Forge FC can punch their ticket to a fourth consecutive Canadian Premier League Final this Sunday when The Hammers host Cavalry FC at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton for a 5 p.m. kick-off.

After playing to a 1-all draw in the Prairies, the second leg is a favourable one for Forge; win, and they’re in.

While the scenario is the same for the club from Calgary, it’s not nearly as favourable. Despite Cavalry’s attempts to spin the narrative into a “we have the advantage because Forge will feel the pressure at home” tale, there is nowhere Forge would rather be on Sunday than 64 Melrose Ave. North – the players feeling their studs sink into the Tim Hortons Field turf.

The last time Forge hosted Cavalry in a post-season match was the first leg of the 2019 CPL Final before the format was changed to a one-match winner-take-all championship. Attacker Tristan Borges scored what would be the winner just before halftime in front of 10,486 fans.

“I think the fans know my feelings about playing at home,” reiterated Borges this week. “I love playing at home in front of the best fans in the league. I always say it, and obviously, it’s really really nice to be able to play the second leg at home and have that upper hand.”

“After doing what we did (in Calgary), getting that tie and grabbing some momentum to bring home, it’s obviously important. Now, we can play for our fans and hopefully bring a championship game to them.”

Tristan Borges – The 1st ever player to score in the #CanPLFinals #CanPL l @onesoccer pic.twitter.com/r7p0Dju94b

— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) October 27, 2019

Forge will also be looking to win the second leg in 90-minutes and avoid penalty kicks – essentially a coin flip, which plays into Cavalry’s hands as the away side.

“Of course, I mean, when you go to penalties, you’re playing with luck,” added Borges. “We want to finish the game in 90-minutes, but for us, it’s about going half-by-half, and that’s our focus.”

The winner of Sunday’s tilt will advance to the championship game to face Pacific FC or Atletico Ottawa. If Pacific advances, the CPL Final would be played in Hamilton, although the chances are looking bleak after Ottawa’s 2-0 win away from home in the opening leg.

Regardless of where the Final will be played, Forge just wants to be there to fulfil its annual objective of hoisting the North Star Shield.

“We could play in Barcelona or at Real Madrid,” said head coach and technical director Bobby Smyrniotis. “It doesn’t make a difference.”

“You can look ahead all you want, but we have to take care of business on Sunday. That’s the way you have to approach these games; not to play around with different scenarios and get hung up on the math.

“We’ll focus on our business and what we can control on Sunday,” he added.

A win would make it four-for-four, and it would mean the chance to raise a third CPL Champions banner at Tim Hortons Field.

Fans can jump in, be a part of history, and help drown the stadium in a sea of orange this Sunday by purchasing tickets online at forgefc.ca/tickets.