2024 Forge FC season

Forge FC entered the season as the reigning Canadian Premier League champions after winning the 2023 Canadian Premier League final against Cavalry FC.^[1][2] This was the club's fourth CPL title and fifth finals appearance in five years,^[1] continuing their dynasty.^[3] They are also competing in the Canadian Championship,^[4] a domestic cup organized by the Canadian Soccer Association.^[5] In the 2023 edition, Forge reached the semifinal where they were knocked out by Major League Soccer (MLS) club CF Montréal for the third consecutive year.^[6]

Forge qualified for the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup on October 21, 2023,^[7][8] returning the club to international competition after a one-year absence.^[9] Their last appearance was in the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League, where they faced Mexican side Cruz Azul in the round of 16.^[10]

Head coach and sporting director Bobby Smyrniotis returned for his sixth season after signing a contract extension in 2023.^[11][12]

On December 22, 2023, Forge announced that fifteen players from the previous season would be returning with guaranteed contracts while other players could possibly return pending negotiations for new contracts or the club activating contract extensions before December 31.^[13] This changed a week later when defender Manjrekar James, who was originally listed to return, was sold to Costa Rican side Alajuelense for an undisclosed fee.^[14] The club later announced that it had picked up the contract options of midfielder Sebastian Castello, defender Malcolm Duncan, and goalkeeper Christopher Kalongo.^[15][16]

On January 29, Forge re-signed Swedish midfielder and club original Alexander Achinioti-Jonsson to a multi-year deal.^[17] Over the following days, the club announced the return of versatile Senegalese midfielder Elimane Cissé, who was a member of Forge's 2019 and 2020 championship teams, and signed Ghanaian international forward Nana Ampomah, both to multi-year deals.^[18][19] They also signed several players to short-term and development contracts for the CONCACAF Champions Cup.^[20][21]

Striker Woobens Pacius announced on December 17 that he was departing Forge, with the club confirming that he was out of contract;^[22][23] he later signed with MLS side Nashville SC.^[24] On January 17, full-back Rezart Rama left the club, signing with KF Egnatia in the Albanian top flight.^[16][25] Midfielder Aboubacar Sissoko left Forge to join fellow Ontario side Atlético Ottawa.^[26]

Kalongo

Achinioti-Jönsson

Metusala

Samuel

Owolabi-Belewu

Hojabrpour

Badibanga

Bekker (C)

Choinière

Kwasi Poku

Campbell

Starting XI for Champions Cup home match against Guadalajara on February 7.^[27]

Forge began its season in CONCACAF Champions Cup action against Liga MX giants C.D. Guadalajara. The Hammers hosted Chivas on February 7 at Tim Hortons Field where they fell 3–1. Chivas were led by United States international Cade Cowell who scored two goals and assisted on a third. Terran Campbell scored the lone goal for Forge off of a cross by Tristan Borges.^[28]

Facing difficulty in the second leg at the Estadio Akron, Forge lost 2–1 to Chivas to be defeated 5–2 on aggregate, knocking them out of the Champions Cup. Kevaughn Tavernier scored Forge's lone goal in the 93rd minute.^[29]

Forge was notably without Golden Glove winning goalkeeper Triston Henry for both matches; according to the club, he was away dealing with a personal matter.^[30][31] Christopher Kalongo started in his absence.^[27][28][29] Forge was also without Elimane Cissé and Nana Ampomah as they awaited their international transfer permits.^[31]

Prior to the start of the 2024 Canadian Premier League season, Forge brought in defender Daniel Parra on loan from Monterrey and midfielder Matteo Schiavoni on loan from CF Montréal.^[32][33] The club also signed goalkeeper Jassem Koleilat to a multi-year deal.^[34]

Forge opened its CPL campaign at home with a rematch of the 2023 CPL final against rival side Cavalry FC on April 13.^[35] Henry, Cissé, and Ampomah continued to be unavailable for the Hammers, while defender Garven Metusala missed the match due to injury.^[35] After falling behind 1–0, Forge came back on the strength of a goal and an assist from Tristan Borges and a 76th minute winning goal from Béni Badibanga to defeat Cavalry 2–1.^[36] This was Forge's first ever opening day win in its history.^[37]

The club followed-up their opening day win with victories away at 905 derby rival York United FC and back at home against Valour FC.^[38][39] After three matches, Tristan Borges had scored two goals and picked up three assists for five goal contributions, more than any CPLer had ever earned in the league's first three matchweeks.^[40] For his efforts, Borges was named the CPL's player of the month while Christopher Kalongo and Bobby Smyrniotis earned goalkeeper and manager of the month honours, respectively.^[41][42][43]

