The newest addition to the Canadian Premier League has had high expectations, both internally and externally, since day one. Vancouver FC’s aim for greatness comes from the innate passion and competitiveness of the squad; but, nothing great comes easy and VFC witnessed that firsthand. 

The team can finally celebrate their first franchise victory and show everyone what this team is capable of. With the first goal and win under their belt, the hunger to claim the title is just getting greater and greater.

Hard work is the road to success 

After a couple of heartbreaks, one in the derby and one in the cup, no one from VFC was offering excuses. No one blamed the time it takes to adapt to a new club, new teammates, new coach or new facilities. 

Nor did they blame exhaustion from a lengthy and tough preseason with more matches and training sessions than any other CPL team. 

Nor did anyone blame the grueling logistics of having to play three away games in less than seven days. 

The VFC squad recognized that hard work and commitment to the craft would be the only way to succeed; and one thing is for sure, the team proved that they are ready and able to put in the effort. They will not stop working to bring success and pride to all of the Lower Mainland.

VFC Man of the Match: Every single player, coach and staff member of this club

It’s impossible to highlight only one hero after this historic accomplishment. 

Credit cannot be taken away from Shaan Hundal scoring the Club’s first goal but it was made possible because of the full team backing him up. 

VFC’s backline pinned targets on York’s backs, keeping them from finding any open players to pass the ball to. We saw Callum Irving, Ibrahim Bakare, Rocco Romeo, and Tyler Crawford ready to intercept any long ball and take away chances.

In front of them, Kadin Chung, Nima Moazeni and Elliot Simmons covered every single inch of the midfield, making it difficult for York to get any forward momentum.

And finally, Gael Sandoval, Gabriel Bitar and Hundal were true strikers ready to attack with the tactic paying off when Hundal stole the ball and sent it into the back of the net.

Important teammates Nathaniel St. Louis, Emmanuel Robe, Nicky Gymiah, Mammadou Kane, Min-jae Kwak, Ameer Kinani, Maël Henry, Anthony White, Kahlil John-Wentworth and Jeremy Zielinski were ready to step in and support them from the sidelines.

Afshin Ghotbi, Amelia Ng, Ali Masoumi, Arez Ardalini, Cortlin Tonn, Inderpaul Khaira, Jeevin Kang, Mark Village, and Stuart Neely prepared them for this moment.

This was a team victory and it will be one that goes down in history!

Attacking trio 

Our three forwards are gelling together nicely. 

Sandoval, Bitar and Hundal combined with quick passes to create dangerous opportunities and finish VFC’s chances.

The second goal came just like that. In just three touches that began in the half, the trio managed to place Bitar in front of the goal before he was brought down in York’s box and granted a penalty kick. Sandoval made no mistake of burying the shot to secure VFC’s eventual victory.

Squad depth 

Having to play three matches in less than one week, head coach Ghotbi had to rotate players to avoid injuries. 

Out of 23 eligible players, 18 had already played minutes in official competitions. 

No matter who was on the pitch, everyone showed that they were ready to fight for a spot in the initial XI. Special mentions go out to Crawford, St. Louis and White who made their CPL debut on Saturday against York. 

Crawford registered his first start for VFC and played a crucial part in the Club’s first victory. The 19-year-old left back caused constant headaches for York every time he was incorporated into the attack. Crawford was also impeccable on defence, fighting for every ball and winning most of the duels. 

St. Louis and White were subbed on in the stoppage time for the final push and securing the victory.

Quiet boy, a big presence

Romeo was an unsung hero in Saturday’s game on VFC’s backline leading quietly by example.

The tallest athlete on the squad, at a height of 6’5”, Romeo was able to fight off York’s long balls, aerial duels, and secure rebounds.

In total, he registered eight blocks and five tackles with some of them being as valuable as Irving’s saves.

Reactions

“Feels good to get the first goal, the first win. I thought we did well, me, Gabi and Gael up top. Felt like we all were on the same page and the back line was just amazing today ” – VFC attacker Shaan Hundal

“I believe today we deserved it (the win). […] I believe this is the right path to continue thriving in the league. The cup is gone, we didn’t deserve it. Today the league is very important and I believe that keeping up with the hard work, as we had every week, will benefit us in the next games.”  – VFC attacker Gael Sandoval

“It’s a very emotional moment for our players and staff and I think the club. It was weighing on their shoulders for a while now because the discussion was always about who is going to score the first goal, when is going to be the first victory. I’m hoping to get that out of the way because I think we can play with better concentration and better football.”  – VFC head coach Afshin Ghotbi

You can bet that this will be the first of many wins for Vancouver FC and if you want to be part of that you can get your season tickets here.