CCSG Player Ratings: Matchday 15 vs. HFX Wanderers (18/7/25)
Comprehensive. In all facets of the game on Friday, Atlético Ottawa were just that. Come the end of the second half, there was a relative comfort that emanated from the stands at TD Place. Even with the moments of nerves, as the Wanderers continued to send their chances wide of Nathan Ingham’s goal, there was never a panic in and amongst the fanbase, as the boys in Stripes claimed their ninth victory of the CPL season, and their seventh win at home in all competitions. That second point is significant, as it marks the most wins ATO has ever managed at TD Place in one season. While we have yet to break the 21 point barrier for home points in a season, which accounts for 50% of the possible total, that feels inevitable as the team has finally established TD Place as the fortress they had promised it would become. To do so with a calm performance that did not need all the bells and whistles that we’ve seen from the attack this season, and against a good CPL side at that, is super encouraging for what the second half of the campaign has to hold.
Calm Amongst the Storm
From minute one, Halifax’s gameplan was to put the Atléti backline under a tremendous amount of pressure. Their press had been the focal point of the opening halves in their previous two meetings this season, from which Halifax successfully created chances. This was far less apparent in this matchup, as there were only one or two drastic errors that were dealt with handily by the rest of the defenders when they did happen. When Loïc Cloutier played a pass directly to Jason Bahamboula, it was Tyr Duhaney-Walker that swept up the ensuing chance with little issue. Tyr, in fact, had a spectacular first half in managing the right side of Halifax’s attack when they got in behind Kevin dos Santos before being taken off at half time.
The only player I think you could argue had a better first half than Tyr was our midfield maestro Juan “Coque” Castro. He served as the key in the middle, dropping in between the back three to provide another option to Nate Ingham when the ball was at his feet. He also turned the play forward so successfully, getting the ball out wide and switching the play when Halifax committed to one side of the pitch. His shot that Salter directed back off the post before finishing the rebound served as the key moment early on, but even more impressive was the moment late in the first half when Ingham passed him the ball in and amongst three pressing Halifax players, only to somehow maneuver around them and deliver one of his 48 accurate passes on the day. It’s this poise that has helped the team to consistently break through presses all season.
Where the team struggled to break the press earlier in the year was in the inexperience of our backline. Coque and Aparicio have provided solid outlets in the middle of the park, but they alone could not account for every single thing that happened behind them. This is what makes Noah Abatneh’s performance on Friday so impressive to me. In the first matchup, it was a Noah Abatneh giveaway in the defensive third that led to Halifax’s first goal. On Friday, he only misplaced two passes the entire evening while making three interceptions himself. In addition to finding the right passes consistently over the 90 minutes, Noah’s confidence on the ball manifested in the three or four times he dribbled into space to progress the ball forward rather than trying to drop in a long ball over the top. At times this year, those long balls have been the default for our defenders to break the press, to mixed success. With growing confidence displayed by Noah in those instances, the ability for this team to succeed in transition only increases, as the young defender really begins to take hold of his role in the middle of our back three.
This Little Team Went to Market
When Atlético Ottawa next kicks a ball on Saturday, the summer transfer window will have officially opened. Already, Vancouver, Pacific, and Cavalry have announced signings that will begin to feature with their clubs once the window opens July 24th, and Valour also added free agent Kianz Froese to their squad . For Ottawa, a team presently atop the CPL table, in the semi-finals of the Voyageur’s Cup, and having lost only one match in 18 games played across the two competitions, you wouldn’t think that the transfer market would be so vital. However, bringing in the right pieces will be crucial to this team being able to succeed down the stretch.
Why, you may ask? I think mostly because despite how consistent the starting XI has been, our depth is concentrated in one specific position. We saw this manifest in the substitutions Diego Campos made late in the second half. Abou Sissoko was brought in to play centre back, something I don’t think any of us had foreseen happening despite knowing his versatility on the field. Now, this can be attributed to the precautionary substitution of Tyr at halftime, but without any other defenders on the bench, this is a concern if changes need to be made or if another injury pops up. Additionally, Kevin Ortega was brought in for a couple minutes to relieve David Rodríguez, and the week prior, after Gabi Antinoro was substituted, Rodríguez was shifted to right wing back at the end of the match as we pushed for an equalizer against Forge.
It is incredibly helpful to have players that can be versatile, but those players can’t be counted on to fill every role, every weekend. With Iker Moreno’s loan effectively expiring before it even began, and Brett Levis managing injuries all season, our wingback depth has been almost non-existent. Kevin dos Santos has seen some relief with Joaquim Coulanges rotating into the end of games, but he and Gabi Antinoro have started essentially every game since the end of April. Finding players to start instead of them, for even just a bit of relief in such an involved position, feels imperative in the coming month. Especially for Gabi, who seems to have felt the brunt of playing that role so frequently in recent weeks, with his performances not necessarily reaching the same highs that they had earlier in the season. This can be easily explained by fatigue, and getting a player in to allow Gabi to rest up
To add to this problem of excessive minutes, Rodríguez and Tabla have started with little relief from natural attacking midfielders, and there you have four positions where just one more capable player would grant Diego Mejía far more flexibility and mitigate any further injury and suspension concerns that might arise. With Moreno’s loan expired, that opens the possibility for another player from San Luis to come on loan, and with two international slots free, perhaps another move akin to Sergio Camus’ arrival in 2022 could be on the cards. We could also see Jonathan Grant finally integrate into the team, allowing us to focus on bringing in attacking players as he and Amer Didić potentially return from injury before the end of the window.
After such a long time away from home, to get two results at TD Place feels better than any results we’ve had on the road. The performance against Halifax was emblematic of how far this team has grown through the first half of the year. The mistakes we saw in the previous two games against the Wanderers decreased significantly, and the team looked far calmer even with the XI that finished the game not necessarily playing in their best positions. We might not be scoring four goals every game, but being able to comfortably win 2-0 may just end up being better in the long run than winning 4-2. Let’s just hope we get some reinforcements and not have to worry about anyone else moving elsewhere, because this team feels special.
About Patrick
Having joined CCSG in 2022, Patrick started his footie career playing at the age of 4 and began watching the pros around the same time. While the first pro team he supported was Manchester United, as soon as Atlético Ottawa came to town, he was immediately on board. His wealth of footie knowledge has been a constant asset, along with his role as caretaker for ATO's Wikipedia pages.
