BURNABY, BC – Down a man due to a red card, Whitecaps FC 2 still put up a valiant fight in a 2-1 loss to Colorado Rapids 2 at Swangard Stadium on Wednesday.
With the loss, the young ’Caps now have a record of 9W-6L-5D and still sit fourth in the MLS NEXT Pro Western Conference.
Colorado forward Alec Diaz had the first crack on target – a 10-yard smash that Whitecaps FC 2 goalkeeper Max Anchor cooly punched out of play.
After the quarter-hour, the 'Caps put on speedster Myles Morgan. Morgan’s energetic presence reignited the home side, as his through ball found captain Jay Herdman.
The skipper kept his head up; from the right wing, he lashed a probing cross into the danger area – a beautiful ball that an airborne Liam Mackenzie just missed by inches – for a header.
Before the half, Whitecaps FC 2 top scorer Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau sprinted ahead for a 2-on-1 chance, but his pass across goal for Morgan was knocked away at the last moment.
Rapids 2 notched their first of the evening via an Alec Diaz cross that fell to the boots of Rogelio Garcia, who tapped in past a fallen Anchor for a 1-0 lead in the 39th minute.
Ten seconds before the stroke of the half, Colorado midfielder Marlon Vargas rushed ahead to beat Anchor to double the lead to 2-0.
As play restarted, the sun had dipped to lengthen the shadows on the Swangard Stadium pitch; the young ’Caps regained their composure with more possession time.
That briefly changed at the hour mark with a red card shown for a reckless challenge by WFC2 defender Dembo Saidykhan. With the home side down to 10 men, they stiffened their resolve.
Fleuriau Chateau drew cheers as he expertly belted his eighth of the season with a 15-yard strike from the middle of the area past ’keeper Zackory Campagnolo to close within one.
With time running out, Fleuriau Chateau came two feet from glory as he danced into the box past a defender spun and fired wide.
Next up, Whitecaps FC 2 next head down to California to lace up against The Town FC on Sunday, August 18 at 5 p.m. PT. The following weekend, the ’Caps come home for a clash with LAFC 2 at Swangard Stadium on Sunday, August 25 at 4 p.m. PT. To cheer WFC2 on in their race for the playoffs, visit: whitecapsfc.com/wfc2.
MATCH DETAILS
Referee: Alain Ruch
Scoring Summary
39’ – COL – Rogelio Garcia (Alec Diaz)
45’+1 – COL – Marlon Vargas
69’ – VAN – Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau (Mihail Gherasimencov, Jay Herdman)
Cautions
None
Ejection
59’ – VAN – Dembo Saidykhan
Statistics
Shots: VAN 13 – COL 11
Shots on target: VAN 3 – COL 6
Saves: VAN 4 – COL 2
Fouls: VAN 8 – COL 9
Offsides: VAN 3 – COL 2
Corners: VAN 9 – COL 3
Whitecaps FC 2
50.Max Anchor; 56.Immanuel Mathe, 53.Buster Sjöberg (95.Joshué Ndakala 85’), 51.Dembo Saidykhan; 41.Eliot Goldthorp (44.Myles Morgan 16’, 43.Antoine Coupland 85’), 59.Jeevan Badwal, 48.Malcolm Simmons (95.Joshué Ndakala 85’), 92.Jay Herdman ©, 54.Mihail Gherasimencov; 97.Liam Mackenzie (46.Darko Ilić 70’), 52.Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau
Substitutes not used
90.Alexander Milošević, 63.Rayan Elloumi
Colorado Rapids 2
51.Zackory Campagnolo; 53.Steve Flores, 34. Michael Edwards, 44.Joshua Belluz, 72.Miguel Alvarado; 39.Marlon Vargas © (81.Landon Strohmeyer 86’), 42.Ricardo Pena (75.Vincent Rinaldi, 40.Robinson Aguirre; 80.Noah Strellnauer (55.Patrick Dormoh 75’), 47.Alec Diaz (90.Colton Swan 74’), 57.Rogelio Garcia (78.Maxwell Simpson 75’)
Substitutes not used
61.Leonardo Medina, 67.Andre Erickson
