Caps loan McKendry to Eddies
Desperate for more offensive punch in his lineup, FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller reached out to his former club for a favour.
The favour came in the form of midfielder Ben McKendry, who was loaned to Edmonton by the Vancouver Whitecaps for the North American Soccer League fall season.
McKendry joined FC Edmonton on Wednesday and could see playing time against the Indy Eleven on Sunday at Clarke Stadium in the opening game of the fall season.
“I’m very excited to have Ben here,” said Miller, a former Whitecaps assistant coach. “I had a great conversation with (Whitecaps head coach) Carl Robinson, with (Whitecaps president) Bob Lenarduzzi and they spoke very highly of Ben and I can see why with the impact he’s made already in our group.”
A Vancouver product, McKendry, 24, spent the majority of this season with the Whitecaps development team in the United Soccer League.
McKendry had two goals and one assist in 14 starts with the Whitecaps FC 2 and also had one appearance with the big club, making his Whitecaps debut in March.
“I’m thrilled to be here,” McKendry said. “I’m pretty thankful for the opportunity that Colin has given me to come in and get some games and grow as a player for a short period of time. Edmonton is halfway through their season and they still have a lot of work to do to make the playoffs and I’m happy to come here and help the team.”
Along with working his way through the Whitecaps development system, McKendry has also represented Canada at the Under-18, Under-20 and Under-23 levels. He is hoping a stint with FC Edmonton acts as a springboard to regular appearances with the Whitecaps.
“You don’t develop as a young player by staying at the same level for three years, you have to challenge yourself and put yourself in uncomfortable situations and situations that are different, and that’s how you grow,” McKendry said. “I definitely think this is a move up from where I was in my career. The USL is definitely a league that has a lot more younger players and players that are coming out of (MLS) academies, so the move to Edmonton and being in the NASL will be about being amongst older players, players that have more experience, players that are physically stronger and have a lot more experience in the game.”
Having struggled to score through the first half of the year, FC Edmonton was looking to bring in more offensively minded players for the fall season.
The return of striker Daryl Fordyce from FC Cincinnati and acquisition of McKendry is expected to bolster the offence.
“I like to pass the ball, I’m not a player that goes one-on-one or is going to be dribbling through the midfield too much,” McKendry said. “I like to kill teams with passing and that’s short range and long range. I’m a box-to-box (18-yard box) midfielder who likes to get forward and find positions to score goals. Then if the play breaks down I’m going to be the first one to get back and try to defend for the team.”
Despite his offensive abilities, McKendry is not expected to come in and be a saviour for FC Edmonton, which scored a league-low 11 goals over 16 games in the spring season. He is, however, expected to give the offence a boost, along with Fordyce.
I like to pass the ball, I’m not a player that goes one-onone or is going to be dribbling through the midfield.