A late equaliser from Brian White on his return from injury saw Vancouver Whitecaps snatch a dramatic 1-1 draw with Portland Timbers in a crucial clash at the top of the MLS standings. Portland started the game on top as they tormented the Whitecaps’ makeshift backline, but a string of saves from Yohei Takaoka kept his team in the game. However, his heroics were in … Continue reading Report Card: Guess Who’s Back
A scintillating first-half display was enough for the Vancouver Whitecaps to earn a vital 2-0 victory over Western Conference bottom-feeders Sporting Kansas City. In a fashion very similar to the way they dismantled Philadelphia Union and Forge FC, in the opening 45 minutes, Vancouver tore Kansas apart. Some sensational creative play made goals for Edier Ocampo and Kenji Cabrera, who were able to capitalize on … Continue reading Report Card: A Big First Half
Saturday night at BC Place, the Vancouver Whitecaps handed out a historic beat-down to the visiting Philadelphia Union by a final score of 7-0. It would have been an impressive result under any circumstances, but when you consider that Philly has been the league’s best team for most of the season, and that the Whitecaps were without Brian White and Ryan Gauld, it’s truly pretty … Continue reading Report Card: Oh So Good
The Vancouver Whitecaps returned to winning ways with a dramatic 3-2 victory over St. Louis City on Saturday night. It was a much needed three points for the Whitecaps, having dropped points in their last two clashes with teams outside the Western Conference playoffs. However, the victory did not come without controversy, as two questionable penalty decisions went Vancouver’s way, including one which allowed Thomas … Continue reading Report Card: A Win is a Win
Sunday night at BC Place, the Vancouver Whitecaps drew the visiting Houston Dynamo by a final score of 1-1, a frustrating final scoreline given the magnitude of the occasion and the generally dominant play the Whitecaps demonstrated over the course of the match. Overall, though, it was a night of football that was headlined by the introduction of Thomas Müller. A crowd of over 26,000 … Continue reading Report Card: The Final Push Starts Now!
The report card is a valuable tool that we produce, giving those who watched the match something to debate, and those who didn’t possibly get an insight into who played well and who didn’t. It has less utility if an external event has a disproportionate impact on the match, such as a hurricane, locusts, or Tim Ford being the worst referee on planet earth. The … Continue reading Report Card: Highway Robbery
Vancouver will enter a much needed break on a high, smashing Sporting Kansas City 3-0 on the heels of a scintillating first half and a second 45 minutes that, well, did enough to get the win (and the clean sheet) over the line. Jayden Nelson and JC Ngando were as good as they’ve been in a ‘Caps uniform to date. Brian White continues to struggle. … Continue reading Report Card: Running Through the Tape
On Saturday night in San Diego, the Vancouver Whitecaps played to a 1-1 draw against San Diego FC at Snapdragon Stadium. It was an entertaining and evenly contested match between the top two teams in the West, and while both will lament missed opportunities, I think the final result was fair given the balance of play. There were several standout showings for the Whitecaps, so … Continue reading Report Card: A Rivalry Brewing?
Games like Vancouver’s 3-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids are not very fun to watch and, I can assure you, not very fun to write the Report Card. But let’s try to get through it nevertheless. Yohei Takaoka: 4.0 After two important saves, including a penalty stop in the first half, Takaoka was well on his way to being the Whitecaps’ man of the match. But … Continue reading Report Card: That’s No Fun
Well, hopefully this is rock bottom. It was a catastrophic performance from Vancouver against the lowly LA Galaxy, falling 3-0 in their worst performance all season that showed little life in attack, shambolic defending and their one competent player getting sent off. What does that mean for the report card? Well, read on if you dare. Yohei Takaoka: 5 We’ve gotten Good Takaoka more than … Continue reading Report Card: Rock Bottom?