VANCOUVER, BC – When you go into any battle, it's always good to know that someone has your back. Vancouver Whitecaps FC players have had no better person doing that throughout the season than their head coach, Carl Robinson.
Robinson has been quick to shoulder the blame for defeats and performances, keen to take the pressure off his young squad as he tries to shield them from criticism.
That was evident once again following Vancouver's disappointing 3-0 loss to Portland at the weekend, where Robinson said that the defeat was "my responsibility" and "I'm at fault" in his postgame comments. But the clear message out of the 'Caps camp at training on Tuesday was that their coach can only do so much, and it is up to the players now to perform.
"We didn't go down fighting the way I would have liked us to go down fighting," Robinson told reporters. "What I will do is to make sure that this team is ready to go on Saturday [against Real Salt Lake]. We have five games left. We're only two points behind. We've got to turn it into five cup finals.
"The work will be done, the preparation will be there and then come Saturday the guys, when they cross the line, it's a little bit of responsibility for them as well. Because we talk about accountability all the time and there's got to be some responsibility for the guys as well."
There is an age-old debate in soccer as to just how much influence a coach actually has on his players once they leave the locker room. At some point the players have to stand on their own feet and repay the faith that their coach has put in them by performing the way they need to on the pitch.
Robinson has been consistent in saying that he has "100 percent faith" in his young players. But as far as Whitecaps FC midfielder Russell Teibert is concerned, now is the time for the team to stand up, be counted and show that their coach's faith is not misplaced when RSL visit BC Place (4 p.m. PT, TSN2, TSN 1410 Radio Vancouver).
"We know exactly what we have to do," Teibert told reporters. "We have five games left this season. We know tactically what we have to do. Technically the coaches have done everything they can for us, and it's really down to us now [the players].
"We're taking the responsibility on ourselves, we're taking ownership, we're taking this on our shoulders. All the guys in the locker room, they want to win for the club, they want to win for the boss, they want to win for the fans.
"There's not much more the coaching staff can do for us. There's not much more the fans can do for us, because they've been great all year long. It's now down to us, however many guys in the locker room, to battle together, to fight for each other and to really push for a playoff spot."
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