VANCOUVER, BC – Vancouver Whitecaps have exercised the contract option of men’s team captain Martin Nash for the 2010 season.
Currently in his third spell with the Whitecaps, the 33-year-old will be entering his 10th season with the club, and 14th season in the United Soccer Leagues First Division (USL-1), having signed his current contract back on January 16, 2008.
After being appointed the 19th men’s team captain since the club’s first season back in 1974 for the 2009 campaign, the native of Victoria, BC, made a USL-1 All-League Team for the fifth time in his career this past season.
Nash was one of five Whitecaps players to appear in over 2,000 minutes of regular season action, with the experienced playmaker scoring four goals and recording three assists in 25 regular season appearances. He also played a key role in Vancouver’s playoff run to the 2009 USL-1 Championship Series, having scored a crucial goal on a free kick during the second leg of the playoff semifinal series versus Portland Timbers on October 4. He unfortunately missed the final match of the season on October 17 after being red carded in the first leg of the USL-1 Championship Series versus Montreal Impact at Swangard Stadium on October 10.
Next season, Nash will look to set three new milestones. The midfielder is one match short of 250 career appearances for the club, while he is 15 minutes shy of the 20,000-minute mark as a Whitecaps player. In addition, Nash only needs eight more points to reach the 100-point mark with the club. During his career in Vancouver, Nash has scored 26 goals and recorded 40 assists with the club.
The club will not offer new contracts to free agents Vicente Arze, Charles Gbeke, and Lyle Martin.
Arze, 23-years-old, made 19 appearances for 887 minutes of action, having recorded one assist this past year. In his two seasons with the Whitecaps, the native of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, had a goal and three assists in 48 appearances with the club, for a total of 2,015 minutes of action. Before signing with the ‘Caps in 2008, the winger played four years of NCAA Division I soccer with Mercer University in Macon, Georgia.
Gbeke, 31, leaves the Whitecaps after completing his fourth spell with the club. Acquired midway through 2008 in a trade with Montreal Impact, the striker played in 38 matches, scored 14 goals and added three assists this past season. His 12 goals during the United Soccer Leagues First Division (USL-1) regular season made him the league’s top goalscorer. As a member of the Whitecaps, the native of Longueuil, Quebec, made 61 career appearances for 3,650 minutes of action. During that time, the striker scored 19 goals and recorded seven assists for the club.
Martin, 24, leaves the Whitecaps after three seasons with the club. The native of Bakersfield, California, made 25 appearances in all competitions for Vancouver in 2009, scoring one goal and adding two assists during the year. In his three seasons with the ‘Caps, the right-sided player appeared in 82 matches for 6,415 minutes of action, scoring two goals and adding eight assists during that time. Prior to joining the Whitecaps, the defender/midfielder played four years of NCAA Division II soccer with California State University – Bakersfield.
THREE CAPS CALLED TO CANADA’S U17 WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM
Midfielders Vanessa Kovacs and Nicole Setterlund, as well as striker Abigail Raymer have been called up to Canada’s U-17 women’s national team.
All three players are currently members of the Whitecaps U-17/U-18 Prospects full-time program and have been part of Whitecaps Prospects since the U-14 level. They joined Canada’s U-17 squad for a nine-day training camp in Laval, Quebec, on Saturday, with the team led by former Whitecaps defender and Canadian international Ian Bridge.
Bridge has selected 25 players for the camp, as he looks to shape his squad for the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Under-17 Championship next spring. The tournament will act as the qualifier for next year’s FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Trinidad & Tobago.
Setterlund, 16, had a memorable 2009 season with the Whitecaps Prospects Women’s team. The native of Surrey, BC, helped Jesse Symons’ side finish as runners-up in the Pacific Coast Soccer League (PCSL) Premier Division regular season before the team won the PCSL’s Dave Fryatt Challenge Cup in the playoffs. The midfielder then helped the squad to a runners-up finish at the prestigious Surf Cup youth tournament in San Diego, California, in early August. As a member of Team BC, Setterlund made the all-star starting XI and finished third in Most Valuable Player voting after helping British Columbia to a gold-medal finish in the women’s soccer competition at this summer’s Canada Games in Prince Edward Island.
Kovacs, 15, joins Canada’s U-17 squad as a first-year member of the Prospects full-time program, having spent last season with the Whitecaps U-15/U-16 Prospects team. The native of Delta, BC, developed her skills as a youth player with Surrey FC Pegasus.
Raymer, 16, also joins the Canadian U-17′s as a first-year member of the Prospects full-time program. The native of Victoria, BC, was first invited to the program in 2008, but elected to stay on Vancouver Island, where she played for Gordon Head Gold in the Premier Division of the Lower Island Women’s Soccer Association last season. The striker currently lives and attends school in South Surrey, BC, as part of the Prospects full-time program.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Prospects is a 10‐month program that provides young elite players with the opportunity to train and develop in a high performance environment under the guidance of the Whitecaps professional coaching staff. Fully integrated with the BC Soccer Player Development Pathway, Whitecaps Prospects is comprised of two streams (full-time and part-time programs) that are delivered in two phases from October to the end of July each year.
2010 SEASON TICKETS NOW ON SALE
Season tickets include all men’s and women’s team regular season and playoff home matches at Swangard Stadium, Nutrilite Canadian Championship home matches against Toronto FC and Montreal Impact, as well as priority listing for Vancouver MLS 2011 in BC Place. For more information on our 2010 season ticket packages, call 604.669.WAVE (9283) or visit whitecapsfc.com.
No comments yet.