2021 Pacific FC season

The 2021 Pacific FC season was the third season in the history of Pacific FC, as well as third in the Canadian Premier League. In addition to the domestic league, the club competed in the Canadian Championship.

Pacific FC
2021 season
ChairmanDean Shillington
Head coachPa-Madou Kah
StadiumStarlight Stadium
Canadian Premier League3rd
CPL PlayoffsChampions
Canadian ChampionshipSemi-finals
Top goalscorerTerran Campbell
← 2020
2022 →

On December 5, Pacific defeated two-time defending league champions Forge FC 1–0 in the 2021 Canadian Premier League Final to win their first league title.[1] As champions, they qualified for the 2022 CONCACAF League.

Overview

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Coming off of a 4th place finish in the shortened 2020 Canadian Premier League season, Pacific FC was able to retain most of the club's core players, while also bringing in new talent such as international attackers Ollie Bassett and Gianni dos Santos. Expectations were relatively high for the side in Pa-Modou Kah's second year leading the team.[2]

The season began with an eight game bubble tournament in Winnipeg, dubbed "The Kickoff", before the teams moved back to their home stadiums to play out the rest of the season. The first half of the season was a huge success for Pacific, as it saw them at the top of the table and also being the highest-scoring team in the league.[3] In the first round of the Canadian Championship, the Tridents were given a tough draw against fellow British Columbian side Vancouver Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer, but Pacific managed to defeat them 4-3 at home in front of a sold-out crowd to advance to the next round.[4]

Pacific qualified for the playoffs, by finishing in third place, and face 2nd place team Cavalry FC in the semifinals. They managed to defeat Cavalry 2-1 in extra time, and advanced to the final against defending champions Forge FC. In the final game in Hamilton, midfielder Alessandro Hojabrpour scored the lone goal of the game while goalkeeper Callum Irving kept a clean sheet, and Pacific won their first ever trophy.[5]

Current squad

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As of June 10, 2021.

No. Name Nationality Position(s) Date of birth (Age) Previous club
Goalkeepers
1 Nolan Wirth   GK (1995-01-24)January 24, 1995 (aged 26)   Victoria Highlanders
13 Callum Irving   GK (1993-03-16)March 16, 1993 (aged 28)   Ottawa Fury
Defenders
2 Kadin Chung   RB (1998-09-05)September 5, 1998 (aged 23)   Kaiserslautern II
3 Jordan Haynes   LB / LW (1996-01-17)January 17, 1996 (aged 25)   Vancouver TSS Rovers
5 Abdou Samake   CB (1996-10-07)October 7, 1996 (aged 25)   University of Michigan
6 Lukas MacNaughton   CB (1995-03-08)March 8, 1995 (aged 26)   Alliance United
6 Robert Boskovic   CB (1998-07-01)July 1, 1998 (aged 23)   Toronto FC II
12 Kunle Dada-Luke   FB / RW (2000-01-12)January 12, 2000 (aged 21)   Atlético Ottawa
17 Chris Lee   LB (2001-12-14)December 14, 2001 (aged 20)   UBC Thunderbirds
26 Thomas Meilleur-Giguère   CB (1997-11-13)November 13, 1997 (aged 24)   Montreal Impact
Duran Lee   CB (1995-05-09)May 9, 1995 (aged 26)   FC Edmonton
Midfielders
7 Víctor Blasco   MF (1994-07-01)July 1, 1994 (aged 27)   VIU Mariners
8 Matthew Baldisimo   DM / CM (1998-01-20)January 20, 1998 (aged 23)   Fresno FC
11 Josh Heard   AM (1994-11-29)November 29, 1994 (aged 27)   Real Monarchs
19 Matteo Polisi   AM / FW (1998-04-15)April 15, 1998 (aged 23)   SFU Athletics
20 Sean Young   CM (2001-04-20)April 20, 2001 (aged 20)   Victoria Highlanders
21 Alessandro Hojabrpour   AM (2000-01-10)January 10, 2000 (aged 21)   Lokomotiv Plovdiv
22 Jamar Dixon   CM (1989-06-05)June 5, 1989 (aged 32)   Ottawa Fury
23 Ollie Bassett   AM (1998-03-06)March 6, 1998 (aged 23)   Nuneaton Borough
34 Manny Aparicio   CM (1995-09-17)September 17, 1995 (aged 26)   York9 FC
Forwards
9 Alejandro Díaz   FW (1996-01-27)January 27, 1996 (aged 25)   Club América
10 Marco Bustos   RW / AM (1996-04-22)April 22, 1996 (aged 25)   Valour FC
14 Terran Campbell   LW / ST (1998-10-10)October 10, 1998 (aged 23)   Fresno FC
24 Gianni dos Santos   CF (1998-11-21)November 21, 1998 (aged 23)   FC Dordrecht

