It wasn’t a match players on either team will tell their grandchildren about, but for the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday’s 0-0 draw with the Portland Timbers in Oregon represents an important point it will be happy to take.
It’s a result that sees them maintain top spot in Major League Soccer, along with three other clubs.
Importantly, after last weekend’s loss to D.C. United, this match ensures the side has avoided losing twice consecutively. Resiliency has been a word used to describe the Whitecaps this season under coach Carl Robinson and this draw maintains that sort of standard set from the beginning of the campaign.
Soccer Central podcast: SPORTSNET.CA’s Soccer Central podcast, hosted by John Molinaro and James Sharman, takes an in-depth look at the beautiful game and offers timely and thoughtful analysis on the sport’s biggest issues. To listen and subscribe to the podcast, CLICK HERE.
More important, it’s another strong away performance against strong opposition. Performances on the road have been a major weakness of the Whitecaps since joining MLS, but this season the club looks a different animal away from BC Place. A record of 3-1-1 is one many teams would be happy to have at home—instead, that’s how Vancouver has fared on the road.
At the back, goalkeeper David Ousted will be happy to claim another clean sheet, but in truth he didn’t have a lot to do. The most heroic performer in keeping out the Timbers on this night was the goalpost, as Darlington Nagbe cracked his first-half penalty against the woodwork.
The men in front of Ousted also deserve a lot of credit. The error prone Pa Modou Kah was as involved as ever in this match, but in a more positive way (apart from handling the ball to give away the aforementioned penalty). The veteran Norwegian centre back blocked a number of shots, preventing more dangerous looking situations from escalating.
His partner, the towering Kendall Waston, was as dominant as ever, winning everything in the air and using his long gangly legs to sweep away the danger on several occasions.
Jordan Harvey, stepping back into the lineup in place of Sam Adekugbe at left fullback, delivered the sort of consistent performance Vancouver fans have come to expect from him, and the Timbers never seemed to look too dangerous down his side as a result.
At right fullback, Ethen Sampson played his first match of the season, in for the injured Steven Beitashour. The South African has an enthusiasm to his game but on the ball it seemed he showed some nerves at times and got himself involved in situations that weren’t altogether necessary.
Down the stretch last year, Robinson ended up looking at the option of playing two left-footed fullbacks in Harvey and Adekugbe rather than play Sampson on the right. This was Sampson’s first match of the season and it’s doubtful Robinson is considering that just yet. But it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Welsh tactician explore other options by next weekend if Beitashour is still unavailable.
A big question going into this match was how the midfield would fare given the suspension to defensive midfielder and Designated Player Matias Laba. The answer to some fears in the Vancouver camp came from Gershon Koffie, who put in a commanding performance in the middle of the park. The Ghanaian seemed to win every 50-50 challenge and used possession well. Someone needed to play the disrupting role that Laba has perfected and Koffie did just that.
The man further forward of Koffie put in a more anonymous performance. Pedro Morales, who at times can be so scintillating and incisive with his passing, put in a fairly ineffective shift. Whether that’s down to excellent defending or Morales having a stinker isn’t altogether clear, but on the road the Chilean does seem to struggle to make an impact more than most.
Russell Teibert and Mauro Rosales put in strong efforts in the centre of the park, supporting Koffie well, but did struggle at times to get anything going offensively.
Wednesday, May 6 programming alert: Watch Montreal Impact vs. Toronto FC live on Sportsnet World and web streamed on Sportsnet.ca at 7:30 pm ET, and FC Edmonton vs. Vancouver Whitecaps at 10:00 pm ET on Sportsnet 360 and Sportsnet World. || Sportsnet NOW || Broadcast schedule
The way Robinson set his team out to counterattack, it seemed like a game that would suit Darren Mattocks, but the Jamaican ended up being largely neutralized, partly through a lack of quality service.
It was a bit of a slog for Octavio Rivero as well. The Uruguayan Designated Player seemed to have an ongoing dialogue with referee Allen Chapman. The Timbers singled him out as a target and he will have left the game with a few cleat marks, but little to show for it in terms of generating set pieces for his side.
In terms of the substitutes, Tim Parker came on too late to really evaluate, while Kekuta Manneh injected a bit of life after coming on for Mattocks around the hour mark.
Next up for the Whitecaps is the first leg of their Canadian Championship with FC Edmonton, starting with a match away from home. Fans can expect a more youthful lineup, mixed with veteran players who haven’t been getting much game time of late.
Martin MacMahon is a Vancouver-based writer. Follow him on Twitter