# 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.
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. 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.

## Current squad

    As of September 7, 2023
| No. | Name | 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 |
| 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 |
| 8 | FW | Massimo Ferrin | Vaughan Azzurri | Free | December 21, 2022 |
| 6 | MF | Lorenzo Callegari | Chambly | Free | January 10, 2023 |
| 1 | GK | Yann-Alexandre Fillion | IFK Mariehamn | Free | January 18, 2023 |
| 23 | DF | Riley Ferrazzo | Vaughan Azzurri | Free | January 20, 2023 |
| 14 | MF | Callum Watson | Creighton Bluejays | Free | January 25, 2023 |
| 5 | DF | Cale Loughrey | Forge FC | Free | February 1, 2023 |
| 24 | MF | Tomas Giraldo | CF Montréal | Free | February 3, 2023 |
| 9 | FW | Théo Collomb | Whitecaps FC 2 | Free | February 8, 2023 |
| 7 | DF | Ryan James | Birmingham Legion | Free | February 15, 2023 |
| 2 | DF | Daniel Nimick | Western Michigan Broncos | Free | February 17, 2023 |
| 13 | MF | Armaan Wilson | Providence Friars | Free | February 22, 2023 |
| 11 | FW | Kosi Nwafornso | Vaughan Azzurri | Free | February 24, 2023 |
| | DF | Ethan Schilte-Brown | | Signed to a development contract | March 12, 2023 |
| | FW | Kimani Stewart-Baynes | Vaughan Azzurri U19 | Signed to a development contract | March 12, 2023 |
| 66 | GK | Aiden Rushenas | Dalhousie Tigers | Selected 10th overall in the 2023 CPL–U Sports Draft | April 5, 2023 |
| 15 | DF | Doneil Henry | Minnesota United | Free | July 18, 2023 |
| | DF | Yorgos Gavas | Whitecaps FC Academy | Signed to a development contract | August 3, 2023 |
| | MF | Camilo Vasconcelos | Guelph United | Signed to a development contract | September 7, 2023 |

#### 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 | |

#### 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 |
| 11 | FW | Akeem Garcia | Retired | | October 28, 2022 |
| 1 | GK | Kieran Baskett | Pacific FC | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 50 | GK | Christian Oxner | | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 2 | DF | Peter Schaale | | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 19 | DF | Obeng Tabi | CS Saint-Laurent | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 31 | DF | Eriks Santos | | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 28 | MF | Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé | York United | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 7 | FW | Alex Marshall | | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 8 | FW | Elhadji Mour Samb | | Option declined | December 6, 2022 |
| 5 | MF | Pierre Lamothe | Pacific FC | Contract expired | December 6, 2022 |
| 21 | MF | Marcello Polisi | Valour FC | Contract expired | December 6, 2022 |
| 23 | FW | Cory Bent | | Contract expired | December 6, 2022 |
| | 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 |
| | DF | Ethan Schilte-Brown | | Development contract ended | June 13, 2023 |
| 11 | FW | Kosi Nwafornso | | Contract terminated by mutual consent | June 13, 2023 |
| | FW | Kimani Stewart-Baynes | | Development contract ended | July 5, 2023 |
| 25 | FW | Ludwig Kodjo Amla | | Suspended for anti-doping violation | August 2, 2023 |

#### Loans out

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

## 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.

## Competitions

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

### Overview

| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | 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 | Total | Total | Total | 10 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 14 | −5 | 010.00 |
Last updated: 13 June, 2023 Source: Competitions

### Canadian Premier League
#### Table

| Pos | Teamvte | 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 | First semifinal |
| 3 | HFX Wanderers | 28 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 39 | 32 | +7 | 42 | 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 | Play-in round |
| 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 | |
* 1 2 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 |