Transfers

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No. Pos. Player From club Fee/notes Date Source
34 MF   Manny Aparicio   York9 FC Free transfer November 6, 2020 [6]
19 MF   Matteo Polisi   SFU Athletics Free transfer February 25, 2021 [7]
12 DF   Kunle Dada-Luke   Atlético Ottawa Free transfer March 11, 2021 [8]
DF   Duran Lee   FC Edmonton Free transfer March 18, 2021 [9]
23 MF   Ollie Bassett   Nuneaton Borough Free transfer April 29, 2021 [10]
24 FW   Gianni dos Santos   FC Dordrecht Free transfer May 20, 2021 [11]
17 DF   Chris Lee   UBC Thunderbirds Selected 5th overall in the 2021 CPL–U Sports Draft June 10, 2021 [12]

Draft picks

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Pacific FC selected the following players in the 2021 CPL–U Sports Draft on January 29, 2021. Draft picks are not automatically signed to the team roster. Only those who are signed to a contract will be listed as transfers in.

Round Selection Pos. Player Nationality University
1 5 DF Chris Lee   Canada UBC Thunderbirds
2 12 FW Victory Shumbusho   DR Congo UBC Thunderbirds
No. Pos. Player To club Fee/notes Date Source
16 MF   Zach Verhoven   Atlético Ottawa Contract expired October 29, 2020 [13]
19 MF   Noah Verhoeven   York United Contract expired February 4, 2021 [14]
17 DF   Marcel de Jong Retired March 5, 2021 [15]

Loans Out

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No. Pos. Player Loaned to Fee/notes Date Source
GK   Emil Gazdov   FC Nürnberg Loaned until June 2022 October 7, 2020 [16]

Competitions

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Canadian Premier League

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Table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Forge (S) 28 16 2 10 39 24 +15 50 Advance to playoffs
2 Cavalry 28 14 8 6 34 30 +4 50
3 Pacific (C) 28 13 6 9 47 34 +13 45
4 York United 28 8 12 8 35 39 −4 36
5 Valour 28 10 5 13 38 36 +2 35
6 HFX Wanderers 28 8 11 9 28 34 −6 35
7 FC Edmonton 28 6 10 12 34 41 −7 28
8 Atlético Ottawa 28 6 8 14 30 47 −17 26
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: CanPL.ca
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins.[17]
(C) Champions; (S) Regular season winner

Results by match

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Match12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728
ResultWDLWWDLWWWDDWLWWWDDLWLLWLWLL
Position1343223221111211111111112113
Source: #Matches
W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

