AFTN Soccer Show

Episode 33 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Kick out the old, welcome the new)

It's a New Year. Time to kick out the old, welcome the new. But before we can quite do that, we need a little closure.

Horrible man flu prevented us from doing both our Christmas special and part two of our year in review. But podcasts are like disgruntled Whitecaps strikers, you wait for them, then two come along at the same time.

Episode 33 of ”There’s Still Time” is finally part two of our end of year roundtable, featuring our regular roundtable guests Steven Lamothe and Zachary Meisenheimer.

It's not just going to be a straight month by month and game by game review, as we try look at the big Vancouver Whitecaps and Canadian news stories of July to December 2013 and the issues arising out of them that will be important and talking points going forward into this coming year.

There's the good - the Cascadia Cup win. The bad - missing the playoffs. The ugly - the Camilo and Mattocks affairs. And so much more.

Have a listen and start your New Year cleanse right here.

Also watch out for Episode 34 of the podcast, with all the latest Whitecaps talk, coming tomorrow!

Episode 32 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (2013 In Review - Part One)

It may be approaching Christmas but there’s no rest for the wicked and they don’t come much more evil than some of the guys here at AFTN.

Our little worker elves have been busy churning out another podcast for your aural pleasure.

Episode 32 of ”There’s Still Time” is part one of our end of year roundtable, featuring our regular roundtable guests Steven Lamothe and Zachary Meisenheimer.

We look at the big Vancouver Whitecaps and Canadian national team news stories of the past 12 months and the issues arising out of them that might affect the next year.

Remember the hope we all had in January? When Darren Mattocks banged in a 15 minute hat-trick in the first game of the preseason. Whatever happened to him?

There’s laughs and tears, stories and analysis galore as we look back at the comings and goings, First Kick, winless streaks, epic home wins, more Voyageurs Cup heartbreak and the joyous month of June.

There’s also controversies, great individual performances and the uplifting promise of the Whitecaps Residency and Canadian U17s.

We’re not just doing a month by month recap but looking at some of the issues as they affect the teams going forward and some of the unknown stories behind the headlines.

And there’s still time to split it all up by playing ’Spoilers’. Inspired by the classic ’Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads’ episode, we ask our guests and the people of twitter what extremes they’ve gone to to avoid finding out the scores of games before they get a chance of watch it and nightmare scenarios when it hasn’t quite worked.

Lots of festive fun for everyone. Have a listen.

Episode 31 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Guests: Carl Robinson and Bobby Lenarduzzi)

There's a new king in town. Long live King Carl.

Carl Robinson was officially confirmed as the new Whitecaps head coach today, so we're bringing you a Robbo heavy episode 31 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN Vancouver Whitecaps podcast.

We chat about Robinson's appointment, what it means for the future direction of the Whitecaps and hear a cutdown section of his introductory press conference.

Even though he had a jam packed morning, Carl made time to sit down with Steve and myself for a special podcast chat about his appointment, his managerial influences, who he might have his eye on to bring in, what his team will look like, the future for the young players at the club and lots more.

And talking of the younger players, everybody agrees they need to find them more playing time, but where will they find it? We speak with Whitecaps President Bobby Lenarduzzi about whether the Caps will be getting their own USL Pro team any time soon.

Have a listen.

Episode 30 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast

Don't worry, it may be winter but we're still able to play here in Vancouver and bring you Episode 30 of "There's Still Time", AFTN's Whitecaps and MLS podcast.

Despite it being the offseason there's still been a lot of talking points cropping up in Whitecapsland over the past week and there's going to be more to come before the year is out.

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat, but will the Caps be goosed when it comes to landing the man they want to be their new manager? Bob Bradley is the man who might be named. Does he want it? Is he the right man for the job? Bobby Lenarduzzi says he hopes to have an announcement next week. We share our thoughts on the whole thing.

The confirmed Whitecaps news is what players have been released. For the best or some mistakes in there? And do any of them still have the chance to be Caps when the new season starts? With 19 players now left on the MLS squad, the gaps are now very clear.

Moving on to MLS matters, we pick over Don Garber's 'State of the League' address. Not as exciting for us as in some years gone by but there were a few key talking points to come out of it.

The current MLS season just won't end it seems. With the MLS Cup finally taking place in a chilly Kansas City this weekend, what will we see? Don't worry, Predictapooch is back to let us all know.

