MNUFC2 continues the Great North American Road Trip this weekend, this time trekking to Vancouver for their third consecutive away match.
The Twos have seen the ups and down already this season. They kicked things off with a big 4-2 win in Austin, featuring a killer hat trick from first-team forward Marcus Caldeira, but then struggled to convert against St. Louis CITY2, the top-ranked team in MLSNP power rankings right now.
A number of first-teamers have featured for the Twos already this year, including Caldeira, Darius Randell, Kieran Chandler, and Kenyel Michel. Returning players like Momoh Kamara and Troy Putt have been putting in solid performances, and some Academy boys have made their debuts, including goalkeeper Keane Perkins. Despite the high-turnover nature of NEXT Pro as a development league, Fanendo Adi’s crew has already proven to have significant on-field chemistry and is building on the momentum of last season with ease.
Like MNUFC2, the junior ‘Caps have had a few first-team players on their starting XI, including keeper Isaac Boehmer and defenders Mihail Gherasimencov and Nikola Djordjevic. Isaac Francoeur, Carson Rassak, and Ryder Sewell are among the handful of Whitecaps Academy players to feature. The two teams seem to have a similar balance of first-team, second-team, and Academy guys on their rosters thus far, but unlike the Loons, Whitecaps FC 2 have had quite a rough start to the season. A 4-2 loss in Ventura County was followed by a scoreless draw in Portland, where the Timbers’ second team won the shootout 7:6. Whitecaps 2 are low on the table right now and hungry for a win in their first home match of the year.
Currently eighth in the Western Conference, the Loons will look to rekindle the powerhouse attack they found in Austin out west last weekend as they take on a struggling Vancouver side. The two northern sides will clash at BC Place at 8:30 p.m. CT, shortly after the scheduled first-team fixture. Stream the action live on OneFootball or MLSNEXTPro.com.
