Saturday’s Vancouver Whitecaps clash against the Rochester Rhinos saw the fall of one streak and the continuation of a more auspicious one. Before 4,996 fans at Swangard Stadium, the Whitecaps found a way to break their goalless streak while maintaining their defensive dominance, coming away with a 2-0 victory.
Vancouver threatened early, but that was something we’ve seen before. This last stretch of games has been characterized by the team creating scoring chances but not capitalizing on them. Tonight was different, though, as Cornelius Stewart ended their scoring drought in the 17th minute. He collected the ball in the box after Marcus Haber’s shot hit him, turned and drilled it past Rochester goalkeeper Neal Kitson into the corner of the net. The goal came in the 276th minute of USSF-II play since the Whitecaps’ last league tally (April 29 against Portland) and the 296th minute of USSF-II and Voyageurs’ Cup play since their last goal of any type (a Marcus Haber penalty May 5 against Montreal in the Voyageurs’ Cup).
Perhaps getting one goal took care of the Whitecaps’ confidence issues, as they were able to add a second in the 51st minute. Haber made an excellent run down the right flank and won a corner. Captain Martin Nash, making his return to the starting lineup from injury, executed the corner brilliantly, floating a perfect cross across the box onto the bandaged head of central defender Greg Janicki, who made no mistake heading it home. It was only the second time all year (other than in exhibition play) that the Whitecaps had scored two goals; the first was their 2-0 win in their season opener against Minnesota.
Even up two goals, the Whitecaps continued to create chances. Haber had a good run in the 62nd minute and beat his defender, but took too long to get his shot off and had it blocked. He then had a 64th-minute header ring off the crossbar. Stewart and Marlon James also had scoring chances, but couldn’t convert.
Nash said finally notching a goal took a weight off the Whitecaps' shoulders.
"It was great," he said. "I think it took a little pressure off us."
Nash said they didn't alter their game plan, though. Rather, it was more that some of their opportunities finally went in.
"We've been creating chances all along," he said. "We had good balls coming in against Toronto, but we couldn't get on the end of them."
The more impressive streak continued unabated, though, as the Whitecaps’ defence again refused to allow a goal. Keeper Jay Nolly recorded his seventh clean sheet in all competitions and his sixth in the league. It’s now been 274 minutes of USSF-II play since the last goal against them (from that April 29 Portland game) and 419 minutes since the last goal against them in any competition (from that May 5 Montreal game). That’s an incredible run.
Nash said the defensive success has been a unified effort.
"The back four's been great, but the whole team in front of them has played well," he said.
Vancouver dominated the scoresheet as well, finishing with 11 shots to Rochester's six and four corners to the Rhinos' two. Despite the win and the goals, head coach Teitur Thordarson was only moderately impressed with his team's performance, however.
"I think we played a decent game," he said. "It wasn't the best, but we got two good goals and we had the chance to score more."
Thordarson said the clean sheet was nice, but the overall defensive effort wasn't as strong as in past games.
"We didn't control the game defensively as much as I wanted to," he said. "I wanted to see more possession. Back and forth, that's good for the fans, but not what I wanted."
Thordarson said he was pleased with Stewart's play, though, and he foresees using him more in the future.
"He was impressive today," Thordarson said. "He is equally good on both sides."
Stewart said he isn't taking his success or his place in the lineup for granted, though.
"I'm going to keep working hard," he said.
The Whitecaps now travel to Montreal Wednesday for a crucial Voyageurs' Cup clash against the Impact (8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific, will be live-blogged here). They need to win to have any hope of taking home the trophy and its attendant CONCACAF Champions League berth. Nash said the team can't get overconfident about Montreal having nothing to play for, as he expects them to still be a tough challenge.
"Even if they don't play their best lineup, they still have good players," he said.
Nash thinks the Whitecaps still have a chance at the Voyageurs' Cup, though.
"It's going to be a tough task, but I think we're capable of it."
[Cross-posted to The 24th Minute]
Showing posts with label Teitur Thordarson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Teitur Thordarson. Show all posts
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Whitecaps: A wild draw
(L to R: Martin Nash, Teitur Thordarson, and Marcus Haber address the media after Wednesday's match).
Wednesday's Voyageurs Cup game between the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Montreal Impact felt rather like an episode of 24, starting slowly and building to a chaotic and hard-to-believe 1-1 final. In between, there were a couple of goals, plenty of cards and much more entertainment than that other Vancouver team offered.
The match offered little at first, with both teams electing to start defensive lineups; Montreal fielded a 4-5-1 with Peter Byers as the lone striker, while Vancouver opted for a 4-4-1-1 with Marcus Haber supported by attacking midfielder Jonny Steele. The Whitecaps controlled most of the early possession, but only created a few chances, and the score remained level until Byers slipped one by Jay Nolly in the 31st minute. Montreal then took over the game for the next fifty minutes until a bizarre sequence of events unfolded.
