Episodes
Thursday Jan 28, 2016
Episode 144 - The AFTN Podcast (Striking While The Iron Is Hot)
Thursday Jan 28, 2016
Thursday Jan 28, 2016
Vancouver Whitecaps hit the training pitch for the first time in 2016 and AFTN was there to bring you all the action! Well, all the audio.
As players new and old try and make a lasting impression on 'Caps coach Carl Robinson, he'll just be hoping that one or more of his strikers can put the ball in the back of the net on a more consistent basis. We chat with two of those strikers, both of whom have been linked with moves away to pastures new this offseason, Jamaican international Darren Mattocks and Erik Hurtado.
Mattocks talks about those transfer rumours, finding his international form at club level and his new found maturity and perspective as a soon to be father, while Hurtado tells us about his loan period in Norway and trying to come back and crack the 'Caps gameday squad.
If both players hang around, they'll have a new striker's coach, with former Welsh international Robert Earnshaw announcing his retirement to take that position along with becoming head coach of the U14 Residency team.
We chat with Earnie about his decision to retire, his coaching path, the challenges ahead, what he hopes to bring to the U14 team and a lot more.
And there's still time to hear from Christian Dean about trying to unseat the centre back pairing of Waston and Parker and making an impression of his own, along with some of the big stories from the first week of preseason camp.
Have a listen!
Friday Jan 22, 2016
Friday Jan 22, 2016
The boys are back in town! Well for some of them it was for the first time, as was the case with Vancouver Whitecaps new Japanese striker Masato Kudo.
Friday was Media Day in Whitecapsland as the team headed back for day one of their 2016 preseason camp.
We hear from Kudo as he meets the Whitecaps media for the first time and we chat to him about making the move to MLS from the J League, the challenges ahead, what kind of player the 'Caps fans can expect to see and a lot more.
Keeping the Kudo and Japanese flavour, we speak to journalist Dan Orlowitz (@aishiterutokyo on Twitter). Dan is an American based in Tokyo and he covers the J League, the Japanese national team and international soccer for Football Channel. Dan tells us the impact he expects Kudo to make in Vancouver, what kind of player we'll see, how the two leagues compare, the interest his move will create amongst fellow players and what it might mean for the future of the J League.
From a player who is coming to a player that was rumoured to be going - Gershon Koffie. We ask Gersh about the rumours of a move to Belgium or elsewhere in Europe, whether he's looking for a new challenge, how he spent his offseason and the fast tracking of his Canadian citizenship application.
And there's still time to hear from 'Caps coach Carl Robinons about future roster moves and the camp invitees he's having a look at, while Russell Teibert tells us about what making an impact at the stacked DM position and Jordan Harvey talks about the battle he faces once again from Sam Adekugbe for the left back role.
Have a listen!
Monday Jan 18, 2016
Episode 142 - The AFTN Podcast (MLS SuperDraft Special)
Monday Jan 18, 2016
Monday Jan 18, 2016
Another week, another MLS draft, but this was the big one!
The 2016 MLS SuperDraft took place in Baltimore on Thursday. Vancouver Whitecaps ended it with three new players, and we chat with all of them on our latest podcast.
We have post draft conference calls with Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson and Georgetown defender Cole Seiler and exclusive one on ones with Lynn University's German striker Chris Hellman and Princeton University forward Thomas Sanner.
And there's still time to hear from Robbo about one player who wasn't selected on Thursday, Whitecaps Residency graduate, Callum Irving.
Have a listen!
Tuesday Jan 12, 2016
Episode 141 - The AFTN Podcast (Back To Business with guest Carl Robinson)
Tuesday Jan 12, 2016
Tuesday Jan 12, 2016
With less than two weeks till Vancouver Whitecaps start their preseason training camp, we look at all the latest news and rumours from Whitecapsland.
It's been a busy time and we chat with 'Caps coach Carl Robinson about how the signing of Masato Kudo came about and tapping into the Asian market, re-signing Cristian Techera, the TAM mechanism, his draft priorities and how he will approach Thursday's SuperDraft in terms of possible trades and moving up, and more.
We then also look at the imminent signing of Christian Bolaños, what holes that leaves the 'Caps to fill and who might fill them, and the latest goalkeeping situation.
And there's still time to look at the 'Caps 2016 schedule.
Have a listen!
Friday Jan 08, 2016
Episode 140 - The AFTN Podcast (The Great Leap Forward Roundtable)
Friday Jan 08, 2016
Friday Jan 08, 2016
With the MLS schedule out and the signings starting to take shape, it's already getting exciting in Whitecapsland, two months before First Kick.
In the last of our three end of season roundtable discussions, AFTN writer Jay Duke, and Curva Collective's Zachary Meisenheimer and Steven Lamothe join your regular podcast co-hosts to look at what Vancouver Whitecaps need to do next, after their best season in MLS so far, to take that next step and raise some silverware.
Carl Robinson now has two years under his belt as head coach. We cast a critical eye over his performance and his tactics, formations and man management.
Robbo likes his youth but is the team missing some players in their late 20s to add that bit more experienced heads and calming influence at key times? Is there real leadership on the team from captain Pedro Morales?
Do the 'Caps need to splash the cash to challenge with the big spenders in the league or risk getting left behind? And with the roster now taking shape, who won't be here come First Kick, are the team too heavy with DMs and how do you get the young homegrowns regular minutes in a pretty set starting line-up?
Where will, and what should, the Whitecaps priorities lie for this year ahead and are modern day footballers too pampered and whiny?
We chat about all of this and more. Have a listen!
Monday Jan 04, 2016
Episode 139 - The AFTN Podcast (30 Seconds To Mars New Year Special)
Monday Jan 04, 2016
Monday Jan 04, 2016
Happy New Year!
As the hangovers clear and you wonder if that turkey belly will ever reduce again, we thought we'd bring you something fun and light-hearted to kick off 2016. And that something is a special gameshow episode of the podcast, as we welcome in the new year with '30 Seconds To Mars'.
We're joined by AFTN writer Jay Duke and Curva Collective's Zachary Meisenheimer and Steven Lamothe to ponder over which Vancouver Whitecaps player was the best addition in 2015 and who was the worst? Which young player offers the most potential going forward, what were the most disappointing defeats, high and low points of the year, which MLS players should the 'Caps sign and a lot more!
It's chaotic, it's pointless, it's childish, it's heated (as you'd expect when there's a mars bar and a copy of a 1974 Scorcher annual at stake) and hopefully it's a fun listen too. And just a warning - this podcast contains horns!