MLS Seattle Sounders FC

Sounders Face Crucial Match with Whitecaps

Published on August 19, 2008 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Seattle Sounders FC News Release


Seattle, Wa)- The Seattle Sounders (8-8-8) host the Vancouver Whitecaps (11-6-5) Wednesday, August 20 in the second of three matchups with their rival to the north. The Cascadia Cup match is set for 7 pm PT at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila.

This past weekend, the Sounders were blanked 3-0 at home to the Puerto Rico Islanders. Seattle lost 3-1 at Minnesota the previous Sunday, then came up short at Charleston on Tuesday in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals, 4-3 in penalty kicks after playing to a 1-1 tie through regulation and 30 minutes of overtime.

The Sounders are tied for fourth place with Atlanta (32 points), and have played more games (24) than anyone else in the league. Seattle has six games and 18 potential points remaining to secure a top seven position and a playoff spot. All of those games will be at home beginning with Wednesday's showdown against rival Vancouver. Last Sunday's contest at Minnesota was Seattle's road finale for the regular season.

"The game on Wednesday, regardless of its importance in the Cascadia Cup standings or the fact that Vancouver is the second place team in our league and we're below them in the standings or even the fact that we've been rivals since the late 70's; in spite of all those factors, I really don't have to do a lot to get my players motivated," Coach Schmetzer said. "After the game we had last Friday (3-0 loss to the Puerto Rico Islanders) the motivation is going to come from themselves and, really, the coaching is just setting the right lineup for the game."

The Commissioner's Cup for best regular season record is within Vancouver's grasp, and the team looks to draw level with the Puerto Rico Islanders for the league lead (41 points) Wednesday at Starfire. On Sunday, the Whitecaps earned a point in a scoreless draw with the Islanders at Swangard Stadium. Leading goal-scorer for the Whitecaps, striker Eduardo Sebrango, was ejected in the match after protesting a referee decision to call back a potential game-winning goal from Omar Jarun. As a result, Sebrango will serve the league-mandated one-game suspension against Seattle.

The two teams last met on May 23, with the Sounders scoring early and shutting out the Whitecaps in the Sounders last-ever USL-1 regular season visit to Vancouver. Two goals inside the first seven minutes by Josh Gardner and Sebastien Le Toux gave Seattle a 2-0 victory.

Though Vancouver has not played yet this season at Starfire, the team trained at the facility during their preseason campaign last spring. The two sides also played in a preseason match on March 22 with the Whitecaps winning 2-1.

Wednesday's game will be the 82nd match-up between the two Pacific Northwest clubs, with their first meeting coming back in 1994. The Sounders lead the overall series with a record of 43 wins, 24 defeats, and 14 draws. They also lead the all-time series of results against the Whitecaps in Seattle with 24 wins, eight defeats, and six draws.

Last season, the two clubs split, with Vancouver defeating the Sounders 3-1 at Qwest Field on May 12, and Seattle winning 1-0 on July 12 at Swangard.

Seattle's next matchup comes Sunday against the Carolina RailHawks at 7pm PT, followed by the Miami FC Blues, Montreal Impact, and Atlanta Silverbacks before the Whitecaps return on the last day of the regular season for both clubs on September 20. All games will be played at Starfire.

Check out the Seattle Sounders FC Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Major League Soccer Stories from August 19, 2008


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central