PORTLAND, Ore. – Behind a strong second-half performance and a brace fromforward Kharlton Belmar, T2 registered a 3-1 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 on Sunday night in front of 2,913 fans at Merlo Field.
Leading 1-0 after a first-half goal from Belmar, T2 (9-12-2, 29 pts) scored a pair of goals in a three-minute span in the second half as midfielder Brent Richards tallied assists on goals by Belmar and midfielder Blair Gavin. Belmar’s second goal was his team-leading 11th of the season, while he also registered his third brace of 2015.
“I think we kept the ball and we were patient with it,” said T2 head coach Jay Vidovich. “We were more focused on some of the individual duels in terms of what we needed to do. I liked several of the combinations when we went to goal including the goals.”
Opening the scoring in the 45th minute, T2 defender Jeanderson played a ball over the Vancouver back line from the left wing to Belmar, who chested it down and fired a powerful shot inside the right post for his first goal of the match. Belmar doubled Portland’s lead in the 68th minute, finishing a pinpoint pass in the box from Richards. Minutes later, Richards dribbled around multiple defenders and slotted a pass to Gavin at the right post for a finish from close range in the 71st minute.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (8-11-5, 29pts) pushed numbers forward near the end of the second half and scored a late goal as forward Caleb Clarke converted a shot attempt that rebounded off the crossbar in the 87th minute.
Following Sunday’s match, T2 remain at home to face Tulsa Roughnecks FC on Saturday, Aug. 22, at Merlo Field; kickoff is set for 2 p.m. (Pacific).
Tickets for Saturday’s T2 match are available online by clicking here. The match will also be available via a live, high-definition web stream at www.timbers2.com.
T2 (9-12-2, 29pts) vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (8-11-5, 29pts)
Aug. 16, 2015 – Merlo Field (Portland, Ore.)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
Whitecaps FC 2 0 1 1
T2 1 2 3
Scoring Summary
POR: Belmar (Jeanderson), 45
POR: Belmar (Richards), 68
POR: Gavin (Richards), 71
VAN: Clarke, 87
Misconduct Summary
POR: Fochive (Caution), 28
VAN: Wynne (Caution), 47
POR: Winchester (Caution), 57
VAN: Bustos (Caution), 74
Lineups & Stats
POR: GK Gleeson, D Jeanderson, D Manning, D Peay, D Thoma, M Fochive, M Besler (Payne, 67), M Gavin © (Casiple, 85), F Winchester (Richards, 66), F Belmar (Lowe, 84), F Biglieri (Bodily, 77)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Luthy, D Evans
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 5; FOULS: 12; OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 0; SAVES: 2
VAN: GK Carducci, D Wynne, D Farmer, D Nitti (Christianson,75), D Sandhu, M Seymore, M Rosenlund (Schuler, 76), M Bustos, M Blasco (Blagojevic, 76), F Haynes (Pridham, 76), F Clarke
Substitutes Not Used: GK Richey
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 3; FOULS: 10; OFFSIDES: 0; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 2
Referee: Andrew Brooks
Assistant Referees: Alexander Luttman, CJ Koll
4th Official: Lucas Brooks
Attendance: 2,913
Weather: Sunny, 82 degrees
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
Post Game Quote Sheet
T2 head coach Jay Vidovich
On what he saw defensively from the team…
“I think there are some individuals that stepped up. I think that from our last match you look at Taylor Peay and Anthony Manning, and particularly Jeanderson as well, had much better days. Focusing on the beginning of the game with [George] Fochive and Nick [Besler], being organized there. As well as our attackers being more organized in the beginning, more compact as a group.
On if the play through each half was a more comprehensive performance by the team…
“I feel it was a strange game, to me. It was an interesting game. We had moments in the first half of possession where we weren’t going anywhere and weren’t attacking. Then we had three or four sequences that were fantastic with no result then we find one at the end of the half. The second half it was kind of more the same. It kind of just kept going and neither team pushed or really went for it, I didn’t think. With the exception of a couple guys, all of a sudden something did string forward. We found a couple goals and then at that point they had nothing to lose and they pushed forward. I thought it was an interesting game in that way.”
On what he liked from his team tonight…
“I think we kept the ball, we kept it, and we were patient with it. We managed the game that way, with the ball. We were more focused on some of their individual duels in terms of what we needed. I liked several of the combinations when we went to goal including the goals.”
On second half substitute Brent Richards coming in and making two assists…
“That’s been Brent Richards all year. Same thing happened against Austin, where he played in that game. He’s had several moments like that when he is healthy. He has energy, he’s hardworking, and he’s committed to getting to goal and closing up space. He just does the right thing so when he found himself and his teammate in front of the goal he did the right thing. It was a great substitute and he made a big impact on the game. He had his moment and he took it.”
T2 forward Brent Richards
On getting back out there…
“It was really good to get back out there again. It had been a while since I had been on the field. I think the last time we played Vancouver up in Vancouver was the last time I played. I’ve had some issues with the hamstring so coming on and making an immediate impact was good for me. It felt really good.”
On how his hamstring felt…
“Hamstring felt great. Hamstring has been pretty good for a little bit so it’s just getting those minutes back under my belt and getting my feet wet again. It was good that I came in and did that right away. Sometimes it can take a little while, takes you two or three games to get in to it, so I was happy with how I did.”
On how tonight’s performance helps him going forward…
“Hopefully it means more minutes. Obviously if you’re injured you kind of lose out of favor. Other people step up and take your place but hopefully these two assists today can help me and maybe get me some more minutes [the] next game. Then hopefully [I will] work back to a starting position.”
On if he was comfortable coming on that quickly in the second half…
“Yes, I think in some of the other games where I came off the bench I did some good things as well. I didn’t get two assists in the other games but I thought I made some good attacking runs and got in some good areas so to get on the stat sheet tonight was a good thing. I’ve been really comfortable coming off the bench so I think it’s been good. I mean, there is no reason to come out slow or anything especially in that point in the game where everyone is a little bit tired. If I can come out with the most energy as possible that’s what the coaches told me to do so that’s what I tried to do.”
T2 forward Kharlton Belmar
On how it felt to score…
“It felt great. Like you said, it’s been a couple games since I’ve scored a goal but it was finally great to get back on the scoresheet, especially at home.”
On how big the win tonight for the team…
“It’s massive. All week in training we all knew that this was going to be the game that we need points from. Then [we will] try and go on a run from here, mark the calendar and we got after it tonight.”
On how comfortable he felt with positioning tonight…
“All three of us up top have a pretty good relationship. We play fluent throughout the three positions so we just noticed that the guys were trying to get down that flank so we just switched it up since I have a little bit more pace than [Santiago Biglieri] might. So we just kind of switched things up and it worked out.”
On what he saw from Brent Richards…
“He’s great. He’s an impact player. He comes on the field, produced right away and that was just wonderful. He’s a hard working guy and he deserved it.”
On what about playing at Merlo Field is so special…
“I don’t know you just wake up in the morning on game days and you’re just buzzing. You’re really excited knowing that the fans are going to be there cheering you on and the atmosphere is going to be unbelievable. Something about it is indescribable.”
