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Whitecaps aim to stay ahead of the pack vs. Rapids

[September 23, 2017] By Monte Stewart, The Sports Xchange

At first glance, the Colorado Rapids are not a team that others should fear.

But defender Jordan Harvey is refusing to take the Rapids (7-16-5) lightly as his Western Conference-leading Vancouver Whitecaps (13-9-6) prepare to host them in Major League Soccer action Saturday at B.C. Place Stadium.

"I've been in this thing a long time. There's no easy games," Harvey told reporters this week. "Whether the team is at the top or the bottom, it's going to be a difficult game."

The Whitecaps are a team at the top these days. They sit first in the Western Conference table while the Rapids are at the bottom of the league. A win will help the Caps improve their hopes of finishing atop the West for the first time.

Harvey admitted to watching the standings as Vancouver holds a one-point lead on the Portland Timbers, Sporting Kansas City and the Seattle Sounders. But he is trying to concentrate more on the Rapids.

"They're a team with nothing to lose, so that's what is going to cause us problems," he said. "They're going to be free-flowing, and playing with that attitude."

The Whitecaps, who have earned a win (in May) and tie (in August) at altitude over the Rapids in their home park, are striving to take an even-keeled approach while hosting the last game of the clubs' regular-season series at sea level.

"You don't get above yourself when things are going well, and you don't get too down when your back's against the wall," Vancouver coach Carl Robinson told reporters.

"We're grinding. At this stage of the season, you don't want to play really, really well and pretty and lose. You want to try to find ways to win and put points on the board."

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The Whitecaps are unbeaten in their last six games overall (4-0-2). Robinson's squad has also gone unbeaten in five games at home since July 23.

Meanwhile, the Rapids are starting to show signs of improvement. They head into Saturday's game with a win and a tie, respectively, over two contenders -- the Houston Dynamo (who suffered their first home loss) and New York City FC.

The win over Houston was Colorado's first in 14 road games thus far.

But the Rapids, who fired head coach Pablo Mastroeni and replaced him in August with assistant Steve Cooke, are already looking towards preserving future jobs.

"At this point, everybody is fighting for something bigger than just the win," striker Dominique Badji told reporters.

Vancouver's top central defender, Kendall Waston, the team's captain, will miss Saturday's game as he serves a one-game suspension for yellow card accumulation.

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