On Thursday, Vancouver Whitecaps FC U-18 and U-16 Residency squads square off against United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) West Conference, Northwest Division rivals Crossfire Premier. The U-18 Residency squad will play first at 6 p.m. PT versus Crossfire Premier U-17/18, followed by the U-16 Residency squad taking on Crossfire Premier U-15/16 side at 8:30 p.m. PT. Both matches take place at Interbay Soccer Stadium in Seattle, Washington.
There are only three games left to play in the regular season for both Whitecaps FC Residency teams, and both squads have wrapped up playoff spots in their respective divisions.
“I want to see our squad compete at its highest level,” assistant technical director and head coach Craig Dalrymple told whitecapsfc.com. “Both squads were off for a little bit before our last matches, so it was nice to see them get back on the pitch and get right back to their winning form.”
U-18
The U-18 ‘Caps head into Thursday’s match riding a season high eight-match winning streak. During this stretch the Blue and White have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 21-9. This will be the second time this season that the 'Caps play Crossfire Premier, with their last encounter back in October, with Whitecaps FC U-18 capturing a 3-0 victory. Last week the U-18 squad captured a 3-2 victory against California Development Academy at Newton Athletic Park on the strength of goals scored by Caleb Clarke, Spencer DeBoice, and Carlos Marquez.
“Crossfire Premier are a well managed squad and we know it will always be a hard fought match when we square off,” noted Dalrymple. “I look for another tough test for our squad.”
The U-18 Residency squad currently sit atop the West Conference, Northwest Division standings. With two games remaining in the regular season, they will look to continue their run of strong play both at home and on the road.
U-16
Currently on a four-match winning streak, the U-16 ‘Caps squad will look to keep the ball rolling against Crossfire Premier this Thursday night. The ‘Caps U-16 squad are coming off an impressive 2-0 victory over California Development Academy last saturday with goals scored by Brody Huitema and Sadi Jalali last Saturday. The U-16 squad currently sits in second place in the Northwest Division within the Western Conference. They trail rivals Seattle Sounders FC U-16 squad by a single point with three games left.
“The U-16 team needs to continue to execute at a high level,” said Dalrymple. “The key to our game right now is consistency.”
Following this Thursday’s matches, Whitecaps FC Residency squads return home for an set of matches with Seattle Sounders FC U-16 and U-18 squads on Sunday, June 3 at Simon Fraser University.