Kalongo

Achinioti-Jönsson

Metusala

Duncan

Parra Duran

Hojabrpour

Bekker (C)

Borges

Choinière

Badibanga

Kwasi Poku

Starting XI for Canadian Championship away match against CF Montréal on May 22.^[44]

Forge's 2024 Canadian Championship run began on May 1 with a rematch against York United FC, this time at Tim Hortons Field.^[45] Jordan Hamilton scored a brace as part of a three goal first half en route to a convincing 3–1 win, advancing Forge to the quarterfinals.^[46] This set up a Canadian Championship rematch against CF Montréal for a fourth year in a row.^[47] Forge hosted the first leg on May 7 in the club's "School Day Match" before an announced crowd of 14,923 fans, the club's second most attended home match.^[48] David Choinière scored in the 31st minute to give Forge a 1–0 first half lead before Montréal responded in the second half to secure a 1–1 draw, leaving the teams tied on aggregate before the return leg later in the month.^[48]

Returning to CPL play, Forge FC traveled out west to face Pacific FC, battling them to a scoreless draw.^[49] Jassem Koleilat made his first appearance for the Hammers, keeping a clean sheet.^[49] The Hammers next returned home where they faced Vancouver FC, losing 2–1 for their first ever home defeat against the Eagles.^[50]

Forge next traveled to Montreal for the second leg of its Canadian Championship quarterfinal match. Tied 1–1 on aggregate and needing to score to overcome an away goals deficit,^[51] Forge jumped out to a 2–0 first half lead thanks to goals from Daniel Parra and Kwasi Poku.^[52] Following a two hour halftime delay due to lightning, Montréal came out and dominated the second half.^[52] However, they only managed to score one goal against the Hammers, resulting in a "historic" 2–1 Forge win and advancing them to the semifinals 3–2 on aggregate.^[52] This was the first time the club had defeated an MLS opponent.^[53] Following the win, Forge travelled to Ottawa where, tired from their Canadian Championship match, they fell 3–0 to Atlético Ottawa.^[54] It was the club's first ever defeat in Ottawa.^[55]

Forge FC returned home to face York United FC, securing a 3–0 victory for their third win of the season against the Nine Stripes in all competitions.^[56] Kyle Bekker, Tristan Borges, and Daniel Parra scored for Forge while Kwasi Poku contributed with two assists and a crucial goal-line clearance to help Jassem Koleilat keep the clean sheet.^[56][57] Forge followed this up with a trip to Calgary where a "poor" outing resulted in a 1–0 loss to Cavalry.^[58][59] This was Forge's third loss in their last four league matches and the third time the team had been shutout in a road match this season.^[60] Forge next traveled to Halifax to face HFX Wanderers where Béni Badibanga opened the scoring in the 49th minute and Kwasi Poku scored a stoppage time equalizer to help secure a 2–2 draw.^[61] After a delay in getting his work permit approved,^[62] Nana Ampomah made his long-awaited debut for Forge, appearing as a second-half substitute and assisting on Poku's late equalizer.^[61]

Returning home, Forge welcomed Valour back to Tim Hortons Field on June 23 where Kwasi Poku scored a first-half brace to propel Forge to a 2–1 win.^[63] The Hammers then returned to Ottawa on June 28 for their second away match against league-leaders Atlético Ottawa.^[64] In a "chaotic" and "thrilling" contest, Atlético scored a winning goal at the end of stoppage time to emerge as 4–3 winners after the sides traded leads in the second half.^[65][66] This was Forge's first ever CPL loss in a match in which the team had led in their history.^[67]

Forge ended the month with two wins, a draw, and two losses in league play. For scoring four goals and two assists in June, Kwasi Poku was named the CPL's player of the month.^[68]

In July, Forge began their most successful stretch of the season, amassing a record of 10 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses between July 14 and October 6. Following wins that week against Halifax and Vancouver, Forge took over top spot in the CPL on August 18.^[69]

Forge traveled to Winnipeg with a chance to clinch the regular season title with a win against Valour on October 6.^[70] They had struggled to win away at Valour, securing only one victory in its seven most recent visits to Winnipeg.^[70] Noah Jensen scored in the 36th minute off of a cutback from Kyle Bekker in what proved to be the match's only goal, securing a trophy-clinching 1–0 road win.^[71] It was Forge's 100th win as a club.^[72] By winning the regular season, the Hammers won the CPL Shield, the top seed in the 2024 CPL playoffs, a berth in the 2025 CONCACAF Champions Cup, and prize money.^[73][74] This was Forge's second regular season title (after 2021) and sixth trophy in six years.^[75]

