While Toronto FC coach John Herdman is watching the MLS playoffs from afar, his son is gearing up to play in one of the biggest games of his young career.
Jay Herdman is on loan to Cavalry FC, a Calgary-based team that will host Hamilton’s Forge FC in Saturday’s Canadian Premier League final at ATCO Field, starting at 3 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. MT. It’s a rematch of last year’s championship match and a repeat of the 2019 final in the CPL’s inaugural season, both won by Forge, who will be shooting for their third consecutive league title (and fifth in six years) this weekend.
Standing in its way is Cavalry, the hottest team in the CPL down the final stretch of the regular season. Herdman, a 20-year-old midfielder, has been a solid late-season addition for the Cavs, scoring one goal and adding an assist in seven total appearances to help them reach the CPL Finals.
Cavalry lost only one home game in the CPL in 2024, and they had the best defensive record with just 27 goals against in 28 matches. They also boasted the third-best attack in the league, led by Golden Boot winner Tobias Warschewski. All of which, according to Herdman, makes Cavalry the favourite going into this weekend’s showdown with Forge.
“As a team, defensively, we’re the best in the league, so it just gives the attackers a lot more confidence to go out there and really put on a show for the fans and finally win a CPL championship for Cavalry,” Herdman told Sportsnet.
Herdman is enjoying life in the CPL after toiling in the Vancouver Whitecaps’ system. Before coming to Cavalry, he served as captain of the Whitecaps’ reserve club in the developmental league known as MLS Next Pro. He joined the Whitecaps youth academy in 2017 before signing with Whitecaps FC 2 in 2022. He had nine goals and five assists in 46 all-time appearances for the club, but it’s fair to say his career was stagnating in Vancouver.
Looking to push himself, he was given a life line and a chance to test himself at a higher level when Cavalry signed him on a season-ending loan. He made his debut when he came off the bench on Sept. 15 in a 2-2 draw against Atlético Ottawa. On Oct. 5, he marked his first CPL start by scoring his first goal and tallying his first assist for Cavalry in a 4-1 road win over Pacific FC. Ever since, he’s been a regular fixture for the Cavs in their run up to Saturday’s final.
Although the CPL has plenty of young prospects, the average age of the players in the league does skew a bit older than MLS Next Pro, which has played a big part in Herdman’s personal development over the past two months.
“I was fortunate to join a top side like Cavalry, coming into one of the best teams in the league. I’m playing with a lot of players, great players around me, and that’s getting the best out of myself. It’s a physical league, with some really quick and technical players. So, joining the CPL, it’s been a good step for me,” Herdman said.
“The main difference is the CPL is men’s football. MLS Next Pro is great in that academy kids can make that push and hopefully get a first team deal in MLS. There’s also a line between winning and developing. But here in the CPL, people just want to win. I think it was the right time for me to try something else, try something new.”
Although he grew up in Canada, Herdman was born in New Zealand in 2004 while his father was there working for New Zealand Football. Before he served as coach for Canada’s women’s and men’s national teams, John Herdman served as head coach for the New Zealand women’s team from 2006 to 2011. His son has played for New Zealand at the youth level since 2022, turning out for the country’s under-19, 20 and 22 sides. Jay also represented New Zealand at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup held in Argentina.
It was after competing for New Zealand at this summer’s Paris Olympics that Herdman came to the realization that he had outgrown MLS Next Pro. Going up against France and the United States in the group stage allowed him to see how he measured up against older international players who feature for big clubs in Europe.
A loan move to the CPL quickly materialized, allowing the promising midfielder to play against fully professional players in a league with a higher standard of competition.
“Having a Canadian Premier League, I’ve always said it creates a great foundation for players, particularly of that age. … The league itself is super competitive; there’s some top players in that league. But for young players, I think it’s a hell of an opportunity,” John Herdman said.
“He came back from the Olympics (after) a month playing with players all playing at the highest levels around the world. He said, ‘Dad, I need to play with men. I really need to play with men.’ I think he got frustrated in the other capacities.”
Added John Herdman: “He’s really enjoyed being in that (professional) locker room and getting a sense of what that pressure is to play every week in front of 5,000 fans. He’s really enjoying the experience. The (CPL) provides a wonderful stepping stone for a young player like that.”
John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 25 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer.
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