The Formations Knowing he would be facing one of the premier teams in MLS, Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson elected to revert back to his 4-2-3-1 formation for their away match with Real Salt Lake. Jonny Leveron replaced skipper Jay Demerit in defence, while Kekuta Manneh replaced Pedro Morales; both Demerit and Morales were rested for the match, and stayed behind in Vancouver. Real Salt Lake head coach Jeff Cassar made one change to the team that defeated the Portland Timbers 1-0 the week previous. Joao Plata replaced Olmes Garcia up front, where the diminutive Ecuadorian partnered RSLs top goalscorer, Alvaro Saborio. The Game To suggest the Whitecaps were flat in the opening 45 minutes would be an understatement – they were very poor. They did not make effective use of the space that was available to them (which was in wide areas) and they were half a step slow and half a step late defensively. The result was that the Whitecaps trailed 2-0 after just nine minutes, with RSL getting goals from both Plata and Saborio. RSL very nearly went in at the break up 3-0, but David Ousted did well to deny Plata a second goal just before the halftime whistle. The opening half was a perfect exhibit of the challenge faced when fielding a very young lineup - those players dont yet have the experience to figure out how to fix things when they go wrong on the pitch. Of the six attacking players who started the match, only Kenny Miller (34) can be classified as an experienced player. Matias Laba (22), Gershon Koffie (22), Russell Teibert (21), Kekuta Manneh (19) and Darren Mattocks (23) are young, talented professionals – but when things go wrong, they cannot rely on previous experience to help them turn things around. In the first half, the movement of RSLs midfield caused problems for the Whitecaps. Despite having a numerical advantage, Vancouver struggled to put pressure on the ball. When the Whitecaps did manage to regain possession, they were too often wasteful, giving the ball straight back to RSL, as Teibert did on the opening goal. Offensively, they were never able to use their speed in transition to maximum effect. In Darren Mattocks and Kekuta Manneh, Vancouver had the two quickest players on the pitch. However, neither player was able to use that speed to their advantage, as Vancouver never found their passing rhythm. Both fullbacks, Jordan Harvey and Steven Beitashour, were cautious in their approach when Vancouver had the ball. This was entirely understandable, given Real Salt Lakes formidable home record and their early 2-0 lead. The result was that far too often Vancouver failed to use the only space that RSL conceded to them, which was out wide. This played into RSLs hands perfectly, as their two wide midfielders, Ned Grabavoy and Jake Mulholland, simply dropped slightly deeper to sit alongside Kyle Beckerman when Vancouver tried to build in midfield. The RSL defenders, who compressed the space between lines, supported this tight midfield unit. This meant that there was very little space in which Vancouver could play. Real Salt Lake controlled virtually the entire first half. Robinson and his coaching staff showed their worth once they could sit the players down at the break. There, the coaches were able to correct the mistakes that were being made and give their young players renewed belief in their abilities. The result was a completely different performance from Vancouver in the second half. The Whitecaps aggressively closed space in midfield, pressured the RSL defenders and midfielders into conceding possession, and denied both Plata and Saborio a sight at goal. While Saborio struck the bar with a header in the 80th minute after a quickly taken free kick, the home side appeared content to defend their 2-0 lead. Vancouver showed better control of the ball and much better use of space in wide areas in the second half. There was a confidence in the Whitecaps team that wasnt present in the opening forty-five minutes – a belief that they could not only compete with RSL, but also get something out of the game. Robinson again used his substitutes effectively, bringing Erik Hurtado, Nicolas Mezquida and Sebastian Fernandez into the game. And it was the two Uruguayans – Mezquida and Fernandez – who clawed back a point for Vancouver. Mezquida scored Vancouvers first goal in the 86th minute, knocking home a poor rebound from RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando after great work from Darren Mattocks. Fernandez scored the equalizer deep into stoppage time, ripping a strike from 35 yards past a flat-footed Rimando. The RSL goalkeeper – along with his teammates – will be left to ponder just how they managed to throw away two points after failing to extend their dominant first half performance into the second. The Positives The second half performance from Vancouver was exactly what their fans want to see – positive, confident, attacking play. The pace in Vancouvers team is frightening; Mattocks, Manneh and Hurtado are all likely in the leagues top 10, if not the top 5, in sprint speed. It is really about finding a way for these players to use their assets to maximum effect, which Vancouver did really well in the second half. Good