Injury-ravaged TFC edges second-string Whitecaps 30 Jun 2011 Nick Soolsma's 54th-minute penalty kick cinched a 1-0 win for Toronto FC over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday night at BMO Field in a game that served as a dress rehearsal for Saturday's Nutrilite Canadian Championship final between these same two teams. At least, the Whitecaps saw it as a dress rehearsal. With several regulars left on the bench, it was clear that Vancouver was already looking ahead to the weekend.
Vancouver ties it up with shorthanded Red Bulls 29 May 2011 The script was reversed on Saturday. The fireworks came early at Empire Field, and then the Vancouver Whitecaps and New York Red Bulls played out a tense chess match in the second half as the club drew 1-1. When the Whitecaps play at home, Canadian soccer fans have become used to seeing last-second comebacks, second-half momentum changes and thrills right before the final whistle.
Gerba’s gaffe sends fortunate Whitecaps to NCC final 5 May 2011 But, the Montreal Impact should be the one going through. All Gerba had to do was convert what was a pretty automatic scoring chance in the dying seconds of extra time. But, with Whitecaps keeper Jay Nolly at his mercy and no defender in sight, Gerba's header crashed off the post. The Whitecaps escaped with a 2-1 aggregate win; a 1-1 draw on the night.
Whitecaps dull for 70, inspired for 20, in loss to Crew 1 May 2011 The final 20 minutes of the Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 loss Saturday in Columbus — which saw the visitors throw everything they had at Crew keeper Will Hesmer in a wild attempt to pull another game out of the fire — wasn’t enough to erase 70 minutes of indifferent play. Don’t let the Whitecaps’ frantic attempt to come back from a two-goal deficit fool you; the Caps came into this game with a very negative mentality.
What a weekend! Four Canadian teams in action 8 Apr 2011 Program the PVR. Make sure your Internet connection is fast enough to allow for multiple streams. This weekend marks a landmark in Canadian soccer. Four professional clubs are in action; FC Edmonton and the Montreal Impact kick off their NASL campaigns Saturday with road games in Florida. And MLS? Toronto FC visits the San Jose Earthquakes Saturday night. And the Vancouver Whitecaps head to Texas to take on the Houston Dynamo on Sunday. Of the weekend’s action, only Montreal and FC Edmonton overlap.
Whitecaps’ stunning comeback overshadows Bunbury’s goals 3 Apr 2011 It was as if the script was written by Vince McMahon. The heel takes some early liberties. Then, the crowd roars as the hero gets off the mat. In this case, the heel was Teal Bunbury — the Sporting Kansas City forward scored twice to stake his team to a 3-0 lead over the Vancouver Whitecaps at Empire Field. The hero? Camilo da Silva Sanvezzo, who scored twice in stoppage times as the Whitecaps roared back to snatch a 3-3 draw in what has to go down as one of the most exciting games in MLS history.
MLS officiating crackdown already taking its toll 27 Mar 2011 Before the kickoff of the season, MLS headquarters instructed its officials to crack down on fouls in the box and to make absolutely certain that a player was in an offside position before raising the flag. More penalties, more cards, less offside calls — the recipe to boost scoring. We are clearly seeing the effect of the mandate. Fans will likely have to get used to seeing the flag stay down more often than not.
10-man Whitecaps lose on controversial Ruiz goal 27 Mar 2011 The Vancouver Whitecaps gave it their best shot to maintain their perfect season here yesterday against the Philadelphia Union and their boisterous Sons of Ben fan club —which cheers its heroes and jeers the opposition nonstop the entire game. They really did. But in the end the Caps simply couldn’t overcome a red card to striker Eric Hassli — his second yellow-card infraction of the day — forcing them to play a man down the final 35 minutes. The Union applied consistent pressure from there, finally converting an opportunity goal from Carlos Ruiz in the 79th minute to squeeze out a 1-0 win that might’ve been a different story otherwise.