2023 HFX Wanderers FC season

The 2023 HFX Wanderers FC season was the fifth season in the history of HFX Wanderers FC. In addition to the Canadian Premier League, the club competed in the Canadian Championship.

Halifax Wanderers

2023 season
President	Derek Martin
Head coach	Patrice Gheisar
Stadium	Wanderers Grounds
Canadian Championship	First round
Top goalscorer	League: Massimo Ferrin (8) All: Massimo Ferrin (9)
Highest home attendance	6,413
Lowest home attendance	4,907
Average home league attendance	5,854
Biggest win	3-0 vs. Vancouver, 12 August
Biggest defeat	0-3 vs. York United, 20 May
Home colours Away colours
← 2022 2024 →

This was the club's first season led by Patrice Gheisar, who was announced as the club's new head coach on November 30, 2022.^[1] After finishing the season in third place, the Wanderers qualified to host their first home playoff game at the Wanderers Grounds in club history, which they lost 0-1 to Pacific FC on October 14, 2023.^[2]

Current squad

As of September 7, 2023^[3]

No.	Name	Nationality	Position(s)	Date of birth (age)	Previous club
Goalkeepers
1	Yann-Alexandre Fillion		GK	(1996-02-14)February 14, 1996 (aged 27)	IFK Mariehamn
66	Aiden Rushenas		GK	(2003-05-23)May 23, 2003 (aged 20)	Dalhousie Tigers
Defenders
2	Daniel Nimick		CB	(2000-09-22)September 22, 2000 (aged 23)	Western Michigan Broncos
3	Zachary Fernandez		RB	(2001-09-24)September 24, 2001 (aged 22)	A.S. Blainville
4	Cristian Campagna		CB	(2001-11-29)November 29, 2001 (aged 22)	Whitecaps FC 2
5	Cale Loughrey		CB	(2001-08-04)August 4, 2001 (aged 22)	FC Edmonton
7	Ryan James		LB	(1994-04-21)April 21, 1994 (aged 29)	Birmingham Legion
15	Doneil Henry		CB	(1993-04-20)April 20, 1993 (aged 30)	Minnesota United
20	Jake Ruby		RB	(2000-06-04)June 4, 2000 (aged 23)	Trinity Western Spartans
22	Mohamed Omar		CB / CM / DM	(1999-01-22)January 22, 1999 (aged 24)	Notre Dame Fighting Irish
23	Riley Ferrazzo		FB	(1999-08-04)August 4, 1999 (aged 24)	Vaughan Azzurri
	Yorgos Gavas		CB		Whitecaps FC Academy
Midfielders
6	Lorenzo Callegari		CM	(1998-02-27)February 27, 1998 (aged 25)	Chambly
10	Aidan Daniels		AM	(1998-09-06)September 6, 1998 (aged 25)	OKC Energy
11	João Morelli		AM / CF	(1996-03-11)March 11, 1996 (aged 27)	FCI Levadia
13	Armaan Wilson		DM / CM	(2002-05-29)May 29, 2002 (aged 21)	Providence Friars
14	Callum Watson		CM	(2000-02-28)February 28, 2000 (aged 23)	Creighton Bluejays
17	Wesley Timoteo		RW / LW / FB	(2000-04-09)April 9, 2000 (aged 23)	FC Edmonton
18	Andre Rampersad		CM	(1995-02-02)February 2, 1995 (aged 28)	Santa Rosa
24	Tomas Giraldo		AM / CM	(2003-03-08)March 8, 2003 (aged 20)	CF Montréal
37	Lifumpa Mwandwe		RW / LW / CF	(2000-12-29)December 29, 2000 (aged 23)	Newtown
	Camilo Vasconcelos		AM	(2005-03-19)March 19, 2005 (aged 18)	Guelph United
Forwards
8	Massimo Ferrin		CF / RW / LW	(1998-12-06)December 6, 1998 (aged 25)	Vaughan Azzurri
9	Théo Collomb		CF	(2000-07-11)July 11, 2000 (aged 23)	Whitecaps FC 2
19	Tiago Coimbra		CF	(2004-01-17)January 17, 2004 (aged 19)	Palmeiras
21	Jordan Perruzza		FW	(2001-01-16)January 16, 2001 (aged 22)	Toronto FC

