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    Danny Califf and karma

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    "(Danny Califf is) a proven defender in our league, and a player with a lot of character."
    That's how Kevin Payne introduced Califf to the TFC (increasingly less) faithful. It's possible that he forgot to add "in 2005...and if he's somewhere he's happy, preferably Philadelphia."
    Regardless, it's pretty clear that he hasn't lived up to the pre-season expectations that were placed on him. He's rooted to the bench (when he's even in the city) of a club that doesn't defend all that well.
    The warning signs were there. Califf is 33. He was always a player that relied on smarts and toughness more than speed. That's fine, so long as you have enough speed to allow for the other factors to matter.
    The evidence at hand suggests that he no longer does. This is a player that was benched for the final four games of 2012 while playing for the worst defensive club in the west and who can't currently break the line-up of the worst defensive club in the world (caution: statement may contain hyperbole).
    Sometimes when the end comes it comes quickly. The end may have came for Califf.
    However, this isn't really news. It's been obvious for a while. That it probably should have been obvious to Payne in December is somewhat secondary to the bigger concern right now.
    What the hell do you do with him?
    Sadly, TFC can't trade with itself, so finding a blind buyer is going to be difficult. Chivas already dropped him - and he isn't Mexican - so the other impossibly bad franchise isn't in the mix here either.
    The Philadelphia trade rumours are just that -- rumours. It's likely just nostalgic dreaming by Union fans (or Califf's agent) pushing those ideas.
    As stated, the guy is done. No one is going to take him at his salary point.
    At least not at the moment. The only way that might change is if Califf proves all of us wrong and shows that he can still be valuable to a team.
    He can only do that if he plays. So, at the risk of seeming counterproductive, it might be in TFC's best interest to trot him out a few times over the next 6-weeks.
    This is a rare case where playing a veteran might be better for the long term gain of the club than continuing to play the kids. See, If Califf shows that he's fit enough to play he might yield an asset from a team looking for defensive depth.
    Otherwise he rots on the bench for the season before being released for nothing.
    For most MLS clubs, the latter option wouldn't be the end of the world. However, TFC has another burden to overcome: it's terrible reputation amongst players for treating players poorly.
    This isn't Football Manager. If it was the little dots on the screen wouldn't talk to one another. As it is, the players do talk and they will view a year long Califf benching as yet another black mark against the franchise - even if it's merited.
    The 6-weeks of karma might be more valuable than any experience Boss or Henry get.
    It's probably not ideal, but neither is the mess TFC has created since 2007. They can't afford to play fast and loose with players anymore and that might entail taking some short term hits for a longer gain.
    Guest
    FIFA has maintained its Women's World Ranking for just over 10 years now.*
    In that time, Germany has never been ranked lower than #3 in the world. They've been ranked #1 or #2 on the planet for 90% of that time, including on the most-recent rankings (March 2013) and presumably on the next set of rankings, set to be released on Friday. They've also won two Women's World Cup titles and two Olympic medals (a pair of bronzes).
    Canada has been ranked in the top 10 for less than half of that time, peaking at #6 in March 2011 -- though the team has been ranked at #7 for the last year and a half. The shining tournament performances have been a fourth place finish at the 2003 Women's World Cup and, of course, last summer's Olympic bronze.
    All of this would have been interesting information to have ahead of Wednesday's friendly between the two squads, in an attempt to guess what was going to happen. But even after the fact, it helps contextualize an outcome that should realistically not have come as much of a surprise to anyone (except for, perhaps, the fact the Germans only managed to find the back of the net once).
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Another telling piece of info is that Canada has never earned a result against the Germans, with 11 losses in 11 all-time meetings. That being said, there was still the chance, late in Wednesday's match, that some piece of individual magic would have earned Big Red that first result -- even if such a tally would have been against the run of play. That's the advantage of keeping a game close -- being outplayed doesn't ultimately matter if you can find a way to steal a result (see: Canada v. France, last two meetings).
    Even the most rose-coloured-glasses-wearing of the CanWNT faithful will readily concede that Germany controlled Wednesday's game in front of a lively home crowd. It's no insult to the Canadian players to admit that; after all, as we've empirically established, Germany is very, very good at women's soccer -- and has been for a long time.
    That's not to say the Canadians weren't up for the challenge on Wednesday. The game featured a good number of crunching tackles and painful moments (among them, Sophie Schmidt getting clobbered twice in quick succession, Carmelina Moscato butting heads with a German opponent and Christine Sinclair getting her foot maliciously stomped while awaiting a free kick).
    And as head coach John Herdman said after the game, had Diana Matheson converted an early opportunity, the entire tenor of the affair would have been changed.
    As it was, the Germans could easily have padded their lead had posts not been hit (they were), incisive crosses been just slightly mis-hit or barely missed by attackers (they were) or if Canadian goalkeeper Erin McLeod hadn't had an outstanding performance that served to further support Herdman's faith in her as the team's #1 goalkeeper (she did).
    But they didn't. So we're left with a 1-0 scoreline that doesn't reflect the disparity in other categories, such as shots, corners and time of possession. Then again, the 1-0 scoreline in the 2012 Olympic bronze-medal game didn't really reflect the run of play either -- difference being, we were the beneficiaries that time.
    All told, regardless of the result, the game was exactly what we knew it was all along: Another step on the road to the 2015 Women's World Cup. Herdman has spoken about the need to bridge the gap between the generation of players that earned that surprising bronze in London and the generation that will carry the team through the next few WWC/Olympic cycles.
    To that end, he's taking a blended integration approach that has so far yielded some decent results. Contrary to what some may say (and this applies to both the men's and women's national team at the present moment), the idea of completely cutting ties with the existing generation of established players is naive and would surely prove disastrous. Had Herdman decided to field an all under-23 lineup against the Germans on Wednesday, sure, more youngsters would have gotten experience against a world-class team -- but what harm would the surely-lopsided scoreline have done to the team's psyche?
    Instead, we saw two newcomers earn starts -- Kadeisha Buchanan, the teenage centreback who is unquestionably the team's most encouraging success story of the year and a mainstay of the team for years to come, and Melissa Busque, who earned her first senior-team cap with hard work during training camp and who showed some promise during the 90 minutes (even if she likely could have done better on a second-half chance set up by a Sinclair pass).
    Rachel Melhado also earned her first senior-team cap as a second-half sub, while Adriana Leon and Danica Wu continued their transition from the U20 team to the senior squad. Are these players all going to be a factor heading into 2015? We don't know. But did any of them look hopelessly out of place against a strong, organized German side on the day? No, they didn't.
    Herdman can't wave a magic wand to produce a new crop of top-level-ready players. The next generation will come from somewhere, of course. Whether they're currently in the youth ranks, or Canadians playing abroad who've slipped under the radar to this point, or some combination of the two remains to be seen. But the only way Herdman will know for sure is to keep doing exactly what was done on Wednesday: Play games against top-quality opposition, to provide a stern test, and give players reasonable opportunities to show what they can do.
    Of course, the only game Canada currently has on its calendar is a friendly against South Korea in Edmonton in October. And the nearly year-long gap between the team's scintillating Olympic run and its return to Canadian soil seemed like a terrible waste of the goodwill and excitement generated by the bronze medal win.
    So we can wring our hands about the difference in shots on goal, or passes completed, or the fact that Germany has the depth to bring in a player who was short-listed for the Ballon d'Or in 2010 as a sub. But if we're going to wring our hands about those facts and figures, then we can't ignore the main concern of those who obsess over statistics: Sample size.
    In London, we saw what a Canadian team can do when the stars align and the right performances coalesce with the right circumstances. At the last Women's World Cup, we saw the exact opposite. And the rest of the team's recent history has been, quite frankly, a mixed bag.
    So which team is the "real" Canada? What are our realistic chances of making noise at the World Cup on Canadian soil (err, turf) in less than two years' time? What do we really have in the likes of newcomers such as Leon, Buchanan, Busque and Wu?
    To know the answer, we need more games. Herdman needs more games, and the players need more games. There's no guarantee playing more games will mean better results. But it will at least provide an opportunity to more accurately calibrate our expectations around the team, as the London bronze-medal drifts further and further into the past.
    If you're interested, here are the respective rankings the two countries have had on each installment of the FIFA rankings since 2003:
    Germany: 3, 3, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2
    Canada: 12, 12, 11, 11, 11, 11, 12, 11, 11, 12, 12, 13, 12, 11, 10, 11, 10, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 10, 11, 11, 11, 13, 12, 11, 13, 9, 6, 8, 9, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7
    .
    Guest

    #TrophiesNotFr...ScrewItIGiveUp

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    In the infamous words of Whitesnake, Here We Go Again.
    Toronto FC is planning a friendly. Well, "Toronto FC is planning a friendly?" according to the official Website. Because, lord knows, the official Toronto FC website needs that question mark.
    This shouldn't be a shock to anyone paying attention to either MLSE or new top dog Tim Leiweke. What was surprising is that MLSE took a year off the friendly fix in 2011, not that they are back at it now.
    Leiweke is a full on addict in this regard. Just wait until TFC had a player to barnstorm with (see: Beckham, David -- with LA Galaxy for examples).