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June 26 1 Pacific FC 2–0 HFX Wanderers FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
2:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Fabrizio Stasolla
July 1 2 York United FC 2–2 Pacific FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
2:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Alain Ruch
July 4 3 Forge FC 3–0 Pacific FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
4:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren
July 7 4 Atlético Ottawa 0–1 Pacific FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
4:00 pm Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Filip Dujic
July 10 5 Pacific FC 3–0 York United FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
2:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Juan Marquez
July 13 6 HFX Wanderers FC 0–0 Pacific FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
5:00 pm Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Alain Ruch
July 17 7 Pacific FC 1–2 Forge FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
10:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Juan Marquez
July 21 8 Pacific FC 4–2 Atlético Ottawa Winnipeg, Manitoba
7:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ben Hoskins
July 30 9 Pacific FC 2–0 Cavalry FC Langford, British Columbia
6:30 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren
August 4 10 Pacific FC 2–1 Valour FC Langford, British Columbia
6:30 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Referee: Mathieu Souaré
August 7 11 Pacific FC 2–2 FC Edmonton Langford, British Columbia
3:30 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 2,259
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren
August 11 12 Cavalry FC 0–0 Pacific FC Foothills County, Alberta
6:00 pm
Report
Stadium: ATCO Field
Attendance: 2,394
Referee: Juan Marquez
August 16 13 Valour FC 0–2 Pacific FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
5:00 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
Attendance: 2,736
Referee: Alain Ruch
August 20 14 Pacific FC 1–2 Cavalry FC Langford, British Columbia
6:30 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 2,740
Referee: David Barrie
August 29 15 Pacific FC 3–2 Valour FC Langford, British Columbia
3:30 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 2,621
Referee: Alain Ruch
September 4 16 FC Edmonton 1–2 Pacific FC Edmonton, Alberta
6:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Clarke Stadium
Attendance: 1,352
September 9 17 Pacific FC 3–1 Cavalry FC Langford, British Columbia
7:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 2,350
September 14 18 FC Edmonton 1–1 Pacific FC Edmonton, Alberta
7:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Clarke Stadium
Attendance: 670
September 19 19 Pacific FC 1–1 Atlético Ottawa Langford, British Columbia
2:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 2,721
Referee: Voja Sremcevic
September 25 20 Forge FC 2–1 Pacific FC Hamilton, Ontario
4:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Tim Hortons Field
Referee: Fabrizio Stasolla
September 29 21 Valour FC 1–3 Pacific FC Winnipeg, Manitoba
4:45 pm
Report
Stadium: IG Field
October 6 22 FC Edmonton 2–1 Pacific FC Edmonton, Alberta
6:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Clarke Stadium
Referee: Nicolas Joubert
October 11 23 HFX Wanderers FC 1–0 Pacific FC Halifax, Nova Scotia
10:00 am
Report
Stadium: Wanderers Grounds
Referee: David Gantar
October 16 24 Pacific FC 3–2 Valour FC Langford, British Columbia
3:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 3,214
Referee: Voja Sremcevic
October 21 25 Cavalry FC 2–1 Pacific FC Foothills County, Alberta
6:00 pm
Report
Stadium: ATCO Field
Attendance: 2,082
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauzière
October 26 26 Pacific FC 5–1 FC Edmonton Langford, British Columbia
7:30 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 2,548
Referee: Fabrizio Stasolla
October 30 27 Pacific FC 1–2 York United FC Langford, British Columbia
3:00 pm
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Referee: Alain Ruch
November 7 28 Cavalry FC 1–0 Pacific FC Foothills County, Alberta
12:30 pm
Report
Stadium: ATCO Field
Attendance: 2,408
Referee: David Gantar

Playoff matches

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November 20 Semi-final Cavalry FC 1–2 (a.e.t.) Pacific FC Calgary, Alberta
12:00pm
Report
Stadium: ATCO Field
Attendance: 2,927
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauzière
December 5 2021 CPL Final Forge FC 0–1 Pacific FC Hamilton, Ontario
1:30pm
Report
Stadium: Tim Hortons Field
Attendance: 7,488
Referee: Yusri Rudolf

Canadian Championship

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August 26 Preliminary round Pacific FC 4–3 Vancouver Whitecaps FC Langford, British Columbia
7:00 pm PT
Report
Stadium: Starlight Stadium
Attendance: 4,997
Referee: Juan Marquez
September 22 Quarter-finals Cavalry FC 0–1 Pacific FC Foothills County, Alberta
8:00pm MT
Stadium: ATCO Field
Referee: Alain Ruch
November 3 Semi-finals Toronto FC 2–1 Pacific FC Toronto, Ontario
7:30pm ET
Report
Stadium: BMO Field
Attendance: 5,131
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauzière

