The game was played before 11,019 fans, an all-time club record for an Impact home game. The old attendance record of 9,894 was set last July 14.
"It was like a playoff game tonight," said Impact captain Mauro Biello. "It’s frustrating not to score the goal that would have lifted the crowd, but the positive side is that we created a lot of scoring chances against a good team with a lot of experienced players and that’s well-organized defensively."
With the tie, the Impact is undefeated in its last five games (4-0-1), while the Whitecaps are now unbeaten in seven (4-0-3). All of the Impact’s last five games have resulted in a shutout. The five straight shutouts — four by Greg Sutton and one by Andrew Olivieri — are a new club record. As a team, it was Montreal’s 16th shutout of the year, also a new club record. Sutton extended the record he already holds on a personal basis by collecting his 15th shutout of the season. Vancouver goalkeeper Alexander Marques-Delgado picked up his ninth shutout in 15 starts this year.
The Impact buzzed in the Whitecaps end of the field for most of the game. Eduardo Sebrango and Antonio Ribeiro saw their shots blocked by defenders in scrambles at the goal mouth, at the 15th and 34th minutes respectively, while Nevio Pizzolitto hit the post after picking up the rebound on Sebrango’s shot. Free kicks by Sandro Grande forced Marques-Delgado to come up with big saves at the 34th and 44th minute.
The Montreal players kept the same pace in the second half, as Ribeiro saw his bullet deflected away by Marques-Delgado at the 62nd. Ribeiro then found Biello at the edge of the penalty area, and the captain healed the ball forward to Sebrango, who was stopped at close range by the Vancouver goalkeeper.
Sutton also came up big at the 71st, as he dove to his left to stop Steve Kindel’s shot, and then at the 83rd, when he blocked a 25-yard shot from Davide Xausa.
At the 13th minute of overtime, Biello and Sebrango both couldn’t find the handle right at the goal mouth.
On a night where the top four teams in the Eastern Conference were playing, the Impact remained in first place, two points ahead of the Richmond Kickers, who beat the Charleston Battery 2-1 in overtime. Meanwhile, the Rochester Rhinos played the Syracuse Salty Dogs to a 1-1 draw, while the Atlanta Silverbacks lost 4-3 to the Virginia Beach Mariners. In the Western Conference, the Whitecaps are now two points behind the first-place Portland Timbers.
Fred Commodore, who came into the game at the 61st, had to come out for Darko Kolic at the 75th because of a sprained ankle.
The Impact’s next game will be on Saturday, August 14 at Laval University’s PEPS Stadium in Laval, against the Puerto Rico Islanders (2:00 pm, CKAC).
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SOURCE:
bcomm
INFO:
Stéphane Banfi
514-328-3668 (ext. 27)
