We lost at home in front of a packed and raucous Swangard stadium. We did not play well, getting dominated in the midfield. And we’re down a goal heading into hostile territory without our captain.

But this final is far from over.

There’s still a lot of good that can be taken from last night’s game.

The Whitecaps showed a ton of character after going down a man, coming back twice to tie the game. This team truly embodies a ‘Never-say-die’ attitude. The young guns also really stepped up for this big game. USL-1 Rookie of the Year Marcus Haber lifted his team back into the game after scoring a spectacular goal; fellow rookie nominee Wes Knight assisted the second Whitecaps goal.

If anything cost the Whitecaps this game, it was the poor performances from key veteran players. The most disappointing performance came from Martin Nash, who was having a very poor game before being sent off. The red card was a harsh call on a foolish challenge by a frustrated captain, who should have known better. Usually reliable goalkeeper Jay Nolly also had a shaky game: his failure to parry a shot properly resulted in the game-winning goal. Shawn Pejic also had a very poor game.

However, one veteran player that did play well was striker Marlon James. His inclusion into the game immediately injected life into the Whitecap’s offense, with his speed and size causing the Impact defense all kinds of trouble. He scored the second tying goal and almost tied the game in the dying minutes. I would not be surprised if he started on Saturday.

There’s still plenty of reasons to hope the Whitecaps can win their third USL title. To win the championship outright, the Whitecaps have to beat the Impact at Saputo by two goals, something they’ve already done this season. The Whitecaps scored two goals against the Impact, the most goals the Impact have allowed in almost a month, and did so with only ten men.

And let us not forget, we’re playing against a team that has collapsed before in second legs.

Be Champions!

Wow! What an amazing game! My heart is still jumping a little.

The Whitecaps tie the Timbers 3-3 in a heart-pounding, instant classic, winning the aggregate series 5-4.

Props to the Portland Timbers and their amazing fans. This is by far the most intense USL game I’ve ever watched.

Secondly, props to the Montreal Impact for turning their season around and making what will certainly be an exciting All-Canadian final.

And last, but FAR from least, congratulations to the Whitecaps for playing Cinderella and defying all expectations (including my own) by making it to the finals!

That is all for now – highlights to come.

Be Champions!

Charles Gbeke gave the Whitecaps an early lead with a diving header but Portland equalized just before halftime thanks to a very dubious penalty call.

Highlights after the jump

Be Champions!

The Whitecaps are still alive and kicking in the USL playoffs. Tomorrow is the first leg against the of the semifinals against the Portland Timbers, the USL’s best team this season. This will be an interesting series as the Whitecaps are playing some of their best soccer.

But before we get to that, lets review what went right in the quarterfinals against Carolina.

Railhawks Review

The Whitecaps were winless against the Railhawks during the regular season, so why did they beat them this time?

Several reasons, the biggest of them being defending.

Our defending was solid over both legs; we did not concede a single goal. It has gotten stronger with the return of Luca Bellisomo from injury and the addition of Shawn Pejic.

Another key to winning was that our goalkeeper Jay Nolly come up big when our defense cracked. Jay Nolly coming up big. And did he ever, making a penalty save on what would have been the tying goal. Not only did his save preserve our lead in the series, but it deflated the Railhawks as well.

Lastly, this team has been boosted by the return of several players from injury, most notably Martin Nash, Luca Bellisomo and Justin Moose. Their performances were a big difference in why the Whitecaps were able to win this tight series.

Portland Preview

Portland will be a much stiffer test than Carolina. They were the league’s best team this season and were 2-1 against the Whitecaps. This season they scored the most goals (45) while at the same time conceding the fewest (19).

The good news for the Whitecaps is that every team in USL is very beatable, even the best one. In addition, Portland did not end the season in great form, finishing 2-3-1.

Keys to beating Portland

Winning at Home: It’s critical that the Whitecaps get a lead in the series , as it will be difficult to get a win in Portland.

Neutralizing the Counter Attack: The Portland Timbers are a very speedy team and have burned the Whitecaps several times this season on the counter-attack. Wes Knight and Lyle Martin will be relied upon to neutralize Portland’s speedy attackers.

Stop Keita: The Whitecaps will need an answer for Portland’s leading scorer and the league’s leading point-getter this season.

Be Champions!

