What’s To Become of the Legendary Vancouver All-Whitecaps?
When Deklan Wynne skipped off to join the Vancouver Whitecaps it sort of slipped under the radar. At the time Wynne was still buried deep within the eligibility scandal that saw New Zealand kicked out of Olympic qualifying back in July 2015. Wynne had played for New Zealand at the U20 World Cup that NZ hosted earlier that year, he’d already made his senior international debut in a 1-1 draw away to China in November of the previous year. There were other ineligible players that New Zealand Football had (shamefully) screwed up with their selections but Deklan Wynne was the one that drew the fatal official complaint. He was sort of left as the face of that shambles.
So when he signed with the Vancouver Whitecaps in the MLS amidst all that it probably didn’t get the focus it might have gotten if it’d come on the same upwards trajectory that the rest of his career had been ‘til then. Eventually the eligibility thing was sorted out easily enough with FIFA dispensation and Wynne made his international return against Mexico in October 2016 after more than a year out of the kiwi structure. He’s started 10 of the All Whites 16 games since.
Then in early 2017 came the news that Christchurch-born defender Francis de Vries had been drafted by that same Vancouver Whitecaps team. De Vries had played a solid four years at Saint Francis University, also playing for the Michigan Bucks in the Premier Development League. His assured defensive performances (and occasional screamer free kick goals) were enough for the ‘Caps to pick him up in the second round of the 2017 MLS SuperDraft, the second straight year in which a kiwi was selected after Kip Colvey in 2016, and two months later he was signed to a one-year pro contract.
It was slightly crazy to see two kiwis at the same professional club, particularly having each turned up in their own unique circumstances. But things got even wilder when Myer Bevan was announced to have also joined the Whitecaps after effectively graduating from the Nike Academy. The striker was on his way to the U20 World Cup in Korea when his new club was revealed and he soon made it clear why he was such a wanted man with a ripper of a goal (as well as a second half penalty) in a 3-1 win over Honduras.
Mate, and it only got more insane as the All Whites’ number one keeper, Stefan Marinovic, signed with the ‘Caps soon after the Confederations Cup. His contract at Unterhaching in Germany had run down after he’d made the decision to leave so a pro deal elsewhere was no surprise… but the Vancouver Whitecaps again!? More like the Vancouver All-Whitecaps, amirite?
The thing about the All-Whitecaps, though, is that of the quartet only Stefan Marinovic ever actually played in the MLS in 2017. Deklan Wynne had one cup game for the senior team before Mari turned up and that was that. De Vries and Bevan were VW2 players all the way. Plus with the staggered arrivals to the club and a few untimely injuries, a red card suspension for Bevan and some reserve tem rotation… the VW2 trio only actually started six games together. The Whitecaps were the only professional team on the planet with that many New Zealanders aside from the Wellington Phoenix. But three of them were just reserves players.
Not Marinovic, however. Reading between the lines, it appeared from the start as if he’d been acquired to replace established VW keeper David Ousted going into the 2018 season, with club legend Ousted’s contract negotiations not going to anyone’s liking. Marinovic was given the odd start after his arrival, the two goalies juggled amidst a hefty fixture list, before suddenly finding himself the preferred starter going into the playoffs. Plenty of fans had plenty of reasons to be upset about the way that Ousted was, well… ousted. But Marinovic’s performances at least held up his end of the bargain and he’s clearly the man they want with the gloves next season. One down and three to go.
Hmm, yeah, about that… it’s getting complicated. The Vancouver Whitecaps 2 team that was the home of the three other kiwi lads in 2017 is no more. It was a badly kept secret that the Whitecaps were preparing to outsource their reserves team and when Fresno FC acquired a United Soccer League licence you didn’t need to be Sherlock Holmes to realise that meant somebody was on the way out. Sure enough, the Whitecaps dropped the hammer on the news that they were wrapping up the VW2 team and forging a partnership with Fresno to loan out their ressies.
WhitecapsFC.com: “As part of the agreement with Fresno FC, the Whitecaps will have the ability to assign players to USL contracts to play at the California club, while all players on the roster will be monitored and evaluated for MLS opportunities, as well as call-ups on the USL Short Term Agreement. Announcements will be made in the coming weeks regarding players from the 2017 USL roster.”
The Whitecaps never really treated their reserves team like anything other than that. It was a bridge between their residency programme and the senior team, as such their results don’t make for pretty viewing. Just five wins from 32 games in 2017. They ended 14th out of 15 in the USL Western Conference, only Bill Tuiloma’s Portland Timber 2 side were beneath them. Their final game saw the team blow a 3-1 second half lead at home against Orange County SC to end up losing 4-3. Luckily for them there were only about 600 fans there to witness it.
