Atletico Ottawa wins CPL’s North Star Cup in snowy showdown

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OTTAWA — Atlético Ottawa won the North Star Cup for the first time in its history, although it took four hours to record a 2-1 victory in a snowy showdown over the defending champion Calgary Cavaliers.

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Ottawa's David Rodriguez needed overtime to score the decisive goal, his second of the night, which he finally got past Cavalry goalkeeper Marco Carducci in the 106th minute.

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Home field advantage was a real factor for second seed Atlético Madrid (15-2-11), who have not lost at home since August 3, 2024, when they lost to third seed Cavalieri this season (11-8-9).

This time, TD Place was shrouded in thick fog due to heavy snowfall, creating a distinctly and stereotypically Canadian fight.

Atlético, a team led by head coach Diego Mejia that often emphasizes ball movement, adapted to the weather by speeding up the sides of the pitch. The visitors maintained a strong position and were one of the toughest defensive units in the Canadian Premier League playoffs, conceding just one goal in two matches.

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The stalemate began when a desperate tackle by Ottawa midfielder Kevin Dos Santos resulted in a penalty as the Cavaliers' attack broke through the Ottawa defense.

In the 33rd minute, Cavalry defender Fraser Aird sent the ball into the bottom right corner. As evidence of the rivalry between the teams, Atlético fans greeted the celebrating guests with a hail of snowballs.

But just six minutes later Ottawa midfielder Gabriel Antonaro lofted a ball into the box that eluded the crowd through the snow until midfielder Rodriguez made a bold bicycle kick, hitting a beauty standing on the crossbar for the game's tying goal.

Chances were hard to come by in the second half as the ever-increasing snow caused players to blow a tire due to lack of traction.

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The best defender of the deadlock was Ottawa's substitute midfielder Aboubakar Sissoko, who heroically saved a shot off the goal line with just over 10 minutes left in regulation.

After the snow plows cleared most of the snow at the end of the full 90 minutes, the extra-time game became a different game as the players didn't have to struggle to stay on their feet.

This led to a fast break in which Atlético's Rodriguez played hero for the second time, racing past Cavalry defender and goalscorer Aird to score the championship-clinching goal past Carducci.

Cavaleria fought desperately for the lead in the final minutes of extra time, but Atlético managed to clinch the North Star Cup.

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