“Overall, I was actually very encouraged about the game,” said Vancouver head coach Martin Rennie. “It was a very young team from us – lots of inexperienced players. For most of the game, we were doing well. We were on top for quite a long time. Obviously, (we’re) disappointed that we lost the goals that we did. I thought we could have defended those a little bit better given that we hardly gave up any chances throughout the game.”

The Vancouver Whitecaps have succeeded where Toronto FC has failed — in signing a member of the Honduran Olympic squad.

Within the first five minutes of Vancouver’s opening game of the Carolina Challenge Cup against the Charleston Battery, Darren Mattocks and Kekuta Manneh demonstrated their dynamic and dangerous partnership that fans are hoping will lead the Whitecaps to success this season. By the 30th minute, Manneh had already bagged a pair of goals — one with Mattock’s assistance –— en …

While there isn’t a coach or manager in the world who doesn’t want to see his or her team’s defence prevent as many scoring chances as it can, it might serve the Whitecaps to see their keepers’ feet put to the fire.

The Whitecaps may have signed a slew of attacking players over the last week, but Darren Mattocks re-established himself as the big man on campus after the team’s first preseason game of 2013.

Kobayashi will now call Vancouver home, as the Whitecaps announced Monday that the 29-year-old had signed, adding yet another attacking player to group of hopefuls that include three young project players the team signed last week.

Unfortunately for Argentine defender Martin Bonjour, the final memory most Whitecaps fans will have of him is this: Looking back towards referee Silviu Petrescu, arms raised in innocence, as the official points to the spot.

USL President Tim Holt said it was a “seamless transition” to bring the Vancouver Whitecaps and Montreal Impact back into the USL-Pro fold.

The Whitecaps announced the signings of three men Wednesday who fall very much into the “project player” category: Paulo Jr., Tom Heinemann and Corey Hertzog.

“We are thankful for the contributions Barry made during his time with the club. Unfortunately Barry and his family never fully settled in Vancouver, and we’ve mutually decided to move in different directions,” said Whitecaps FC president Bob Lenarduzzi in that release.