AFTN Soccer Show

Episode 25 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (It's The End Of The Season As We Know It)

Episode 25 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast. It's "The End Of The Season As We Know It" episode, our last post game podcast of the season, but fear not, as we've plenty more episodes to bring you before the end of the year.

We recorded this episode at BC Place after the 3-0 win over Colorado and before the breaking news we brought you on Monday that Martin Rennie was no longer the manager of the Caps, so there's a few moot discussion points!

Vancouver Whitecaps finished off their season in style and we look back on the game and hear post game audio from captain Jay DeMerit, debutant Sam Adekugbe, the retiring YP Lee, MLS Golden Boot winner Camilo Sanvezzo and in what was his last game as Whitecaps boss, Martin Rennie.

We soon turn our attentions to the future and what lies in store for Martin Rennie and the Whitecaps, and speculate about Frank Yallop taking over the reigns.

And there's still time to have a look at the MLS playoffs. Who do we want to do well? Who do we think will do well? And what teams would we like to see beat each other to a pulp?

Listen and find out!

Episode 24 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Goodbye Playoffs, Hello Mediocrity)

Episode 24 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast. It's the "Goodbye Playoffs, Hello Mediocrity" episode, also known as the "Colorado post game show" and "The one where an angry Scot rants at you for close to an hour".

After the Cascadia high came the Rockies low. A 3-2 defeat to Colorado Rapids sent Vancouver Whitecaps spiralling out of the playoffs and Martin Rennie probably towards the unemployment line, along with a lot of the players.

We don't really want to but we look back at the game that ended the Whitecaps playoff hopes and try and pinpoint where it went wrong this season. Can winning the Cascadia Cup and logging more wins, points and goals scored make still make it a success?

That's how Rennie is spinning things and we look at his post game comments on Saturday and ponder whether he can stay on now and where all these established young players he is talking about can be found.

There's still time for a look at what we want to see in the last game of the season and we start our campaign to get both Joe Cannon and Sam Adekugbe some playing time in the season finale.

There's a lot more chat too about all things Whitecaps, including some tweets from our listeners about the season past and future, so crank us up.

Episode 23 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Seattle post game - A Cascadia Cup caning)

Episode 23 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast. We really wish it was 41 as we have the numbers 4 and 1 firmly implanted in our head right now.

It's a very jubilant podcasting crew this episode in the wake of the demolition handed out by Vancouver Whitecaps to Seattle Sounders in Cascadia Cup action.

We look back on the game, dissect the goals and ask where that performance has been for most of the season.

It was a team performance but there were also some magnificent individual efforts and we take a look at the play of Kekuta Manneh, Daigo Kobayashi, David Ousted and Jun Marques Davidson.

We hear some post game thoughts of Martin Rennie, Kekuta Manneh and Nigel Reo-Coker on the performance, the win and the team's playoff hopes and the three of them also chat with us, along with David Ousted, on whether the upcoming ten day break between matches will benefit or hinder the Caps.

And there's still time to look ahead to Colorado and try and break down what could play out in an exciting run in with four teams jostling for two MLS playoff spots.

Episode 22 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Portland post game - A Cascadia Cup classic)

Episode 22 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast. An apt number for the episode as this is a post game pod following Vancouver Whitecaps' entertaining, yet disappointing, 2-2 draw with Portland Timbers.

Recorded at BC Place after the game, we pick over the bones of a game which saw four great goals, a stirring fightback from the Caps, but ultimately did nothing to aid Vancouver's ever decreasing playoff hopes.

We chat about the game, the line up and the goals and hear audio from Martin Rennie and Jay DeMerit from the Whitecaps end.

We also head into enemy territory and speak with Portland's Will Johnson, Donovan Ricketts and boss Caleb Porter. Some interesting comments from all three of them.

Turning our attention back to the Caps, we once again ask the question, is there still some hope left? It's still a little and we look at the scenarios that need to play out to see Vancouver make it to the postseason, as unlikely as that may seem just now. As we chat through them you can share the pain of us as the full scale of what is needed become all to evident.

And there's still time to read out some tweets from our listeners in our first interactive section of the show.

No cats or wives were harmed in the making of this broadcast.

Episode 21 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Real Salt Lake post game)

Episode 21 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, is a post game pod following Vancouver Whitecaps' miserable 1-0 loss to Real Salt Lake.

Recorded at BC Place after the game, we pick over the bones of the Caps' playoff carcass. What went wrong? Why couldn't we beat a reserve team? And who needs to shoulder the blame?

We hear audio from Martin Rennie, David Ousted and some very honest and sadly accurate post game comments from a clearly dejected and frustrated Nigel Reo-Coker.

We also head into enemy territory and have a chat with Jason Kreis about the game, the successful RSL system of play and look ahead to their midweek US Open Cup final against DC United.