performances from all three substitutes will give Robinson and his coaching staff some decisions to make in choosing their starting lineup for their next match at home on May 3rd against the San Jose Earthquakes (TSN2, 6:30pm ET, 3:30pm PT). It is an enviable problem to have, as every coach much prefers to have too many good players from which to choose than not enough. Real Salt Lake put on the best forty-five minutes of football that I have seen from a team so far this season in the opening half. The concern for Jeff Cassar is finding a way to extend that performance over the course of the game. While they havent found the secret to this yet, RSL is still unbeaten this season. The Negatives Poor performances all around for Vancouver in the opening half, but the silver lining is that this can be used as a teaching moment. With such a young squad of players, the biggest challenge for Robinson is to develop his promising youngsters into seasoned professionals who can solve problems on the pitch, without always requiring the intervention of the coaching staff. This isnt a job that will happen overnight, and the players will now be expected to reflect on what they did differently in the second half that they werent doing in the first. As long as the players are able to learn from their mistakes, the opening forty-five minutes can be looked back on as a valuable lesson. Nick Rimando has been sensational for Real Salt Lake this season, so he can be forgiven for having a 10-minute spell to forget at the end of the game. He should have prevented both of Vancouver goals, and on any other day would likely have done so. The Star Man This was the best performance I have seen from Erik Hurtado. The youngster has incredible speed, but is still learning how to best utilize his prized asset. He made a big impact coming off the bench in last weeks 2-2 come-from-behind draw with the Los Angeles Galaxy, and while he didnt score in that game or against Real Salt Lake, he made a very meaningful contribution on Saturday. His willingness to run in behind stretched the RSL back line and created space for his midfielders to operate, effectively changing the game. He is still very raw and has a great deal of learning to do, so it will be important for him to seek out the coaching staff to carry on that education. But he is certainly showing exciting potential at this moment in time as a second half substitute that can change the game. White Vapormax Womens Uk . In mens doubles, Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil and American Jack Sock reached the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3), 6-4 win over Croatian Mate Pavic and Andre Sa of Brazil. Cheap Vapormax Plus Uk . This week they discuss the Philadelphia 76ers, Gregg Popovich, Royal and Ancient Golf Club and Bill Belichick. http://www.vapormaxwholesaleuk.com/ . Forward Iker Muniain scored the winner in the 70th minute after Bilbaos incessant pressure recovered the ball and sparked a counterattack inside Barcelonas half. Neymar was once again tagged to pick up Messis goal-scoring duties, but when he wasnt frustrated by slippery footing Bilbaos defence got the better of him. Vapormax Wholesale Uk . Pospisil, whose season-ending goal is to improve his ATP Tour ranking enough to qualify for one of the 32 seedings at Januarys Australian Open, dominated Karlovic in 59 minutes. The world No. 40 never faced a break point and limited the big mans threatening ace count to a mere eight, while striking five key aces of his own. Cheap Vapormax Uk . According to Yahoo! Sports, the team has reached a five-year deal to play their home games on the roof of the Plaza Hotel and Casino.KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Sporting Kansas City overcame an early scare to finally get past its post-season nemesis. After being bounced from the Eastern Conference playoffs by Houston in each of the past two seasons, Sporting fell behind the Dynamo 1-0 in the third minute on Saturday night in the second leg of the Eastern Conference final. But with a first-half equalizer from C.J. Sapong and Dom Dwyers game-winner in the 63rd minute, Sporting advanced to its first MLS Cup Final since 2004 with a 2-1 victory. "We didnt panic," Dwyer said. "We kept on doing what we do, and we got the result we wanted. Were happy right now, but were very much focused on two weeks time. Were going to enjoy it, and its extra motivation to have MLS Cup at home." Kansas City will play host to either Portland or Real Salt Lake on Dec. 7. Sporting and the Dynamo played to a scoreless draw two weeks ago in the first leg of the conference final. Houston, the runner-up in 2011 and 2012, will miss the title game for the first time in three years. "I think as far as this series, we deserved it," Sporting manager Peter Vermes said. "We played smart and I think we showed real maturity. Three years ago I think we were very new to this when we played them in the same situation. We were very new, in everything.dddddddddddd I even think our fans were new to it. There was a lot of apprehension that year, but I think this year was very different. I think the players understood the task at hand. Even though they scored early, we never panicked." Houston