Here are highlights from both legs:

First Leg: Vancouver 1-0 Carolina

Second Leg: Vancouver 0-0 Carolina

The Whitecaps were winless against the Railhawks this season, losing to them once and tying them twice. Even though the Railhawks finished much higher in the standings there is not much that separates these two teams.

Railhawk Dangers

Gregory Richardson. The Guyanese striker is most famous for scoring a hat-trick against the New England Revolution in last years Concacaf Champions League. He has scored six goals in only twelve appearances and has the ability to tear through our defense if we are not careful.

Here are some clips of what he can do (and has done against us):

However, Richardson is far from Carolina’s only goal scoring threat: the team has four other players with at least five goals. This team has multiple attacking threats for the Whitecaps to be concerned about.

Keys to Victory

Solid Defending: Defense has been the main issue for the Whitecaps all season, and winning in the playoffs is all about defending well. The Railhawks have many goal-scoring threats, so shutting down just Richardson will not be enough.

Jay Nolly Comes up Big: Even if we defend well, the Railhawks will get their chances. It is critical that when they do, that our goalkeeper Jay Nolly comes up big, something he has done a lot of this season.

A Home Victory: The Whitecaps have not done well on the road this season, winning only two games. Getting a win at home is critical to winning this aggregate series.

The Whitecaps finished with an 11-10-9 record. They were also the third highest scoring team in the league with a +6 goal differential. Charles ‘The Beast’ Gbeke led the league with 12 goals scored with oft-injured Marlon James and rookie Marcus Haber also among the top ten goal scorers in the league. To help with the goal-scoring, Wes Knight contributed in a league-leading 8 assists.

However, not all the stats paint such a nice picture. After all, the Whitecaps finished in the last playoff spot, and of all the playoff-bound teams, the Whitecaps have conceded the most goals. Not a surprise considering the teams considerable defensive woes. Another dubious stat: Charles Gbeke had the second most fouls in the league.

In all, it was not a bad regular season for the Whitecaps. In fact, with a very different and younger team, they did a bit better than I expected them to. The stats show that this was a team that clicked on offense, but let goals in like it was going out of style. Many young players, like Marcus Haber, Wes Knight and Ethan Gage made meaningful contributions.

And let’s not forget, this team is a work in progress that is building for 2011.

Be Champions!

Not a positive result, but one could certainly say it is better than we deserved. The Whitecaps had not played a good game: the Impact had had several good scoring chances and the Caps had only really threatened once.

In fact, ten minutes earlier the Impact should have been up 1-0. Peter Byers had beaten two Whitecaps defenders and slammed a spectacular volley into the back of the net. But, the goal was called back because of a foul, not by Byers, but by a defender who was tugging his jersey. Referee Silvio Petrescu failed to call advantage and in moments the entire stadium was booing his every move (even me, he called back a spectacular goal).

Soccer is like life, and life is rarely fair. The Whitecaps came off the good end of a terrible call inflicted on their opponents. The result as it stood wasn’t just – which is why I thought it was going to stand.

But then in added time, the Whitecaps helped the Gods of Football, allowing Byers to score and Impact win 1-0. Justice was restored and Petrescu’s ass was saved. The Whitecaps had done their part…

…wait, who I am kidding? Our defending was terrible: Byers beat four defenders in the 92nd minute, when solid defending is needed most.

After this game, I don’t think we’re going far in the playoffs. I’m hoping the next match will change my mind.

Game Notes:

Be Champions!

Anyways, back to business:

Despite a very up and down season (Nutrilite success, the Disgrace, the Wesley Charles saga, growing pains, injury pains) it finally looks like we’re going to make the playoffs. I guess that’s possible in a league where seven teams make it in a league with only eleven teams. Even though the closest team Miami have two games in hand, they are eleven points behind and have not been playing well as of late.

The question now is where will the the Whitecaps finish in the standings. We could finish as high as 5th if we end the season strong. However, I’m not too confident we’ll be doing much leapfrogging. Even though the Whitecaps play has been better of late, it hasn’t been exactly stellar. The team is currently on a seven game unbeaten streak, but most of those results have been draws. Even in the win against Austin we looked very shaky at times. It would be nice if we entered the playoffs on an even higher note.

With all that said, the Whitecaps are doing better than I expected, considering they are a young, inexperienced team. Yes we may be squeaking into the playoffs, but at least it looks like we will be in the playoffs. This all bodes well for next season and in two years when we enter MLS.

Be Champions!