The Hammers returned to Hamilton to face Atlético Ottawa on October 12 in a match that didn't matter in the standings for Forge, but would be followed by a trophy ceremony.^[76] Forge surrendered two first half goals and Alessandro Hojabrpour was sent off on the way to a 2–0 loss, putting a damper on the celebrations.^[77] Daniel Parra received a caution during the match after he appeared to punch Atlético's Sam Salter; he subsequently received a three-match suspension however, as of October 27, 2024,^[update] Forge is appealing the decision.^[78] Following the match, Forge was awarded the CPL Shield before the club's supporters.^[79]

Forge completed its CPL regular season campaign away at Pacific on October 19. In a rain-soaked match, Forge fell 1–0 to end the season with a loss.^[80] It was the second year in a row Forge ended its season with consecutive defeats.^[81] Khadim Kane and Amadou Koné both started the match to help Forge surpass the CPL-mandated 2,000 minimum minutes to be played by U-21 Canadian players.^[82] By playing the match's full 90 minutes, Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson became the third outfield player in CPL history to have played every minute of a regular season.^[83]

Following the conclusion of the regular season, several Forge players were nominated for CPL awards. Tristan Borges was named Player of the Year and Bobby Smyrniotis was named Coach of the Year. Despite having left midseason, Kwasi Poku was named Best Canadian U-21 Player.^[84][85]

Forge entered the CPL playoffs looking to become the first CPL team to win a league double.^[86][87] As the regular season winner, their playoffs began by hosting the Page playoff first semifinal at Tim Hortons Field against second seed Cavalry with a chance to advance directly to the CPL final.^[88] This repeated the matchup of the 2023 season's first semifinal where Forge defeated Cavalry in Calgary.^[89] Forge had finished two points ahead of Cavalry in the regular season and had won both home matches against the Cavs this season.^[90] Cavalry striker Tobias Warschewski's 27th-minute goal proved to be the matchwinner as Forge lost 1–0.^[90][91] It was only Forge's second ever loss in 14 playoff games.^[90]

Forge next hosted Atlético Ottawa in the second semifinal on November 2 with another chance to qualify for the final.^[92] Malik Owolabi-Belewu scored with a header off a corner kick in the 53rd minute to give Forge a 1–0 win, qualifying the Hammers for a sixth consecutive CPL final.^[93][94]

Forge faced Cavalry in the CPL final for the second year in a row and third time overall.^[95] This was Forge's chance to complete the league double and secure its third consecutive league championship and fifth overall.^[96] Daniel Parra made his return after completing his three-match suspension.^[96]

Cavalry were the better team in the first half, scoring twice to take a 2–0 lead into half time.^[97] Forge came to life in the second half with Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson scoring in the 52nd minute to bring the Hammers within a goal.^[97] However, Forge couldn't find an equalizer and eventually fell 2–1.^[97] This was Cavalry's first CPL title and only the second time Forge hadn't won the CPL final.^[98]

As of November 9, 2024^[update][99]

