Marc Weber
The Vancouver Whitecaps -- who play the Montreal Impact next -- could very well start their United Soccer Leagues semifinal series at home, and not because of the travel.
The club said it chose to open against Minnesota at home -- a 2-0 win Friday -- largely because it forced the Thunder to make the 2,300-km trek twice. This time, it's more about practice days.
"We need a practice week. We need days at home now, so that will be the main reason for it," head coach Teitur Thordarson said after his team allowed four goals but squeaked past the Thunder.
Defender Jeff Clarke shared those sentiments.
"We have to correct this before I can think about the next game," he said when asked to look ahead to the semifinal. "If we play like this we won't stand a chance against Montreal."
The Whitecaps couldn't confirm that the series would start in Vancouver on Friday.
Montreal plays a CONCACAF Champions League game in Honduras on Wednesday and would have to find a flight to Vancouver on Thursday, which wasn't a given at press time.
It's been a busy month for the Impact, who because of Champions League action played 11 games in September, including their 3-1 home victory Sunday that gave them a 4-3 aggregate win over the Seattle Sounders.
Vancouver was 2-0-1 against Montreal in USL-1 action this season, and 0-2-0 in the Nutrilite Canadian Championship.
© The Vancouver Province 2008