Transfers

In

No.	Pos.	Player	From club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
17	MF	Wesley Timoteo	FC Edmonton	Return from loan	November 30, 2022
	DF	Ousman Maheshe	FC Edmonton	Return from loan	November 30, 2022
	MF	CJ Smith	FC Edmonton	Return from loan	November 30, 2022
19	FW	Tiago Coimbra	Palmeiras	Free	December 14, 2022	[4]
8	FW	Massimo Ferrin	Vaughan Azzurri	Free	December 21, 2022	[5]
6	MF	Lorenzo Callegari	Chambly	Free	January 10, 2023	[6]
1	GK	Yann-Alexandre Fillion	IFK Mariehamn	Free	January 18, 2023	[7]
23	DF	Riley Ferrazzo	Vaughan Azzurri	Free	January 20, 2023	[8]
14	MF	Callum Watson	Creighton Bluejays	Free	January 25, 2023	[9]
5	DF	Cale Loughrey	Forge FC	Free	February 1, 2023	[10]
24	MF	Tomas Giraldo	CF Montréal	Free	February 3, 2023	[11]
9	FW	Théo Collomb	Whitecaps FC 2	Free	February 8, 2023	[12]
7	DF	Ryan James	Birmingham Legion	Free	February 15, 2023	[13]
2	DF	Daniel Nimick	Western Michigan Broncos	Free	February 17, 2023	[14]
13	MF	Armaan Wilson	Providence Friars	Free	February 22, 2023	[15]
11	FW	Kosi Nwafornso	Vaughan Azzurri	Free	February 24, 2023	[16]
	DF	Ethan Schilte-Brown		Signed to a development contract	March 12, 2023	[17]
	FW	Kimani Stewart-Baynes	Vaughan Azzurri U19	Signed to a development contract	March 12, 2023	[17]
66	GK	Aiden Rushenas	Dalhousie Tigers	Selected 10th overall in the 2023 CPL–U Sports Draft	April 5, 2023	[18]
15	DF	Doneil Henry	Minnesota United	Free	July 18, 2023	[19]
	DF	Yorgos Gavas	Whitecaps FC Academy	Signed to a development contract	August 3, 2023	[20]
	MF	Camilo Vasconcelos	Guelph United	Signed to a development contract	September 7, 2023	[21]

Loans in

No.	Pos.	Player	Loaned from	Fee/notes	Date	Source
21	FW	Jordan Perruzza	Toronto FC	Loaned until end of season	August 7, 2023	[22]

Draft picks

HFX Wanderers selected the following players in the 2023 CPL–U Sports Draft. 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	3	DF	Anthony Stolar	Canada	Cape Breton
2	10	GK	Aiden Rushenas	Canada	Dalhousie

Out

No.	Pos.	Player	To club	Fee/notes	Date	Source
11	FW	Akeem Garcia	Retired		October 28, 2022	[23]
1	GK	Kieran Baskett	Pacific FC	Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
50	GK	Christian Oxner		Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
2	DF	Peter Schaale		Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
19	DF	Obeng Tabi	CS Saint-Laurent	Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
31	DF	Eriks Santos		Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
28	MF	Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé	York United	Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
7	FW	Alex Marshall		Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
8	FW	Elhadji Mour Samb		Option declined	December 6, 2022	[24]
5	MF	Pierre Lamothe	Pacific FC	Contract expired	December 6, 2022	[24]
21	MF	Marcello Polisi	Valour FC	Contract expired	December 6, 2022	[24]
23	FW	Cory Bent		Contract expired	December 6, 2022	[24]
	DF	Ousman Maheshe		Contract expired	December 31, 2022
	MF	CJ Smith	Vaughan Azzurri	Contract expired	December 31, 2022
9	FW	Samuel Salter	Atlético Ottawa	Undisclosed fee & sell-on clause	February 16, 2023	[25]
	DF	Ethan Schilte-Brown		Development contract ended	June 13, 2023	[26]
11	FW	Kosi Nwafornso		Contract terminated by mutual consent	June 13, 2023	[26]
	FW	Kimani Stewart-Baynes		Development contract ended	July 5, 2023	[27]
25	FW	Ludwig Kodjo Amla		Suspended for anti-doping violation	August 2, 2023	[28]

Loans out

No.	Pos.	Player	Loaned to	Fee/notes	Date	Source
37	MF	Lifumpa Mwandwe	Newtown	Loaned until February 28, 2023	January 3, 2023	[29]

Pre-season

The Halifax Wanderers began their pre-season on March 1 in Halifax before traveling to Auburndale, Florida, where they practiced at the Lake Myrtle Sports Park. While in Florida, games were played against Montverde Academy, Stetson University, Inter Miami CF II, and the University of South Florida.

