Dein erstes Forum » Robinson, the 38-year-old former Welsh inter

VANCOUVER - There were dark clouds and a cold, driving rain Monday as the Vancouver Whitecaps held their final on-field training session but the players and coach showed a sunny disposition as they looked forward to next years Major League Soccer campaign.Under rookie head coach Carl Robinson the Whitecaps accumulated a 12-8-14 record for a franchise high 50 points. Vancouver went 4-0-1 down the stretch to finish fifth in the Western Conference and clinch the final playoff spot. They lost 2-1 to FC Dallas in a heartbreaking playoff game that was decided on a questionable call by the referee.You dont need to be a psychic to read the signs that the Whitecaps have the potential to grow and improve.Were moving in the right direction, said defender Jordan Harvey. Making the playoffs, getting 50 points, all those landmark kind of things . . . it was a successful season.Im as excited as the next guy for coming into next season.Veteran defender Andy OBrien said the Whitecaps have laid a solid foundation.The club will no doubt be looking to get stronger and develop, said OBrien. In terms of the way we finished the season, I think that was a good blueprint in terms of how to start (next) season.As a coach Robinson is perpetually optimistic and supportive of his players. He has the team playing an entertaining, up-temp style on the field and created a positive culture in the dressing room.Of the 28 players currently on Vancouvers roster, 18 are 24 years or younger. That means the Whitecaps are still maturing and developing.I know we can do better, said Robinson, the 38-year-old former Welsh international. I know we can be better prepared not just on the training field but off the training field . . . to make things run easier.Players like midfielder Pedro Morales, holding midfielder Matias Laba, forward Sebastian Fernandez, defender Kendall Waston and goalkeeper David Ousted are part of the teams core.Robinson knows he must add to that group for the Whitecaps to make the next step.There will be changes, said Robinson. There will be additions because I want to strength the squad. The Whitecaps biggest need is the additional of goal scorers. Vancouver scored 42 goals last season, the least of any team making the Western Conference playoffs. Only four other teams in MLS scored less goals.Morales led the team with 10 goals and 12 assists.We lacked a goal scorer, said Robinson. If we had someone that could score 15, 20 maybe 30 goals, then we would be in a totally different position.Thats what we have to try to do to add to the group Ive got. Not to take away anything because we are building here. I want to build a core in here to move forward, not just next year but the next three, four or five years.The Whitecaps have had success finding Latin American players, but Robinson doesnt rule out looking for talent in Europe.I will turn over every rock, he said.One player Robinson would like to add to Vancouvers roster is Erick Torres, who scored 29 goals for Chivas USA this season before the team halted operations.One hundred per cent I would like him on my team, said Robinson. If you ask the other MLS coaches Im sure they would say the same.The Whitecaps will face some new challenges next season. Being the Canadian MLS team with the highest points standings earned Vancouver a berth in the 2015-16 CONCACAF Champions League. That means playing extra games during the season.Next season will also see Sporting Kansas City, the 2013 MLS champions, and the Houston Dynamo move into the Western Conference. That will make the fight to make the playoffs that much harder.In the coming weeks there will be four MLS drafts, including an expansion draft, the Chivas dispersal, a re-entry draft and the SuperDraft. One of the first decisions facing Whitecaps management is which players to protect in the expansion draft.Its very difficult but thats the sign of a good team and a good squad, Robinson said.I have decisions to make. It will be for the benefit of the team and the club moving forward.One player Robinson must decide about is OBrien. The centre back turned 35 in June and moved into a leadership role when captain Jay DeMerit retired due to injury.OBrien says he wants to come back and would consider a reduction in his salary of US$280,000.Its not all about money, he said. Its about being wanted.Robinson plans to meet with OBrien soon.I would like to try and keep Andy in some capacity with the club, he said. I think hes a very good leader.Because we are in a salary cap league it depends on the financial side of it as well. http://www.atleticomadridpro.com/Kids-Rodri-Jersey/ . He was 90. The team announced Monday that Adams had died, saying he "passed away peacefully from natural causes." The son of a prominent oil executive, Adams built his own energy fortune and founded the Houston Oilers. Custom Atletico Madrid Jerseys . Torres scored the first goal by an English team in the knockout phase of the Champions League this season when he met Cezar Azpilicuetas cutback in the ninth minute of their first leg match in the last 16. But Chelsea failed to make the most of its counterattacks and the Turkish champions equalized in the second half after gaining in confidence and cutting out their defensive mistakes. http://www.atleticomadridpro.com/Kids-Jose-Gimenez-Jersey/. Osasunas Alvaro Cejudo drove the ball onto the crossbar in the fifth minute and his team squandered several long-range strikes before he was denied one-on-one by goalkeeper Jaime Jimenez in the 50th. http://www.atleticomadridpro.com/Kids-Diego-Godin-Jersey/ . The team made the announcement after Saturdays 6-5 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. RHP Kenny Giles will be called up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to fill Adams spot on the roster. http://www.atleticomadridpro.com/Kids-Koke-Jersey/ . The Giants chances of winning the division were dealt a serious blow by the three-game sweep at the hands of the lowly Padres. The Giants open a three-game series at Dodger Stadium on Monday night. San Francisco is still in good shape to clinch a wild-card berth, although it dropped into a tie with Pittsburgh in the race for the top spot.Running back Ray Rice has won his appeal. The celebration will be short lived, I suspect, as, materially, very little changes for Rice. He doesn’t have a team and is unlikely to find one. On behalf of Rice, the NFLPA argued before arbitrator Barbara Jones that Rice was punished twice for the same offence, namely, beating his wife Janay Palmer-Rice. Since the league can’t punish a player twice for the same offence, the NFLPA argued that Rice’s indefinite suspension should be overturned. On the other hand, the NFL argued that Rice’s account of what happened was ambiguous and that it never saw the elevator video before suspending Rice for two games. However, when it saw the video, that constituted something new, thereby justifying new discipline. Jones sided with the NFLPA, believing that Rice was candid and transparent with the league over what transpired in the elevator. On that basis, Jones agreed Rice should be reinstated. And that will happen, since the NFL has elected not to challenge Jones’s decision. Here’s the conclusion rendered by Jones in her decision: “Because Rice did not mislead the Commissioner and because there were no new facts on which the Commissioner could base his increased suspension, I find that the imposition of the indefinite suuspension was arbitrary.dddddddddddd I therefore vacate the second penalty imposed on Rice.” Now what? For Rice, not much. While he has won his appeal, he is toxic and it is difficult to imagine a team signing the running back. If a team elected to add Rice, it would risk significant pushback from fans, sponsors and media partners. Make no mistake about – Rice will not be forgiven. His actions were appalling and deeply troubling. If any team signs Rice, the report will include the video. It will be played on an endless loop. No team can withstand that type of scrutiny. Bottom line is, signing Rice would be a terrible business decision for any team and could possibly cause the team irreparable harm. It doesn’t help Rice that running backs have become interchangeable in a pass-heavy league. As far as running backs go, it’s become plug-and-play. Just last week, Rice’s replacement Justin Forsett shredded the Saints defence for 182 yards on the ground. Rice does have a second grievance pending against the Ravens. In that case, Rice is not asking to be put back on the team. Remember, the Ravens cut him. Rice just wants to be paid the $3.52 million he feels he’s owned. Despite his reinstatement, it seems like Rice’s days in the NFL are done. 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