Turning our attention back to the Caps, is there still some hope left? A little and we look at the scenarios that need to play out to see Vancouver make it to the postseason, as unlikely as that may seem just now.

And there's still time to end the show on a happier note with a look at the Whitecaps Residency's start to the season and the recent Whitecaps media match that saw your two co-hosts square off in the Championship game.

We've tried not to depress you too much, but it was hard after such a performance by the Caps and our closing song probably won't help!

Episode 20 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (What lies ahead for Whitecaps and MLS?)

Episode 20 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, is another of our popular roundtables.

Recorded in two parts, this the second part, the first of which was published as Episode 19 last week.

My usual co-host Steve and myself are joined by Zachary Meisenhamer from Curva Collective, long time fan Steven Lamothe and AFTN writer Jay Duke to a lot of Caps and MLS talking points.

After looking at the state of the Whitecaps nation last episode, our five man team try and look at where things have gone wrong this season. We turn our attentions to Martin Rennie, what he brings to the Caps and the future of the gaffer and the Whitecaps, this season and beyond.

Is he responsible for the Whitecaps' poor recent form or do the players have to shoulder a lot of the responsibility? If Rennie is to be replaced, who are the main candidates out there to take over and will any changes go further up the managerial chain?

And there's still time to chat about transparency in MLS, or lack of.
So many questions! There's some answers but there's also a lot more debated in amongst it all too, including Bobby Lenarduzzi being compared to your local corner store, David Ferreira to sticking a straw into a cow's neck and what magical shoe purchases can be made with allocation money.

Episode 19 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (State of the Whitecaps roundtable)

Episode 19 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, is another of our popular roundtables.

Recorded in two parts, the second of which will be up next week, this episode takes a look at the current state of the Vancouver Whitecaps nation. And what a state it seems to be in. More Michigan than California.

My usual co-host Steve and myself are joined by Zachary Meisenhamer from Curva Collective, long time fan Steven Lamothe and AFTN writer Jay Duke to discuss the Caps talking points of the week.

We have to look back at the loss in Dallas unfortunately. Was it as bad as it first appeared? It seems worse from Martin Rennie's viewpoint, who has totally changed his thoughts about the performance. What was with the team selection and substitutions?

Moving on to San Jose, is there still hope that something can be salvaged from this season and what scenarios need to play out for Rennie to still be coach for next season? Who should play, who should be dropped and who wins the Ousted v Knighton v Cannon battle for starting goalkeeper? Will there maybe even be some trades before Friday?

How do our panel see the Caps finishing their season? What points total do they need, will they get it and who will fill the top five positions in the West?

So many questions! There's some answers but there's also a lot more debated in amongst it all too.

And there's still time for the guests to debate three key questions as they hope to win a mars bar in our "30 Seconds To Mars" gameshow.

Episode 18 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (On The Road Again)

Episode 18 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast comes just in time for Vancouver Whitecaps to head out on the road again on a three game away trip.

We look at what the Caps' might need to get from these three crucial games and hear the thoughts of Kenny Miller and David Ousted, who are very honest about what they feel the Caps need to go out there and achieve.

We also look back at the draw with Chivas at the weekend. What can the Caps learn from that draw and how worried should we be about some of the deficiencies with the team?

With the recent addition of Sam Adekugbe to the MLS squad, we discuss some of the current emerging talent and ask who will be next to make the step up?

All this and there's still time to look at the murmurs surrounding MLS reducing the regular season to 28 games to cater for international dates.

Episode 17 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (San Jose Post Game)

Episode 17 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, is a San Jose post game pod. With the MLS Western Conference so tight right now, every game has a cup final feel about it and the Caps pulled out a vital 2-0 victory over San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday afternoon. We look at the main talking points from the match and hear some post game audio from Martin Rennie, Nigel Reo-Coker, Camilo and David Ousted. There's also still time to look ahead to the Colorado game, Kenny Miller turning out for Scotland against the Auld Enemy and to pick over some individual player performances. This episode was recorded at BC Place right after the San Jose game, so enjoy all the background noises and horrible acoustics! We like to think of them as ambience.

Episode 16 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Philadelphia Post Game)

Episode 16 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, is a Philadelphia post game pod. Ten man Vancouver Whitecaps lost their unbeaten home record to Philadelphia Union. We pick over the bones of the defeat, ask Martin Rennie why he went with an unchanged line up after the loss in LA, and search for the positives to take from the game. We also look at some of the recent talking points from Whitecapsland. Will the team be strengthened before the transfer window shuts? Is the Kenny Miller extension good for both parties? Is Nigel Reo-Coker doing enough? Why all the hype about Gershon Koffie? And a lot more besides. This episode was recorded at BC Place right after the Philly game, so enjoy all the background noise from the air conditioning and the horrible acoustics from the room we were in!

