Winning on the road is never easy.
Just over one year ago, on March 17 2012, Vancouver Whitecaps FC faced Western Conference rivals Chivas USA in their first road match of the 2012 season and came away with a 1-0 victory. Captain Jay DeMerit played the hero as the ‘Caps brought home their first ever road win in MLS. The match proved to be an important one as Vancouver squeaked into the playoffs for the first time in MLS.
Despite getting off to a slow start, Whitecaps FC came back in the second half to earn a narrow victory against the home side.
To start the second half, the ‘Caps generated several offensive chances, but it was not until the 68th minute when their big break came. Camilo swung a corner into the box, where an unmarked DeMerit connected and sent a downward header into the back of the net passed Dan Kennedy. It was DeMerit’s first goal of his MLS career and proved to be the match winning goal on that wet St. Patrick’s Day in Carson, California. DeMerit was also named Budweiser Man of the Match for his efforts.
The match was also memorable in that in marked the debut of goalkeeper Brad Knighton, who came on for an injured Joe Cannon and preserved the shutout - the start of what has become a very strong tandem in net for the 'Caps.
The victory gave the ‘Caps a good start to their 2012 road campaign, which was something that was missing in their debut season in 2011.
This season, the Blue and White will look to greatly improve upon the previous two seasons’ away records and will hope to start it off with a bang against Houston Dynamo this Saturday at BBVC Compass Stadium.
WATCH: WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO WIN ON THE ROAD?
