he match between Vancouver Whitecaps and Seattle Sounders started off in much the same manner as Saturday's match between Vancouver and Portland Timbers. This time, though, it was the 'Caps scoring early. Taylor Graham couldn't deal with a bouncing ball in front of the Sounders goal, and Omar Salgado took advantage, easily slipping the ball into the back of the net. "Cool" and "Calm" were used to describe the sixth minute goal, but really "easy" would be the apt adjective.
Taylor Graham was obviously rattled by the thought of a 17-year-old first pick putting a cheeky goal past him, and elected to make up for this error by grabbing Salgado's shirt when he once again ran by the defender. That's typically frowned upon in soccer, and Graham went straight into the book.
Graham wasn't the only one having a bit of a blinder today. The blame for Russell Teibert's goal, scored in the 12th minutes, rests solely on Terry Boss. Teibert mis-hit a cross, something players typically shrug off, swearing to do better next time. Instead Teibert was celebrating after Boss came out to collect and somehow managed to bobble the ball into his own net.
Vancouver quickly learned to exploit the weaknesses in the Sounders defense, and could have easily had a third when Camilo Sanvezzo ran around Graham to put the ball across the face of goal. If it was meant to be a shot, it didn't miss by much, but there was no one waiting to tap it in.
Unfortunately, the Sounders soon had more to worry about than defensive errors in their reserves. Mike Fucito, charging up the right channel, pulled up grabbing his right leg. Although the club is reporting that he's injured his hip, it appeared as though he was clutching his hamstring when he went down. Fucito is currently being treated by the Sounders' medical team.
Just before the halftime whistle, Seattle grabbed one back with a pretty interesting little goal. Roger Levesque headed toward goal, the ball bounced, and Levesque used his foot to send in the volley. It's always fun when men who look like pirates send in silly goals.