Upon return to Halifax, a series of pre-season friendlies were held April 7 and 8 on Wickwire Field at Dalhousie University, which were open for fans to attend. The visiting teams were the Nepean Hotspurs Ottawa Selects, and Electric City FC.^[30]

Competitions

Matches are listed in Halifax local time: Atlantic Daylight Time (UTC−3)

Overview

Competition	First match	Last match	Starting round	Record
				Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Canadian Premier League	April 15	October 6	Matchday 1	9	1	6	2	8	11	−3	011.11
Canadian Championship	April 19	April 19	First round	1	0	0	1	1	3	−2	000.00
Total				10	1	6	3	9	14	−5	010.00

Last updated: 13 June, 2023
Source: Competitions

Canadian Premier League

Main article: 2023 Canadian Premier League season

Table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Playoff qualification
1	Cavalry (S)	28	16	7	5	46	27	+19	55	First semifinal
2	Forge (C)	28	11	9	8	39	32	+7	42[a]
3	HFX Wanderers	28	11	9	8	39	32	+7	42[a]	Quarterfinal
4	Pacific	28	11	7	10	42	35	+7	40	Play-in round
5	York United	28	11	5	12	35	44	−9	38
6	Atlético Ottawa	28	10	6	12	38	34	+4	36
7	Vancouver	28	8	5	15	28	50	−22	29
8	Valour	28	6	8	14	25	38	−13	26

Source: CanPL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Total wins; 3) Goal difference; 4) Goals scored; 5) Away goal differential; 6) Away goals scored; 7) Home goal differential; 8) Home goals scored; 9) Total minutes played by U-21 players; 10) Coin toss (2 teams tied) or drawing of lots (3+ teams tied).^[31]
(C) Champion (qualified to Champions Cup); (S) CPL Shield winner (qualified to Champions Cup)
Notes:

1. Tie resolved by away goal differential; Forge: +4, Wanderers: −2

Results by match

Match	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28
Result	D	D	D	D	D	L	D	L	W	W	D	W	L	W	L	W	W	L	W	D	W	L	D	L	W	L	W	W
Position	5	6	7	6	7	8	7	8	6	6	4	5	5	5	6	5	4	6	5	5	4	6	4	6	4	4	4	3

Updated to match(es) played on 20 October, 2023. Source: #Matches
W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

Atlético Ottawa v Halifax Wanderers

15 April 2023 1	Atlético Ottawa	1-1	Halifax Wanderers	Ottawa, Ontario
14:00	Acosta  32' Bassett 45+2' Sacko  90+4'	Report	Fernandez 16' Omar  59' Watson  76'	Stadium: TD Place Stadium Attendance: 7,039 Referee: Michael Venne

Forge FC v Halifax Wanderers

22 April 2023 2	Forge FC	1-1	Halifax Wanderers	Hamilton, Ontario
17:00	James  77' Pacius 89'	Report	Ferrin 42' Callegari  49' Nimick  74' Ferrazzo  88'	Stadium: Tim Hortons Field Attendance: 3,827 Referee: Fabrizio Stasolla

Halifax Wanderers v Vancouver FC

29 April 2023 3	Halifax Wanderers	1-1	Vancouver FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00	Collomb 12' Ferrazzo  41' Callegari  57' Fernandez  89'	Report	Martínez  40' Hundal 45+2' Zadeh  53'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,413 Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin

Valour FC v Halifax Wanderers

6 May 2023 4	Valour FC	0-0	Halifax Wanderers	Winnipeg, Manitoba
17:00	Samaké  90+1' Gutiérrez  90+4'	Report	Collomb  49' Fernandez  90+1' Lorenzo Callegari  90+3'	Stadium: IG Field Attendance: 2,665 Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren

Cavalry FC v Halifax Wanderers

13 May 2023 5	Cavalry FC	2-2	Halifax Wanderers	Calgary, Alberta
20:00	Musse 19' Bevan 78' (pen.) Bevan  81' Musse  82'	Report	Callegari  20' Collomb 45+1' Fernandez 45+3' Omar  71' Fillion  81' Campagna  87'	Stadium: ATCO Field Attendance: 3,546 Referee: Fabrizio Stasolla

Halifax Wanderers v York United

20 May 2023 6	Halifax Wanderers	0-3	York United	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00	Ferrin  67' Ferrazzo  90+2'	Report	Baldisimo 11' Baldisimo  23' Alou 31' Soumaoro 46'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,244 Referee: Renzo Villanueva

