Late Fleuriau Chateau hat trick ends Forge’s 2026 season and its record trophy streak

Atlético Ottawa’s Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau scored in the 13th minute of stoppage time on Saturday to knock Forge FC out of the Canadian Premier League playoffs and end the club’s seven-year run of league silverware. Fleuriau Chateau completed a hat trick in a 3-2 win at Hamilton Stadium, sending Ottawa through to the CPL final with a 5-4 aggregate win in the two-legged semifinal. A CPL playoff semifinal record crowd of 7,412 fans watched the game.

The two sides drew 2-2 in the first leg in Ottawa, so Saturday’s match decided the series. Fleuriau Chateau, an Ottawa native, opened the scoring in the 25th minute. He turned at the top of the box and fired an unexpected shot into the bottom right corner. Forge drew level five minutes into first-half stoppage time. Aghilas Sadek flicked on a corner, and Hoce Massunda deflected it in from right in front of the net.

Ottawa thought it had retaken the lead in the 66th minute, but their shot was cleared off the line. Video review was inconclusive and no goal was awarded. Fleuriau Chateau put Ottawa back in front in the 84th minute with a diving header, leaving Forge down 2-1. 

Deep into stoppage time, Fleuriau Chateau conceded a penalty. Forge defender Daniel Nimick converted it into the bottom right corner in the 11th minute of injury time. The goal tied the game 2-2 and the aggregate 4-4, and the match appeared headed for extra time and possibly a penalty shootout. Two minutes later, Fleuriau Chateau pounced on a poorly cleared cross and scored the winner, silencing the home crowd.

It is the second straight year Ottawa has eliminated Forge in a semifinal in Hamilton. Forge had not lost a match since late August. Ottawa, the defending champions, will now face Cavalry FC in a rematch of the 2025 final. The North Star Cup final is set for ATCO Field in Calgary on Nov. 21 at 3 p.m. Cavalry won the CPL Shield, awarded to the team with the most points in the regular season. The Calgary club finished first with 60 points and beat FC Supra du Québec 3-2 on aggregate in the other semifinal. Forge finished second in the regular season with 58 points on a record of 17 wins, four losses and seven draws. Ottawa finished third with 43 points, and Supra du Québec was fourth with 38.

This season was the first under the league’s new playoff format, which uses two-legged semifinals. The loss means Forge will finish a season without either of the CPL’s two trophies for the first time. Since the league launched in 2019, Forge has won either the CPL Shield or the North Star Cup every year, collecting four playoff titles and three Shields over seven seasons.

Nevertheless, the 2026 season was still a historic year for the club. Two weeks ago, Forge won the Voyageurs Cup in the Telus Canadian Championship for the first time. That made it the first CPL team ever to lift the trophy. The club beat five-time Cup winners CF Montréal in a 4-2 penalty shootout in Montreal after a 1-1 draw. Goalkeeper Dimitry Bertaud, who signed with Forge this winter, stopped a penalty during the match and two more in the shootout. Manjrekar James then scored the deciding kick. That win is considered one of the most important victories in the history of both Forge and the CPL.

The Canadian Championship, now in its 19th season, is the country’s top domestic knockout tournament. Forge’s path to the title began with a 4-0 win over HFX Wanderers FC in the preliminary round. It then beat CS Saint-Laurent 3-2 on aggregate in the quarterfinals and Supra du Québec 2-1 on aggregate in the semifinals, before winning the final in Montreal. The championship also earned Forge a spot in the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup. The draw for that tournament will take place on Dec. 21.

Forge head coach Bobby Smyrniotis was also named a finalist for CPL Coach of the Year. It is the eighth time in eight years he has been a finalist for the award.