Valour FC getting key players back just in time

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This article was published 14/09/2021 (1486 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

INJURIES have defined Valour FC for much of the 2021 Canadian Premier League season. Now, they may be closer to getting a different look.

Midfielder Brett Levis returns to the lineup this week after an absence of more than a month and attacker Masta Kacher, defender Andy Baquero and midfielder Jose Galan are all on the mend and could return to action shortly.

Stud defenders Andrew Jean-Baptiste and Stefan Cebara remain on the sidelines. Baquero suffered a high ankle sprain last week.

“It’s better than it has been because we have been really depleted,” said head coach Rob Gale in advance of Wednesday night’s Canadian championship quarter-final game in Hamilton against the Forge.

“We were missing seven and two suspended from the last game (a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of visiting Edmonton FC on Sept. 7) and couldn’t get a full bench together. Really, we added Jose (Galan) and he was not cleared fully, to start a game anyway. We wouldn’t normally do that but we would have had three subs only, so it’s getting better… hopefully.”

A depleted lineup combined with a gruelling schedule has challenged the players healthy enough to play.

“The last month we have had some injuries to important players and we haven’t really had a week’s training,” said attacker Daryl Fordyce. “It’s been back-to-back games, which has been very difficult because I don’t think I’ve had to do that in my career — 18 years of playing. (Games) every three days.”

“I think this is my 18th year and it’s always been a roller-coaster,” said Fordyce. “You have to handle the lows as well as you handle the highs. We started off very, very well. We couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season in the bubble and then we haven’t done too well on the road for sure. We’ve lost our last two home games. We are playing good opposition but you know for me, on our day, we can beat anyone in the league.”

Valour, 7-1-9 on the year, has a tenuous grasp on the fourth and final playoff spot in the CPL.

The club was 1-1-7 in league play after rocketing to a 6-0-2 start in the CPL’s Winnipeg hub. Valour is now tied with York United (5-7-5) at 22 points. The HFX Wanderers (5-6-6) sit one point back with 11 games remaining in the 28-game regular season.

“We haven’t got the results that we would have wanted but other than the last performance, the team has played well,” said Gale. “We’ve competed and obviously we had some tough battles, but we’re in the really tough side of the league right now with Cavalry and Pacific and Edmonton are a tricky opponent as well.

“So you just have to keep sticking to our principles, building on what we want to do and when everybody’s back in it, I feel that we’re as good as anybody but when you’re missing players, consistency and performance and lineup is hard to come by.”

The Winnipeggers face the third-place Forge Wednesday before returning for Saturday’s 3 p.m. league match against second-place Cavalry at IG Field.

“They’re gonna be tough for sure,” said Fordyce of the Forge. “They’ve won the championship the last two years. They have a track record, especially at home. We’ve played them twice this year and beat them twice and as I said, we can beat anyone in this league, no problem. It’s just been our consistency since we’ve come out of the bubble.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14