Lorenzo Insigne helps Toronto FC reach Canadian Championship final

Forge FC midfielder Kyle Bekker (10) and Toronto FC midfielder Kosi Thompson (47) vie for the ball during first half Canadian Championship action in Toronto on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov

Lorenzo Insigne's goal early in the second half carried Toronto FC to a 1-0 win over Hamilton-based Forge FC on Tuesday and a berth in the Canadian Championship final.

Forge FC held a 2-1 aggregate lead after winning the first leg at Tim Hortons Field on July 10. That meant to win the semifinal TFC needed a clean sheet victory or win by at least two goals if Hamilton's Canadian Premier League club scored an away goal at Toronto's BMO Field.

Toronto FC will face the winner of the semifinal between the Vancouver Whitecaps and Pacific FC.

The Whitecaps held a 1-0 lead on aggregate heading into Tuesday's second leg between the two West Coast teams.

Regardless of who won the West Coast semifinal, British Columbia will host the Canadian Championship final in late September.

No Canadian Premier League team has ever won the Voyageurs Cup, the Canadian Championship trophy. Toronto FC has won it eight times.

Kwasi Poku and Beni Badibanga scored for Forge in the semifinal's opening leg in Hamilton before substitute Prince Owusu got a late away goal for TFC. Poku, from Brampton, Ont., was sent to Belgian side RWD Molenbeek on Aug. 21 for a CPL-record transfer fee.

It was 32 C when Tuesday's match began, but felt like 41 with the humidity at BMO Field.

Toronto FC pressed from the outset, working to not just win the match but take the semifinal's lead on aggregate. The Reds possessed the ball 69 per cent of the first half and were especially aggressive in the first 10 minutes of play.

Owusu got TFC's best first-half chance in the 31st minute, putting his foot on a cross from Federico Bernardeschi, but it deflected over the crossbar despite being within a few yards of the goal.

Owusu sank to his knees inside the goal as the ball bounced harmlessly out of bounds and Bernardeschi, who had jumped over the retaining wall as his momentum carried him off the pitch, also looked visibly frustrated.

Forge FC wasn't without its chances in the first 45 minutes of play.

Badibanga had an attempt in the 11th minute and a nice through ball to a streaking Tristan Borges in the 18th looked like an opportunity but TFC 'keeper Sean Johnson charged out to swat it to the sidelines.

Defender Daniel Parra fired a chest-high shot in on the ensuing throw in for Forge's first shot on target of the match.

Insigne earned a yellow card in the 37th minute after tugging on Badibanga's beard when they squared up after a second hard tackle took them both to the ground.

After a scoreless first half, Insigne finally got the offence Toronto FC needed.

Midfielder Derrick Etienne Jr. made a short pass from the top of the box to Bernardeschi, who sailed a cross to a wide-open, streaking Insigne on the left wing. He volleyed the ball directly into the net, then sprinted to the stadium's west stand, cupping his ears to urge TFC fans to cheer louder.

The clock had been on Forge FC's side until the goal, but with a potential 1-0 Toronto victory eliminating them from the Canadian Championship, they had to start pressing themselves.

That opened play up for both sides, with TFC almost taking a commanding two-goal lead in the 64th minute.

Etienne found an unmarked Bernardeschi inside the right side of the box. He made a quick shot past Forge 'keeper Jassem Koleilat but it hit the far post and ricocheted away.

Five minutes later, Bernardeschi swung another cross through the box, this time from the left wing, that Owusu failed to head into the net.

Substitution Nana Opoku Ampomah almost equalized for Forge in the 79th minute. Although marked by a TFC defender in the box, he got a clean boot on a looping pass from midfield, sending it in on net. A diving Johnson punched it away, however, to maintain his clean sheet.

Etienne got another shot on target in the 85th minute, but Koleilat easily scooped it up.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 27, 2024.