by Graham Tooke, @chelskitooke

FC Edmonton Recap

Vancouver left it late as Gershon Koffie tapped home an 87^th minute equalizer against NASL’s FC Edmonton in the first leg of their Voyageur’s Cup semi-final.

Carl Robinson fielded an inexperienced eleven resting all his regular faces for the massive clash with Seattle on Saturday. And it showed as FC Edmonton, a much improved side from past seasons, set out to ruffle the backline of Dean and Parker.

The pair had a terrible time clearing their lines and before you knew it Gershon Koffie choked up possession in front of the defense and Richie Jones played a simple through ball for Ameobi to slot under Tornaghi. Usually conceding early sparks the ‘Caps into life but there was little chemistry anywhere on the pitch.

Unfortunately Sam Adekugbe had to be replaced by Jordan Harvey due to injury very early. It was a blessing in disguise as Jordan’s influence helped calm down Parker and Dean who had been anything but.

Their cause wasn’t helped by the hapless play of Gershon Koffie just in front. The fan favourite seems to be having a hard time playing second fiddle to Laba as his performances have taken a sharp dip. He didn’t offer the protection Vancouver is used to as Edmonton caused plenty of problems in the first half. The Ghanaian is playing himself into the trade bait category rapidly.

But obviously when you go about criticizing a player so heavily he ends up coming up with the goods. And he did just that in the closing stages as he comfortably poked past VanOekel from close range to save face.

They now go back for a second attempt at playing in Edmonton next Wednesday with the aggregate score tied at 1-1 and the Whitecaps potentially starting a much stronger side if they hope to advance.

Sounders Matchup

Before Montreal find out who they’ll meet in the final the Whitecaps have a huge task at hand to better the Seattle Sounders. The Sounders are arguably the most dangerous side in MLS when the pairing of Dempsey and Martins is firing on all cylinders.

But it appears the league’s top scorer, Obafemi Martins, is carrying a knock that could keep him out of the Cascadia Cup derby between first and second in the Western Conference. His loss is a huge gain for the Whitecaps because with the pair broken up Lamar Neagle would be expected to push from his wide midfield position. Neagle’s dangerous side comes out a lot more when he’s able to cut in from wide and link up with the usual strike force so playing up top could play into Waston and Kah’s hands.

Seattle is coming off a 3-2 defeat away to Columbus Crew last week after winning three on the trot.  They are however, only four points back of the Whitecaps with two games in hand. A result at BC Place would go a long way towards them regaining top spot in the coming weeks as they host Sporting Kansas City, Colorado Rapids and the New York Red Bulls.

Carl Robinson can call on current MLS Save of the Week winner, David Ousted, to keep the doors locked at the back. The Dane has been in inspired form all season and as long as his defense isn’t giving up embarrassingly easy chances the shot stopper is more often than not keeping opponents out.

They may have to do without Steven Beitashour for a little longer as he closes on a return from injury, but this weekend is looking like it’s a little too soon for the right back. That should see Tim Parker move over from centre back where he won Man of the Match Wednesday night, although there wasn’t much to choose from with no one managing to shine. Ethen Sampson looked decent but he’s an unknown quantity at times and Robinson will likely go for the safer option in Parker.

There will be no reunion for Mauro Rosales after injuring his quad at the beginning of the 3-0 win over Philadelphia. Cristian Techera came in and looked every bit the part. Exciting and intelligent on the ball, he came close to scoring on a couple of occasions against the Union. He had the vision to spot Morales’ on the run popping it nicely for the Chilean to chip by Sylvestre.

The attacking options at Vancouver are high in confidence. Mattocks substituted Rivero and looked more like his old self hassling the defense and his goal came as he flew around Maurice Edu. Manneh saw a few minutes against Edmonton and created plenty down the left. With everyone chipping in the goals are going to come whether or not Rivero finds the net.

As far as the Cascadia Cup standings go Vancouver hold a one point lead over the Sounders, but Seattle’s only points have come from defeating Portland 1-0. From the Timbers three matches they’ve only managed a point from a 0-0 draw with the Whitecaps and are clearly the whipping boys at this stage.

4 PM, TSN1 and TSN 1410

Probable Lineups

Vancouver Whitecaps: Ousted; Parker, Kah, Waston, Harvey; Laba, Teibert; Techera, Morales, Manneh; Rivero

Seattle Sounders: Frei; Mears, Evans, Marshall, Remick; Rose, Alonso, Pineda, Pappa; Dempsey, Neagle