SEATTLE, WA – Vancouver Whitecaps FC were hoping that the bitter rivalry of a Cascadia derby would bring their best after stumbling to losses in their first two matches of the season. They got their wish with a hard-fought 2-1 victory that gave the 'Caps their first win of the season and left Seattle as MLS's only pointless side.
Like all good Cascadian derbies, the game was not without a couple of controversial incidents, with both of Vancouver's goals coming from penalty kicks, both clinically dispatched by captain Pedro Morales.
In his post-game press conference, 'Caps coach Carl Robinson said he hadn't seen replays of the two incidents yet. Whitecaps FC goalkeeper David Ousted was in no doubt about the decisions, however.
"The first penalty, he runs him down," Ousted told reporters after the match. "Bola's [Christian Bolaños] in front of the guy and then the guy runs into him and nicks him, so I don't see any problem with that one. The second one, he gets under Blas [Perez] and cuts him down. I can't, from my end of it, see if he gets some of the ball. But it's the referee's decision that that's going to be a penalty, and luckily Pedro converted both of them."
The Sounders were incensed by both decisions, with feelings running high that Joevin Jones made no contact on Bolanos for the first spot kick, a view vehemently denied by the Costa Rican midfielder.
"I just felt the touch from the defender and I cannot stop and I fell," Bolaños told MLSsoccer.com. "Sometimes I feel a kick but if I go down, the referee thinks I try to make a joke of him, so maybe I take a yellow card, so I don't want to [go down] when I feel a touch. Everywhere you play, normally you feel something and the referee gives something."
Vancouver's two penalties takes their goal tally to the season to five, none of them from open play and all of them from set pieces, including three PKs dispatched by Morales.
The set-piece part of the game has been a struggle for the 'Caps in recent seasons. Although Robinson isn't entirely sure just how his team have turned this around in such a major fashion, he's not complaining.
"I’ve got no idea, if I’m honest," Robinson mused. "I think we scored on five set pieces in the first four years of our MLS history, so we’re doing something right. I really don’t care how we score – as long as we score, I’ll take it."
Whitecaps FC return to BC Place on Saturday, March 26 to host Houston Dynamo. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. PT and tickets are still available.
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