Wanderers déjà vu: Halifax draw with Vancouver FC in home opener

Despite promising start, Wanderers again concede lead going into half-time

Down a goal and choked in midfield by a sea of white shirts, Vancouver FC head coach Afshin Ghotbi made a gutsy call which would ultimately earn his team a point.

Ghotbi had granted Vancouver midfielder Nathaniel St. Louis his first-ever professional start on Saturday against the Halifax Wanderers but gave him the hook in only the 35th minute, replacing him with usual stalwart Nima Moazeni Zadeh.

Much to the chagrin of the sold-out crowd at the Wanderers Grounds, the tide of play shifted towards the Wanderers end and exposed a squad still fine-tuning its defensive game.

Vancouver eventually evened the score just before the end of the half off a perfect Gael Sandoval cross which Shaan Hundal tucked away.

Only three games into this CPL season, Wanderers fans have seen this show before.

Match day started off in the most spectacular fashion for the Wanderers; a sold-out crowd clad in blue seemed to spur on the squad, many of whom were getting their first taste of playing at the Wanderers Grounds.

Halifax again dominated possession and culminated in Théo Collomb's first goal of the season off a long ball from Riley Ferrazzo.

Smelling blood, Wanderers head coach Patrice Gheisar challenged his squad to score a second goal and they nearly did but just missed on several glorious chances.

But once Vancouver made their early substitution and buttoned down their 4-2-3-1 formation, the match slowed to a crawl as Halifax struggled to find their earlier pace. Vancouver's equalizer could be attributed to a number of errors, including a turned-over ball by Lorenzo Callegari at midfield or defender Mo Omar failing to mark his man but the result was the same: for the third time this season, the Wanderers let their lead slip away.

Gheisar's squad would rally around the 70th minute and find their footing as they looked for a game winner.

Halifax's best chance happened in the 88th minute as Callegari lobbed a perfect ball to a streaking Zachary Fernandez, who was challenged by Vancouver keeper Callum Irving. The play resulted in Fernandez on the ground and a yellow card for simulation.

Halifax would have more chances but would settle for a draw, leaving Gheisar to explain his squad's record.

“These things that are happening to us is because we’re trying to play (aggressively),” he said post-match. “Because you could argue that at 1-0, as some of the teams in the league do, we could just bunker back and wait for a counter. So that’s going to take some time, but it’s something to address, for sure.”

From the Notebook

1. Let's start with the Fernandez card / voided penalty. I was seated in section 105 and from my vantage point, thought it was a clear penalty. When the referee booked Fernandez for simulation, I was downright distraught. Judging from the boos that rained down from the grandstands, the patrons of the Wanderers Grounds were of the same opinion. However, I re-watched the chance this morning and a few things stood out. Firstly, what a ball from Callegari. The pass lands perfectly ahead of Fernandez but the Vancouver keeper has already decided to rush out and challenge him so there's little time for him to make a decision. In slow motion, there appears to be contact (Irving's boot seems to clip Fernandez's) but it is slight. Now, I think Fernandez had a case and he deserved the penalty but his antics cost him. If he hadn't tried so hard to sell the contact and accosted the referee, it might have gone his way. What's interesting is that in the One Soccer broadcast and pretty well all other media, no one was in favour of giving the penalty. Fernandez needs to be careful and keep his emotions in check so as not to earn a reputation as a hot head.
2. A note on their style of play; the Wanderers have again out shot (13-12), out passed (591-287) and out possessed (67% - 33%) the opposition for a third game in a row. Gheisar must be incredibly frustrated given his squad has shown many of the characteristics that define his philosophy of play yet somehow crumble just before half-time. He reminded everyone post-game that the team has only been together since March so what we're witnessing is growing pains but you know it hurts especially to blow the lead in his home opener to a sold-out crowd. What I worry about is that the coincidence of conceding late will become a habit, something that mentally impacts the players. It's up to Gheisar to squash this tendency now.
3. My God, what a crowd! In my piece on Friday night, I wrote how the air around the city seemed to shimmer with anticipation of the Wanderers first game. It seemed like every business had a flag or sign cheering on the team and every coffee shop was rife with people discussing plans around the match. Well, that was just a taste of what was to come on Saturday as Halifax showed the league its devotion to the beautiful game with a boisterous, sold-out Wanderers Grounds. This is anecdotal, of course, but I was impressed (as usual) by my fellow patrons who were every bit as invested as me. They knew the players names, knew their stories, and will be back in their blue shirts for the next home match on May 20 against York United.
4. To the players, shall we? A few general notes about the squad as a whole but I felt like this match was a big test for Mo Omar and I'm not sure he fared well. I liked Daniels and loved Callegari, who is somehow smoother in person. Despite the pre-game ceremony, I felt like Rampersad's control left a lot to be desired but he worked hard, as is his wont. Ferrazzo had a great ball to Collomb; Callum Watson looked pacey from the bench; Fillion was solid if not wandering. Massimo Ferrin had flashes of brilliance but I felt like he had his quietest game in a Wanderers uniform.
5. There's still some tweaking needed to the defensive line. We know that Gheisar is comfortable with Ferrazzo and James as his fullbacks and, like the rest of us, is charmed by young Daniel Nimick at centreback. Omar is a leader for the club but I've not been enamoured with his play on the pitch. He missed marking Hundal on the goal and had some bumbling moments. While in partnership with Cristian Campagna in the CanChamp match, he got picked apart by a punchy Atlético Ottawa forward line. All of this makes me want another look at Cale Loughrey, who I thought was solid in his first appearance while adding some height and pace to the backend. Don't get me wrong; I like what Omar can bring to the squad but I want to see some more rotation in his position.
6. Keeper Yann Fillion does like to go for a walkabout. I mean, I don't blame him; the gardens are quite lovely this time of year but mid-match may not be the time. We've seen it before (hello, Forge FC) but he had the Wanderers Grounds in a fit as he left his net a number of times, including a mad scramble where Vancouver narrowly missed. Overall, he was solid again and will be integral in helping Halifax reverse the trend of conceding late. Fillion is quite experienced compared to a lot of the squad and Gheisar needs him to calm his relatively new defenders.
7. French striker Théo Collomb showed why he was a 2022 MLS SuperDraft pick by the Vancouver Whitecaps. He had an impactful match, starting his first game at home and marking his first goal in style off a measured shot. He had pace and poise, causing havoc for the Vancouver defensive line in the first 30 minutes. Overall, he would finish with three created chances and three shots. What I liked about him was his clinical finish, something that the Wanderers have lacked in the final third aside from Massimo Ferrin. Collomb strikes a very different profile from Kosi Nwafornso, who I think is Gheisar's preferred 9, so it'll be interesting to see if this performance earns him another spot in the starting XI.
8. Midfielder Callum Watson brought some much needed energy when he came on in relief of Aiden Daniels in the 72nd minute. He's a modern English midfielder and is all about pressing, pressing, pressing. And it worked as he put on his work boots and helped turn over several balls in midfield and even had some good runs into the box. Watson is also quite pacey, which isn't something that I necessarily thought from watching the other games but jumped out at me while watching in person. I'd be in favour of starting a midfield of Watson, Callegari and Daniels to see what they can do.

Cheers,

-WN