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Is it a "money grab?" Of course it is. MLSE isn't a charity. Everything it does is with an eye to making money. Taken alone, that shouldn't necessarily be an issue. Taken in the context of what TFC has been since 2007...well, it should be a bit much for fans
    The early reaction to the trial balloon has been predictable. Those engaged with the Reds enough to even be aware of the news don't like friendlies. The hashtag #TrophiesNotFriendlies has made a comeback. Presumably because #LobotomiesRatherThanEnduringYetAnotherLateGameCollapse is too long.
    Anyway. This is probably happening. The harsh truth is that those pushing the no-friendlies-ever approach aren't the target audience of these type of initiatives. The empty seats in the middle of BMO Field and those that don't fill them are. That's especially the case when those absent are usually found at Scallywags and The Football Factory watching their favourite Euro teams.
    So this is probably happening and it will sell better than anyone in the supporter's community wants to admit.
    Especially since it's probably going to be Juventus.
    Guest
    In an article posted Tuesday on the Toronto Sun's website, writer Kurt Larson poured gasoline on the smoldering embers of the controversy sparked by American forward Sydney Leroux in the aftermath of the United States' 3-0 victory over Canada at BMO Field in Toronto on June 2.
    The provocatively titled article asserts that "U.S. Soccer" -- the United States Soccer Federation, presumably -- "stands by Leroux's racism allegations".
    Sadly, the article is forced to admit that what the chants were "remains somewhat murky" and that "we'll never know if any chants of a racist nature did or didn't rain down out west".
    Of course we won't, so long as Ms. Leroux and the USSF do not deign to tell anyone what the chants actually were. The quoted official, USSF spokesperson Neil Buethe, is happy to opine that "[they] believe that Sydney heard some things (at B.C. Place) that were probably over the line" yet what those things were and where that line is remains, as yet, unstated.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    So, considering that they have made an allegation that Canadian supporters engaged in racist chants, it is past time that Sydney Leroux and the USSF answered three questions:
    1) What, specifically, was the nature of the "racist chants", referenced in your tweet of June 3rd, that you allege were directed at you during Olympic qualifying matches held in Vancouver in 2012?
    2) Who, beyond Ms. Leroux, heard the chants and are they willing to corroborate her allegation?
    3) Were the alleged chants reported to match officials or tournament organizers at the time? If not, why not?
    Let us be clear: there are racists in Canada and there is very little that could be done to stop them from buying tickets to a soccer match. Anyone who believes otherwise is either guilty of ignorance or being willfully naive. It's even possible that racists could or have attached themselves to Canada's soccer support. Suggestions that it "couldn't" or "wouldn't" happen in Canada are unrealistic and inappropriate.
    There's probably even a reasonable discussion to be had as to whether or not the hyper-nationalistic environment of international football is something that might encourage the adoption and expression of racist attitudes. Unfortunately, that's well beyond the scope of this discussion.
    Each of the above questions goes to a specific point that should bring clarity (and hopefully a greater degree of closure) to the issue.
    The first gets the most salient facts on the table for discussion.
    The implication of Larson's article is that the alleged racist chants may have pertained to Ms. Leroux's relationship with her father. While it is entirely possible for reasonable people to disagree over whether or not that is appropriate in of itself, it is unfair to argue that criticism, by Canadian supporters, of Ms. Leroux's decision to represent the nation of her father is intrinsically racist.
    Further, to conflate the above with the actual racist abuse Ms. Leroux has undoubtedly received via Twitter is dangerous along at least two dimensions.
    First, it needlessly smears a large number of decent Canadian soccer supporters, who likely find racism abhorrent, with a vastly overreaching allegation. Second, by stretching the definition of racism into something that most people would find unrecognizable as such it diminishes the significance of accusations of actual racism.
    If Ms. Leroux interpreted certain songs sung by Canadian soccer supporters as racist because she associated them with actual racial abuse she had received in relation to her family background, it is not up to her to label the people singing those songs as racists.
    If there were racist chants it's time to state what they were, and why nothing was done about them.
    Guest
    The Canadian Soccer Association announced today that Colin Miller would return once again as an interim head coach, this time to lead Canada at the Gold Cup.
    Miller will join Canada when FC Edmonton concludes the first half of its split NASL season.
    Canada will announce its final 23-player roster before beginning camp June 26. The Gold Cup begins July 7.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Guest
    An extension to Canadian Soccer News’ MLS Week in Review, this article provides a closer look at the performances of the Canadian players who saw the pitch - and any relevant events transpiring around it - this week
    Dwayne De Rosario, Russell Teibert, and Nana Attakora take the top billing this round, one marked by Canadian involvement in every match.
    Find out what they did to deserve recognition and who else earned their keep this week.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Dwayne De Rosario
    De Rosario returned to the starting lineup, after being relegated to the bench in two of the last three matches, in DC’s 1-2 loss to Toronto FC, as their winless streak stretched to thirteen matches. It was his ninth start and twelfth appearance of the season.
    The veteran attacker made a statement midweek, with a three-goal performance in the Open Cup against Philadelphia – his fifth career hat-trick.

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    After that match, DC coach, Ben Olsen, shared these thoughts on the performance, “I thought Dwayne was a stud. The guy’s a winner,” going on to say, “He’s been through a lot, I put him through a lot and he responded tonight like you would expect him to respond. That’s a positive sign.”
    De Ro put any disagreements with his coach behind them saying, “I’m passionate, there’s blood in my veins – you saw that tonight. I just want the best, and I don’t settle for anything less. And sometimes, you’re going to bump heads when things aren’t going your way. I have a strong personality. Like I said, I’m passionate, and he [Olsen] has a strong personality too, so we’re going to bump heads. But at the end of the day, my job is to go out there and do the best job I can to help this team, and thankfully I was able to do that tonight.”
    Paired up top with Lionard Pajoy - if slightly behind the striker - the Scarborough native carried that hunger into the Toronto match and was a threat all night, taking five shots - two on target, one off, and had a pair blocked.
    He twisted up Matias Laba with a clever run and nearly got on the end of a dangerous Nick DeLeon ball to the near-post, but Gale Agbossoumonde was on hand to cut it out. Late he was again lurking in the near-post area for a DeLeon cross, but was denied by the fingertips of Joe Bendik in goal.
    He scored his second goal of the season in the 19th minute, from the spot, after DeLeon was supposedly tripped at the edge of the box by Agbossoumonde.

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    And was involved in a lot of good interplay with both Pajoy and Casey Townsend - who entered the fray after an hour – including this cheeky little flick that allowed Townsend a dangerous attempt on goal, completing 30 of his 39 passes on the night.
    Dwayne added five recoveries, a pair of interceptions and lost possession a mere thirteen times – impressive for his style, winning three fouls and conceding four, prior to departing the match in the 70th minute, replaced by Rafael, after he seemed to pick up a bit of tightness in the hip area.
    He could be seen poking at it in an attempt to loosen it up, hopefully it is nothing serious, as he has finally rounded into form after struggling to get up to the pace of play following suspension and injury early in the season.
    Olsen gave him a jovial hard pat on the bottom as he came off for a job well done, and Dwayne could later be seen giving Darel Russell some accusatory gesticulations after the Toronto utility man landed one on Daniel Woolard.
    Russell Teibert
    Teibert started his fourth straight match – eighth of the season – for Vancouver in their barnstorming 4-3 win over New England.
    Once more on the right-side of the midfield, his good work helped create an early attempt for YP Lee.
    It was his dangerous ball behind the Revolution backline that led to Andrew Farrell’s red card – for shoving over Kenny Miller in the box – and he later picked up his fourth assist of the season – all in the last three matches – with a deadly ball from the right after receiving a pass from Nigel Reo-Coker and cutting back onto his preferred left foot that required only the simplest of touches from Jordan Harvey to put the Whitecaps in front.

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    The Niagara Falls-native completed 28 of 39 passes, had one shot – off target – and turned over possession thirteen times; adding four recoveries and a pair of interceptions, while winning three fouls – one that saw Kelyn Rowe booked in the final minutes for hauling down the Canadian – and conceding a pair, one of which drew a yellow card – incorrectly, as replays show Rowe was the one who pulled them both to the ground.
    He showed lots of tenacity in defense, regularly tracking back to give the likes of Lee Nguyen – who once wrestled him to the ground in a virtual headlock – and the aforementioned Rowe trouble.
    It was not all positive, he could perhaps be faulted on New England’s opener, giving Chris Tierney way too much time and space to measure his ball for Juan Agudelo.

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    One must be aware of the threat Tierney’s ability poses and surely Martin Rennie would want a little more pressured applied on the ball in that area of the pitch.
    Nana Attakora
    Attakora returned to the San Jose starting lineup in their 1-2 win at Colorado following a lengthy spell on the sidelines – five weeks, missing four matches – due to a concussion and subsequent symptoms suffered in a head clash with Doneil Henry at the start of May.
    Making his sixth start of the campaign - at left centre-back, though he seemed to swap places with the left-back, Justin Morrow, on occasion, perhaps to focus on the particularly combative style of Atiba Harris, which Nana is more equipped to deal with than Morrow - and sporting a protective headband, Attakora barely missed a beat, helping to solidify a defense shorn of Victor Bernardez through suspension.
    The North York-native was tidy on the ball, completing 38 of 43 passes, including one, following a brief run up field, to Alan Gordon that led to Harris’ red card, and only conceding possession a mere five times.
    As physical as ever, Nana won four headers, made six clearances, four recoveries and won a pair of fouls, while conceding only one.
    There was a slight scare when Deshorn Brown seemed to catch him in the head with an errant hand and the defender stayed down for a moment, but he proved to be alright, after giving the referee an earful of opinion.
