Whitecaps display strong belief in win over Sounders

The Vancouver Whitecaps made up for two sub-par games in 12 minutes Saturday.
Sebastian Fernandez scored the game’s lone goal in the 12th minute as the Caps down the MLS-leading Seattle Sounders 1-0.
Vancouver (6-3-7) ended a two-game winless while Seattle (11-4-2) suffered its first loss in four games.
But, as Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson indicated afterwards, the win was about more than three points in the standings. It was about belief – belief that the young Caps could compete with the best team in the league, even if it was missing five key players, including American international Clint Dempsey, to World Cup duty, yellow-card accumulation and injuries.
“The two halves were totally different,” Robinson said. “The first half, we were excellent in possession. Our passing movement was what I’ve been accustomed seeing in training (and) in the first 10, 12 games of the season – and the second half was just about all those things: grit, desire and heart.
“The reason I said Seattle are the best team in Major League Soccer before the game is because they hang in there even when things are going against them. They’re always there and they’re about, (despite) being one goal behind, and they’ve done that again today. We’ve gotta learn that as a young group. As I said to them, it’s not going to happen overnight. But with performances like this and learning situations like this, we’ll be better for it.”
With the win, the Caps also ended a two-game goal-less skid, after a 0-0 home draw with Montreal and a 2-0 loss in Colorado. Fernandez, a 24-year-old Uruguayan who is in his season with Vancouver, scored from about 30 yards out after taking a pass from Chilean midfield maestro Pedro Morales, who was at his sublime best.
"Pedro gave a good ball to me," the Spanish-speaking Fernandez said through an interpreter. "I turned with the ball and there was space. I've practised it in close. It was a good opportunity. I just tried to shoot."
But, ultimately, the game was about defence. While Seattle was missing Dempsey and Obafemi Martins, who shared fifth place in league scoring before Saturday’s games, the Caps were without (injured) top central defenders Jay DeMerit (ankle) and Andy O’Brien (hip).
However, Vancouver’s Johnny Leveron and Carlyle Mitchell delivered stellar performances in their place, while Steven Beitashour was his steady self at right back and Jordan Harvey stood out at left back with several blocked shots, tackles and interceptions.
"I think the guys were hungry," said Seattle midfielder Brad Evans of his team's effort. "It took us a little while to get in the game, and all it was in the first half was not holding the ball up front. It makes it difficult to play the way that we want to play, and get our forwards and outside wingers involved. It was a difficult day for us in the first 35-40 minutes. After that, I feel we settled in the second half, played much better challenging for balls.
"Obviously, the guys that were missing are game-changers, that’s why they’re (designated players) and that’s why they’ve played in World Cups and some of the biggest games. Obviously, you’re going to miss that quality, but that’s no excuse not to play your game and not to play the game the way it should be played. I thought that in the second half, we got a little ripping into and we came out much stronger."
After a dismal effort against Montreal in their last home contest, it looked like the Caps had consumed a steady diet of World Cup videos. The hosts’ passing was much more precise, particularly in the first half, and they played with a level of confidence at the back, sending the ball forward calmly so that Morales would work his major.
They also displayed a strong work ethic that will be critical heading into the second half of the season. With the one-month international transfer window opening Wednesday, changes are coming to Vancouver’s lineup, but moves – aside from expensive reserve midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker’s likely departure – will be kept to a minimum.
What you see of the club now is mostly what you’ll get, with the possible exception of a veteran world-class striker who can score consistently.
"If we’re going to go with a young group of players, which we are, then one thing we can’t do is let other teams outwork us,” Robinson said. “The youth and exuberance and enthusiasm that young players have (must) be infectious all over the pitch.”
They were were Saturday, and Vancouver’s belief was also evident in all parts of the field. But that confidence will need to be prevalent often if the Caps are going to qualify again for the playoffs after missing the post-season in 2013, because the core of players will not change drastically.
“Get used to watching the young players,” said Robinson.
Notes: Robinson praised Reo-Coker, who was steady as a second-half substitute in what might have been his final game with the Whitecaps. The former English Premier League star is being paid $400,000 this season, but he does not play enough to justify that salary.

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