Our search for Vancouver Whitecaps and 86ers All-Time Greats is back!
After some discussions, we went away and tweaked the format a bit to speed things along and ensure the first part of our series can finish and tie in with the big anniversary game against San Jose on May 3rd.
With three greats down and 33 spots still to be filled, we're looking to vote in another four All-Time Greats this week.
<a href="http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/content.php?5214-Vancouver-Whitecaps-All-Time-Greats-Phil-Parkes" target="_blank"><u>Phil Parkes</u></a>, <a href="http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/content.php?5231-Vancouver-Whitecaps-All-Time-Greats-Paul-Dolan" target="_blank"><u>Paul Dolan</u></a> and <a href="http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/content.php?5240-Vancouver-Whitecaps-All-Time-Greats-Joe-Cannon" target="_blank"><u>Joe Cannon</u></a> have claimed the goalkeeper spots in the NASL, CSL/D2 and MLS era teams respectively.
This week we move to the outfield positions, and instead of going position by position, we're going to select our back four for the Whitecaps' <b>NASL XI</b>.
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If you're new to the series, just a quick recap and an explanation of the tweaks we've made.
In December we <a href="http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/content.php?5141-AFTN-launches-our-Vancouver-Whitecaps-All-Time-Greats" target="_blank"><u>announced</u></a> the launch of our interactive series to find the All-Time Greats, position by position, from the last forty years of Vancouver Whitecaps and 86ers football in this, the original Whitecaps, 40th anniversary year.
The Caps' teams will be split into three eras, selecting the best XI from the <b>NASL days (1974 to 1984)</b>, the <b>CSL/D2 days (1987 to 2010)</b> and the <b>MLS days (2011 to present day)</b>. All teams will line up in a 4-4-2 formation and then a final All Time Greats XI selected.
Every Sunday(ish) we'll run an article on here to vote for certain positions for one of the era XI's. We'll be splitting the NASL and CSL/D2 weekly sections into goalkeeper, back four, midfield maestros, strikers and managers. We'll chat about some of the possible contenders for the crown and list (hopefully) all the eligible players to jog some memories.
We're going to complete the NASL team first (because of something else we're working on around that), then move on to completing the D2/CSL era team. The MLS team (Cannon aside) will now all be selected in one week at the end of the first part of the series.
You can cast your vote in the article comments, on Twitter, on Facebook, and on the Southsiders forum. Voting will run from the Sunday till 11.59pm on the Friday. You don't have to have seen the players play to vote. Just know your history.
So, summary over, we continue the series by moving into the backline in front of Phil Parkers, as we try and narrow down a back four of defenders from the NASL era.
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Part of the reason for our delay and tweaking was that over the years, especially in the early days, players played in a variety of positions for the Whitecaps during their career.
Some started at the back and moved to the midfield, others started in attacking roles and dropped back and some defenders played several positions across the backline.
Sure it could mean three or four primarily central defenders, or a couple of right backs, but we feel this does the memory of their contributions to the team more service.
Do you vote solely for their contributions to the Caps, in what the team achieved whilst they play for them and/or how long they played for the club? Do you take other outside achievements in to account? Or do you base your selections purely and simply on skill and talent, no matter how long they played in the blue and white? Then there's those players who played in the NASL for the Whitecaps but later returned to play for the 86ers in the CSL. That's all for all of you to decide!
So rambling over, which players stand a chance of making it into our NASL All-Time Greats Back Four?
The Whitecaps had 39 defenders on their squads during their 11 seasons, you can add a couple more into that mix if you include some that primarily played their Caps careers elsewhere but had a one or two in the defence. All but six of those 39 players saw some minutes for the Whitecaps in NASL action.
We're not going to go through profiles of each and every one for you but we do want to mention the top five appearance makers and some notable others.
Leading the way is current Whitecaps President and playing legend <b>Bobby Lenarduzzi</b>. The Duze played all 11 seasons for the Caps in the NASL era and his number 5 jersey has long been retired. He made a total of 281 for the Whitecaps, scoring 31 goals and notching 57 assists. Primarily a right back, he dabbled a little in the midfield but it's his tearing runs up the right wing that people remember most.
Keeping it in the family is his brother <b>Sam Lenarduzzi</b>, who is next in the Caps appearances for defender with 98 in his five year Whitecaps career. One of the versatile players we talked about, Sam could play full back, central defence, sweeper and even in midfield, from where he was named North American Player of the Year in 1978. Sam grabbed 2 goals and 3 assists from his Caps appearances.
Just behind him in the Caps defenders NASL appearance charts is central defender <b>Bruce Wilson</b>. The Canadian international captained his country at the 1986 World Cup but before that, his 299 NASL appearances placed him second in the League's all-time appearances. 92 of those came for the Whitecaps in four seasons from 1974 to 1977. He grabbed 4 goals and 19 appearances during those. Wilson is the current long-time head coach of the UVic Vikes.
All three of the above players were in the first ever Whitecaps starting eleven when they faced off against San Jose on May 5th 1974.
<b>Paul Nelson</b> may not be a name familiar to some of the current crop of Caps fans, but after signing for Vancouver as an 18 year old, he went on to have a seven season Caps career between 1978 and 1984, making 76 appearances and contributing 11 assists. He was part of the 1979 Soccer Bowl winning squad, but did not make an appearance that season and went on to be Reserve team and assistant coach for the Caps/86ers during the D2 era.
A defender who most certainly did play an important role in the Soccer Bowl winning season was captain <b>John Craven</b> <i>(pictured)</i>. The veteran of 17 years in English football had started off as a striker but made the switch to defender in his later years and that is where he played for Vancouver. He only spent three seasons with the Whitecaps but made an impression and is 5th in Whitecaps defender NASL appearances with 70, contributing 10 goals and 2 assists.
The Caps have had several legendary names in their defence over the years.
<b>Colin Todd</b> is a defensive legend in England for his time with Derby County and the national team. He has the unique distinction of playing one season with the Vancouver Royals in 1967 then returning to the city 17 years later in 1984 to play a nostalgic 8 games for the Caps in their final NASL season.
Another English international was <b>Dave Watson</b>. Most remembered (by me at any rate!) for his times with Sunderland and Manchester City, Watson played the 1983 season for Vancouver, making 26 appearances, with 3 goals and 3 assists. That makes him 13th in our defenders appearance lift and you have to wonder what he could have achieved here if he had played more.
No recap of Vancouver's NASL defenders would be complete without the mention of Dutch master <b>Rudi Krol</b>. He only had one year in Vancouver, 1980, but his skill is still talked about by those who saw him in his 14 appearances that provided 5 assists.
The full list, in order of appearances is as follows:
So that's the contenders for the four spots on offer, now it's up to you guys for the voting.
Who is your pick to make the <b>Vancouver Whitecaps NASL XI</b> back four?
Will you go for a straight right back, left back and two central defender combination or are there just two many versatile defenders in there that have to be in the team but may be forced to play in just one of the many positions they could have played or out of position altogether, but you know they can handle it?
Let us know below, on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/aftncanada" target="_blank"><u>Twitter</u></a>, on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/aftn.canada/" target="_blank"><u>Facebook</u></a> or on the <a href="http://vancouversouthsiders.ca/forum/discussion/4165/vancouver-whitecaps-all-time-greats#Item_1" target="_blank"><u>Southsiders</u></a> forum. You can leave your comment under your name or as anonymous, whatever is easier for you.
And share your memories and stories of any of these guys for us all to enjoy.
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