go and say this is a step in the right direction and all that stuff, I'm sorry, man. That's a great effort where you have a goal disallowed, you have five big chances, you hit the crossbar and that's a valiant effort. What's in the past is in the past. You can destroy these guys with all the comments that are made, it's all on me. If we lose, it's on me but I'm going to protect these guys and stand by them. They're good boys, they work hard, it's not always going to come off but our job is to support them. I think it's really difficult to say supporters without support." Editor's Note: A previous version of this story did not include the question which prompted Gheisar's response.
2. Now, there's a lot to unpack there but the most important thing to remember is Gheisar's going to bat for his players. This is a calculated move to show them that he believes and wants to protect them from all the outside noise. And there's been quite a bit of noise, as one would expect, after the Wanderers were knocked out by a semi-professional Ligue 1 Québec side. There's no doubting that CS Saint-Laurent have several players who have the quality to play in the CPL but the other aim of Gheisar's comments is to fire a shot across the bow of fair weather friends, people who wear the colours in victory but disparage the crest and players during the first storm. I won't comment on what I've seen or heard following the loss to CS Saint-Laurent but gladly direct anyone who hasn't had a chance to read Gary Griffiths' piece following the loss on fandom and loyalty.
3. A note on the substitutes: I thought Probo — who was exceptional — and everyone who came off the bench for the Wanderers changed the match. Be it Ferrazzo, Christian Volesky or Wesley Timoteo, they brought fresh legs and an attacking mindset that almost turned the draw into a win. I'd give all of them a look at starting next week as their energy was palpable. But that's not to take away from the starting XI; they bore the brunt of this slog and went punch for punch with a heavyweight Cavalry squad. "If this is last year, we would have probably struggled in this setting," Gheisar said of the physicality. "Our players wanted to come out and make the supporters and home fans proud and weren't going to get pushed around."
4. Probo is a fantastic interview. He was clearly very happy to have scored and spoke about his family watching in Italy, working hard and trying to be a difference maker. When asked about the goal, he seemed generally happy — and a bit perplexed — that his first goal for the club was a header, something he admitted he's not known for. I asked him how he landed on beloved Newfoundland tune "Heave Away" by the Fables as his goal song and his answer did not disappoint: "If I'm going to be honest, I said to them, put whatever you guys want. I don't care about the song, (the communications manager) helped me out with the song and I think the fans like it. Honestly, I didn't hear the song on the field because I was too hyped up. I'm happy the guys like it." This son of Newfoundland's diaspora certainly got a kick out of it.
5. I may sound like a broken record, especially after the piece I penned last week about his leadership, but I thought Dan Nimick was the best player on the pitch. He's a difference maker and shows up when it matters. His cross to Probo was about as exact as you could hope and he registered three shots, really coming into his own on set pieces. He went seven for seven on aerial duels and had a whopping seven clearances. The whole backline looked solid (I think Cale Loughrey was sneaky efficient) but Nimick continues to impress in his second professional season.
6. Just a funny note on Fillion's kit: I dug his metallic grey look but wondered about the change from his usual orange / yellow duds. Athletes can be a taaaad superstitious so I was curious if it might be a way of changing things up. Although I didn't get to talk to him directly, a member of the Wanderers staff mentioned Fillion always has a plethora of kits to choose from and with referee Carly Shaw-Maclaren donning fluorescent yellow, opted for the grey look.
7. As I reported previously, Callegari's two-match suspension was appealed by the club but they lost. He will miss the following match against Valour.
8. A last note on Cavalry's keeper Jack Barrett. Saturday was his first start in the CPL but also his first professional match, period. He's grown up in English Premier League side Everton's academy and is on loan until the summer. Overall, I thought the 21-year old looked incredibly composed and was chatting with some of Cavalry's staff in the pressbox. The amazing thing, we agreed upon, was that the league is in a position now where clubs like Everton or Sporting Lisbon trust clubs in the CPL enough to send their players on loan here. It bodes well for the league and further showcases the incredible growth of football in Canada over the last six years.

Cover Photo Credit: James Bennett / Halifax Wanderers FC