With time dwindling, the Whitecaps began to apply more pressure, and they were helped by a dubious foul called just outside the Montreal penalty area. That led to a free kick swung in by Martin Nash, and Impact defender Adam Braz lost his mind. Already on a yellow card, he saw Vancouver central back Greg Janicki slip by him as the ball soared into the air, and responded by bull-rushing Janicki and knocking him out of the way before the cross got there. That resulted in Braz's ejection and a penalty kick for the Whitecaps, which Marcus Haber coolly converted for his first goal of this year in the 81st minute.
Thanks to the score being knotted at one and Montreal being reduced to 10 men, Vancouver turned the pressure on even more. They had several further chances, but were foiled by excellent keeping from Matt Jordan, who grabbed every cross that came anywhere near him. Marlon James actually managed to sneak through the defence and beat an onrushing Jordan, but his shot trickled wide. You have to think Vancouver may regret that missed opportunity down the road.
Right at the end, there was a further complication. A clash between Montreal's Reda Agourram and Vancouver's Chris Williams saw Agourram sent off with a straight red card. It was difficult to tell what exactly happened, but the result means Montreal could face a couple suspensions for the upcoming tournament games. Already missing Roberto Brown after a foolish punch against Toronto FC, they could be even more shorthanded for the rest of the tournament, a difficult prospect considering that they have only one point from two games.
Head coach Marc Dos Santos is convinced that they're not out of it yet, however. In the post-match press conference, he pointed out that the Impact came back to win the inaugural Nutrilite Canadian Championship under identical circumstances in 2007.
"If we've done it once, we can do it again," he said.
They will need plenty of help from both Vancouver and Toronto FC, though, as the most Montreal can now finish the tournament with is seven points.
"We can't depend on ourselves anymore," Dos Santos said.
He was rather displeased with the way the match turned out.
"I really felt we deserved the full three points until the 80th minute," he said. "Until the 80th minute, Vancouver didn't have a real chance."
His Whitecaps' counterpart, Teitur Thordarson, also wasn't happy with the end result.
"I'm a little disappointed we didn't get more than one point," he said.
Thordarson was pleased with Vancouver's early play, but disappointed with their second half performance.
In the end, the draw was probably a fair result. The shots were 7-7, with Vancouver putting three on net and Montreal responding with four. It was a chippy game as well, with 14 fouls for the Impact and seven for Vancouver. Neither side will be completely happy with their showing, and the draw does give Toronto FC a leg up on the competition, but there are still plenty of matches to be played. If the rest of the tournament is anything like this, it won't be lacking in drama.
[Cross-posted to The 24th Minute]
(Wednesday's Voyageurs Cup game between the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Montreal Impact felt rather like an episode of 24, starting slowly and building to a chaotic and hard-to-believe 1-1 final. In between, there were a couple of goals, plenty of cards and much more entertainment than that other Vancouver team offered.
The match offered little at first, with both teams electing to start defensive lineups; Montreal fielded a 4-5-1 with Peter Byers as the lone striker, while Vancouver opted for a 4-4-1-1 with Marcus Haber supported by attacking midfielder Jonny Steele. The Whitecaps controlled most of the early possession, but only created a few chances, and the score remained level until Byers slipped one by Jay Nolly in the 31st minute. Montreal then took over the game for the next fifty minutes until a bizarre sequence of events unfolded.
With time dwindling, the Whitecaps began to apply more pressure, and they were helped by a dubious foul called just outside the Montreal penalty area. That led to a free kick swung in by Martin Nash, and Impact defender Adam Braz lost his mind. Already on a yellow card, he saw Vancouver central back Greg Janicki slip by him as the ball soared into the air, and responded by bull-rushing Janicki and knocking him out of the way before the cross got there. That resulted in Braz's ejection and a penalty kick for the Whitecaps, which Marcus Haber coolly converted for his first goal of this year in the 81st minute.
Thanks to the score being knotted at one and Montreal being reduced to 10 men, Vancouver turned the pressure on even more. They had several further chances, but were foiled by excellent keeping from Matt Jordan, who grabbed every cross that came anywhere near him. Marlon James actually managed to sneak through the defence and beat an onrushing Jordan, but his shot trickled wide. You have to think Vancouver may regret that missed opportunity down the road.
Right at the end, there was a further complication. A clash between Montreal's Reda Agourram and Vancouver's Chris Williams saw Agourram sent off with a straight red card. It was difficult to tell what exactly happened, but the result means Montreal could face a couple suspensions for the upcoming tournament games. Already missing Roberto Brown after a foolish punch against Toronto FC, they could be even more shorthanded for the rest of the tournament, a difficult prospect considering that they have only one point from two games.
