Vancouver Rise ring in 1st home win of the season

I’ve watched enough early season football to know not to overreact to one result. This one felt different. 

The Vancouver Rise beat AFC Toronto 2-1 at home on May 23. For the first time this season, this team wasn’t searching for itself on the pitch. 

The Rise looked comfortable to put it quite simply. Players moved around in the off-season, and the team was bound to shake up. There are individual performances that stand out, but eventually something clicks and soccer makes sense again.

From the opening whistle, Vancouver played with an assurance I’ve yet to see consistently this season. The combinations came naturally. Players looked like they knew where the next pass would be before receiving the previous one.

Latifah Abdu’s opening goal 11 minutes in was chaotic in execution — but not in creation. Tori Tumeth’s perfectly timed run applied pressure and the willingness to attack space.

“I think we love to start the match being front-footed. That’s what keeps us going during the game. And we like to score early. It just gets us in the game right away,” Abdu said in a press release.

She still had plenty to do. Yet, what impressed me was that nobody seemed surprised it happened, like it was just a matter of time. 

One particular sequence that stuck with me did not end in a goal. Mia Pante drove down the left, beat her defender, and cut it back for Jessica De Filippo. The hustle was representative of the afternoon. Even when opportunities broke down, the Rise didn’t.

The second goal, finished calmly by captain Quinn from the penalty spot, gave Vancouver breathing room. The interesting part followed after, when the Rise kept possession and refused to sit back.

Even when Toronto improved in the second half, and they did, Vancouver never lost themselves. Toronto finished with more shots, nine to Vancouver’s five, and created moments — particularly for goalkeeper Jessica Wulf who had to make a big save as Victoria Pickett’s shot missed by an inch. 

Toronto’s late goal made the scoresheet look more dramatic than it was, but for most of the afternoon, the Rise were dictating terms. 

“I think that we controlled most of the first half there, and had two good goals,” head coach Anja Heiner-Møller said in a press release. “Out of possession, also being on the same page with the whole team and working really, really hard.”

Too often, teams talk about identity when what they really mean is effort. Every team works hard but identity shows up in decision making. The Rise clearly trusted their decisions and it paid off. 

Rise FC won their second game in a row, after starting the season on a three-game losing streak.

There will still be difficult stretches ahead of Vancouver. Matches where possession does not translate and structure is tested. However, this was definitely one of those games where you look back and notice a change. Not because Vancouver won but because they look like they expected to.

The Vancouver Rise are on the road, taking on the Montreal Roses on May 30 at 11:00 am.