    His battles with Edson Buddle, a former teammate - albeit briefly - at TFC, were great to watch, each taking turns getting the better of the other. Attakora did well, with the aid of a handful of jersey, to contain Buddle near the end-line, forcing the ball out for a goal-kick, but was then turned by the forward at the top of the box for a shot that was saved.
    Will Johnson
    Johnson started his fifteenth consecutive league match for Portland in their 1-0 win over Dallas on Saturday.
    Returning to a deeper midfield role, having been tried as the more attacking of the three-man midfield last week against Chicago, Will was once again immaculate on the ball, completing 47 of 54 passes, most notably a little dish off to Frederic Piquionne who hit the post, after a strong run through the middle of the park from the Timbers Captain.
    Though tasked with a more defensive, containing role, he still managed to arrive forward on occasion, getting one solid strike on goal – parried by Raul Fernandez – and hitting the free-kick that led to Fernandez’s heroic goal-line save, after Futty Danso’s header back across was sent goal-ward by Diego Chara.
    The Toronto-native made six recoveries and five clearance, won a single foul, while conceding two, but turned over possession eleven times – which is a significant number for him – including having his pocket picked by Jackson, who stole in on goal only to blaze his shot over.
    Patrice Bernier
    Bernier made his fifth consecutive start – and eleventh of the season – for Montreal in their disappointing 2-0 loss away to Columbus.
    Paired in central midfield alongside Collen Warner, they struggled, along with the rest of the Impact, to contain a hungry Crew side.
    It was a pass between the two, from Bernier to Warner, which led to the turnover that allowed Dominic Oduro to steal the ball and storm in for the second Columbus goal

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    Bernier himself was victimized by Bernardo Anor, who poked the ball to Federico Higuain to create another chance for Oduro, one of 24 times Bernier conceded possession – a staggering number for him.
    The Brossard-native, of Haitian descent – and quite a good hockey player in his youth, as discussed in his appearance on Inside the Crew, was much looser on the ball than normal, completing only 63 of 82 passes, but still proved a threat, having been allowed freer rein to move forward - once intercepting a pass and immediately playing a lovely ball through the middle for Andrew Wenger, which drew a fine kick-save – and a beaut – from Andy Gruenebaum.
    He won five headers, a pair of tackles, two fouls – conceding one – and made two clearances; then inserted himself into the Marco Di Vaio-Danny O’Rourke tussle, as a good captain, if only due to the absence of Davy Arnaud, should.
    Jonathan Osorio
    Osorio made his second straight – and third overall – start for Toronto FC, as they finally snapped their eleven game winless streak with a 1-2 victory at DC United.
    Stationed on the right of midfield, Osorio struggled to make the same impact that he has from the bench when given a more central role where he brings a spark against tired defenders.
    When he moved in-field to clog up the channels he had a nice running battle with De Rosario and was dangerous from the wide positions, finding success in three on four dribbles; once neatly tricking past the veteran Canadian to get a ball into the box and twice using the space on either flank to send crosses into the middle – one was cut out and the other sent well over by Robert Earnshaw.
    The Toronto-native completed 26 of 35 passes, won a tackle and a pair of fouls, made six recoveries, three interceptions and a clearance, but conceded possession twelve times.
    The Rest
    Dejan Jakovic, who had missed three matches due to injury, was on the bench for DC, as were Quillan Roberts, Kyle Bekker, and Ashtone Morgan, though for TFC, while both Karl Ouimette – who did some fine charity work off the pitch – and Wandrille Lefevre were in the game-day eighteen for Montreal.
    Kyle Porter was unavailable for DC due to a left calf strain and Terry Dunfield, deemed surplus to requirements, was released by TFC midweek.
    Mark Watson won his first match in charge of San Jose – he did a video hangout with the San Jose media folks midweek – and got involved in a spat with Hendry Thomas, then Oscar Pareja, which is
    , around the 1:50 mark.News emerged that Nick Dasovic was San Jose bound, to assist Watson in his first head coaching venture.
    Each week James takes a look at the contributions of Canadians in the league and the league as a whole.
    You can follow James on twitter @grawsee or read more of his writing at Partially Obstructed View
    Guest
    <i>"Those who cannot remember the past, are condemned to repeat it."</i>
    It’s difficult to really draw any conclusions after the 4-3 win versus the New England Revolution. Both teams took turns displaying some shocking defending that looked fit for a Sunday beer league.
    You can somewhat understand why, as the Whitecaps started the match with Carlyle Mitchell, who was recalled from second division club FC Edmonton and thrust into the starting line-up despite not playing a game since May 25th due to an injured ankle, and Johnny Leveron, who is a very bright young prospect who has played more good matches than bad, but is not yet the man you want leading your defensive line. Add in an inconsistent Jordan Harvey and there would always be opportunities for the Revs to have. At the other end of the pitch, the normally stingy New England defence was handed a harsh red card to defender Andrew Farrell that clearly disrupted the Revs shape for the rest of the match.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    New England fans should feel slighted. They dominated the home side early, slicing through the makeshift Whitecaps backline with ease and controlled the ball comfortably all over the park. It appeared it would be a long night for the Whitecaps, as all three midfielders were defending carelessly, and you could drive a bus through the centrebacks.
    Unfortunately for the visitors, a ball thumped up field was latched on to by a very bright Kenny Miller who went soaring through the air after the slightest of shoves in the back. There were hints of a heel clip, but from the various camera angles it appears that it was Miller who clipped his own heel.
    That said, Whitecaps supporters will feel that the soccer gods owed them a bounce or two after the last two home games included the Timbers stealing a draw with a ball handling performance the TrailBlazers would be proud of and an utterly dominant draw against age old rivals Montreal leading to the Impact lifting the Voyageur’s Cup in BC Place. Not to mention the $645,000 salary cap worth of centrebacks on the physio table rather than on the pitch and you would not blame supporters for wondering when the string of bad luck would end.
    The Whitecaps themselves should share a burden of the blame for their hard times. When drawing or leading and the game still in the balance, Martin Rennie has shown a tendency to favour a defensive substitution, resulting in a team willing to let the game be dictated around them. I'm sure Martin isn't at the edge of his technical area shouting "BUNKER, BUNKER!" but if you are up by a goal and you send on Alain Rochat as a substitute in your midfield, the message will be heard loud and clear.
    In New York, the Whitecaps pulled off a shocking win despite many regulars being unavailable. It did, however, mark the return of Daigo Kobayashi. Daigo was coming off an ankle injury and was able to play the final 13 minutes plus stoppage. There was no indication that the injury was aggravated. Yet the following week, in Seattle, during a game the Whitecaps were up by one and under a constant barrage by the home squad due to their inability to keep the ball, Martin Rennie decided to wait until the 90th minute to put in Daigo. Jun Marques Davidson was having perhaps his worst game as a Whitecap, and Matt Watson was largely invisible. And Daigo Kobayashi was given a whopping sixty seconds plus stoppage time to help regain control.
    I understand Daigo Kobayashi has not exactly been all-star calibre, and he certainly isn't the best defensive midfielder, but even before Andy O'Brien went off injured the game was clearly getting out of hand and neither Davidson or Watson were going to be the players to turn it all around. Martin Rennie pointed to the fact that Daigo was still overcoming an injury. Now, I'm reluctant to play internet doctor, but it doesn't pass the smell test. Seven days previous to the Seattle game, he played 13 minutes. Seven days after, he played the full 90 and didn't look worse for wear. I find it very hard to believe Kobayashi couldn't have been given more than sixty seconds to try and salvage something in a Cascadia Cup derby.
    Daigo Kobayashi is being paid $225,000. Not an outrageous salary, but certainly one which you would expect to contribute regularly. Matt Watson is being paid $68,250. Watson is a hell of good guy, a great teammate, and will certainly give you a good honest effort every game, but he's still a fringe MLS player.
    In MLS, a salary cap league, Daigo must be used. He must contribute more than Matt Watson. If he doesn't, then it's Martin Rennie's fault for not utilizing him properly, or it's Martin Rennie's fault for overpaying for a player who can't handle Major League Soccer.
    For the record, I like Daigo and I think he'll succeed. It's far too early to truly judge him. As we've seen plenty of times, it may take even a year for a player to settle in to the league and his team.
    Meanwhile, Rennie traded another fan favourite from the old regime in Alain Rochat (for pretty much nothing) mere hours before he had a derby game with Greg Klazura as your only defensive cover. Of course, Murphy’s Law struck and the one game we were out of options in the middle of the back, our old Clydesdale O’Brien had to be pulled off resulting in truly comic defending.
    The verdict is out on the trade, as the speculation is that it is to clear up some room for an incoming signing. The rumour is that goalkeeper <a href="http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/content.php?4650-Keeper-David-Ousted-Reported-To-Be-Joining-Vancouver-Whitecaps" target="_blank"><u>David Ousted</u></a> will be joining Vancouver in a matter of weeks to take over the number one keeper position.
    Huh?
    While neither Cannon nor Knighton are in no danger of racking up unnecessary air miles to the MLS All-Star game in Kansas City, a new goalkeeper is hardly the tonic for the Whitecaps illness.
    It would be another piece of puzzling cap management, as it would mean almost $250,000 in salary dollars would be tied up in your backup and third string keeper. It’s possible a move for Cannon is in the works, or he could be waived, but due to his tenure in the league it’s possible he’s on a fully guaranteed contract, meaning his salary number wouldn’t come off the books.
