By Brandon Timko/whitecapsfc.com
Vancouver Whitecaps Prospects Men suffered a 4-0 away defeat versus Victoria United at Royal Athletic Park on Sunday afternoon.
Six changes were made from the side that started the last Pacific Coast Soccer League match against Athletic Club of BC. Matt Robinson replaced Evan Lowther in goal, while Curtis Helm, Cameron Parkes, Adam Staschuk, Carlos Del Aguila, and Denny Serifovic replaced Ruben Casablanca, Rhys Volkenant, Gavin Barrett, Lucas Barrett, and Nolan Moore - who rejoined the Whitecaps Residency squad.
The Prospects nearly opened the scoring on 37 minutes when a dangerous free kick sent from Parkes was mishandled by United goalkeeper Brandon Watson, giving the 'Caps a glorious opportunity. Unfortunately, the visitors could not bury the chance and the match remained goalless.
Both teams looked destined to go into the break level, but Victoria capitalized on a quick counter-attack on 43 minutes for a 1-0 lead at halftime.
The 'Caps chances of finding an equalizer were severely damaged on 52 minutes when Erik Hacker was judged to have taken down a United player in the Prospects box. Hacker was shown a straight red card and Victoria were awarded a penalty. United buried the spot kick, doubling their advantage at 2-0.
Victoria used the extra man to their advantage, and on 69 minutes, Robinson managed to save a well-struck free kick, but the rebound was buried by a United player for the third goal of the match.
The Prospects still pushed forward in search of a goal, but this left themselves exposed to a final counter-attack on 87 minutes. Victoria managed to find the back of the net once more, cementing a decisive 4-0 victory for the Vancouver Island outfit.
Prospects assistant coach Dave Irvine was disappointed with the result, but not with the way his young team played in the British Columbia provincial capital. "We had a lot of possession and played quite well, despite the final result," he told whitecapsfc.com. "When Erik got sent off, it changed the tone of the match, but the guys still played hard."
The Prospects Men conclude their 2009 PCSL Premier Division season with a trip to Langley, BC, on Wednesday evening. They face Fraser Valley Action at Willoughby Turf, with kickoff set for 7:00 p.m. PDT.
Whitecaps Prospects Men
Matt Robinson; Kyle Knees, Denny Serifovic (Jordan Whitehead 35’), Erik Hacker, Curtis Helm, Jerome Lou, Adam Staschuk, Riley Newport, Cameron Parkes, Carlos Del Aguila, Ashley Ankiewicz
