Forge FC beat CF Montréal on penalties for Canadian title

Forge FC became the first Canadian Premier League club to win the Canadian Championship on Wednesday night, beating CF Montréal on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Stade Saputo.

Manjrekar James scored the winning penalty in the shootout, and Forge goalkeeper Dimitry Bertaud saved two spot kicks to earn the Hamilton club its first Voyageurs Cup, according to the CPL and Canada Soccer.

Bertaud was named most valuable player of the tournament and is the first CPL player to win the George Gross Memorial Trophy, Canada Soccer said. The CPL said he made eight saves in the final.

Forge went ahead in first-half stoppage time. Antoine Batisse headed in a corner from Noah Jensen in the 45th minute plus six, the CPL reported. Daniel Ríos levelled for Montréal in the 49th minute.

Montréal were reduced to 10 men when Brayan Vera was sent off for a second yellow card in the 54th minute. Forge could not find a winner in the rest of regulation or extra time, and Ben Paton hit the crossbar in the 119th minute.

Bertaud also saved a penalty from Prince Owusu in the first half, after a video review requested by Forge head coach Bobby Smyrniotis led to the penalty being awarded to Montréal, according to the CPL.

In the shootout, Tristan Borges, Paton, Dan Nimick and James scored for Forge. Bertaud saved attempts from Owusu and Hennadii Synchuk, while Daniël Krutzen’s attempt was saved. Matty Longstaff and Dani Pereira scored for Montréal, who lost 4-2.

Forge captain Kyle Bekker was presented the trophy by Canada Soccer president Peter Augruso.

“Every first we’ve had, we’ve built off that,” Bekker told OneSoccer after the match. “Eight years on, a team from Hamilton. Who would have thought? But we’ve just went and done it again.”

“It’s a blessing to have these types of players playing in your club,” Smyrniotis said.

The win earns Forge a place in the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup, the CPL said. Canada Soccer said Canadian Championship winners qualify for the tournament on the road to the FIFA Club World Cup.

Forge next play at Pacific FC on Sunday, Oct. 25, at 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT) in the CPL regular-season finale, with the CPL Shield still in play. Montréal’s path to the final was previewed in our look at the CF Montréal and Forge FC final, and we also covered CF Montréal’s 1-1 draw with the Sounders in MLS.

Via Canadian Premier League and Canada Soccer.

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