Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency were held to a 2-2 draw by Mexican club Chivas Guadalajara in their second game at Dallas Cup XXIX on Monday.After an unfortunate 1-0 defeat to Portuguese giants Benfica in their opening Bracket C game on Sunday, Thomas Niendorf's side looked to be on their way to their first win after Randy Edwini-Bonsu had given the Whitecaps a 2-0 lead.However, two late goals by Chivas – including an injury-time equalizer - meant the Residency team had to settle for a share of the spoils on a very windy Monday afternoon at Dallas' Richland College.The opening 45 minutes saw Chivas have more of the ball possession, but the Whitecaps were able to withstand the pressure of the talented Mexican youngsters, with Residency goalkeeper Karm Shergill making a good save midway through the half.Though they were against the strong Texas winds to start the second half, Whitecaps Residency posed a threat to Chivas on the counter-attack. It was from such a sequence of play that Vancouver took the lead on 57 minutes, as Edwini-Bonsu converted Alex Semenets' cross for 1-0.The Whitecaps then doubled their lead eight minutes later, as Edwini-Bonsu scrambled home a rebound after the Chivas goalkeeper had stopped Gagandeep Dosanjh's initial shot.The Residency team looked to be in good shape heading into the final stages of Monday's contest, but Chivas made the wind at their backs count when they pulled a goal back with a header on 71 minutes.That did not stop the Whitecaps from creating more chances, with substitute Dever Orgill forcing two excellent saves from the Chivas goalkeeper after the Jamaican youth international had struck two powerful shots on target.Those saves proved pivotal to the outcome of the contest, as the Guadalajara club broke Whitecaps hearts with an injury-time headed equalizer for a 2-2 result."I though we put in an excellent effort today," Niendorf said of Monday's game to whitecapsfc.com. "It was definitely a step up from the game yesterday. Chivas are a very physical and mature team, with plenty of skill. Hopefully, we have taken another step in becoming more professional with our tactics and technique as a team. We were at both ends of the emotional spectrum today, as we felt the elation at being two goals in front, and then the disappointment of drawing the game in the end."With Benfica defeating Germany's Eintracht Frankfurt 4-2 in the other Bracket C game on Monday, the Whitecaps now sit third after two games played. Their final group game is against Eintracht Frankfurt at Richland College on Wednesday. Kickoff is 12pm Pacific Daylight Time.
Whitecaps FC Residency - line-up v Chivas Guadalajara (Dallas Cup XXIX)
Karm Shergill; Greg Smith, Adam Straith, Anthony DiNicolo, William Hyde; Alex Semenets (Antonio Rago), Devin Gunenc, Gagandeep Dosanjh (Philippe Davies), Navid Mashinchi (Kyle Porter); Marcus Johnstone (Dever Orgill), Randy Edwini-Bonsu (Drew Russell)
Subs not used:
Simon Thomas, Ethan Gage
To view the latest news and features from the Whitecaps Residency's trip to Dallas Cup XXIX – including tournament blogs from defender Adam Straith - please CLICK HEREfor our special Dallas Cup page.