Episode 15 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Featuring: Martin Rennie, Kekuta Manneh, Colin Miller, Sam Adekugbe and Gordon Forrest)

Episode 15 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, and it's another one of our post game pods but with a little bit more this time around. Vancouver Whitecaps remained unbeaten at home with a 3-1 win over Chicago Fire. We chat about the game and the impact of Kekuta Manneh, along with audio from the Gambian and Martin Rennie. We also chat about Camilo and discuss those murmurs about him playing for the Canadian national team. And talking of the national team, we have look back at the Gold Cup. Was it worth bringing such a young squad and what did they learn? We also hear from interim head coach Colin Miller, who spoke to us after the Mexico defeat about the leap from the levels these guys have been playing to the international stage and what he thinks of some of the Canadian media criticism. One young guy who hopes to feature in the Canadian set up down the line is Whitecaps' Residency prospect Sam Adekugbe. Sam has been turning a lot of heads this past year and the general feeling is that he will be on the Caps' MLS squad sooner rather than later. We caught up with Sam before he headed down to Houston for the U18s Finals week and spoke with him about his development, his hopes for the future, the USSDA Finals and his Canadian passport situation. All this and there's still time to also chat with Vancouver Whitecaps Residency head coach Gordon Forrest about the tough test that the U18s will face this week at the Academy Finals. This episode was recorded at BC Place right after the Chicago game, so enjoy all the background noise from the air conditioning and slamming doors!

Episode 14 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Seattle Post Game)

Episode 14 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, and it's another one of our post game pods. It was lucky 13 for Vancouver Whitecaps as they finally got a monkey off their back and won their first Cascadia Cup game in the MLS era. Steve and myself look over the match and we hear post game from both managers, Martin Rennie and Sigi Schmid, along with some chat from Kenny Miller, Brad Knighton and Darren Mattocks. And there's still time to look ahead at what's coming up for the Caps and at what areas they should be looking to strengthen in the upcoming transfer window.

Episode 13 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Academy special and DC/KC preview)

It's Episode 13 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast.

Unlucky for some but not for you dear listener as we bring you a special podcast to tie in with Residency Week here on AFTN.

We have an interview with two Vancouver Whitecaps Residency players before they headed off to Dallas for the USSDA playoffs, goalscoring sensation Brody Huitema and the very in-form Spencer DeBoice.

We're joined in the car park of UBC's Thunderbird Stadium (yup, we record anywhere!) by Zachary Meisenheimer and Steven Lamothe to look at how the season has gone for the Caps U16s and U18s and we take a look at some of the exciting players that are coming through the program and could take the pitch one day for the MLS Caps.

We have an in-depth chat about the prospects of Sam Adekugbe and Brody Huitema, amongst others, and debate if/when we'll see more of the Residency products not just in the MLS squad but getting serious minutes in the first team.

For those of you not interested in the Residency you can fast forward to the end because there's still time for us to look ahead to the Caps in MLS action in the upcoming road trip to DC United and Sporting Kansas City.

We know that a lot of the content in this podcast won't be for everyone but we think it's one of our best ones so far, just for the enthusiasm of four grown men talking passionately about the future of Vancouver Whitecaps and Canadian soccer!

Episode 12 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (New England Post Game)

Episode 12 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, and it's another one of our post game pods.

Buoyed by Vancouver Whitecaps' excellent, if somewhat fortuitous, comeback win over the New England Revolution, Steve and myself look at the match, the game turning moment all of the highs and lows.

We hear post game from both managers, Martin Rennie and Jay Heaps, along with some chat from Kenny Miller. There's a look at the impact the Scotsman is having on the Caps this season, what Johnny Leveron joining the Honduran camp may mean for the next match and we look ahead to that game against Chivas on Wednesday.

And there's still time to hear from Whitecaps legend Carl Valentine about joining the Twittersphere.

Episode 11 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Post Seattle, Cups comedown and Quebec's turban ban)

Episode eleven of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast. Our last podcast was just before the Voyageurs Cup final and there's been a lot happening in Whitecapsland since then.

There are no cups running over in Vancouver, just a lot of heartache and a long season still ahead.

Recorded on location at UBC at the Caps' U23 friendly with North Sound Sea Wolves, we briefly look back at the highs of the New York and the lows of Montreal, before moving on to look at the Alain Rochat trade, the heartbreaking loss in Seattle and the back to back home games coming up for the Whitecaps.

And there's still time to look at the hot news topic in Canadian soccer this week, the CSA taking action against the Quebec soccer federation for their banning of wearing turbans whilst playing. With co-host Steve being a Sikh himself, we get an interesting insight into the whole debacle.

Episode 10 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Voyageurs Cup and the season ahead roundtable)

Episode ten of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, and it's another special roundtable discussion, this time looking at the Voyageurs Cup and a look at what lies ahead this season for Vancouver Whitecaps.