Pacific FC v Halifax Wanderers

27 May 2023 7	Pacific FC	1-1	Halifax Wanderers	Langford, British Columbia
11:00	Reid 32' Vliet  64'	Report	Daniels 84'	Stadium: Starlight Stadium Attendance: 2,741 Referee: Alain Ruch

Atlético Ottawa v Halifax Wanderers

3 June 2023 8	Atlético Ottawa	2-0	Halifax Wanderers	Ottawa, Ontario
20:00	Singh  52' Bassett 71' Shaw 76'	Report	Loughrey  23' Ferrazzo  34' Fernandez  82'	Stadium: TD Place Stadium Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin

Halifax Wanderers v Valour FC

10 June 2023 9	Halifax Wanderers	2-0	Valour FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
14:00	Watson 9' Callegari  43' Watson 52' Fernandez  76'	Report	Gutiérrez  22' Polisi  30' Williams  63' Samaké  64'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 5,524 Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren

Halifax Wanderers v Cavalry FC

17 June 2023 10	Halifax Wanderers	3-1	Cavalry FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00	Coimbra 6' Callegari  12' Campagna  54' Watson  59' Daniels 62' Collomb 84'	Report	Bevan 8' (pen.) Ntignee  38' Trafford  40' Alarcón  74'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,019 Referee: Michael Venne

York United v Halifax Wanderers

21 June 2023 11	York United	2-2	Halifax Wanderers	Toronto, Ontario
20:00	Babouli 14' Gee  43' Santos 56' Santos  57' Gagnon-Laparé  90+7'	Report	Daniels  31' Coimbra 35' Coimbra  48' Daniels 86' Campagna  90+4' Nimick  90+6' Callegari  90+7'	Stadium: York Lions Stadium Attendance: 1,013 Referee: Fabrizio Stasolla

Halifax Wanderers v Forge FC

30 June 2023 12	Halifax Wanderers	2-1	Forge FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
19:00	Ferrin 25' Timoteo  35' Giraldo  46' Loughrey  86' Nimick 90+10' (pen.)	Report	Owolabi-Belewu  61' Poku  72' Bekker 88' Henry  90+8' Samuel  90+11'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,145 Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin

Vancouver FC v Halifax Wanderers

7 July 2023 13	Vancouver FC	2-1	Halifax Wanderers	Langley, British Columbia
11:00	Bitar 10' Cantave 56' Bitar  70' White  73'	Report	Coimbra 11' Daniels  35' Campagna  68' Omar  73'	Stadium: Willoughby Community Park Stadium Attendance: 2,321 Referee: Robert D'Alesio

Halifax Wanderers v Pacific FC

11 July 2023 14	Halifax Wanderers	2-1	Pacific FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
20:00	Ferrin 16' Watson 49' Fernandez  56' Fillion  79' Nimick  90+2'	Report	Young  56'  56' Kunle Dada-Luke  59' Đidić 87' Lamothe  90+4'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 5,255 Referee: David Barrie
Note: Game originally scheduled for 19:00, postponed one hour due to excessive rain and flooding.

Cavalry FC v Halifax Wanderers

15 July 2023 15	Cavalry FC	1-0	Halifax Wanderers	Calgary, Alberta
17:00	Nimick 90+1' (o.g.) Ntignee  90+3'	Report	Rampersad  84'	Stadium: ATCO Field Attendance: 3,867 Referee: Alain Ruch

Halifax Wanderers v Atlético Ottawa

23 July 2023 16	Halifax Wanderers	1-0	Atlético Ottawa	Halifax, Nova Scotia
17:00	Collomb 24'	Report	Haworth  54' Ouimette  71'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 5,884 Referee: Sebastian Noshinravan
Note: Game originally scheduled for 22 July, postponed one day due to excessive rain and flooding.

York United v Halifax Wanderers

30 July 2023 17	York United	0-2	Halifax Wanderers	Toronto, Ontario
15:00	Ferrari  49' Ricci  60' Baldisimo  90+2'  90+3' dos Santos  90+5' Thompson  90+7' Giantsopoulos  90+7'	Report	Fernandez 45' Morelli 61' Coimbra  90+6'	Stadium: York Lions Stadium Attendance: N/R Referee: Scott Bowman

Halifax Wanderers v Pacific FC

7 August 2023 18	Halifax Wanderers	1-2	Pacific FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00	Loughrey  22' Ferrin  44' Morelli  46' Nimick 79'	Report	Heard  25' Meilleur-Giguère 45+2' Heard 54' Toussaint  83' Yeates  90+8'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,254 Referee: Yusri Rudolf