    However, it was three points on Saturday, and we did put four goals past a previously stingy New England team. I’m not sure that it answered too many questions, though, as the Whitecaps looked abysmal to start the match, and despite being a man up were outplayed for several long stretches in the second half. Rennie did, however, make reasonably early attacking substitutions, which appeared to do the trick as Kekuta Manneh caused some havoc on his side.
    Martin Rennie is a bright young coach. It’s his first time in the league and it’s his highest competition yet. He has shown some progress, but has also shown some faults. That is to be expected for a rookie coach in the MLS, but he must learn from his mistakes or risk having them decide his fate.
    <p>
    Guest
    <i>We're always looking to add to our gameday and postgame coverage here at AFTN, so in our new section, "Caps Countdown", we're going to do player rankings with a twist. The starting eleven is ranked from eleven to one, from worst to first. Who was the 'man of the match' and who had a game to forget against New England?</i>
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    <b>11 - Johnny Leveron</b>
    - His communication with Knighton was horrible in the first 20 minutes. When he was to calm the play down he panicked and cleared the ball out-of-bounds. He was better in the final 30 when the Revs came on strong.
    <b>10 - Matt Watson</b>
    - He was in the proper spot during oncoming attacks but had numerous costly turnovers when the ball was at his feet. Looked very shaky on the ball.
    <b>9 - Brad Knighton</b>
    - Lets be honest he didn't have a chance on the first two goals. The defenders let him down. Made the huge save off the free kick when he had to win us the game but had a few uncommanding moments.
    <b>8 - Daigo Kobayashi</b>
    - It seemed like every time the ball came to him he didn't know what to do with it. He has not played enough to gel with the front three of Miller, Teibert and Camilo.
    <b>7 - Carlyle Mitchell</b>
    - Looked very confused in the first 30 minutes, which was somewhat understandable. After the second New England goal him and Knighton had a very heated exchange. Calmed down in the 2nd half. Had a great header assist on Miller's 1st goal. Filled in nicely
    <b>6 - Jordan Harvey</b>
    - Played very well in his defensive position. Had a great lead up to the run on his goal. Played Teibert's cross perfectly. The more people don't mention him, the more pressure off his shoulders.
    <b>5 - YP Lee</b>
    - Covered his wing very well. Got a little panicky when pressured. He was the best defender on the field in the game for the Whitecaps.
    <b>4 - Russell Teibert</b>
    - Keeps improving game by game. He is starting to let the flow of the game come to him. Got his fifth assist of the season in all competitions and his fourth in two games. Himself, Miller and Camilo will be great moving forward if all can stay healthy.
    <b>3 - Camilo Sanvezzo</b>
    - His penalty kick was money. The keeper played the kick as well as he could and he still didn't have a chance. Scored his team leading 9th goal of the season.
    <b>2 - Nigel Reo-Coker</b>
    - His play on the ball is second to none in the MLS. When he wanted the ball he took it, when he had the ball he kept it. He was very active helping out Leveron and Mitchell in the 2nd half. He was almost like a third CB when there was offensive pressure.
    <b>1 - Kenny Miller</b>
    - Two goals and a penalty kick earned (even if people say it wasn't really a penalty) His touch was great all night. First goal he controlled the ball with a great header, tapped it up with left quad and put it in with his left foot, and all that after a wonderful flick over the head of McCarthy to set up the chance. Second goal is a goal of the week candidate for sure. Lets hope he can stay healthy moving forward.
    <p>
    Guest

    MLS Week in Review – Round 16

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    The sixteenth weekend of MLS transpired on Saturday, and though truncated once more, it was not short on action.
    Five matches played, sixteen goals scored – two from the spot and another own-goal in DC, two straight red cards and 19 yellows on way to a pair of away wins and not a draw in sight.
    Portland’s streak continues, as does DC’s, but Toronto’s comes to an end. Big wins for beleaguered sides – not just TFC – with Columbus and San Jose each picking up valuable points against in-form opposition and how about that Vancouver-New England game, a seven-goal thriller.
    But before the results, the goal of the round.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    There were of course fewer candidates to choose, but this is about quality, not quantity.
    As such several contenders emerged this weekend. Be it Darlington Nagbe’s turn-and-fire game-winner for Portland - venomous, Steven Lenhart’s opener in Colorado, winning a foot race before slamming on the breaks and lifting a shot high into the net – much-needed, or the wonderful New England passing between Sair Sene, Diego Fagundez that played Kelyn Rowe in for a skillful finish - silky.
    They were all great, and there were several others, but hands down, goal of the round must go to Kenny Miller and his lovely half-volley to ensure smoother sailing for Vancouver in their win over New England.
    The once-maligned Scotsman has been fantastic this season and was again instrumental in Vancouver’s success.
    After falling behind two-nil, it was Miller who won the penalty and forced a red card to Andrew Farrell - who shoved him from behind in the box. He then leveled the match by playing a ball for himself over the Revolution back-line before surging in on goal and finishing neatly across the keeper.
    And when the Whitecaps needed some insurance with New England rallying, again it was Miller who came to the rescue.
    Camilo, himself having a solid stretch of form, played a long ball from deep in his own half to the streaking Miller, breaking between the two opposing centre-backs.
    Rather than risk not outpacing the recovering defenders, Miller slows just atop the arc, lets the ball bounce twice, settling it ever so slightly with a chest down before swiveling on his left peg to loft a right-footer toward the right-side of goal.
    The look on the faces of the Revolution players – goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth and the vastly experienced, Jose Goncalves – is priceless. They know they are beat the second it leaves him foot.
    Pure class – hard to believe some were calling for his head after struggling through an adjustment period last season.
    <iframe width="533" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/tE8-ru33F2E?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    Results in Brief
    Portland 1 – Dallas 0
    Two of the top teams in the West met in the opening match of the weekend; thanks to some stellar goalkeeping, a single goal would decide the outcome.
    Darlington Nagbe, equal parts spectacular and inconsistent, scored in the 52nd minute, capitalizing on a threaded ball down the left-side of the box from Kalif Alhassan – and some flat-footed defending from George John – to turn and hit a right-footed screamer to the far-side of goal.
    Dallas’ Peruvian minder, Raul Fernandez, showed why he was brought it, making at least three high-calibre saves, including a miraculous diving recovery to parry a goal-bound shot off the line, having been caught out of position chasing an aerial ball.
    Caleb Porter’s Timbers stretch their unbeaten run to thirteen matches and have not allowed a goal at home in five straight, pulling themselves within two points of the conference leaders, Dallas.
    Schellas Hyndman’s side, shorn of all three of their big strikers – Blas Perez on international duty with Panama, Kenny Cooper having to return home pre-match due to family concerns and Eric Hassli, who lasted a mere eight minutes before packing it in with back troubles – struggled to create, but were denied a sure goal when Donovan Ricketts blocked a blistering shot from Jackson.
    The two, forging a rivalry of their own, meet once more in league play this season, but will face-off in the Open Cup in two weeks time.
    <iframe width="533" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-_Ve_UNLVXg?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    DC 1 – Toronto 2
    The battle for the basement, the Derby of Payne, call it what one will, this was a match that could well define the season for either side.
    Each struggling and already well adrift at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, the winner would offer themselves a lifeline, while the loser would be condemned to ignominy – and last place, both in conference and league.
    DC began brightly, taking the lead in the 19th minute after a suspect penalty decision from the referee, who pointed to the spot when Nick DeLeon’s surging tear through the midfield was ended by a stray boot from Gale Agbossoumonde – was it outside the box, was it a dive, if not, was it even a foul.
    Not one to stand on ceremony, Dwayne De Rosario duly dispatched the attempt – low to the keeper’s right – shaking and baking against one of his former sides.
    Robert Earnshaw, he of the long slumber, emerged from his cocoon with a wonderful header, climbing higher than Brandon McDonald – perhaps climbing McDonald – to reach a Steven Caldwell free-kick hit from deep on the right towards the back-post. Earnshaw’s downward header dinked off the inside of the post to tie the match in the 30th.
    Eleven minutes on TFC had taken the lead, when a Luis Silva free-kick from forty yards on the left curled towards the back-post and skipped off the scrum-capped head of Daniel Woolard – United’s third own-goal of the season, unlucky.
    And for once, Ryan Nelsen’s side saw out that slim margin, struggling through the remainder of the match and five minutes of stoppage time to halt their winless run at eleven, earning their first away victory of the season, and nabbing their first three points in over three months.
    Ben Olsen, who reportedly read the riot act to his side - both at half and full time – endures a winless run that has stretched to thirteen matches and are now five points below their nearest foes, solidly in the league’s basement. The clock is ticking.
    <iframe width="533" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GHN8pIfKwuA?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    Columbus 2 – Montreal 0
    In the shock result of the weekend, a tired and battered Crew dispatched the rested and in-form Impact handily.
    The Open Cup has not been kind to Columbus, they lost Eddie Gaven for the season to a knee injury in Round Three, only to see Brazilian defender, Glauber, similarly join him on the sidelines in Round Four, not to mention inclement weather pushing their midweek match back a day to Thursday – they lost to Chicago.
    But, despite a long bus ride home, they came out swinging against the East leading Impact – assisted by the returns of Chad Marshall and Josh Williams from injury spells to solidify the back-line.
