Thirty-one thousand fans took to the stands Saturday night at Orlando’s Citrus Bowl, holding out nearly 97 minutes before a head-in from Vancouver made its way to the back of the net.
A foul from Orlando City’s (1-1-1) Darwin Ceren in the 95th minute earned Vancouver (2-1-0) a free kick and a goal to put the Whitecaps up 1-0.
Vancouver’s Raul Octavio Rivero dove in for a header after a set piece from Pedro Morales, striking the ball beyond goalkeeper Donovan Rickett’s reach and into the inside of the right post. Gameplay would continue briefly until officials called the match at 90+7.
Orlando City dominated possession in the first half, with an average 60.7% advantage over Vancouver. The visiting Whitecaps saw the best three opportunities following the thirty minute mark to make a goal. Rivero made a break towards the net and took a shot when Rickett then tipped the ball and changed its course, causing it to roll past the goal by mere feet. One minute of stoppage time worked its way through until officials called halftime. Both teams made 4 attempts on goal, although the Lions controlled possessions (60.7%-39.3%), total passes (272-185) and duels won (30-27) in those 46 minutes.
Into the second half, Orlando continued its domination of the ball at 64.7%. Several attempts on goal were made, one by Pedro Ribiero at the 58’ mark, off of a free kick from Kaká which cleared the goal, and another free kick from Kaká at the 62’ mark, which was denied from Vancouver goal keeper David Ousted. Kaká again maneuvered his way into dangerous territory for the ‘Caps at the 86th minute for an attempt on goal, although the shot would leave the ball to hit the left outside of the net.
The 0-1 final score carries over as the first loss for the expansion team’s inaugural MLS season. Lions’ head coach Adrian Heath pinned the loss down to a few critical fouls and near goals.
“I feel that if there was anyone who was going to win the game, it was going to be us,” said Lions head coach Adrian Heath. “If I’m being perfectly honest, I think we’ve had too many ‘nearlys’ all night. It was nearly a good play. It was nearly a good cross. It was nearly a good set up. And, unfortunately, nearly is not going to cut it, and that’s what I’ve explained to the guys. Nearly is not going to be enough over the course of the season.”
Vancouver topped the Lions with 5 yellow cards to Orlando’s 1, one of which was given for eating time in the final minutes, extending the game long enough for Rivero’s goal. The goal came as an unexpected result of stoppage time, which initially gave the impression of another draw.
“We weren’t thinking about defending in that moment, we wanted to give everything to win the game – to give the win to the fans,” said Rafael Ramos on conceding the goal.
The Montreal Impact will face Orlando City next, at Saputo Stadium on Saturday, March 28 at 4 p.m. The nearest home match will take place the week after, versus D.C. United on Friday, April 3rd.
