The New England Revolution vs Vancouver Whitecaps match experience
By Tommy Butler
Saturday’s match against the Vancouver Whitecaps marked my first live New England Revolution match.
I’ve been a fan of the New England Revolution for a while now, following the team from a distance.
Living in Pennsylvania has, at times, made it difficult to keep track of the team. Watching games can be difficult as they are rarely on national television.
On Saturday, I got to attend my first, and certainly not my last, Revs game. It was a blast.
In the Stadium
As I have written before, Gillette Stadium is too big of a venue for the team. There were plenty of empty seats around me, not including the majority of the seats that were covered.
Despite this, the energy of the fans was immense. I was lucky enough to sit near The Midnight Riders and the Rebellion sections known as “The Fort”, and joined in on their chanting throughout the match.
Everyone that was there was on the edge of their seats the entire game. The plethora of close calls in injury time didn’t help the nerves.
I will forever remember the crowd’s reaction, as seen from the stands, as Teal Bunbury‘s goal found the back of the net. The eruption of noise and the simultaneous rising off of their seats was amazing.
In the final minutes, a “RE-VO-LU-TION” cheer rose from The Fort and was quickly brought up by the whole crowd. The volume the crowd reached was mind-blowing. It felt like being in the middle of a huge movement more than a soccer match.
It was a wonderful experience, and one I highly recommend if you haven’t yet.
What The Highlights Missed
I’ve always done my best to watch the game, and I have been while covering the team for Chowder and Champions. Beforehand, I usually had to rely on watching the highlights to see what had happened the match before.
This week, I can tell you about two stand-out plays that didn’t make the highlight video.
Nifty Footwork
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Near the end of the first half, neither team had many opportunities at goal. The Revs’ Je-Vaughn Watson charged up the left side before pausing with a defender in front of him.
Suddenly, Watson chipped the ball a foot or so back towards midfield before snatching it back and taking off toward the corner. After having his ankles broken, the defender didn’t mark Watson as closely the next few times they met.
Failed Plan
Just before Bunbury’s goal, Whitecaps’ keeper Stafan Marinovic stopped a promising attack by the Revs. As a result, he appeared seriously injured, even calling for a trainer to help him. After about two minutes, he calmly stood back up and prepared to take the free kick.
His attempt at slowing the New England Revolution’s momentum failed quite dramatically, as you did see.
The free kick found the head of Kei Kamara, who passed it off to Kelyn Rowe on the right side. Rowe then swung a perfect cross in and found the leaping left foot of Bunbury. The only goal of the game.
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Up Next
The New England Revolution head to New York for their next match against NYCFC. The starting whistle blows at 6pm EST on August 20.