Statistics

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No. Pos Nat Name Total Canadian Premier League Canadian Championship
Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists
2 DF   Kadin Chung 29 1 2 26 1 1 3 0 1
3 DF   Jordan Haynes 29 0 1 26 0 1 3 0 0
5 DF   Abdou Samake 28 0 2 25 0 1 3 0 1
6 DF   Lukas MacNaughton 29 2 1 26 2 1 3 0 0
7 FW   Víctor Blasco 17 1 1 14 1 1 3 0 0
8 MF   Matthew Baldisimo 7 0 0 6 0 0 1 0 0
9 FW   Alejandro Díaz 31 12 4 28 10 4 3 2 0
10 FW   Marco Bustos 18 7 6 17 7 6 1 0 0
11 FW   Josh Heard 29 5 2 26 4 1 3 1 1
12 DF   Kunle Dada-Luke 23 0 2 21 0 2 2 0 0
14 FW   Terran Campbell 30 13 6 28 11 5 2 2 1
17 DF   Chris Lee 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
18 DF   Robert Boskovic 5 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0
19 MF   Matteo Polisi 22 3 1 22 3 1 0 0 0
20 MF   Sean Young 28 1 0 26 1 0 2 0 0
21 MF   Alessandro Hojabrpour 29 2 2 26 2 2 3 0 0
22 MF   Jamar Dixon 29 0 0 26 0 0 3 0 0
23 FW   Ollie Bassett 20 2 3 20 2 3 0 0 0
24 FW   Gianni dos Santos 20 1 2 17 1 2 3 0 0
26 DF   Thomas Meilleur-Giguère 12 0 0 10 0 0 2 0 0
28 MF   Paul Amedume 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
34 MF   Manny Aparicio 25 4 3 22 3 3 3 1 0

Goalkeepers

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No. Nat Name Total Canadian Premier League Canadian Championship
Apps Conceded Shutouts Apps Conceded Shutouts Apps Conceded Shutouts
1   Nolan Wirth 3 3 0 3 3 0 0 0 0
13   Callum Irving 30 34 9 27 29 8 3 5 1
31   Isaac Boehmer 1 2 0 1 2 0 0 0 0

References

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  1. ^ O'Connor Clarke, Charlie (5 December 2021). "Pacific FC crowned Canadian Premier League champions with 1-0 win vs. Forge". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  2. ^ "The Kickoff: Pacific FC 2021 CPL season preview". Canadian Premier League. 2021-06-21. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  3. ^ "Pacific FC primer: What you need to know before CanChamp tilt with Vancouver Whitecaps". Canadian Premier League. 2021-08-25. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  4. ^ "Pacific FC 4, Whitecaps 3: Vancouver stunned by amped-up Island side in Canadian Championship". theprovince. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  5. ^ "Pacific FC beat Forge FC 1-0 to become 2021 CPL champions - Hamilton | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
  6. ^ "Free agent Manny Aparicio departs York9 to sign with Pacific FC". canpl.ca. Canadian Premier League. November 6, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  7. ^ "Pacific FC adds midfielder Matteo Polisi for 2021 CPL season". canpl.ca. Canadian Premier League. February 25, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  8. ^ "Pacific FC signs former Atlético Ottawa fullback Kunle Dada-Luke". canpl.ca. Canadian Premier League. March 11, 2021. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  9. ^ "Pacific FC signs former FCE & Wanderers defender Duran Lee". canpl.ca. Canadian Premier League. March 18, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  10. ^ "Pacific FC Sign Northern Irish Midfielder Ollie Bassett". pacificfc.canpl.ca. Pacific FC. April 29, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  11. ^ "Pacific FC Sign Forward Gianni dos Santos". pacificfc.canpl.ca. Pacific FC. May 20, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
  12. ^ "Pacific FC Sign U-Sports Draft Pick Chris Lee". pacificfc.canpl.ca. Pacific FC. June 10, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
  13. ^ "Pacific FC Announces Re-Signing of 5 Players". PacificFC.canpl.ca. Pacific FC. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  14. ^ "York United FC Signs Canadian Midfielder Noah Verhoeven". Yorkunitedfc.canpl.ca. York United. February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  15. ^ "Pacific FC & CanMNT Veteran Marcel de Jong Announces Retirement". pacificfc.canpl.ca. Pacific FC. March 5, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  16. ^ "Pacific FC goalkeeper Emil Gazdov on loan to Germany". pacificfc.canpl.ca. Pacific FC. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  17. ^ Jacques, John (24 October 2021). "Pacific Procures Back-To-Back Playoff Positions". Northern Tribune. Retrieved 24 October 2021. With the CPL tiebreaker defaulting to the number of wins
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