    Playing their sixth match in the last 21 days, Dominic Oduro proved too much to handle for a Montreal side without Alessandro Nesta and coach, Marco Schallibaum, serving his touchline ban for the fracas in Kansas City two weeks ago.
    Oduro created the first in the sixth minute, collecting the ball from Federico Higuain and turning towards goal before being felled by Hassoun Camara. The loose ball fell kindly to Matias Sanchez, whose low right-footed drive deflected off Jeb Brovsky and over Troy Perkins in goal. It was the Argentine’s first goal in MLS and a much-needed stroke of luck for the Crew.
    Oduro would double the lead in the 22nd, picking the pocket of Collen Warner in midfield and exploiting the wide gap between the Montreal centre-backs to steal in on goal, open up his right-boot and finish low to the keeper’s left for his seventh goal of the season.
    For Robert Warzycha’s Crew, the victory snapped a three-game winless streak and was only their second home win of the season - in front of their largest crowd thus far no less. Mauro Biello, standing in place of the suspended Schallibaum, and the Impact will be looking over their shoulders, as they passed up the opportunity to build a bit of distance between themselves and the chasing pack with the meat of the season fast approaching.
    <iframe width="533" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BCb93h9Ig60?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    Colorado 1 – San Jose 2
    The Earthquakes, playing their first match under Mark Watson following the surprise departure of Frank Yallop, found their scoring boots, and inched past the Rapids, thanks in part to an early red card to Atiba Harris.
    Steven Lenhart opened the scoring in the eleventh minute, collecting a flick-on from Alan Gordon, hitting the breaks to let the chasing defenders reverse past him and placing a big right-footer high to the right-side of goal from just above the arc.
    Harris then lunged in on Gordon and, after some deliberation from the officials, was shown a red – the third of his career - reducing Colorado to ten.
    Sam Cronin doubled the San Jose lead seven minutes into the second half, when Rafael Baca spotted his run from deep and played a wonderful ball behind the back-line for him to calmly lift over the onrushing Clint Irwin.
    Nathan Sturgis, really finding a home and some form in the Rapids midfield having drifted around the league, scored his third goal in the last four matches, getting on the end of a right-sided Brian Mullan cross after Martin Rivero had played out wide to the veteran midfielder turned full-back.
    Tempers flared post-match, with Oscar Pareja and Watson exchanging angry words and some minor shoves, while Hendry Thomas and Chris Wondolowski exchanged few thoughts as well.
    Pareja sees his side’s impressive six-game unbeaten run ended, while Watson takes all three points in his debut as manager, with San Jose earning their first road win and first win since May 1st (against Toronto), as they look to turn around a season that has failed to live up to expectations.
    <iframe width="533" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7MIzm9NEkWk?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    Vancouver 4 – New England 3
    A barnstormer of a match, one that saw momentum swing wildly from one end to the other, before being decided by the goal of the round.
    New England began brightest, with Juan Agudelo latching onto a wonderfully penetrative ball from Chris Tierney to open the scoring in the tenth minute. Kelyn Rowe doubled their advantage ten minutes on capping some fine passing from Sair Sene and Diego Fagundez down the right with a low finish across Brad Knighton.
    But a red card to Andrew Farrell in the 23rd minute – and the subsequent penalty kick converted by Camilo - drew Vancouver back into the affair. Sixteen minutes later Kenny Miller had leveled the match at twos with the first half of his brace, lifting a Carlyle Mitchell defensive header over the New England back-line before collecting the ball himself, surging in on goal, and finishing low across the keeper.
    Jordan Harvey put the ‘Caps in front before the half-time whistle, when he redirected a lovely right-sided Russell Teibert cross at the back-post in the 43rd.
    The Revs regrouped and came out pushing in the second half, but Vancouver padded their advantage with Miller’s delicate goal-of-the-round half-volley in the 68th minute.
    Dimitry Imbongo pulled the visitors within one in the 84th minute, before Rowe spurned a glorious chance and Knighton parried a Lee Nguyen free-kick bound for the top corner in the dying seconds.
    Martin Rennie, though tired of not seeing matches out in a calm and orderly fashion, will gladly take the three points- their first ever win over New England, while Jay Heaps’s Revs will lick their wounds and look forward to dropping goals on Chivas in two weeks time – after spending some time in training working defensively while down a man.
    <iframe width="533" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/im9n4oatiVU?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    Canadian Content
    The extended look at the Canadian contributions will be up midday tomorrow (Tuesday) featuring Will Johnson, Dwayne De Rosario, Jonathan Osorio, Patrice Bernier, Nana Attakora, and Russell Teibert.
    Interesting stat: this was the first – and possibly only weekend – that featured a Canadian player in every match.
    See It Live
    De Rosario’s reaction to Darel Russell’s high elbow that drew blood from Daniel Woolard, pointing to him from the sidelines and uttering a word or two that were likely unfit for print.
    Russell was on a mission, protect the lead through sheer destruction, and Woolard suffered the consequences.
    <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Photo by Tony Quinn. Viewer discretion is advised: <a href="http://t.co/B8NOmSiij8">pic.twitter.com/B8NOmSiij8</a></p>— Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) <a href="
    ">June 16, 2013</a></blockquote><script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
    Oscar Pareja is as mild-mannered as Colombian’s come, but he was livid post-match. The incident was apparently spawned by Mark Watson’s reaction to a Hendry Thomas foul, with claims that the interim Earthquakes coach directed a ball the Honduran’s way from the touch-lines.
    Overheard
    Jason Kreis’ press conferences are always interesting, straddling the line between answering questions thoughtfully and leaping over the table to throttle the reporters. This one, from their midweek Open Cup match, leans more towards the latter as an incoming call was wreaking havoc on the audio clarity at the podium – and exacerbating Kreis’ migraine – it’s called Airplane mode people, use it; though those videos where a coach answers a phone are always good for a chuckle.
    Vancouver’s Martin Rennie is similarly feeling the health detractions of being in charge, stating, when asked about his side’s difficultly in holding leads, “I have no idea. It can’t be good for my health watching these games… right now we just seem to be doing things the hard way.”
    Some gems from the announcer’s booth this weekend, from the gloriously nostalgic “make the final..” to the absurd “Cotton Candy: it gets everywhere” to the downright inappropriate “Who’s Your Daddy?” ringing in Father’s Day – happy to all.
    Upcoming Fixtures
    Loads of matches coming up with a half-slate (four) on Wednesday and a return normalcy (eight) come the weekend.
    Wednesday: Montreal-Houston; Chicago-Colorado; Vancouver-Chivas; Los Angeles-Portland. Saturday: DC-San Jose; Columbus-Chicago; Dallas-Kansas City; Houston-Toronto; Salt Lake-Seattle. Sunday: Philadelphia-New York; Portland-Colorado; Chivas-Los Angeles.
    Parting Thoughts
    A few questions to ponder and discuss:
    Montreal struggled mightily in a match they should have won; do they come back down to earth after a heavenly start to the season? On the opposite end of the spectrum does this win propel Toronto upwards? And Vancouver lie somewhere in the middle, will their woes at centre-back stifle a playoff push, at least until reinforcements or health rejuvenate?
    With a double-game week ahead for several teams is this the point that the season that the race for the top five spots really begins in earnest?
    With the news that Eric Avila and perhaps more Chivas USA players are off to Guadalajara, are the Ameri-Goats tanking this season? When does the league step in and what should they do? Sympathies to the flock fans out in LA.
    Or does the upcoming Superclasico instill some pride in the remaining patchwork side?
    Salt Lake versus Seattle matches are always good, Montreal-Houston should prove tasty, as should LA-Portland; which fixture is most appetizing?
    Until next weekend.
    Each week James takes a look at the league as a whole.
    You can follow James on twitter @grawsee or read more of his writing at Partially Obstructed View
    Guest
    <i>We are pleased to introduce our new writer here at AFTN. His name is Aaron Campbell and this is his story....</i>
    First things first, I would like to thank AFTN and its team of amazing writers for letting me join this well oiled machine. I am not just saying that so I don't bite the hand that pays me.
    Wait just got a email from the AFTN leaders. Damn it I don't get paid!!!
    It seems like nowadays every Whitecaps supporter has a blog, podcast or opinion about the coaching staff, players and lack of moves. Hell I am one of them.
    My reason for wanting to write about the Whitecaps is different than most. It involves a life changing injury to myself and how a Whitecaps player helped me through it.
    This is my story:
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    October 25th 2011 is the day my life changed for myself and my family. I was severely injured on the job. I had torn my ACL and meniscus. My knee was so bad that it took the doctor six months to even do a full assessment of my injury. Let's just say I was severely depressed and was getting no help from my employer or WCB.
    Around this time Atiba Harris was going through another injury similar to mine with the Whitecaps. One day I decided I was sick of not getting advice on how to start my road to recovery for this injury. I found Harris on Facebook and decided to message him my story and ask for advice. I knew it was a shot in the dark. May of been the meds but I convinced myself I would never hear back from him.
    I was shocked when five minutes later I got a message back. He told me he understood where I was coming from and for the next two hours went over step by step my recovery journey. Yes I am not an athlete like him but it helped answer lots of questions I wasn't getting answers to. After the conversation I figured that was the extent of Harris talking to me.
    One week later after getting home from a specialist appointment I had a message from Harris asking how my recovery was going. I couldn't believe he would take time out of his career, recovery and family to ask how I was doing.