No.	Name	Nationality	Position(s)	Date of birth (age)	Previous club	Notes
Goalkeepers
16	Jassem Koleilat		GK	(1999-07-30)July 30, 1999 (aged 25)	Los Angeles FC 2
29	Christopher Kalongo		GK	(2002-01-07)January 7, 2002 (aged 22)	Sigma FC
51	Daniil Antonov		GK	(2007-02-24)February 24, 2007 (aged 17)	Sigma FC	U21, DEV
Defenders
2	Malcolm Duncan		DF	(1999-09-04)September 4, 1999 (aged 25)	Sigma FC
4	Dominic Samuel		DF	(1994-09-29)September 29, 1994 (aged 30)	Sigma FC
17	Daniel Parra		DF	(1999-07-20)July 20, 1999 (aged 25)	Monterrey	INT, Loan
23	Garven-Michée Metusala		DF	(1999-12-31)December 31, 1999 (aged 24)	A.S. Blainville
52	Oliver Clow		DF	(2007-05-05)May 5, 2007 (aged 17)	Sigma FC	U21, DEV
81	Malik Owolabi-Belewu		DF	(2002-07-03)July 3, 2002 (aged 22)	S.P.A.L.	INT
Midfielders
8	Elimane Cissé		MF	(1995-03-12)March 12, 1995 (aged 29)	Diambars FC	INT
10	Kyle Bekker		MF	(1990-09-02)September 2, 1990 (aged 34)	North Carolina FC
13	Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson		MF	(1996-04-17)April 17, 1996 (aged 28)	IFK Värnamo	INT
21	Alessandro Hojabrpour		MF	(2000-01-10)January 10, 2000 (aged 24)	Pacific FC
22	Noah Jensen		MF	(1999-07-20)July 20, 1999 (aged 25)	Oakland University
26	Orlendis Benítez		MF	(1996-11-26)November 26, 1996 (aged 27)	Simcoe County Rovers
32	Zayne Bruno		MF	(2007-01-23)January 23, 2007 (aged 17)	Sigma FC	U21, DEV
64	Khadim Kane		MF	(2005-05-17)May 17, 2005 (aged 19)	CF Montréal U23	U21, EYT
88	Matteo Schiavoni		MF	(2005-04-05)April 5, 2005 (aged 19)	CF Montréal	U21, Loan
Forwards
7	David Choinière		FW	(1997-02-07)February 7, 1997 (aged 27)	Montreal Impact
9	Jordan Hamilton		FW	(1996-03-17)March 17, 1996 (aged 28)	Sligo Rovers
11	Nana Opoku Ampomah		FW	(1996 -01-02)January 2, 1996 (aged 28)	Fortuna Düsseldorf	INT
12	Sebastian Castello		FW	(2003-10-08)October 8, 2003 (aged 21)	Sigma FC	U21
14	Terran Campbell		FW	(1998-10-10)October 10, 1998 (aged 26)	Pacific FC
19	Tristan Borges		FW	(1998-08-26)August 26, 1998 (aged 26)	OH Leuven
27	Victor Klonaridis		FW	(1992-07-28)July 28, 1992 (aged 32)	A.E. Kifisia	INT
39	Béni Badibanga		FW	(1996-02-19)February 19, 1996 (aged 28)	RAAL La Louvière	INT
41	Amadou Koné		FW	(2005-01-28)January 28, 2005 (aged 19)	Carleton Ravens	U21, U Sports
50	Kenan Hodzic		FW	(2005-01-23)January 23, 2005 (aged 19)	Sigma FC	U21, DEV

No.	Pos.	Player	From club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
36	GK	Dino Bontis	Western Mustangs	Short-term contract[a]	January 31, 2024	[20]
41	FW	Amadou Koné	Carleton Ravens	Short-term contract[b]	January 31, 2024	[20]
37	FW	Kevaughn Tavernier	Sigma FC	Short-term contract	January 31, 2024	[20]
8	MF	Elimane Cissé	Diambars FC	Free	January 31, 2024	[18]
11	FW	Nana Opoku Ampomah	Fortuna Düsseldorf	Free	February 1, 2024	[19]
32	MF	Zayne Bruno	Sigma FC	Development contract	February 7, 2024	[21]
30	GK	Jassem Koleilat	Los Angeles FC 2	Short-term contract[c]	February 7, 2024	[21]
42	GK	Emmanuel Marmolejo	Sigma FC	Development contract	August 14, 2024	[101]
26	FW	Orlendis Benítez	Simcoe County Rovers	Free	September 13, 2024	[102]
51	GK	Daniil Antonov	Sigma FC	Development contract	September 13, 2024	[102]
52	DF	Oliver Clow	Sigma FC	Development contract	September 13, 2024	[102]
50	MF	Kenan Hodzic	Sigma FC	Development contract	September 13, 2024	[102]
27	FW	Victor Klonaridis	A.E. Kifisia	Free	September 13, 2024	[103]

No.	Pos.	Player	From club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
17	DF	Daniel Parra	Monterrey	Season-long loan with second year option	March 12, 2024	[32][104]
88	MF	Matteo Schiavoni	CF Montréal	Season-long loan	March 27, 2024	[33]

Forge FC made two selections in the 2024 CPL–U Sports Draft.^[105] 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	8	MF	Mouhamed Ndiaye	Canada	UQTR
2	16	FW	Amadou Koné	Canada	Carleton

No.	Pos.	Player	To club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
5	DF	Manjrekar James	LD Alajuelense	Undisclosed	December 30, 2023	[14]
24	DF	Rezart Rama	KF Egnatia	Contract expired	January 17, 2024	[16][25]
33	MF	Aboubacar Sissoko	Atlético Ottawa	Contract expired	February 7, 2024	[26]
17	FW	Woobens Pacius	Nashville SC	Contract expired	February 15, 2024	[22][23][24]
1	GK	Triston Henry	Memphis 901 FC	Undisclosed	July 23, 2024	[106][107]
36	GK	Dino Bontis	Western Mustangs	Contract expired	August 15, 2024	[108][109]
20	MF	Kwasi Poku	RWD Molenbeek	Undisclosed	August 21, 2024	[110][111]

Forge FC is affiliated with Sigma FC of League1 Ontario as part of the CPL's Downward Player Movement Pilot Project.^[112][113] The following Forge FC players featured for Sigma FC during the 2024 League1 Ontario season.

