Another unfortunate late slip.
Looking set to pick up a first win in six games, Vancouver Whitecaps FC were forced to settle for a 2-2 draw at BC Place Sunday after a late goal from Colorado Rapids substitute Jamie Smith.
The draw follows on the heels of a stoppage-time winner scored by Julian de Guzman in the Vancouver’s last match, a 1-0 defeat to FC Dallas which stretched their losing streak to five.
That’s now over, but the winless streak hits six. Yet according to striker Kenny Miller, getting any sort of result was the goal.
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“Tonight we’ve lost a goal in the last five minutes of the game which is disappointing, which would have given us a great start to these run of games at home,” Miller said. “But we’ve got a point, we’ve stopped the rot.”
The rot stops with Vancouver still in the final Western Conference playoff spot, two points ahead of Dallas with four matches left to play.
Smith’s equalizer acted as a bit of a spoiler for Miller, who came off the bench to score his first home goal in front of the BC Place faithful. The Scotsman’s effort seemed as if it could have been the game winner, staking Whitecaps FC to a 2-1 come-from-behind lead after Omar Cummings’ opener on 34 minutes.
“Tonight, I came off the bench and felt pretty good, and just disappointed we’ve lost another late goal,” Miller told reporters after the match. “It just seems to be a running theme this year. We’ve lost a lot of goals in the last five, last four minutes of games, and it’s something we’re going to have to put a stop to.”
Still, Miller had perhaps his most lively performance in a Whitecaps FC jersey, linking up well with Darren Mattocks and having a number of chances apart from his goal.
“He’s a good talent and he’s got a lot of potential,” Miller said of playing up top with Mattocks. “It’s important if we do play that way that we link up pretty well together. I felt the second half is hopefully something we can build on. The next four games and with a few games in the playoffs, hopefully we can get even better.”
Martin MacMahon covers Vancouver Whitecaps FC for MLSsoccer.com.