    These back and forth conversations went on for 12 straight months. Messages every week or so asking where I was in recovery. Over these talks we started discussing our families and the stress our injuries were causing them. Not lying, he talked me off the ledge a few times.
    On December 3rd 2012 I logged onto twitter and saw the crappy news. Atiba Harris had been traded to Colorado Rapids. To say I was pissed is an understatement. I was ready to boycott this current Whitecaps season. I thought to myself with him on another team our weekly injury update chats would be over. I emailed him saying sorry to see him go, good luck with the Rapids and wished him and his family a safe trip to Colorado. Less then 15 minutes later he replied back saying thanks for the kind words and not to worry he will still be around to answer any rehab questions I had.
    It was after reading that reply I thought to myself I want to write stories about these Whitecaps players and let the supporters know what good people these players are on and off the pitch. To add a more personal side to them, something that is often forgotten and not written about that much these days, and find out what motivates them and makes them tick.
    Atiba Harris was the first one I asked to do an interview for when starting at the <a href="http://whitecapsxi.wordpress.com/author/aacamp81/" target="_blank">WhitecapsXI</a> blog.
    Today I am proud to call him a friend. Someone I can talk to about the stress of recovery, life and family. I am happy he has had the chance to excel in Colorado and is scoring at a great clip. Just wish he was wearing a Vancouver jersey.
    We all have opinions on the current and past Whitecaps roster. The good guys (Harris and Hassli), the bad guys (Robson) and the players that keep to themselves (Miller). We get way more access to these players than hockey, baseball and football players in this city. I think that is why we supporters are all fans of this great game. That is why we all become so involved or a little too involved with our favourite teams.
    Screw all the people who aren't supporters we have all said out loud or muttered to ourselves at one point.
    I am a fan and I write my opinions. You may not like them or support them but I would love to hear your comments about my stories.
    Once again thank you AFTN for letting my opinion have a platform. Now that all the niceness is out of the way time to write....
    <i>[Editor - Welcome to Aaron. We're pleased to have him on the team and bring some fresh perspectives, ideas and features to the site. He's also a big stats guy (and is doing a phenomenal job updating the Whitecaps 2013 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Vancouver_Whitecaps_FC_season" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a> page), so expect more of that, which I always devour. It's an acquired taste I know! You can follow Aaron on Twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/AaCamp81" target=_blank"><b>@AaCamp81</b></a>.]</i>
    <p>
    Guest
    Episode 12 of <i>"There's Still Time"</i>, the AFTN podcast, and it's another one of our post game pods.


    Buoyed by Vancouver Whitecaps' excellent, if somewhat fortuitous, comeback win over the New England Revolution, Steve and myself look at the match, the game turning moment all of the highs and lows.
    We hear post game from both managers, <b>Martin Rennie</b> and <b>Jay Heaps</b>, along with some chat from <b>Kenny Miller</b>. There's a look at the impact the Scotsman is having on the Caps this season, what Johnny Leveron joining the Honduran camp may mean for the next match and we look ahead to that game against Chivas on Wednesday.
    And there's still time to hear from Whitecaps legend <b>Carl Valentine</b> about joining the Twittersphere.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    You can listen to this week's podcast on iTunes <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/aftn/id628306235" target="_blank"><b>HERE</b></a>.
    Or download it for your later listening delight <a href="http://aftn.podbean.com/" target="_blank"><b>HERE</b></a>
    We also have an iPhone app, so you can now add our podcast to your phone as an app. Visit the podcast's mobile site <a href="http://aftn.podbean.com/mobile/" target="_blank"><b>HERE</b></a> and then at the bottom of the screen just click the "Quick Launch" icon and the podcast will be added to your home screen and appear as an app.
    Or you could just listen on one of the players below!
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    Guest
    [ATTACH=CONFIG]3250[/ATTACH]KEY PLAYERS
    Attacking
    There was no hotter player in MLS during the month of June as Camilo. He scored 6 goals and contributed two assists. Earlier this month against Seattle the Brazilian scored a brace by getting away from his markers and converting two headers inside the box. He extended his scoring streak to five games against Sporting Kansas City when he delivered a perfect free kick from about 25 yards out.
    While Eddie Johnson is ranked third on the team in scoring, the Sounders are hoping the striker can return to the level he played at last season when he scored 14 times. He hasn't scored since May 18th, which includes missing a couple of games while on international duty. The Sounders are hoping the American international can build up a relationship with his striking partner Obafemi Martins.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Defence
    After taking a couple of games off on the Eastern road trip, Y.P. Lee returns to the lineup to take his normal right back spot. He will be looked upon to push the ball forward and deliver it to the players up front, especially with the continued absence of Russell Teibert to international duty. There will also be more pressure on the veteran defensively due to the help he received from Teibert and the possible need to help out Brad Rusin in his return to the team.
    Signed late in the preseason, Djimi Traore has played every minute for the Sounders and has been a big factor in solidifying their defence. The job to stop Camilo will most likely fall to the former Malian international who will try to use his vast experience in order to slow the Brazilian down. He is not only a physical defender but also athletic enough to deal with some of the better strikers in MLS.
    WHO’S ON FORM
    A hidden blessing for all the injuries to their central defenders is the improving play of Johnny Leveron. The Honduran defender is making everything he does look very easy, especially the tackles he makes to prevent shots on goal. He is just as important to the attack as he is able to get the ball moving forward quickly in transition.
    After getting a lot starts at striker while either Martins or Johnson were missing, Lamar Neagle may start on the left side of the midfield. In the last game against Vancouver he had a part in every goal. He scored the winner, picked up an assist and drew a foul in the box that led to a penalty. In fact in his last seven appearances for the Sounders, Neagle has four goals and three assists.
    PROJECTED LINEUP
    [ATTACH=CONFIG]3251[/ATTACH]
    Vancouver Whitecaps (4-3-3) R to L - Brad Knighton; Lee Young-Pyo, Brad Rusin, Johnny Leveron, Jordan Harvey; Matt Watson, Gershon Koffie, Nigel Reo-Coker; Kekuta Manneh, Kenny Miller, Camilo Sanvezzo
    Seattle Sounders(4-4-2) R to L - Michael Gspurning; DeAndre Yedlin, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Djimi Traore, Leo Gonzalez; Mauro Rosales, Brad Evans, Servando Carrasco, Lamar Neagle; Eddie Johnson, Obafemi Martins
    2013 RECORD
    Vancouver Whitecaps:
    7W-5D-5L-26P
    5th in Western Conference
    Last Match: 1-1 Draw at Sporting Kansas City
    Seattle Sounders:
    7W-3D-5L-24P
    7th in Western Conference
    Last Match: 2-0 Win vs D.C. United
    OVERVIEW
    After a successful two game road trip in which they picked up four of the six points available, the Whitecaps return to B.C. Place to face Seattle Sounders. Once again Vancouver will try to beat their Cascadian rivals for the first time since joining MLS in 2011. They came close in the last match up in Seattle and were up 2-1 before an injury to Andy O’Brien led to a collapse by the Caps and another loss.
    Starting in goal, this could be the last opportunity for Brad Knighton to prove he is worthy of the number one keeper spot, with new signee David Ousted waiting in the wings. The central defensive pair will definitely have Johnny Leveron and his partner will most likely be Brad Rusin, who played well in the last match, as Andy O’Brien does not appear to have recovered from his hamstring injury in time. Y.P. Lee will return to the right back spot opposite of Jordan Harvey on the left side.
    With Lee back, Nigel Reo-Coker returns to the midfield where he will look to solidify a weak area that has been ineffective in the last couple of games. After a couple of substitution appearances Gershon Koffie looks to be fully fit to return to the starting eleven. The final spot will be from Matt Watson, Daigo Kobayashi and Jun Marques Davidson, with the Englishman most likely to get the nod after some decent performances on the road.
    Two of three spots in the front line are spoken for with Camilo and Kenny Miller really building a nice chemistry between them. The right wing position is up for grabs after Corey Hertzog wasn't a big factor against SKC and it may go to Kekuta Manneh to inject some much needed pace up the right wing.
    The side that the Caps will be facing this Saturday will be stronger than the one that they faced in Seattle. They will be reinforced by both Eddie Johnson and Brad Evans who were both away on international duty for the U.S. national team.
    However there are a couple of players who will be game day decisions as to whether they will be in the eleven for the Sounders. Sigi Schmid will need to see if Osvaldo Alonso and DeAndre Yedelin are healthy enough to start against the Caps.
    Since their last meeting the Sounders have only played twice splitting, their results with a loss on the road against Real Salt Lake while beating D.C. United at home this past Wednesday. The game against United was their first after having ten days off but there were sign of rust despite Obafemi Martins scoring twice for the victory.
    This season the Sounders are winning with a solid defensive game and they stand third in MLS with 17 goals in 15 games. The defensive record could be even better if Alonso was healthy as they have given up 11 goals in the 5 games that the holding mid has missed.
    Their attack is still working on building chemistry as the duo of Martins and Eddie Johnson have yet to play a string of games together. The Sounders are also still waiting for Mauro Rosales to return his game to last year’s level when he was playing at an MVP level.
    In their last eight matches the Whitecaps have only lost once, 3-2 to Seattle, while picking up five wins and two draws. They have picked up 17 of their 26 points this season during this span and have moved up into a playoff spot.