This new Fresno team will have much more of a focus on winning rather than pure player development. That doesn’t mean there’s no room for the kiwi lads in what’s a youth-oriented league, but it does complicate things. The Whitecaps have the right to assign players there, just as they have the right to sign players up out of Fresno. Like how Kip Colvey’s spent time at San Jose Earthquake’s affiliate team or how James Musa was signed to an MLS contract with Kansas City after starring with Swope Park Rangers. But there’ll be no guaranteeing they get games.
The Whitecaps were presumably losing a lot of money having that VW2 team. Crowds weren’t showing up, players weren’t really coming through into the first team from there. Some were, sure. The likes of Alphonso Davies, Jake Newsinski, Tim Parker and a few others all spent time with the VW2s on the come up in its three years of existence. And the Whitecaps will still get to call the shots with Fresno so that much is all goods. What’s interesting is how this aligns with the club’s desire to form a women’s team, maybe get a few Footy Ferns at the All-Whitecaps as well.
Stefan Marinovic will be back in 2018 and playing most weeks for the top team. The other trio are less secured. Rumour is that both Deklan Wynne and Myer Bevan were offered MLS deals last month and there should be more news about that eventually, though Francis de Vries wasn’t so lucky. With his contract up and his situation up in the air he’s signed on with Canterbury United for the rest of the NZ Premiership season. Great get for the Dragons, although it does make for a bit of a set-back in the pro career. De Vries was a popular prospect before the Whitecaps took him and he regularly captained the VW2s in 2017. He’s likely to have a few offers out there but you never know in the fickle footy world.
They’re going through a spell of roster overhauling in Vancouver and the one area they don’t need to touch is the defence, not a great sign for de Vries. Marinovic can be considered part of that overhaul while 14 players had their contract options declined at the deadline last week. Among them was Ben McKendry, a New Zealand eligible midfielder who could’ve been a part of an All-Whitecaps quintet had he aligned himself instead with his homeland Canada (there’s still hope until he plays in a FIFA tournament game!). Several of those players might still be signed up again on new deals, as might de Vries if he’s lucky, yet the moves left them with at least a dozen spots to fill – one of which was then spent on Venezuelan striker Anthony Blondell.
The Whitecaps continued the process by loaning goalie Spencer Richey out to FC Cincinnati, also in the USL (though in the other conference). Richey played five times for the MLS team in 2017 - before Stefan Marinovic rolled up of course. He was drafted in the 2015 and initially given a USL contract just like Francis de Vries was. Unlike de Vries, Richey then earned a first-team deal in 2016 which has one more year on it after they picked up his option and he’ll spend that year trying to earn another one while on loan in Cincy. Lots of changes happening here.
As is often the case, so much of this stuff is about money. The declined contract options cleared up heaps of cash, more than half of their salary cap. It also allows them to sign some of those same players on cheaper deals – otherwise they’d have just picked up the options – and they’re gonna have to bring a couple of them back because their squad is looking rather thin right now. Flexibility is a nice thing to have, at least. By the way, about the only position they have any serious depth in is left back… not ideal for Deklan.
MLS deals or not, first team opportunities appear slim for Wynne and Bevan, with Bevan probably more of a chance given the current state of their strikers. It doesn’t look like Freddy Montero will be back and even if he does return, the way that the Caps limped out of the playoffs without barely threatening to score a goal (recurring state of things for Stefan) meant they had to do something about their attack anyway. Bevan’s the most pro-ready of the USL trio. His silly red card didn’t give him a decent run of games there in his half a season but he did score three goals in the USL.
Blondell’s signing doesn’t help him. He’s only a couple years older than Myer and, by the looks of his highlights, bloody good at this whole football thing. They spent over a million US dollars on his transfer fee too, so much for the frugality. Oh and he uses up an international spot. But manager Caleb Robinson wants more than one bloke to lead the line. He wants competition for places (Blondell’s unproven, so it’s only logical) and Bevan should get the chance to play for it in preseason. It’d be a huge step up but the VW2s were pretty useless so it’s hard to judge. Better teammates can accentuate a striker’s ability pretty drastically.
More will become clear in the coming weeks, with MLS Free Agency beginning in mid-December. We know that Marinovic will be doing amazing things with the Whitecaps in 2018 and we can be confident that Bevan and Wynne will at least be re-signed, although what happens next is anyone’s guess. They could be sent to Fresno or potentially loaned out elsewhere. De Vries, at a guess, might not be back at all.
So what’ll happen to the All-Whitecaps? Well until any of the other ones get some legit MLS experience going it was only ever a catchy nickname. There’s not much to brag about from having a few players in reserves footy unless they crack the first team down the line.
All three of the USL dudes are quality prospects though, they all have the potential to play for that first team eventually but none of the three are there quite yet. The All-Whitecaps might have to take a break for a while. Playing out on loan, for Fresno or otherwise, might be better for Bevan and Wynne (and hopefully de Vries’) development anyway. Alternatively, a big preseason can go a long way…
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