So sit back, let your googles hangout and share a pre-Christmas feast with us.

Episode 29 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (A Women's World Cup warm up)

It's Episode 29 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast and it's our first Canadian national team post game show.

The Canadian women visited Vancouver to play out a pretty boring goalless draw with Mexico. We chat with Equalizer Soccer writer Harjeet Johal about the game and the future of the women's program.

We also hear the post game reaction from head coach John Herdman, captain Christine Sinclair and goalkeeper Erin McLeod.

CEO of the FIFA 2015 Women's World Cup National Organising Committee, Peter Montopoli, was in town and we speak with him about the upcoming World Cup, the turf controversy and the lack of professional women's teams in Canada and none existing in the NWSL.

And there's still time for a little Whitecaps chat as we look at Bobby Lenarduzzi's latest comments about the search for the Caps' new manager.

Episode 28 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (All quiet on the Western front)

Episode 28 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast and it's been pretty quiet in Whitecapsland the last week or so.

With no real front runners having emerged in the managerial hunt, we pick over what we know, what we think of those in the frame so far and reveal a new high profile name in the mix that the Whitecaps are said to be talking to this coming weekend.

Whilst taking their time to get the right man for the job is a good thing, with decisions on players needing to be made, and the players themselves keen to find out what's happening, how will the continued delay affect the upcoming trade window opening and plans for next month's re-entry draft?

In the more busy world of MLS, we look ahead to this weekend's Conference Finals second legs. Remember them? With the help of our new special guest, Predictapooch, we tell you who will be contesting the 2013 MLS Cup.

We chat about the new 21st MLS club, Orlando City, and look over the MLS awards shortlists for this year and the brief Whitecaps involvement.

And there's still time for a brief chat about the Canadian senior national teams, following the men's latest loss and the women's game in Vancouver on Sunday.

So have a listen!

Episode 27 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (Trimming The Hedges)

It's Episode 27 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast and it's the second part of our end of the season roundtable.

Steve and myself are joined once again by Steven Lamothe and Zachary Meisenhamer from Curva Collective and former head honcho of the Southsiders, John Knox.

We look at the Whitecaps squad that finished the season and debate who should stay and who should go. I'd get rid of pretty much most of them, but others aren't so quick in doing so!

Our "30 Seconds To Mars" gameshow returns, for three quickfire rounds, looking at the most disappointing Caps loss, most damaging Caps injury and Sam Adekugbe, with a much cherished mars bar awaiting the winner.

And there's still time to read out tweets from our listeners as to some of the weird places that they've met footballers over the years.

So have a listen and sorry about the echoey feel to some of it!

Episode 26 - The AFTN Soccer Podcast (The 3M Episode - Mattocks, Martin, Managers)

It's Episode 26 of "There's Still Time", the AFTN podcast and it's our first end of the season roundtable. Still feels a little premature that the season's done and dusted.

Steve and myself are joined by a couple of familiar voices in Steven Lamothe and Zachary Meisenhamer from Curva Collective and at long last our schedules aligned and we're joined by long time listener, first time podder, former head honcho of the Southsiders, John Knox.

It's the 3M edition - Mattocks, Martin, Managers.

It's been a busy time in Whitecapsland since our last pod and we kick things off this episode with the main talking point of the week - the Darren Mattocks' mouth. Is there any love in the room for last year's leading scorer and is there any way he'll be kitted out in a Whitecaps strip next season?

From someone that might be leaving to someone that has already left - Martin Rennie. Rennie's departure split the fans and it also splits our panel. We discuss where it all went wrong for the Scot, but there's also some love coming his way for his turning of this team around, something that's been missed a little in all the managerial hotseat fallout.

So now that the Caps are looking for a new manager, who will it be? We chat about the expected contenders and throw in a couple of other names that have been rumoured to have made the shortlist.

Do we want any of them and are our options going to be a little bit limited by the infamous committee?
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And there's still time to read out tweets from our listeners as to who they would ideally like to have at the Whitecaps helm and show how up with the latest trends we are by talking about the TV show "Cheers".

We'd planned to talk about a lot more, but once we get started, the time just flies. So we recorded a second podcast and you can here that next week!

So have a listen and sorry about the echoey feel to some of it!

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.