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  • Jordan Harvey fast becoming Whitecaps' Mr Consistent


    Michael Mccoll

    He's played every minute of every Whitecaps match so far this season and that doesn't look like changing any time soon.

    Jordan Harvey is now in his fourth season as a Whitecap after coming to Vancouver midway through the Caps' inaugural MLS season. Now, 75 appearances later and after some mixed performances in the early days, Harvey is fast becoming the Whitecaps' Mr Consistent.

    "I think it's been steady," is Harvey's view of his own season to date when AFTN caught up with him. "I think that's one of the things I've tried to do throughout my career is just to be a consistent player.

    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]

    "I've got one goal this year but I've been getting up for set pieces, getting chances, I'm right there and hopefully more can come and I can get more on the scoresheet and hopefully some assists, but I think I've had a steady season so far."

    When we spoke to Harvey down in Portland in the preseason, after scoring against Portmore United, we'd joked with him about people getting "Jordan Harvey: Goal Machine" tattoos. It's a tag that seems to have caught on. Still no word on any tattoos though.

    Up until last season, Harvey had registered just two goals since being drafted into Major League Soccer in 2006. But 2013 was to be something of a career year for the left back with four goals, as he somewhat surprisingly became a major attacking threat for the Whitecaps.

    That attacking prowess however sometimes left the Caps short at the back and whilst Harvey may not be featuring as much in Vancouver's offense this season, he has certainly shored up his defending, and been solid in the most part.

    There's still the odd tendency for him to get pulled inside, but it has been noticeable that he is hanging back more in attacks and has been one of the Whitecaps most consistent players this term much to the delight of Carl Robinson.

    "I think he's been great," Robinson told AFTN. "He's played every minute of every game in league play. Jordan's a very, very solid, reliable, top class professional and I think sometimes he goes under the radar a little bit, a bit like Steven Beitashour.

    "They're top players and in the locker room as well, they're just honest, hardworking guys.

    "I think he started the season very, very well and I think what happened then is we started exploding in the attacking areas and everybody started talking about our attacking players and the defence sort of went under the radar a little bit.

    "But I've got 100% belief in Jordan and the abilities and qualities he brings to the table. He's been very consistent and he will be throughout the season for me."

    With Kenny Miller moving on, the average age of the Whitecaps squad reduced further and Harvey now finds himself as the fourth oldest player on the roster aged just 30.

    ccs-123494-140264022856_thumb.jpgIt's a little bit of a strange scenario, but one which the ten year MLS veteran is enjoying.

    "It's nice. I was still one of the veterans when Kenny was here," Harvey notes. "Obviously he was a leader on the team and a lot of guys are going to need to step up and me being one of them, it's one of those things I like and I'm looking forward to."

    From chatting to a number of the Caps' young strikers recently, they all share how much players like Andy O'Brien and Harvey have been helping them deal with defenders and how they think and play.

    As a defender though, there's one thing Harvey knows for sure - the current Whitecaps attack is a defender's nightmare and not one any backline in the league will be keen on facing.

    "In that first game against Toronto, Kekuta came on at the end and that's something I wouldn't want to see is Kekuta Manneh coming on when you've got 80th minute legs and he's just buzzing down the sidelines. So that's one of things I think we bring to the table. Our roster is deep and fast."

    At his own end of the pitch Harvey also has a couple of young guns nipping at his heels for a starting spot, Residency product Sam Adekugbe and the Caps' first selection in this year's SuperDraft, Christian Dean.

    But having that competition for places has certainly pushed Harvey to raise his game and stay ahead of those challengers.

    "Absolutely. There's always competitiveness in any team, any good team," Harvey told us. "You have competitive spots in any position, so it helps the team as a whole.

    "It hasn't changed throughout my career. This isn't any different from any other team I've been on. You're always competing with someone for a position and it brings the best out of everyone. We're benefitting from that because we do have a lot of depth here and a lot of competition."

    With such a youthful squad assembled by Robinson this year, no-one was really sure just how they would react and perform as the gruelling ten month MLS season got underway. Harvey was one of those with concerns but pretty damn well has been the initial verdict so far.

    "I had a lot of questions going in to this season with the team," Harvey admitted to reporters recently. "It was a young team and everything, but we acquired some really quality players and then we had that first game and the expectations were huge, but we also saw how high we could reach and the bar was set.

    "I think we can maintain that. I think we have the consistency, the depth to maintain that and that's the goal."

    ccs-123494-140264022858_thumb.jpgTied in with that consistency is something else that the Whitecaps didn't have a lot of last season, stability.

    The Caps' defensive injury woes last season were well documented. This year though is a whole different story. If you take a look at the minutes logged in Vancouver's first eleven games, the difference is striking.

    Harvey and David Ousted top the table with all 990 minutes played, but the Caps' goalkeeper and regular backline (of Beitashour, DeMerit, O'Brien and Harvey) fill five of the top six places, with Matias Laba taking the other spot.

    And it's that stability and the familiarity that comes with it that has really helped the Whitecaps this season.

    "It's huge, especially the back four and goalkeeping," Harvey agrees. "You want some consistency and all that communication. I think being on the field for so long you get the tendencies of everyone and that's kind of what makes a good back line, and with goalkeepers, you know what David will come out for, what he'll stay on the line for.

    "Throughout the season, the more you can get the same backline, I think that'll benefit you."

    The absence of Beitashour will affect that a little bit for the next couple of games, but as long as Nigel Reo-Coker, and whoever else comes into that Whitecaps backline, step up, then the Caps should remain solid.

    Whilst competition for places is all well and good, consistency is the key to a lot of team's successes, and whilst it might surprise a few people, Jordan Harvey is right up there this season amongst the best of them.



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