No.	Pos.	Player	Games	Notes	Source
36	GK	Dino Bontis	17	First featured for Sigma FC on April 26, 2024.	[114]
32	MF	Zayne Bruno	46	First featured for Sigma FC on April 26, 2024.	[115]
64	MF	Khadim Kane	6	First featured for Sigma FC on July 12, 2024.	[116]
41	FW	Amadou Koné	7	First featured for Sigma FC on July 3, 2024.	[117]
42	GK	Emmanuel Marmolejo	4	First featured for Sigma FC on August 18, 2024.	[118]
81	DF	Malik Owolabi-Belewu	1	First featured for Sigma FC on July 20, 2024.	[119]
37	FW	Kevaughn Tavernier	19	First featured for Sigma FC on May 5, 2024.	[120]

As of April 11, 2024^{[update][121][122]}

Executive
Caretaker	Bob Young
Chief executive officer	Scott Mitchell
Executive vice president	Doug Rye
President	Matt Afinec
Vice chairman	Glenn Gibson
Coaching staff
Head coach and sporting director	Bobby Smyrniotis
Director of youth football and assistant coach	Kyt Selaidopoulos
Assistant and goalkeeper coach	Johan Albert
Assistant coach	David Edgar
Assistant coach	Nikos Nentidis
Director of soccer operations	Jelani Smith

In July, Hamilton-based steelmaker and Hamilton Sports Group minority owner Stelco was sold to American steel manufacturer Cleveland-Cliffs. This did not change Forge's ownership structure as Cliffs confirmed that it would retain Stelco's sports ownership.^[123][124] Following the approval of Stelco's sale in November, Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves reaffirmed Stelco's community partnerships and expressed his interest in making Forge "a powerhouse of soccer."^[125]

On May 23, Forge announced a new partnership with CS Mont-Royal Outremont.^[126][127] On June 25, the club announced a new partnership with the Burlington Soccer Club.^[128][129]

On January 25, Forge announced a "School Day Match" as part of its CPL schedule to be played against HFX Wanderers FC on Tuesday, May 7 at 11:00 am when students in grades 6 to 12 would be able to attend.^[130] The announcement generated mixed reactions; while some fans saw this as a way to grow local interest and support, others considered the timing to be unfair to existing supporters.^[131] After Forge advanced to the Canadian Championship quarterfinals, its home quarterfinal match against CF Montréal took over the "School Day Match" slot and the CPL match against HFX Wanderers was rescheduled to later in the season.^[131][132] More than 10,000 students attended the match as part of the announced attendance of 14,923 fans.^[48]

Forge unveiled its 2024 primary and alternate kits at a supporters event on March 28 hosted at Tim Hortons Field. The kits continue to be produced by Macron and sponsored by Tim Hortons for a sixth consecutive season with sponsorship from CIBC on the left sleeve for a second consecutive season.^{[133][134][135]}

The club continued to use its 2023 home and away kits for matches in the Champions Cup.^[136][137]

Supplier: Macron / Sponsor: Tim Hortons / Sleeve sponsor: CIBC

Primary

Alternate

Home 2023

Away 2023

Forge announced in a release that players reported to Hamilton for preseason on January 4, with medicals taking place on January 5 and training beginning at Redeemer University on January 6.^[138] The team traveled to Querétaro, Mexico on January 16 where they trained for two weeks before returning to Hamilton on January 31 in advance of their opening match in the CONCACAF Champions Cup on February 7 at Tim Hortons Field against C.D. Guadalajara.^[138][139] While in Mexico, they defeated Liga Premier side C.D. Irapuato 3–2 in a friendly with goals from Terran Campbell, Dominic Samuel, and Kevaughn Tavernier.^{[140][141][142]} Forge was also reported to have friendlies scheduled against other Mexican clubs, including a Liga MX opponent.^[143]

On March 13, Forge announced that the team had begun its training camp in advance of the Canadian Premier League season on March 11.^[144] They faced York United FC in a friendly on March 16, playing them to a 1–1 draw.^[145][146] They then played a friendly against HFX Wanderers FC on March 23.^[146]