Head coach Marc Dos Santos is convinced that they're not out of it yet, however. In the post-match press conference, he pointed out that the Impact came back to win the inaugural Nutrilite Canadian Championship under identical circumstances in 2007.
"If we've done it once, we can do it again," he said.
They will need plenty of help from both Vancouver and Toronto FC, though, as the most Montreal can now finish the tournament with is seven points.
"We can't depend on ourselves anymore," Dos Santos said.
He was rather displeased with the way the match turned out.
"I really felt we deserved the full three points until the 80th minute," he said. "Until the 80th minute, Vancouver didn't have a real chance."
His Whitecaps' counterpart, Teitur Thordarson, also wasn't happy with the end result.
"I'm a little disappointed we didn't get more than one point," he said.
Thordarson was pleased with Vancouver's early play, but disappointed with their second half performance.
In the end, the draw was probably a fair result. The shots were 7-7, with Vancouver putting three on net and Montreal responding with four. It was a chippy game as well, with 14 fouls for the Impact and seven for Vancouver. Neither side will be completely happy with their showing, and the draw does give Toronto FC a leg up on the competition, but there are still plenty of matches to be played. If the rest of the tournament is anything like this, it won't be lacking in drama.
[Cross-posted to The 24th Minute]
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Setting up the Whitecaps - Timbers clash
[Second leg live blog is above]
The first leg of the USL-1 semifinal was a bit of a tricky win for the Vancouver Whitecaps. Yes, they won 2-1, but they conceded a penalty along the way after a ball bounced off Lyle Martin's hand. That tied the score after an early goal from Charles Gbeke, and Vancouver only won thanks to a late goal from Marcus Haber off a Gbeke cross.
Whitecaps head coach Teitur Thordarson said he was impressed with the team's resilence.
"I think they responded very well to the goal," he said.
Thordarson wasn't happy with the penalty call, though.
"From my perspective, it's very harsh to give that penalty there," he said. "He just covered his face and the ball hit him. I've never seen that before."
Gbeke said he was confident the team would come back despite a 1-1 tie at halftime, and he figured Haber would notch one of his opportunities.
"In the locker room, I told Marcus he was going to score today," he said.
Gbeke, who led USL-1 with 12 goals this season, played one of his best games of the year. He was dominant all night, scoring the first goal and setting up the second. He's played in a variety of roles this year thanks to the Caps' depth up front, but he said he isn't concerned if he starts or not.
"It doesn't matter if Coach wants me to start or wants me to come in off the bench," he said.
Haber said the team didn't get frustrated when they fell behind.
"We knew we had to keep pressuring them," he said. "We knew we'd get our chances."
They did indeed get them, and Haber notched home the winner off a lovely cross from Gbeke. Still, Vancouver only has a one-goal lead going into this second leg at Portland, a place where they've struggled recently. The temptation might be to play defensively, but Thordarson said that won't be the case.
"We will try to go down there and play our game," he said. "I feel the team is very confident. It will be a totally different game down there; whether that will suit us beter than them is yet to be seen."
[Cross-posted to The 24th Minute]
The first leg of the USL-1 semifinal was a bit of a tricky win for the Vancouver Whitecaps. Yes, they won 2-1, but they conceded a penalty along the way after a ball bounced off Lyle Martin's hand. That tied the score after an early goal from Charles Gbeke, and Vancouver only won thanks to a late goal from Marcus Haber off a Gbeke cross.
Whitecaps head coach Teitur Thordarson said he was impressed with the team's resilence.
"I think they responded very well to the goal," he said.
Thordarson wasn't happy with the penalty call, though.
"From my perspective, it's very harsh to give that penalty there," he said. "He just covered his face and the ball hit him. I've never seen that before."
Gbeke said he was confident the team would come back despite a 1-1 tie at halftime, and he figured Haber would notch one of his opportunities.
"In the locker room, I told Marcus he was going to score today," he said.
Gbeke, who led USL-1 with 12 goals this season, played one of his best games of the year. He was dominant all night, scoring the first goal and setting up the second. He's played in a variety of roles this year thanks to the Caps' depth up front, but he said he isn't concerned if he starts or not.
"It doesn't matter if Coach wants me to start or wants me to come in off the bench," he said.
Haber said the team didn't get frustrated when they fell behind.
"We knew we had to keep pressuring them," he said. "We knew we'd get our chances."
They did indeed get them, and Haber notched home the winner off a lovely cross from Gbeke. Still, Vancouver only has a one-goal lead going into this second leg at Portland, a place where they've struggled recently. The temptation might be to play defensively, but Thordarson said that won't be the case.
"We will try to go down there and play our game," he said. "I feel the team is very confident. It will be a totally different game down there; whether that will suit us beter than them is yet to be seen."
[Cross-posted to The 24th Minute]
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