VANCOUVER, BC – It was a sentimental night at BC Place as the Vancouver Whitecaps FC League1 BC women's team took on NWSL powerhouse Portland Thorns in Christine Sinclair’s final match in front of her own hometown fans.
- Watch: Replay of the match
The match began with Whitecaps FC bringing it right to Portland. Kaylee Hunter had the first look on goal after finding some space inside the box inside five minutes, but her shot was blocked before it could trouble Thorns FC’s Shelby Hogan.
It took both Morgan McAslan and Téa Mayson to deny Sinclair from opening the scoreline in the ninth minute, after the Canadian legend tried to pounce on a spilled ball.
Jaime Perrault almost got Whitecaps FC on the scoresheet 10 minutes later, after Chloe Taylor fed the forward in behind on the right. Perrault did well to beat her marker with pace and fired a low shot that Hogan had to turn away at full stretch.
Moments later, Jeneva Hernandez Grey hit the post off a Perrault cross with a great header to the far post. But it would be Portland that would open the score, after a fast break on the counter. Payton Linnehan burst down the right side before laying it off for Isabella D’Aquila to tap in.
Jourdan Ziff then denied Alexa Spaanstra from making it 2-0 after a last-ditch slide tackle right before Spaanstra could pull the trigger. D’Aquila did end up making it 2-0 in the 38th minute, after a good save from McAslan. Sinclair put the ‘Caps ‘keeper in a tight spot after a curled effort, forcing the ball wide with a save, but D’Aquila would be prowling to pick up the pieces and smash it past McAslan for her second.
McAslan was called into action one last time before halftime, going full-stretch to push wide a long-range shot from Spaanstra. Whitecaps FC would go into the break with plenty of positives, despite the two-goal deficit.
The second half saw Portland come out strong as the looked to advance from Group B. After a good spell of pressure from the young ‘Caps, Payton Linnehan would make it three on the night for the Thorns in the 55th minute. D’Aquila ran down the left side and slotted in Linnehan for Portland’s third. Spaanstra would make it 4-0 not long later, with D’Aquila at the heart of it again as the forward cut it back for Spaanstra to tap in.
Hernandez Grey was close to getting one back for Whitecaps FC after some good play from Perrault. The winger danced past her marker and drilled a ball into the box for Hernandez Grey to latch onto. She managed to get the ball under control and turn her defender, but was blocked before it could nestle into the back of the net.
Zahra Bains, fresh off the bench, was next to threaten the Thorns’ defence, after firing a vicious shot just wide of the far post.
Sinclair ended up getting the fifth goal for Portland in the 85th minute, off a corner kick routine. Marie Müller headed on a corner towards the back post for the hometown hero to poke home.
Reyna Reyes would round it out at the end for the Thorns sixth right before the referee called for the end of the match.
After an incredible adventure, the young 'Caps wrap-up their 2024 competitive season as they look ahead to the 2025 League1 BC season where they will look to defend both their league and national titles.
On the professional soccer front, fans will now look forward to the inaugural season for Vancouver Rise FC as they begin play in the Northern Super League. For more information, visit vanrisefc.com.
MATCH DETAILS
Attendance: 6,731
Referee: Francia Gonzalez
Scoring Summary
22’ – POR – Isabella D’Aquila (Payton Linnehan)
38’ – POR – Isabella D’Aquila
55’ – POR – Payton Linnehan (Isabella D’Aquila)
58’ – POR – Alexa Spaanstra (Isabella D’Aquila)
85’ – POR – Christine Sinclair (Marie Muller)
90’+2 – POR – Reyna Reyes (Isabella D’Aquila)
Statistics
Possession: VAN 46% - POR 56%
Shots: VAN 5 - POR 15
Shots on Goal: VAN 4 - POR 6
Fouls: VAN 2 - POR 4
Offsides: VAN 0 - POR 3
Corners: VAN 0 - POR 5
Vancouver Whitecaps FC33.Morgan McAslan; 21.Jourdan Ziff (12.Kiera Martin 86’), 28.Brianne Reed, 14.Téa Mayson, 16.Bridget Mutipula (3.Raquel Partovi 45’); 7.Jeneva Hernandez Grey, 20.Chloe Taylor, 19.Josie Longhurst (18.Zahra Bains 61’); 8.Jaime Perrault, 22.Jessica De Filippo (26.Abigail Anderson 61’), 11.Kaylee Hunter
Substitutes not used
30.Kylie Sandulak, 31.Samantha Powell, 5.Torah Betteridge, 13.Sammy Reimer, 17.Lacey Kindel, 24.Bianca Patik, 27.Quinn Johnson
Portland Thorns FC
18.Shelby Hogan; 11.Nicole Payne, 29.Mallie Mckenzie, 20.Kelli Hubly (4.Becky Sauerbrunn 56’), 23.Marie Müller; 27.Marissa Sheva (21.Jessie Fleming 76’), 14.Sophie Hirst (17.Sam Coffey 76’); 15.Payton Linnehan (13.Olivia Moultrie 56’), 12.Christine Sinclair (2.Reyna Reyes 87’), 77.Alexa Spaanstra; 24.Isabella D’Aquila
Substitutes not used
26.Kat Asman, 5.Isabella Obaze
