Kicking of their second season of their MLS era, Whitecaps FC repeated the opener from last year by beating their Canadian rival. Last year it was Toronto FC, this year it was MLS new boys Montreal Impact in a 2-0 victory.
While last year was at the temporary Empire Field to start the season, this season begins at their home on the Bell Pitch BC Place. Hopefully having a solid permanent home for the season will bring solid results, and last year’s limited success is a thing for the history books. The seating renovations are now completed at BC Place so the seats meet the pitch at both ends making the stadium feel much more intimate than the cavernous football stadium housing the BC Lions.
The Southsiders supporters club seems to have grown this season also, now filling most of the south end seats. A new supporter group, have developed at the north end, specifically for new signing Young-Pyo Lee. The overall atmosphere was great as the nearly sold out stadium came wildly alive when another new signing, Sebastien Le Toux netted the quickest opening goal in MLS at 4 minutes. As much as Montreal tried they couldn’t gain a foothold on the match, once Camilo beautifully struck the net in the 54th minute it was all over. Vancouver’s 2012 home campaign starts off on the right foot (or left as is the case with Camilo’s strike) and hopefully it keeps up this way for the rest of the season.