tmcmurph Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 They win 2-0 over Miami who lost to Portland last night and finally get a week off. They played very solid and if not for the Miami keeper it could have been much worse. Gbeke with 2 and the second one was a nice play on setup by Randy EB. Used his speed to get into position and then pushed out a nice pass to Gbeke instead of trying to shoot over the charging goalie. I thought he had left it short but it was too far ahead of the goalie, and too far away from the defender and all Gbeke had to do was pass it into a wide open net. The back 4 played very well and I think they have found their combo to work from. Hirano, Pejic, Pozniak, Martin all did very well and communicated excellently. So after a very busy stretch they get a week off and are moving in the right direction at the right time of the season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonovision Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Watched most of the game on USL live, and agree with your analysis. Edwini-Bonsu has really only seen the pitch this season for a few minutes at a time. In his last two appearances, he created chances with his speed from the moment he came on. With the injury problems the Whitecaps have at striker, I hope Thordarson has enough confidence in the guy to give him a little more time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmcmurph Posted August 24, 2009 Author Share Posted August 24, 2009 quote:Originally posted by jonovision Watched most of the game on USL live, and agree with your analysis. Edwini-Bonsu has really only seen the pitch this season for a few minutes at a time. In his last two appearances, he created chances with his speed from the moment he came on. With the injury problems the Whitecaps have at striker, I hope Thordarson has enough confidence in the guy to give him a little more time. REB was injured for part of the season as was Lyle Martin. With those two now healthy and Wes Knight they have some major speed on the field. This could be a great finish to the season. Like you said any time he has been on the field he has caused problems. It must be real depressing for a defender to play 80 minutes and then have to face a fresh sprint machine coming at him full speed. I would like to see him on a bit earlier as well. Maybe the last 20 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snake Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 caps needed this win bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jeffery S. Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Glad to hear about the win, puts us on track for at least the last playof spot. And the back four with Nolly, back to the essential experienced defence, something that can be repeated, regular starters, we've had too many changes lately with. Sorry I won't see any more Caps games ths year, back to BCN this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanDouglas Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Teitur was all set to put Randy in with 10 minutes to go, taking off Gbeke, but then Charles scored before the substitution could be made. Coach changed his mind and kept Gbeke on. Randy later came on for Haber. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analyst Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 quote:Originally posted by AlanDouglas Teitur was all set to put Randy in with 10 minutes to go, taking off Gbeke, but then Charles scored before the substitution could be made. Coach changed his mind and kept Gbeke on. Randy later came on for Haber. During the last U20 worlds, Randy scored most of Canada's goals, while Haber got none. He showed he can play and score whereas haber didn't yet, the Whitecaps have been giving Haber lots of playing time and Randy very little playing time. Why? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masster Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 ^ I think it has everything to do with size. Haber is ready physically to play against men while I'm not sure Randy is. Defenders tower over him. Plus, its not all about height either. He just gets pushed off the ball too easily. REB has been doing really well in youth tournaments, but even in the PDL his numbers weren't great. He will get his chances now with Orgill and James out. I think Teitur is doing the right thing bringing him along slowly. Plus, the Whitecaps are finally getting some consistency. The last thing they need is to shake it up now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Marcus Haber sits at 7th in USL goal scoring with 6 goals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonovision Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 I think the role Randy was played in yesterday (late game sub to run at tired defenders) is the right one for this point in his career. I just think he would bring more to the team if he was allowed a bit more time (coming in for 20 minutes or so instead of 5). