Match Report:

By Simon Fudge/whitecapsfc.com

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency returned to winning ways in the USL Premier Development League after a 4-2 away victory over arch-rivals Abbotsford Mariners on Canada Day.

Men's team midfielder Gordon Chin led the way with two goals for the visitors, while former Mariners player Gagandeep Dosanjh also struck twice, as the Residency team ended a five-match losing streak in PDL Western Conference, Northwest Division action on Wednesday afternoon. It was also the first time in five games that the 'Caps had found the back of the net in league play. Abbotsford, meanwhile, got goals from Cameron Wilson and substitute Spencer Schmidt in a losing effort.

Residency head coach Thomas Niendorf included three men's team players in his starting XI versus Abbotsford. Wesley Charles made his PDL debut alongside fellow first-team defender Luca Bellisomo in the centre of the Whitecaps backline, with the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines international wearing the captain's armband. Chin, meanwhile, partnered youngster Kevin Cobby in central midfield. There was also a return to action for fit-again Philippe Davies on the right-hand side of midfield and Navid Mashinchi at left fullback. As for the home side, Abbotsford included former Whitecaps midfielder Stefan Leslie in their starting line-up.

On a sunny and beautiful day at Townsend Park in Chilliwack, BC, it was the Blue and White that made a bright start to the contest with plenty of possession before claiming an early lead.

On 12 minutes, Chin intercepted a poor Mariners clearance in the Abbotsford half before measuring his long-range strike to perfection, as he beat goalkeeper Kristjan Johannson - who was off his goalline - to make it 1-0.

The goal settled Vancouver into playing some good attacking soccer, with Johannson forced to save a shot from Davies on 22 minutes, and Cobby a minute later. On 24 minutes, another former Whitecaps player entered play, as Diaz Kambere replaced Brent Wantke in the Mariners' midfield.

The 'Caps then doubled their lead on 25 minutes. Chin was on hand to convert for a second time in the match after striking home Russell Teibert's deflected low cross from the left.

Though seemingly in command of proceedings, the Residency team saw their two-goal advantage cut in half two minutes later. Adam Lang's cross from the right found Wilson at the far post, and he headed home to make it 2-1.

That scoreline did not hold for long, as the 'Caps restored their two-goal lead on 36 minutes. Dosanjh took advantage of some hesitancy in the Mariners backline to break in on the home side's goal. His initial strike was well saved by Johannson, but he was afforded a second chance to score after Chin had a rebound effort blocked into his path in the Abbotsford box. Dosanjh made no mistake this time around, as Vancouver went 3-1 in front.

The last chance of the half fell to Mashinchi on 40 minutes, but Johannson was equal to his strike at goal after the defender played a give-and-go with 'Caps striker Sahil Sandhu on the edge of the Abbotsford box.

It meant that the Whitecaps took a 3-1 lead to the halftime break.

Niendorf made two changes for the start of the second half, as Bobby Jhutty and Keithy Simpson were introduced to Wednesday's proceedings for Sandhu and Davies respectively.

Only a couple of minutes had elapsed before the two substitutes nearly combined for a goal, but Jhutty failed to connect with Simpson's cross from the right before Johannson had to stop both Cobby and Simpson less than five minutes after the restart.

Fullback Axel Levry then made full use of some free space on the right flank to attack the Mariners in the second half, with the young American forcing a save from Johannson on 61 minutes. At the other end, Schmidt and Kambere were off target with chances for Abbotsford.

Residency goalkeeper Simon Thomas was not as busy as his Mariners counterpart during Wednesday's match, but he needed to remain alert to deny Leslie's fine goal-bound strike on 70 minutes.

Six minutes later, the 'Caps took a commanding 4-1 lead. Dosanjh took a fine through ball from Simpson before finishing past Johannson for his second goal of the match.

The Mariners then made the scoreline more respectable on 80 minutes, as Schmidt converted for 4-2 after Thomas had spilled Leslie's low cross in front of the Whitecaps goal.

There were further chances created before the end, with 'Caps substitute Nolan Moore being stopped at his feet by Johannson on 83 minutes, while Mariners defender Brad Peetoom headed Schmidt's free kick from the right over the Vancouver crossbar three minutes later. Thomas was then called into action in the three minutes of time added on, as he stopped Mariners substitute Justin Cordick on the goalline following a Schmidt corner from the left.


The final whistle confirmed a morale-boosting win for the Residency team, as they claimed both regular season encounters versus their rivals from the Fraser Valley. "Overall, it was a pretty solid performance from our team today," Niendorf told whitecapsfc.com. "Being able to score goals and claim the win will give us confidence for the five games we have left. We had the eagerness and hunger to score today, so I felt we deserved the win."

Niendorf was also pleased with contribution of the men's team players on Wednesday. "Having experienced players like Gordon, Luca, and Wes gives us more maturity in our game, which is something that our young players need to pick up, as they move forward," he said. "We have a really good marriage right now between the men's team and the Residency program, as this league provides a good conditioning environment for our men's team players, while their experience is helping to guide our younger players in their development to becoming professionals."

Whitecaps Residency will play their final two home matches of the PDL regular season this coming weekend. They host Yakima Reds at Simon Fraser University on Saturday evening at 7:00 p.m. PDT before welcoming Cascade Surge to SFU's Terry Fox Field on Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. PDT. Abbotsford also conclude their home schedule this coming weekend, with Cascade meeting the Mariners in Chilliwack on Friday night before Yakima pays a visit on Sunday afternoon.

Scoring Summary:
12' – VAN – Gordon Chin
25' – VAN – Gordon Chin (Russell Teibert)
27' – ABB – Cameron Wilson
36' – VAN – Gagandeep Dosanjh
76' – VAN - Gagandeep Dosanjh (Keithy Simpson)
80' – ABB – Spencer Schmidt (Stefan Leslie)

Match Stats:
Shots: Abbotsford 10 - Vancouver 21
Saves: Abbotsford 10 - Vancouver 4
Fouls: Abbotsford 15 - Vancouver 12
Offsides: Abbotsford 3 - Vancouver 2
Corners: Abbotsford 5 - Vancouver 8

Cautions:
40' – VAN – Kevin Cobby
50' – ABB - Diaz Kambere
68' – ABB – Kerry Weymann

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency
22.Simon Thomas; 3.Axel Levry, 6.Wesley Charles, 17.Luca Bellisomo, 33.Navid Mashinchi; 7.Russell Teibert (4.Jack Cubbon 59'), 8.Gordon Chin, 12.Kevin Cobby (11.Evan Taylor 75'), 15.Philippe Davies (16.Keithy Simpson 45'); 9.Sahil Sandhu (2.Bobby Jhutty 45'), 10.Gagandeep Dosanjh (18.Nolan Moore 79')

Subs not used: 5.Paul Hamilton

Abbotsford Mariners
1.Kristjan Johannson; 3.James Giebelhaus, 5.Brad Peetoom, 21.Adam Lang, 25.Kerry Weymann; 12.Brent Wantke (22.Diaz Kambere 24'), 13.Robert Fadden (19.Justin Cordick 45'), 16.Stefan Leslie, 17.Ethan Claibourne-Collins; 7.Cameron Wilson (9.Spencer Schmidt 45'), 24.Brenden Podolsky (11.Gibson Bardsley 56')

Subs not used: 2.Simon Crocker, 15.Adam Plantinga