Cavalry FC went into the off-season with an if-it-ain’t-broke, don’t-fix-it attitude towards its soccer roster. Read More
Cavalry FC went into the off-season with an if-it-ain’t-broke, don’t-fix-it attitude towards its soccer roster. After all, it seems ludicrous to tear apart a team that won the Canadian Premier League playoff title last November and then pulled off one of the major all-time upsets of the Concacaf Champions Cup. But as is the case
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Cavalry FC went into the off-season with an if-it-ain’t-broke, don’t-fix-it attitude towards its soccer roster.
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After all, it seems ludicrous to tear apart a team that won the Canadian Premier League playoff title last November and then pulled off one of the major all-time upsets of the Concacaf Champions Cup.
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But as is the case every year, some tinkering was absolutely in order for Calgary’s professional footie side.
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“Principally, we will be very similar, but there’ll be nuances,” said Cavalry GM/head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. “You have to be a tailor in this industry and mix the materials that you’re working with.
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“Like every year, we always add something a bit different. And I’m excited to see now how that translates into performance.”
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Wheeldon has constructed his club without the likes of dynamic defender Daan Klomp — a two-time CPL Defender of the Year and the 2023 CPL Player of the Year — and veteran midfielder Charlie Trafford — a local leader whose passion for the game is unmatched.
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Klomp, 26, has moved on, signing with Raal La Louvière in Belgium’s second-tier Challenger Pro League, while Trafford, 32, has retired to focus on his family-run urban farming business.
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But where there’s big losses, there’s potential for big gains, with Cavalry having locked up the 2024 CPL Golden Boot winner, Toby Warschewski, for two more years — announced Thursday — and having acquired a trio of curious talents to help the club compete for the Canadian Championship crown and the CPL regular-season title while defending their league playoff honour.
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Here’s how the roster shapes up for the 2025 CPL campaign, which opens Saturday against arch-rival Forge FC in Hamilton’s Tim Hortons Field (1:30 p.m., TSN, OneSoccer.ca) …
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WHO ARE THE RETURNEES?
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There’s no doubt the departures of Klomp — arguably the best-ever Cavalry player — and Trafford — perhaps the club’s biggest-ever character — will be felt by the squad on and off the field.
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But there’s still oodles of championship pedigree in the lineup, beginning with captain and superstar goaltender Marco Carducci, fellow original-guy Sergio Camargo and dynamic forward Ali Musse …
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• Goalkeepers: Marco Carducci (7th year); Joseph Holliday (3rd year); Neven Fewster (2nd year)
The skinny: Carducci, a two-time CPL Golden Glove winner, is the backbone — and the face, along with Wheeldon — of the club
• Defenders: Tom Field (5th year); Michael Harms (4th year); Bradley Kamdem Fewo (3rd year); Eryk Kobza (3rd year); Callum Montgomery (3rd year)
The skinny: Kobza, Montgomery and Kamdem Fewo will be tasked with keeping up the team’s trademark solid defence without Klomp
• Midfielders: Sergio Camargo (7th year); Fraser Aird (4th year); Shamit Shome (3rd year); Jesse Daly (3rd year); Maël Henry (3rd year); Niko Myroniuk (3rd year); Diego Gutiérrez (2nd year); Jay Herdman (2nd year); James McGlinchey (2nd year)
The skinny: Camargo, Aird and Shome are as underrated as they come in the league but all heart-and-soul players for Cavalry
• Attackers: Ali Musse (5th year); Tobias Warschewski (2nd year); Nicolas Wähling (2nd year); Chanan Chanda (2nd year)
The skinny: Musse — the CPL’s 2023 Player’s Player of the Year — and Warschewski combine with Camargo to drive the Cavs’ electric attack
• Coaches: Tommy Wheeldon Jr. (7th year); Nik Ledgerwood (4th year); Jay Wheeldon (2nd year)
The skinny: Wheeldon is flanked by assistants Ledgerwood — the club’s original captain — and younger brother Jay, who both wield immense knowledge of the game