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masster Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 Article about Randy in the Province newspaper today. I take back my comment about him not having success in the PDL. Last season he was great. Perhaps you could attribute his low numbers this year to injury? Forward's speed 'scary' Edwini-Bonsu moves up to main team By Marc Weber, The Province August 25, 2009 http://www.canada.com/Forward+speed+scary/1927408/story.html The silver lining to Marlon James's most recent injury is that Whitecaps fans will get to see some minutes out of Randy Edwini-Bonsu -- if they don't blink. "He scares everybody with his speed," said coach Teitur Thordarson, who watched the forward whiz by a Miami player and set up Charles Gbeke for the 2-0 goal in injury time Sunday. The unselfish assist was his first point as a Whitecap. On Monday, he scored twice as the reserve team beat Seattle University 4-1 at Burnaby Lake Sports Complex. Edwini-Bonsu has played just 27 minutes in five games for the senior side this season. On April 5, he injured his ankle in the residency team's opening game of the Dallas Cup, a showcase tournament for top youth clubs. The initial assessment was that he'd be out three days. It was closer to three months. The bone is still not healed fully, but Edwini-Bonsu said he's fit and back at full speed. Based on Sunday's glimpse, no one would doubt him. "It's still a bit sore on turf, but on grass, it's perfect," he said. "I can't point and kick on my laces [on his right foot], but I can use my inside, and my left foot's a powerhouse now." Anticipation was high for Edwini-Bonsu this season. The 19-year-old was a goal-scoring machine with the residency program. He scored nine times in 15 regular-season games in 2008 to make the All-Western Conference Team and added five more in three playoff games. He filled the net at the 2008 Dallas Cup, then at the German INSEL-CUP -- a junior international tournament where he was named MVP -- and again on the residency team's December trip to Japan, scoring 11 goals in five games against top U19 sides. Any coach would salivate at the thought of playing the darting teenager off towering target men like Gbeke or James. When Edwini-Bonsu ran track in Edmonton -- where his family moved from Ghana in 2002 -- he clocked 11 seconds in the 100 metres. In the Whitecaps' 40-metre sprint test he registered four seconds flat. But the true value of his speed, according to residency director Thomas Niendorf, is in that first split second. "It's not even the first five metres," said Niendorf. "It's more, once he gets a first step on a defender, you cannot catch him any more. He has such tremendous acceleration in the next three-four metres. "He is just so quick that once the ball is played into the gap ... I've not seen anyone faster in any of our games." Edwini-Bonsu is the first forward option off the bench with leading scorer James out another two weeks with a groin strain and fellow residency forward Dever Orgill done for the season after knee surgery. The 5-foot-5 striker was set to come on for Gbeke in the 80th minute of Sunday's win -- the fourth official was already holding up the number board for the switch -- but Gbeke scored and Thordarson made a defensive midfield substitution instead. There's logic in leaving bigger bodies like Gbeke and Marcus Haber up front with a lead as they can hold the ball more and kill the clock. But as Edwini-Bonsu proved, there's also logic in a speedy substitute -- one who can bury a pressing team on the counter-attack. "It's been a depressing season with the injury," said Edwini-Bonsu. "But now Marlon's down and guys expect me to step in and help out. I was happy that I was able to do my job and hopefully I'll get some more minutes." mweber@theprovince.com © Copyright © Canwest News Service Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmcmurph Posted August 26, 2009 Author Share Posted August 26, 2009 quote:Originally posted by masster Article about Randy in the Province newspaper today. I take back my comment about him not having success in the PDL. Last season he was great. Perhaps you could attribute his low numbers this year to injury? Yea his foot must have really took a whack because it is still too sore to shoot! Loved these quotes from the article: "It's still a bit sore on turf, but on grass, it's perfect," he said. "I can't point and kick on my laces [on his right foot], but I can use my inside, and my left foot's a powerhouse now." Oh great say all the USL goalies. Now he can shoot left footed as well? Groannnn. and "In the Whitecaps' 40-metre sprint test he registered four seconds flat." Are you kidding me? 40 METERS? Not yards, in 4 seconds flat? Holy bullet with feet Batman! I knew he was fast but that is just plain freaky kind of speed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 quote:Originally posted by tmcmurph Are you kidding me? 40 METERS? Not yards, in 4 seconds flat? Holy bullet with feet Batman! I knew he was fast but that is just plain freaky kind of speed. I'm calling shenanigans on that. Four seconds flat over 40 metres is Usain Bolt fast. It has to be yards. That said, I'd love to see Edwini-Bonsu and Marvell Wynne in a race. I believe Wynne was also clocking 11 seconds over 100 metres in high school before he focused solely on soccer, and I'd bet both are faster now. Wynne is literally the fastest soccer player I've ever seen, on TV or live. This is a guy who closed down Landon Donovan with ease on a breakaway after spotting Landycakes a 10-yard head start. For all his faults, Wynne uses his freakish athletic abilities to the fullest (he has a ridiculous vertical leap and can throw the ball as far - though not as hard - as Adrian Serioux). If REB is even nearly as athletic as Wynne, but with a better soccer brain, he could be a real treat for years to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VPjr Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 ^ I think Randy would love to take Wynne up on an offer to race the length of a soccer field. Those are two very fast young men. I have a feeling Randy will be the better footballer though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RS Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 quote:Originally posted by VPjr ^ I think Randy would love to take Wynne up on an offer to race the length of a soccer field. Those are two very fast young men. I have a feeling Randy will be the better footballer though. I can't argue with that. If REB could take some of Wynne's strength, he'd be a force. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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