Imagine if the old Victoria Salmon Kings of the ECHL got to play the Vancouver Canucks in a game that mattered. What could never happen in hockey is a long-standing tradition in soccer: national championship or Cup competitions that are open to all pro clubs regardless of level or league.
“It’s big brother versus little brother. It’s the biggest game in club history,” said Pacific FC head coach Pa-Modou Kah.
PFC of the Canadian Premier League meets the Vancouver Whitecaps of Major League Soccer tonight at 7 p.m. at Starlight Stadium in the opening round of the 2021 Canadian Championship.
The annual national championship tournament, for the Voyageurs Cup and the right to advance to the CONCACAF Champions League, is single-loss elimination this year. There will be a result, whether in regulation time, extra time or penalty-spot shootout.
There is a massive power imbalance in the matchup. The average MLS player season salary this year is US$373,000 and the average CPL salary C$40,000.
“We have different budgets but when we step onto the pitch, the game is the game,” said Kah, a former Whitecaps player and then coach in their system.
“Cup games are special. The occasion is the occasion. But we will treat it as a normal game. We are not playing the occasion. We are playing the game.”
The Whitecaps know they can’t win tonight in public opinion even if they win on the pitch because everybody will say that was overwhelmingly expected. The only way they can make news is if they lose to PFC, as they did to Calgary’s Cavalry FC of the CPL in the 2019 Canadian Championship second round.
“We are going to play an opponent [PFC] that has nothing to lose and a lot to gain,” said Whitecaps head coach Marc Dos Santos, during a media scrum following training this week in Vancouver.
“We’re aware of that. That’s why we’re not taking this in any form slightly. This is why we are preparing for this game like we are preparing for any MLS game.”
The Voyageurs Cup is a coveted objective in Canadian soccer.
“In our locker room it’s kind of an obsession … the dream to win a Canadian Championship,” said Dos Santos.
“It’s not something that is usual in our club the last 11 years. We won one. It’s something that we want to win more. It’s a dream that we have. It’s something we talk a lot about. I don’t see a mentality about letting our guards down. The players are very focused on the [PFC] game.”
There is speculation Ryan Gauld, the former Scottish U-19 and U-21 standout signed by the Whitecaps on July 31, will make his first start tonight after coming in as a sub to score the dramatic winner at 89 minutes in Vancouver’s 2-1 victory over LAFC on Sunday at B.C. Place. Gauld has consistently been compared to Lionel Messi by the hyper-active British media, so it’s probably good to escape that pressure in North America.
“[The Canadian Championship is] a big deal. It’s a Cup that we want to win. It will give us access to the Champions League, as well,” Gauld told a press scrum in Vancouver.
“It’s definitely a competition we’re looking to go far in. [I have been] building my fitness up to finally getting a start. I’ve just got to be ready whenever I’m called upon.”
Whitecaps goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau has 11 caps for Canada and appears to have staked his claim as second goalkeeper behind Milan Borjan for the final round of CONCACAF qualifying for Qatar 2022 World Cup.
“It’s the first clash between two teams from British Columbia so it’s going to be nice to feel that,” said Crepeau, about the Whitecaps-PFC match-up.
“[Canadian Championship] is your entry to the Champions League. That’s the way in. Which is massive. It’s important for the club to add silverware.”
About the upset loss to Cavalry FC in the last Canadian Championship two years ago, Crepeau said: “We have a lot of new faces who are not aware of the history. This group is focused on this year and that’s it. We’ve been having some rhythm the past few games and we want to keep doing that in the Cup.”
The Whitecaps (5-7-8) are undefeated in eight games.
“We’re in a good head space right now and we want to keep growing,” said Crepeau.
Pacific FC had a six-game unbeaten string snapped in a 2-1 loss to Cavalry but still leads the CPL at 7-3-4.
Twelve PFC players have come through the Whitecaps academy system.
“It means a lot for the [Whitecaps] club and means a lot for them also. Players want to always prove something — that they sometimes belong in higher places,” said Dos Santos.
CORNER KICKS: On the status of Marco Bustos and Lukas MacNaughton, key players who were noticeably missed in the loss to Cavalry in PFC’s last game, Kah said: “If we want to use them, we can use them.”
cdheensaw@timescolonist.com