Recorded at the Vancouver Alpen Club, we're joined once again by Zachary Meisenheimer and Massimo Cusano, of Whitecaps' supporters' group Curva Collective, and AFTN writer Jay Duke to discuss the highs and lows of Caps season so far.

There's lots of chat around the V's Cup final against Montreal, the importance of the Cup and how it's perceived by the general footballing public, and Zach gives us the first hand insight into what it was like addressing the Whitecaps players in the dressing room before the first leg.

Moving on from the final, especially for those listening to the podcast after the game, we take a look at what lies ahead for the Whitecaps this season depending on whether they win or lose to Montreal. Just how significant will the push for the playoffs become? Where should the squad be strengthened in the summer transfer window? And who needs to make way for any new additions coming in?

And there's still time to introduce our new segment My Favourite Things. There's no songs from the Sound of Music, but we kick the segment off with a look at our favourite footballing years. Let us know your own ones.

Episode 9 - "There's Still Time" - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Season So Far Roundtable)

Episode nine of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, and it's a special roundtable discussion about Vancouver Whitecaps' season far.

Recorded at the Vancouver Alpen Club, we're joined by Zachary Meisenheimer and Massimo Cusano, of Whitecaps' supporters' group Curva Collective, and AFTN writer Jay Duke to discuss the highs and lows of Caps season so far.

There's lots of chat around how good/bad the first third of the season has been, who should be in the starting eleven and who shouldn't? Who have we missed the most, why can't we buy a road win, is Daigo Kobayashi any good, when will Greg Klazura get his shot, and who should start up front? We look at Martin Rennie's tactics and I'm still trying to trade away Darren Mattocks.

And there's still time to introduce our new podcast gameshow 30 Seconds To Mars, where our guests battle it out to win the coveted AFTN Mars Bar (sadly not deep fried, at least not for this week).

Episode 8 - "There's Still Time" - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (LA post game)

Episode eight of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast, and it's our second post game special.

Recorded at BC Place after the win over Los Angeles Galaxy, it's quite a cock-a-hoop mood for once with myself and Steve.

We bring you audio from both Martin Rennie and Bruce Arena on the game; two goal hero Russell Teibert talks about his standout performance, what it means to him and doing it for his watching family; Darren Mattocks talks about the relief of breaking his goalscoring drought; and Nigel Reo-Coker chats about the game and of being a proud mentor.

We also look ahead to the upcoming Voyageurs Cup final and gets the thoughts of Rennie and Teibert on the match with Montreal.

We're joined for a special roundtable chat on all of this, and the Caps PDL win on Friday night, by two guest co-hosts: Benjamin Massey from Maple Leaf Forever and the Two Fat Bastards podcast, and Andrew Bates from Little Rubber Pellets.

Episode 7 - "There's Still Time" - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (RSL, Away Woes, Darren Mattocks and LA)

It's episode seven of "There's Still Time", the AFTN soccer podcast.

Steve Pandher and myself take a look back at the Real Salt Lake game and ask why the Whitecaps make it so difficult to win on the road and Andy O'Brien shares his thoughts on the Caps away woes.

One of the big talking points to come out of the game was the post game dressing down from the manager and Nigel Reo-Coker. With the dust settled, we hear from Martin Rennie and Joe Cannon about how good or bad that was for the team to hear.

And there's still time to look ahead to the LA game at the weekend and the Whitecaps PDL season which gets underway on Friday.

You can also hear our brand new theme tune, specially written for us by local Vancouver band The Oh Wells. Check them out and support local music as well as local soccer.

We're planning to do another one of our post game shows on Saturday, so keep your eyes, and ears, peeled for that.

Episode 6 - "There's Still Time" - The AFTN Podcast (Dallas post game)

Episode six of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast and it's our first post game special.

Recorded at BC Place after the Dallas game, Steve and myself are joined by Andrew Bates to chat about the comeback, the terrible defending, the diving, the missed opportunities and what the Whitecaps need to do to try and get a MLS win again.

We have post game audio from Caps coach Martin Rennie about Darren Mattocks and Steve takes part in an interesting threesome with Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman and the Province's Marc Weber.

Our main guest this episode is Vancouver Whitecaps' defender Greg Klazura, who made his season debut against FC Edmonton in the Voyageurs Cup on Wednesday. We talk to Greg about the game, how he's settling in to life in Vancouver, the frustrations of waiting for his MLS debut and of course his famous headband and faces. And just why was he wearing gloves in nine degrees weather?!

And there's still time to look ahead to Wednesday and what may lie in store in the second leg against the Eddies and who we'd like to see the Caps face in the final.

Going forward, we're planning to do several of these post game pods this season, with different guests and co-hosts, and a lot more audio from the locker rooms.

Have a listen!