Union Grab Late Winner in Vancouver

The Philadelphia Union took on the Vancouver Whitecaps last night in Canada. The Union improved their road form by adding another notch to the win column. Philly were able to just escape this game with a 1-o victory against one of the better teams in the west. Philly may not have played the best game but good teams find ways to win when they are not playing well. That is just what the Union did. With Vancouver’s defense closing down on Jack McInerney and no Conor Casey, the Union needed to look to other sources for goals. Hoppenot was able to claim his second goal on the season and provide the dagger in the Whitecaps.

This game will not be remembered as a classic, it was far from it. The Union put on a rather poor performance but still found a way to beat one of the west’s best teams. Vancouver found themselves down a man in the eighth minute when Juan Davidson got a red card for headbutting Keon Deaniel. Even though the Union were up a man they still were not able to capitalize right away. Vancouver found themselves on the attack and creating more scoring opportunities. The game started to level out after half time when the Union began to dominate possession by 60% to 40%. They were dominating possessions but not the tempo and they were not creating many scoring opportunities.  Aaron Wheeler came on late in the game in the 82nd minute for Jack McInenery. Three minutes later Hoppenot and Wheeler combined for a beautiful give and go that lead to Hoppenot blasting the ball into the back of the net. Hoppenot has been having a disappointing season and has not been putting away his chances. His goal tonight may be just what he needed to boost his confidence and get him scoring more consistently.

This game could be build as the anti-Union game. When up a man the Union normally play strong and create many scoring opportunities but end up make several mistakes that lead to a loss or tie. The Union normally let in a late goal when the game is on the line. Not this time!! The Union did not play their normal attacking style they were lackluster all together. They did not create chance after chance but they did hold possession. They took their opportunity and they scored the all important goal. This is huge going forward, the Union are now in 4th place in the East but they are 1 pt behind second place. Chicago and DC United are the Union’s next two opponents and both games are at home. If the Union walk away with 6 points they will certainly seem themselves climbing up the ladder.

The Union needed a game like this, it speaks volumes about the club. This team is resilient they only have six losses but they do have seven ties. They found a way to win when they were not playing well. Jack Mac has been in a funk of late and has not been scoring goals and the Union did not have Conor Casey because of suspension. So the Union’s biggest offensive threats were non factors and the Union still found a way to win. If the Union can get consistent offense from players not Casey and McInerney, then they will keep seeing themselves in the win column.