midfielder Brad Davis acknowledged being disappointed to not make it back to a third straight final, but said it was an accomplishment for the Dynamo to get as far as they did after finishing fourth in the East during the regular season. "Its very difficult. Im unbelievably proud to be a part of this team," Davis said. "I feel like people were counting us out a long time ago and we kept plugging away. Thats what this team does." The Dynamo scored on a goal from Oscar Boniek Garcia, whose shot deflected off centre back Matt Besler after a pass from Davis. Sapong responded in the 14th minute, scoring from short range after Houston defender Bobby Boswell misplayed Graham Zusis through ball. Dwyers decisive goal came after a precise through ball from Benny Feilhaber, with Dwyer finishing low past Dynamo keeper Tally Hall. "That was one of the classier goals youll see," Hall said. "His cut and finish made for one of the better goals Ive seen this year." ' ' 's, a centre who doesnt have the blistering shot his dad, a Hall of Fame defenceman. Marr told MacInnis to expect questions from interviewing teams about how fast he can shoot. "I have no idea," said MacInnis, who hasnt tested his shot with a radar gun. Ryan MacInnis does have some of his dad in him, or at least the defensive awareness. And scouts watching notice the bloodline. "When you watch him wind up, he has a very similar style of wind-up," said Ross MacLean of the scouting service ISS Hockey. "The mechanical structure of it is very, very similar. Its certainly nowhere near the velocity or the heaviness that his father had, but that might come as he continues to mature." William Nylander, who played youth hockey in the United States before his family moved back to Sweden, will likely need time to mature. He was just five or six yearss old when Michael played for the Washington Capitals and invited Nicklas Backstrom over to their house.dddddddddddd. Lemieux still has good relationships with some of Claudes former teammates, including now-Colorado Avalanche vice-president Joe Sakic and coach Patrick Roy. When Brendan met with the Avalanche, Roy kept quiet and let the rest of his staff do the talking. The pre-draft interview that surprised Lemieux was with the Detroit Red Wings, who his father spent years tormenting as an agitator extraordinaire. Lemieux didnt think it would be a legitimate interview, especially with one of Claudes biggest rivals, Kris Draper, in the room. "I thought they were going to walk in, make a few jokes," Lemieux said. "They were extremely professional, they barely brought it up. I tried to joke about it, they werent even budging. They were extremely serious. I was really impressed. Id have no problem playing in Detroit after that interview, for sure." Thats if the Red Wings want a carbon copy of Claude Lemieux. Brendan knows the game has changed since his father sunk the Stanley Cup to the bottom of the familys pool in 2000 but doesnt want to deviate much from how Claude played. "I think I can still bring that maybe a little bit of old-school sandpaper to a power-forward type role," said Lemieux, who admires Dallas Stars pest Antoine Roussels game. "I think a lot of teams are looking for that edge." Ryan Donato hopes a team is looking for a two-way centre in the vein of Jonathan Toews or Patrice Bergeron. Ted Donato, who will be his sons coach at Harvard next season, mentored Bergeron during his final season with the Boston Bruins, which gave his son someone else to model practice habits on. As far as off-ice habits, Ryan might want to be like his dad. "One of my favourite (stories) was when Ray Bourque got up to go to the bathroom, I guess he took his shoes off for a second and my dad got two lobsters and put them in his shoes and he came back and he put his feet in his shoes and there were lobsters in there," Donato said. Daniel Audette, more of a passer than Donald, who scored 260 goals in his NHL career, has a favourite story about his dad that hell probably tell friends this weekend. "On his draft day when he was 19 years old, he didnt get drafted — he was in the last rounds and he was getting mad," Daniel recalled. "He was throwing chairs in the back of the rink. He really wanted to get drafted, I guess." Finally the Buffalo Sabres took Donald in the ninth round in 1989. Daniel wont have to wait nearly as long, as hes projected to go in the first three rounds. The same goes for Dominic Turgeon, who wants nothing more than to be just like Pierre. "He loves to protect the puck down low," Turgeon said. "Thats what I do all the time in the offensive zone, really use my body to my advantage and drive the puck to the net." But with the name Turgeon comes expectations. Its true for all nine prospects, whether they like it or not. Still, there are plenty of benefits, like making scouts look twice because of the pedigree. When they do, more often than not they can tell theres some extra polish. "They grew up around the game," Marr said. "I think thats the advantage that they have. Ryan MacInnis, hes a professional athlete at 17 years of age, but his hockey sense and his hockey IQ, you can see thats what hes got from his dad, the way he plays the game." --- Follow @SWhyno on Twitter. ' ' '