    They have however had issues during their good run, especially on the defensive side, and will need to shore these up in order to continue it. Their schedule will only get harder as the summer continues so every match will be important in order to make the playoffs in the tough Western Conference.
    The Whitecaps have been unbeaten at home so far this season but will be facing their biggest test this weekend against Seattle. It's also another chance for Vancouver to pick up their first win against a Cascadian team in MLS. They have never been going into one of these matches in better form to do it.
    <p>
    Guest
    <center><i>** Match report and post-game reaction from the Caps locker room on Vancouver's 4-3 win over New England in MLS action **</i></center>
    <b>Report:</b>
    A game of two halfs is the old cliché and often the most apt description. It's more rare to get a half of two halfs but that's just what Vancouver Whitecaps and New England Revolution served up at BC Place on Saturday evening.
    The Caps fought back from going two down in the opening 20 minutes to storm back in some style and grab a 4-3 win and three very vital points.
    When Juan Agudelo and Kelyn Rowe put New England two up early, the writing seemed on the wall for Vancouver, but the game turned on a soft penalty decision when Kenny Miller went flying in the box and Andrew Farrell saw red for the challenge.
    Camilo Sanvezzo's spot kick and goals from Miller and Jordan Harvey saw the Caps go in at the half 3-2 up and they never looked back. A second half wonderstrike from Miller eased the nerves and although Dimitry Imbongo brought them back with a late counter, Vancouver held on and gave the whole Whitecaps camp a massive boost.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    The Whitecaps didn't have their troubles to seek for the first of two vital back to back home games. With a heavily depleted backline, a weakened midfield and facing a very inform New England side, they would need to dig deep to get the three points they badly needed to keep themselves in the playoff mix.
    Martin Rennie made two changes from the team that started last week's heartbreaking loss in Seattle. Whereas the addition of Daigo Kobayashi in place of Jun Marques Davidson was an attacking switch, the enforced change of centreback Carlyle Mitchell for the injured Andy O'Brien was really the only remaining card that Rennie could play in this hand.
    With all of the Whitecaps defensive frailties and collapses this season, how Honduran international Johnny Leveron and Mitchell would gel at the back, with no chance to build up an understanding between the pair, was always going to be one of the keys to the game. There were a couple of shaky moments, but on the whole they played well together.
    Vancouver had the first real chance of the match in the 8th minute. Russell Teibert passed the ball inside to Kobayashi from the right wing and he turned and played in YP Lee in the box. The Korean took a touch before firing inches past the left hand post.
    As is so often the case in football, the Whitecaps were made to pay for that miss two minutes later.
    Chris Tierney played a perfectly flighted long ball forward from midway in the Revolution's half and over the Caps defence. Agudelo ran onto the end of it, between Leveron and Harvey, to coolly slot the ball past Knighton for the opening goal.
    The goal shocked BC Place but it was the visitors who were now playing the nicer football and Rowe fired over from just inside the box in the 19th minute following good build up play.
    It was a warning that the Caps didn't heed and they fell two behind a minute later following more nice build up work from Saer Sene and Diego Fagundez. Rowe was the man that was played the final ball again and this time he made no mistake, keeping his shot low and into the bottom left hand corner for 2-0 New England.
    It was looking bleak for Vancouver but they got the vital break they needed to get back into the game in the 23rd minute.
    Teibert played a long ball forward and Miller timed his run perfectly to outpace the last two Revs defenders. Andrew Farrell tried to get a piece of Miller as he bore down on goal, but when he made the slightest of touches in the box the Caps striker became a flying Scotsman and went down in the box.
    Referee Juan Guzman immediately pointed to the spot and worse was to come for New England as he helped Farrell to his feet before showing him a red card.
    Up stepped Camilo to drill home his sixth MLS goal of the season and the Whitecaps were unexpectedly back in the game.
    The Caps smelt blood and tried to immediately push for an equaliser, but the Revs held firm and brought on Darius Barnes to try and strengthen their defence and hold on to their lead.
    They were only able to do that until the 39th minute.
    Bobby Shuttleworth played a long New England goal kick downfield and it was met by the head of Mitchell who knocked it forward towards Miller. The Caps DP did the rest, playing a delightful chip over Stephen McCarthy then with signs of a Kenny Miller in his prime, he left the defender in his wake, showing great ball control and clinically firing the ball past the Revs keeper for the equaliser.
    The Caps incredibly made it three in the 43rd minute.
    Nigel Reo-Coker powered forward and played the ball out right to Teibert. The young Canadian then played the perfect ball to Harvey at the back post, who drilled it into the roof of the net from the edge of the six yard box.
    It was Harvey's second goal in three games and Teibert's fourth assist in two.
    Vancouver nearly grabbed a fourth a minute before the interval when Camilo played a neat one-two with Miller, powered past two New England defenders and rounded Shuttleworth, before Barnes got in a vital foot with the Brazilian poised to grab his brace.
    It had been an incredible turnaround, but there was still no room for complacency in the second half, as one goal for the visitors and it was going to be a whole different ball game once again.
    Vancouver carried the play to start the second half, but New England were having several forays forward and showing that they weren't out of this game just yet.
    Neither side were providing much goalmouth action this half and Vancouver made an attacking switch to bring on Kekuta Manneh for Matt Watson midway through the second half.
    The tension was lifted off the home team and home crowd in the 68th minute when Vancouver grabbed their fourth and gave themselves a two goal cushion.
    Camilo played a beautiful long ball forward to Miller. The Scotsman let it take a bounce then took a step back to shake of his two markers before volleying over the heads of Barnes and McCarthy from 20 yards out and into the postage stamp corner, leaving Shuttleworth rooted to the spot.
    Vancouver could relax a little and they brought on another rookie, Erik Hurtado, to try and see the game out and give him valuable minutes.
    There was an unsavoury moment in the 77th minute when Shuttleworth feigned being caught by a late foot from Manneh. Replays showed there was no foul on the play but the young Gambian picked up a yellow card for the non challenge, leaving the Revolution keeper being roundly booed by the crowd for the rest of the match.
    The tension came back to BC Place when New England pulled a goal back in the 84th minute.
    Barnes played a perfect defence splitting ball through to sub Dimitry Imbongo and the Congolese striker held off the attentions of Mitchell to fire home decisively from 12 yards.
    Despite the man advantage, the nerves were still very aware of Vancouver's knack of losing late goals. This time though they held on to win the seven goal thriller despite a late push from the Revolution which saw Brad Knighton make a fantastic last ditch tip over of a Lee Nguyen free kick.
    It was a stunning comeback win for Vancouver, albeit in a match turned by a rather fortuitous penalty and sending off call.
    The Caps still had to deal with the hand that they were dealt and they did that exceptionally well against a New England side who fought back well themselves and who had looked the real deal in the opening moments.
    These are kind of wins and performances that can be season changing, instilling a new found confidence and self belief in a side, not only in fighting back, but in holding on to win and not conceding a vital late goal, as has been their downfall for much of this season.
    How Vancouver go on and see out the month is the key here now. Another four or six points and June will have been so much better than it has felt at times and keep the Whitecaps right in the mix for a second consecutive playoff appearance.
    FINAL SCORE: Vancouver Whitecaps 4 - 3 New England Revolution
    ATT: 20,116
    VANCOUVER: Brad Knighton; Young Pyo-Lee, Carlyle Mitchell, Johnny Leveron, Jordan Harvey; Nigel Reo-Coker (Jun Marques Davidson 79), Daigo Kobayashi, Matt Watson (Kekuta Manneh 66); Russell Teibert, Kenny Miller, Camilo Sanvezzo (Erik Hurtado 74) [subs Not Used: Joe Cannon, Adam Clement, Darren Mattocks, Tommy Heinemann]
    NEW ENGLAND: Bobby Shuttleworth; Andrew Farrell, Stephen McCarthy, Jose Goncalves, Chris Tierney; Diego Fagundez (Dimitry Imbongo 69), Kelyn Rowe, Scott Caldwell, Lee Nguyen; Saer Sene (Darius Barnes 29), Juan Agudelo (Ryan Guy 74) [subs Not Used: Matt Reis, A.J. Soares, Chad Barrett, Andy Dorman]
    <p>
    <b>Reaction:</b>
    <b>Martin Rennie on the overall game:</b>
    "We started off the game slow and New England were playing really well....We didn't defend well on the first two goals. The thing I liked was that we had a couple of leaders in Kenny and Nigel who kept going, who really showed grit, determination and fight and they know that if you keep going in the game, anything can happen, so from 2-0 down we've won a game 4-3."
    <b>Martin Rennie on recent form:</b>
    "We've won out third game out of the last five in MLS. We've got a game coming up Wednesday at home where we want to focus on getting our fourth win out of six which will probably make us the hottest team in MLS if we can do that."
    <b>Martin Rennie on what was going through his mind when New England went 2-0 up:</b>
    "I was just thinking this is going to be an exciting game because we're going to have to score three or goals to win it and that's what happened."
    <b>Martin Rennie on letting New England back in to it at the end:</b>
    "We must be the most entertaining team in MLS because the games never seem to be over when you feel that they should be."
    <b>Martin Rennie on why Caps make it so difficult for themselves:</b>
    "I have no idea. That's the thing I'm starting to wonder. It can't be good for my health watching these games because I've got used to coaching teams over the years that have consistently won and done things in a fairly organised way and right now we seem to be doing things the hard way. But right now we are winning, we are moving forward, but hopefully we'll get to the point where we're things are done a little bit more easily."