Halifax Wanderers v Vancouver FC

12 August 2023 19	Halifax Wanderers	3-0	Vancouver FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
16:00	Morelli 5' Morelli 58' (pen.) Rampersad  61' Ferrin 66' Ferrazzo  68'	Report	Bitar  58'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,254 Referee: Ben Hoskins

Forge FC v Halifax Wanderers

19 August 2023 20	Forge FC	1-1	Halifax Wanderers	Hamilton, Ontario
20:00	James  28' Badibanga  65' Badibanga 79'	Report	Nimick 29' (pen.) Nimick  58' Fillion  62' Fernandez  73' Coimbra  78'	Stadium: Tim Hortons Field Attendance: 4,824 Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren

Halifax Wanderers v Valour FC

26 August 2023 21	Halifax Wanderers	3-0	Valour FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
16:00	Loughrey  10' Nimick 49' Timoteo  54' Morelli 75' Rampersad  76' Giraldo 87' Giraldo  88'	Report	Samaké  5' Cela  31' de Brienne  39' Gutiérrez  78'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 4,907 Referee: Michael Venne

Halifax Wanderers v York United

4 September 2023 22	Halifax Wanderers	1-2	York United	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00	Perruzza 31' Henry  62' Nimick  90+7'	Report	Ricci 45+2' Abatneh  55' Thompson 63' Soumaoro  75' De Rosario  90+4'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,254 Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin

Pacific FC v Halifax Wanderers

8 September 2023 23	Pacific FC	1-1	Halifax Wanderers	Langford, British Columbia
23:00	Toussaint  45+1' Didic  50' Sellouf 57' (pen.) Amedume  85'	Report	Wilson 45+1' Armaan Wilson  58' Mwandwe  69'	Stadium: Starlight Stadium Attendance: 3,153 Referee: Alain Ruch

Halifax Wanderers v Cavalry FC

12 September 2023 24	Halifax Wanderers	1-2	Cavalry FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
19:00	Ferrazzo  43' Loughrey  52' Coimbra  70' Nimick 79' (pen.) Watson  90+6'	Report	Trafford  3' Henry 27' Kobza  47' Camargo  47' Klomp 54' Kamdem  88' Carducci  90+2'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 5,422 Referee: Yusri Rudolf

Halifax Wanderers v Atlético Ottawa

18 September 2023 25	Halifax Wanderers	3-2	Atlético Ottawa	Halifax, Nova Scotia
19:00	Ferrin 49' Omar  50' Perruzza 56' Rampersad  74' Fernandez  90+1' Giraldo 90+2' Watson  90+4' Fillion  90+6'	Report	Salter 13', 90+1' Antinoro  53' Roy  90+1'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 5,132 Referee: Renzo Villanueva
Note: Game originally scheduled for 16 September, postponed two days due to impact of Hurricane Lee.

Vancouver FC v Halifax Wanderers

23 September 2023 26	Vancouver FC	2-1	Halifax Wanderers	Langley, British Columbia
17:00	Romeo  37' Fry  50' Bitar 69' Nimick 90+5' (o.g.)	Report	Ferrin 42' Fernandez  47' Loughrey  61' Wilson  90'	Stadium: Langley Events Centre Attendance: 2,099 Referee: Mathieu Souaré

Halifax Wanderers v Forge FC

30 September 2023 27	Halifax Wanderers	2-1	Forge FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00	Ferrin 12' Nimick 45+2' Coimbra  58' Timoteo  68' Loughrey  90+3'	Report	Pacius 34' Sissoko  37' Hojabrpour  41' Bekker  85' Rama  87'	Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,254 Referee: Michael Venne

Valour FC v Halifax Wanderers

6 October 2023 28	Valour FC	0-1	Halifax Wanderers	Winnipeg, Manitoba
20:30		Report		Stadium: IG Field

Playoff matches

Halifax Wanderers v Pacific FC

14 October 2023 Quarter-Final	Halifax Wanderers	0-1	Pacific FC	Halifax, Nova Scotia
15:00		Report		Stadium: Wanderers Grounds Attendance: 6,254 Referee: Yusri Rudolf

Canadian Championship

Main article: 2023 Canadian Championship

Preliminary round

Halifax Wanderers v Atlético Ottawa

19 April 2023	Halifax Wanderers	1-3	Atlético Ottawa	Toronto, Ontario[a]
18:00	Ferrin 19'	Report	Shaw 40' Espejo 44' Tissot 85'	Stadium: York Lions Stadium Referee: Myriam Marcotte

Notes

1. York Lions Stadium was selected as a neutral venue due to both clubs being unable to host the match.