It’s cup final time.

Toronto FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC will meet in the final of the 2024 TELUS Canadian Championship on Wednesday night at BC Place.

TFC are looking to lift the Voyageurs Cup for the ninth time; the Whitecaps are searching for their third-straight title. Toronto has not won since the 2020 edition – a makeshift tournament that saw them defeat Forge FC in the final in 2022. Prior to that, their last tournament win was in 2018 when they defeated Vancouver 5-2 at BMO Field in the second leg of the final, lifting the cup 7-4 on aggregate.

The two would meet again in the 2022 final, a one-off decider where the Whitecaps won on penalty kicks following a 1-1 draw at BC Place.

As a term, ‘cup final’ can evoke many things.

For John Herdman it’s simply: “Just win. Win. Find a way to win. Find a way to win.”

“It’ll not come down to the tactical piece, [though] that's an important part,” he continued. “It comes down to the moments in the game, those moments where a one-vs-one duel can decide it, those moments where someone switches off on a set piece.”

“The margins are going to be tight,” Herdman anticipated. “We have to find that way to win, but stay in the game and stay right there with that cup final intensity.”

Toronto are up for it.

“I've just met the leadership group. We've just finished our cup final connect and there was a real intense focus,” recounted the TFC coach on Tuesday afternoon. “What we've got to get done tactically, some of the elements around cup finals that that group have got to be ready to commit to and manage.”

“And then just the captain's passion and enthusiasm for the game. He's desperate to win this trophy. This group have been together for two years and they haven't been able to win anything together yet,” Herdman continued. “There was definitely some real passion and good energy coming from the skipper and you can sense how excited they are to play – not over the top; there was a real intense discussion around what we need to get done.”

That captain, Jonathan Osorio, when he leads the side out onto the pitch, will be competing in his sixth Canadian Championship final.

“It’s quite simple: we have a trophy to play for and this, as players, is what you play for,” he replied, asked what his final message to the side will be. “You play to win these championships because these are what give you your memories, as a player and as a person. These are the memories that you take with you after you're done playing and so that's what we're fighting for.”

“We're fighting to win this championship, to make this memory together, to push forward, and, of course, the most important thing, for the fans,” Osorio underlined. “This championship and this trophy is for our fans and we believe our fans deserve it more than ever.”

All season long, fixture congestion, injuries, suspensions, and the like have required attention. Minutes have needed to be managed, the bigger picture seeping into the moment. That all goes to the side for Wednesday night.

“The league is on hold. That playoff push is another chapter in our book. This one's ready to be written,” said Herdman. “[The players] have got a chance to get out there tomorrow night and do what these fans have been waiting for since [2018] – it's been a while since we've lifted a trophy and given our fans something to really celebrate.”

“But also it's that ticket into Concacaf, getting that next level of opposition, which is important for this group's evolution to where they want to get to as a club,” he continued. “The message is clear: it's a cup final. It all gets left out there. Everything.”

“And if they leave it out there together, we've got enough quality in this team to win football matches.” Herdman added. “When its come together, we've shown we can win football matches in big moments.”

It’s cup final time.

“Lorenzo [Insigne], Fede [Federico Bernardeschi], came to Canada to win trophies. They're used to winning trophies. Osorio, [Richie] Laryea, Sean Johnson – these are men that are used to winning,” listed Herdman. “They've put themselves right in that arena tomorrow night, a chance to lift some silverware for the fans, for the city, and for themselves.”

“It doesn't matter who is in front of us, it’s just a cup final,” he continued. “[Vancouver] will be on home ground and that gives them a bit of an advantage, but for us it’s just eyes on lifting some silverware for this club.”

Toronto know what to expect from Vanni Sartini’s side.

“Vancouver are a really well coached team,” said Herdman. “Vanni has a very clear identity and style. Axel [Schuster] has done a great job in recruiting a team that fits the identity and the style of play. Every player has been moulded into the way that Vancouver go about games.”

“What we know about them is they work – they work as hard as any other team in the league – and that they don't stop. They're relentless in that work.” he continued. “At the same time, tactically, I always see this team committed and together from the first whistle to the last.”

Noted Osorio: “I expect the same as always.”

“A team that really gives a lot physically, the intensity at which they play with is very high, especially at home on a big pitch, and they have quality as well,” he continued. “It's always a tough game against Vancouver, especially at BC Place, and it being a final, a group that has won the last two, we’re playing against a confident group.”

“It's going to be a tough game, but it's a final, we're up for it as well,” Osorio countered. “We're going to bring everything. The team that shows up better will win.”

The two sides met earlier this year in MLS play with Vancouver winning 4-0 at the start of April.

“Coming into Vancouver last time was pretty humbling,” said Herdman. “We had been on a decent roll. We conceded from a little error right at the beginning of the game and then got very naive towards the end with two goals, one from our set piece and then another set piece. When you come into a final, those little details have to be right.”

That was the seventh game of the season. This will be the 40th for Toronto.

“It was a game that was very early in the season. We were a very new team at that time, a lot of new players, and still trying to get a grip of our identity,” said Osorio. “Vancouver is a team that when you make mistakes, they will punish you.”

“A lot of time has passed, a lot of games have been played, and both teams are at different points now,” he continued. “It's going to be a different game. And it being a final, makes it that much more different as well.”

These are not the same teams that met back then.

“From one of the first games of the season to now one of the last games of the season, we’re different, it's a different group, and I think there will be a different level of intensity,” Herdman anticipated. “The team know each other better now and they've developed that hunger because they've put themselves in this moment. There's a hunger and desire there. They worked hard to get here and there's a chance to take a moment.”

Cup finals are just different.

“There's a certain sacrifice and a certain level of suffering that you have to be prepared to do,” said Osorio. “They're matches in which you have to bring your best attitude and give everything physically. Your performance on the ball can be there, can not be there, but in these games, it's the attitude and that cannot be missed.”

“Usually it's the teams that have that attitude along with their game plan and execute both, but you have to bring the attitude,” he closed. “The most important of the two is the attitude and the sacrifice you put into the game. For me, those are the teams that end up winning.”