    <b>Martin Rennie on the red card:</b>
    "At that point we were struggling to find a way back in to the game but it was the right decision."
    <b>Martin Rennie on confidence of team after coming back and not conceding late:</b>
    "Wins do build confidence. We have been fairly confident. We have been playing well. I think sometimes people don't have a realistic perspective of where we are and what we're doing, but that's three out of five with the tie in there and that does build confidence. We just want to get our focus and determination right for Wednesday night and then we have a ten day break where we think a lot of our injured players will come back. Today's results help us a lot and now we need to dust ourselves off and get ready for the next one."
    <b>Martin Rennie on Kenny Miller:</b>
    "I thought they were absolutely fantastic goals and his overall performance was really top class. It made a really big difference to our team tonight. And as I say, nit just his workrate but his desire and hunger and workrate when we were losing and we weren't doing well that started to run off on other people.
    "If ever there was a 'man of the match' award given to the right person then it was definitely tonight."
    <b>Kenny Miller on the win:</b>
    "We set out tonight to get a big three points and fortunately enough we got it. It was hard work and we made it tougher than it probably should have been towards the end but you've got to take the positives. It's three points, it's four goals at home, it keeps us that unbeaten record at home as well and sets us up nicely for Wednesday night to hopefully get another three points."
    <b>Kenny Miller on his and the team's performance:</b>
    "I'm delighted with the goals but more delighted with the three points and the fact that we've got another win at home and we're maintaining that record we've got at home. They're decent enough performances but we've got to get better."
    "Delighted with the win but again losing three goals is disappointing for us because like I said last week, two goals should be enough to get something from the game but again tonight it wouldn't have been. But we've got to go away positive. We're happy, we've got three points, which was a big win and it sets up nicely. We set out to get six points from these two games and we're halfway there."
    <b>Kenny Miller on fighting back from two goals down:</b>
    "It's important that you keep going because when you're two goals down or two goals up that one goal can get you back into the game. It's important that you still have that belief and I always thought that at home we could get back in to it. Fair enough, the sending off does change the game a little bit but we got back in to it and from that moment on, particularly in the first half, we went from strength to strength."
    <b>Kenny Miller on his second goal:</b>
    "It bounced up. It sat up nice, I was expecting it actually to run, run over in front of me but it kinda stuck and I think it caught the defender out as well. It's just a case of hope, hit it and hope that it goes in and fortunately it did."
    <b>Kenny Miller on whether the goal was his best one since the Scotland-Cyprus game:</b>
    "Totally yeah. That's a good flag up that. If you go on You Tube you can see that one, it was a good one!" (Link - <a href="
    " target="_blank"> </a>) <b>Carlyle Mitchell on overall game:</b>
    "It was a very difficult game for me to come back into because I was out for like two and a half weeks. It was a very hard game but most of all we got three points."
    <b>Carlyle Mitchell on communicating with Leveron:</b>
    "The communication with me and Johnny was very hard because I speak English and he speaks Spanish, so it's very hard. We did more hand movements."
    <b>Carlyle Mitchell on how his injury held up during the game:</b>
    "I got a little twitch during the game but it wasn't bad so I just continued going."
    <b>Brad Knighton on the importance of goals at both ends:</b>
    "If we keep scoring goals at the rate we’re scoring goals we’re going to move up the table nice and fast, and look good doing it. We just have to shore things up defensively and that comes down to me being a leader and organizing the backline and making the saves I need to make to keep us in the game."
    <b>New England manager Jay Heaps on his side's explosive start:</b>
    "To be honest with you it was some of the best stuff we've done this season that first 20 minutes. I thought we were prepared, we were ready, we were all over them."
    <b>New England manager Jay Heaps on the game changing sending off:</b>
    "We're still looking at the film of it. We felt it was a bit harsh. It is what it is. The worst part is we're up 2-1 but we're down a man, seventy minutes to go. The referee's got to be 100% on that and he felt he was."
    <b>New England's Andrew Farrell on his sending off:</b>
    "It was a good ball they played in behind, deep in behind. I got caught off-guard because I didn’t see Kenny Miller coming in from behind, from my left side. It was kind of a quick play. I had my hand, I think, on his back and I don’t think it’s a foul, but obviously it’s in the run of play, so you can’t really see it, and I mean, on the replay it looks like a foul, so, it’s tough going down a man."
    <b>New England's Chris Tierney on the game changing sending off:</b>
    "We started really well, we were in full control of the game. Unfortunately it was a classic case of one play deciding the game. That red card clearly changed the game. We liked our chances with eleven men, 2-0 up after 20 minutes and were moving the ball well and creating chances."
    <b>New England's Kelyn Rowe on the game changing sending off:</b>
    "If it was 11 v 11, maybe it was two, three, four zero in the first half."
    <p>
    Guest
    KEY PLAYERS
    Attacking
    With the midfield struggling so much against Seattle, the Caps need a boost and may get it with the possible return of Daigo Kobayashi from injury. The Japanese midfielder will most likely play in a central attacking role behind the striker where he will be required to help the team in maintaining possession and creating opportunities for the attack in the final third.
    The Revolution have searched for a consistent goalscorer for the last several seasons and may have found one in Homegrown product Diego Fagundez. The eighteen year old has scored five times in his last eight starts in which the team has four wins and three draws. So far this season Fagundez has shown he is capable of playing either wing spots or as a withdrawn striker for the Revolution.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Defence
    A rash of injuries has hit the Whitecaps in the centre of the defence with DeMerit, O’Brien and Rusin all out for the time being so the team has recalled Carlyle Mitchell from FC Edmonton. The athletic defender, who is coming off an injury himself, will take over the role of O’Brien as the organizer of the backline and the key component in dealing with balls coming into the box via the air.
    One of the biggest reasons for the turnaround in the defensive third is the addition of Jose Goncalves who came on loan from Switzerland. The defender is a physical imposing player who has become the vocal leader of the backline in his spot at centrehalf. With his experience in the Champions League, Goncalves has recently taken over the role as captain.
    WHO’S ON FORM
    He may have started as a central attacking player this year but Russell Teibert may have found his ideal place as a winger on the right side of the midfield. The young Canadian has set up the team’s last three goals with crosses that found Miller for the winner against New York as well as the two that Camilo was able to head in versus Seattle.
    After a shaky start of the season for Bobby Shuttleworth has become one of the top goalkeepers in MLS. He currently leads all regular starters in a number goalkeeping categories including goal against average, save percentage and cleansheets where he has racked seven in twelve starts.
    PROJECTED LINEUP

    Vancouver Whitecaps (4-3-3) R to L- Brad Knighton; Lee Young-Pyo, Carlyle Mitchell, Johnny Leveron, Jordan Harvey; Jun Marques Davidson, Nigel Reo-Coker, Daigo Kobayashi; Russell Teibert, Kenny Miller, Camilo Sanvezzo
    New England Revolution (4-1-4-1) R to L- Bobby Shuttleworth; Andrew Farrell, Stephen McCarthy, Jose Goncalves, Chris Tierney; Scott Caldwell; Saer Sene, Lee Nguyen, Kelly Rowe, Diego Fagundez; Juan Agudelo
    2013 RECORD
    Vancouver Whitecaps:
    4W-4D-4L-16P
    7th in Western Conference
    Last Match: 2-1 Win at New York Red Bulls
    New England Revolution:
    5W-5D-4L-20P
    6th in Eastern Conference
    Last Match: 0-0 Draw vs D.C. United
    OVERVIEW
    Vancouver Whitecaps will try to rebound from another disappointing loss to a rival as they face the Revolution from New England at B.C. Place. In the three MLS meetings the two teams have played against each other, the Revs have won twice at home while they drew at Empire Stadium in 2011.
    There will be some changes to the lineup from last week but Brad Knighton will remain as the number one keeper. The Caps have recalled Carlyle Mitchell back from Edmonton and he will partner with Johnny Leveron for the first time while Y.P. Lee and Jordan Harvey start at the fullback positions.
    Once again the Caps will face one of the hottest teams in the League. The Revs are currently in a five game unbeaten streak in MLS which includes three wins and two draws. If you include the two U.S. Open Cup wins against New York and Rochester the streak is extended to seven games.
    The number one facet of their team that has significantly improved is the defensive play. They are the top defensive team in MLS. In fourteen games this season the two keepers have combined for a total nine cleansheets with Shuttleworth getting seven of them.
    On the other hand they have been blanked by their opponents in six of the fourteen games this season. The attack has been sparked up recently with them scoring 11 of their 15 goals this year in five of their last six games.
    The Whitecaps will need to attack quickly and apply pressure the relatively younger Revolution side. They will need more connectivity from the midfield if they want to create more than the usual attempts on target.
    The newly paired Mitchell and Leveron will have a lot of pressure on them, with their only experience of playing together coming in training. The two will need help from their fellow defenders including their holding midfielder Jun Marques Davidson.
    Before the season started this stretch would have been considered an easy one considering they had back to back home games against the Revolution and Chivas USA. However this is a match the Caps cannot take lightly. A loss would see them lose more ground in the playoff race and put more pressure on Martin Rennie.
    <p>
    Guest
    The Quebec Soccer Federation announced this morning that it had lifted its self imposed ban on turbans. It has agreed to authorize the use of all male turbans on its soccer fields.
    The Canadian Soccer Assocation announced shortly after that it had lifted its suspension of the QSF.
    Fin.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
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