Nearly nine months ago, there was more hope than expectation that Vancouver Whitecaps FC could make this year’s MLS playoffs.
After all, this is a club that endured an offseason to forget — much of it driven by the acrimonious departure of last year’s top MLS goal-scorer, Camilo Sanvezzo, to Mexican club Querétaro in January.
Replacing Camilo’s 22 goals was an acutely known challenge for Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson, especially once his most experienced striker Kenny Miller returned home to Scotland to join former club Rangers FC in May.
And yet, despite registering 11 fewer goals this regular season than in 2013, the ‘Caps found a way to secure a postseason berth for only the second time in their young MLS history. Their spot was assured with a 1-0 home win over the Colorado Rapids in the regular season finale Oct. 25 at B.C. Place.
“It’s a fantastic achievement for the group of players I’ve got,” Robinson said after Saturday’s win. “I couldn’t be more proud of them because they’ve probably been written off a few times this year when things didn’t go our way. But we stuck to our beliefs and the boys kept going. It’s credit to the organization, to the supporters, and that group of players.”
Robinson has good reason to be proud of his squad. Unlike in 2012, when the Blue and White backed into the playoffs, the Caps put together a decisive run of four wins in their last five matches to set a club record of 50 regular season points.
In many ways, the 2014 Whitecaps are a fine example of how a soccer team can earn results without scoring a lot of goals. The departed Camilo continues to tear up the net and after 14 rounds, he leads the Mexican Apertura with 10 goals. But in Vancouver, the Whitecaps enter this MLS post-season having scored the fewest number of goals among the 10 playoff-bound clubs this season.
One factor was the league-leading 13 shutouts the Whitecaps FC recorded this term. Led by MLS candidate for goalkeeper of the year David Ousted, who is the only player to feature in every minute of Vancouver’s MLS season campaign to date, the ‘Caps proved a difficult side to break down. In fact, Vancouver heads into the playoffs tonight with four-straight clean sheets to their name and having set the league’s longest shutout streak this season at 393 minutes.
“It’s credit to David and the back players for those clean sheets, but I said all along that we defend from the front and we attack from the back,” Robinson said. “I knew what we had in that group of players and we were probably lacking a goal-scorer. We’ve got players that can score goals, but not probably enough goals for me. While we haven’t scored enough goals, we’ve worked hard defensively and you have to do that because, as they all say, championships are won from the defence.
“I didn’t want to do that, but once the (summer transfer) window closed and we decided to go that way, it was just an opportunity for me to give my younger players more time and I had to work with what I got, which is why when they got criticized, I would never criticize them because they’re a brilliant group of lads that are trying their best.”
As the fifth-place finisher in the MLS Western Conference, the Whitecaps are in Texas to face fourth-place FC Dallas in the Knockout Round game Oct. 29. Kickoff is 6 p.m. Vancouver time.
Should the ‘Caps win, they will meet arch-rival Seattle Sounders FC in a Western Conference semi-final series, with the first leg set for B.C. Place this Sunday at 6 p.m.
Simon Fudge has covered the beautiful game in Canada and the United Kingdom for print, web and radio. Reach him at bristol_city@hotmail.com.
