August 14 - Vancouver vs. Richmond [R]

[DJT]

TEAM 1040 Vancouver audio Webcast here.

Final:

Vancouver 1  Richmond 1

34' VAN Steve Klein PK STOPPED

64' VAN Ian Fuller

67' RIC Tim Brown

[Guest Jeffery S.]

Was at the game tonight. VAncouver dominated the whole match but could not get more than the draw, letting up a bit after their goal and leaving Brown with a cracker of a shot just after the goal that should have made it easier on them. Liked Jordan and Gjertson -a real find, strong young player- but though the midfield was often a bit lazy. Think this is coaching, their movements off the ball were too often rudimentary, they are locked into a 4-4-2 with the guys in the middle not doing enough to support those up front on this day.

The real mystery with the Whitecaps is why at this level they are happy to be a retirement home for players who have talent but do not necessarily give the team more than a young player who could still grow and learn. Nash is the worst example, you can see he can play, but overall his day was very poor, and at this stage of the game he is not going to learn how to pass better or kick a decent corner. Watson is obviously experienced, it is okay to have someone like that in the back, but they really should be working on bringing up some young players and doing what USL 1st division could do best: develop younger talents to come through and move on in their careers. Especially since this team would not be any worse without them, and at least you'd be working on something.

Class act from Srdjan Djekanovic, who I have been in e-mail contact with for years, came up before the game -pregame kids clinic in fact- and presented my 6 year old with a signed pennant. First time I'd met him. Serge has mentioned that he will be at UBC this year, was very pleased to be able to play vs Sunderland. Not much time with the Caps first team though, hope next season they keep him and he can start playing a bit for them in 2006.

[An Observer]

I have always thought this is the problem with Vancouver...they have too many over the hill players. Montreal has done a good job of integrating youth with experience which is something Vancouver should take a look at. They seem to scared to go with inexperienced players but these are exactly the kind of kids who inject some enthusiasm, creativity and a change of pace into the side. They keep the veterans on their toes as well.

[Johnnie Monster]

Martin Nash</u> has been a mixed bag this year. Pretty handy on the ball, good sense of field play, but absolutely bloody rubbish on the set plays.

There is nothing that makes me cringe more than hearing our play by play commentator say "...and Nash will take the corner" or "...Nash lines up for the free kick."

Nash's shots\corners are consistently over the bar, miles out of range for attackers, or straight to the feet of an opponent.

I recently watched him hit a two man wall with an FK. How the hell do you hit a two man wall?

Davide Xausa</u>, who has released part way through this season, was absolutely useless in the years he played here. He often looked unmotivated and uninvolved in gameplay. Sure, leadership counts I guess, but for a former international, he was no better than some of hte inexperienced youngsters in the USL.

Mark Watson </u>- the jury's still out on this one. He was injured in a preseason match vs. Seattle and spent several weeks on the sidelines. Since returning he's performed decently, but not spectacularly. I think fan expectations on Watson were quite high when he arrived, so it's somewhat unfair to get on his case for not living up to the hype.

Nick Dasovic</u> - an absolutely CRUCIAL component to the Whitecaps roster. He's our back line general, even when he's on the bench. Tremendous leadership on and off the pitch, and consistently turns in some of the best defensive performances in the league. He may be slowing down a bit, but is still several steps ahead of the competition.

One problem faced by Watson and Dasovic is that Vancouver has tremendous depth at the back line. It's hard to shine on a team full of young stars who are getting the job done equally well.

Carlo Corrazzin</u> still has quite a bit of magic in him. You can always count on him for a stunning header or two (or a great bicycle kick) at least a few times in a season. He is running out of gas though - doesn't have the legs for a full 90 anymore. He's been used as more of a super-sub this year, although he has been given a good number of starts.

FYI - he absolutely dominated in the game vs. Sunderland a couple of weeks ago - best man on the pitch by a country mile.

[youllneverwalkalone]

In addition to Gjertsen who isn't that old (although American), Harmse has looked pretty good on the occasions I've been to Swangard (particularly against Sunderland) this season. I think Cucca may have a future as well. Looked really good in an otherwise uninspiring opener vs. the Lynx.

If I had a minute more time, I'd compare the average age to a comparable English club -maybe a Colchester United? I doubt the difference would be that dramatic, particularly if you remove on loan players from the upper divisions.

EDIT: I just noticed the following Canadian youth internationals are currently playing/recently have played in the Caps reserves or U17s: Keegan Ayre, Mike D'Agostino, Alex Marello, Cam Wilson

[Guest Jeffery S.]

I sometimes think that there are less opportunities for youth players at this level than even in Premiership, to give an example. I think there is a lack of risk, and since there is little market, nobody to show off young budding types to (preview to a sale-transfer), there is little justification for risk. So you go with a results-based concept when you should be thinking about entertainment (damn few out to games as it is) and about those 2 or three kids you can be pushing into some first team action at some point in the season, and those three or four others that need the time, have a glow, and should move on to a better paying pro career probably Europe within a short time.

[Winnipeg Fury]

Josh Simpson comes to mind. How does a player go from Victoria United (I'm not going to count his brief PDL stint) to Millwall's starting roster ?

Perhaps it had something to do with university eligibility, but that appears suspect.