The Forward Press for Matchday 28 vs Halifax: A Win to Lead Into Playoffs
Welcome to the Forward Press, which recaps the pre- and post-match press conferences every week! This edition follows the last regular season match of the year for ATO, in which they played and beat Halifax 1-0. Coach Diego Mejía and midfielder David Rodriguez joined the media this week, discussing the season that was, gameplans, and much more. Enjoy!
Mitchell Tierney of CanPL.ca was the first to ask questions of Mejía, and he started off the session simply by asking the coach’s feelings leading up to the do-or-die match in Halifax.
“It's good, I think we are enjoying this moment. We have the opportunity to win this match and wait for other results, but we are enjoying the season we (have) had so far. The team is happy, (they) have a lot of energy, and we are ready for the next match and for the (playoffs).”
Kristen Jack of One Soccer was up next; First and foremost, he wanted to reminisce on the season that was and what Mejía was proud of in 2025:
“A lot of things. I think that for sure the players, I feel really proud about how they (managed) all the pressure that I put (on) them to try to develop them, and try to increase (their) level as a player and as a professional … The way that this team plays … no team has played in this way. For Atlético Ottawa right now, (we) changed the culture of the Canadian people … I think that this team, (we) not only play in a good way, but we improve the level of everyone in this league. I think that all the coaches (have) improved in this league in how they need to defend in a low block, how they need to be reactive, and it's good for everyone.”
Jack used his follow-up to probe the coach about his team's dip in form in the second half, but Mejía was quick to put the kibosh on that line of thinking, as he cited the team's long run of unbeaten matches (9), and the fact that the point totals from each half of the season are comparably equal. Some of us may have differing opinions on that, given the tendency to draw rather than win in recent games, but the team is technically still undefeated in that stretch.
Matt Cullen of CBC was up next, wondered whether Mejía would change his preparations for the team, given the pressure-cooker nature of the upcoming match:
“I talked with the players, they need to (remove) the pressure in their mind, and they just need to play soccer in our way. Our goal is to play in our way, to play in our model against Halifax. ‘Don't think (about) the result’ … we know, we showed before that if we play in our model … we will have a lot of opportunities to win. Then, we’ll see if we have an opportunity to get the trophy. We need to forget, and not play thinking (about) the result, we need to play in our model.”
Finally, he was asked about what the team had learned from their last away trip to Nova Scotia, where ATO lost 2-0 in disappointing fashion:
“We learned a lot … that performance wasn't good, but I think that the team (forgot that result) really quickly, because after that match we (went) 10 games without losing another match. I think that the (response) from the team was incredible. I just put focus in the performance, and we’ll see.”
Mejía was also asked about injury availability, citing Álvarez as the only short-term injury left in the squad.
Following the match, in which ATO managed a late win but saw the title go to Forge after their own win vs. York, Tierney once again had the first question for Mejía, and used it to garner his thoughts on the late win:
“I am very happy (with) the performance today, I think that we played one of the best matches in the season – I didn’t see any teams play in this way on this pitch, so it's incredible the performance. This team has the personality to play the same way in every road game, so I am very happy.”
Jon Hopkins of CCSG was up next, and he wanted to know the coach’s thoughts on the season-long stereotype that Ottawa only kicks into gear in the second half:
“We created a game plan to play in the same way (for) 90 minutes. I don't believe in the comments that we (play poorly in the first half and badly in the second). This team works all 90 minutes … we know that this game will be a physical game, so we move the ball all the time, it's really hard for the (opponent) running (behind) the ball for 90 minutes. In some moments we will find the gaps and we will have the opportunity to score.”
For all we think about press conferences and their rocky relationship with the truth, Mejía at least has been consistent in insisting that there have been no radical alterations after the first halves of games, and that uptick in performance during the second half is apparently a byproduct of the opposition being worn down. Let’s see if that carries forward into the playoffs.
In the final question to Mejía, the coach clarified that the red card was to one of his assistants, and confirmation of that came afterwards in talks with Diego Campos, who mentioned it was he who got the red. Moving along, David Rodríguez was up next to face the media, and was given his first volley from Hopkins, who asked his thoughts on the result and the season:
“I’m just happy for the team, like you said we (had) a pretty good season. Unfortunately, we did not get to win first place, but were still very positive, and were looking forward to next weekend.”
Hopkins followed up by asking what it would take to regain the “killer instinct” the team displayed during the first half of the season:
“It's really hard to play against teams four times in the year, because they know how you’re gonna play, what you want to do. At the end, it's just us trying to do our own thing in the first game, and what we did through the whole season. I think nothing is going to change much, and we're just happy to be in the position we are.”
The rest of the questions were generic inquiries about Rodríguez’s thoughts on the win, and playing Forge in the playoffs (every possible in-person reporter was in Hamilton, busy lauding Forge for winning another trophy, so the pickings for talent were slim). Across the table however, Rodríguez has had some stellar media training, so his answers were as basic as the questions – yes he was happy for the win, yes Forge are a tough team, and of course they will play for the win in the semis.
And that ends the session. ATO are next in play on Sunday, October 26, at 2PM in Hamilton, for a chance to host the Finals! The club is organizing a road trip (the access to which is through this link: https://shopatleticoottawa.com/products/atletico-ottawas-massive-semi-final-roadtrip), so come make the journey down and support our boys in person! Vamos!
About Alexander:
When he isn't busy playing or watching sports (or going to school at uOttawa), Alexander is managing his Atlético Ottawa database, which he started in 2020, and tracks everything you can think of about the club and its players. He also runs a BlueSky account dedicated to analyzing and rating CPL and NSL players using statistics, CPL by the Numbers.
