Waston wants to make history for team’s fans
Captain says players want to hoist MLS Cup to reward team’s loyal fans
Whitecaps captain and centre back Kendall Waston felt compelled to reach out to fans in advance of the team’s playoff game. Here is his message:
I didn’t know what to do.
I had just scored the biggest goal of my life. The goal that helped Costa Rica qualify for the 2018 World Cup. I wanted to run. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I was just full of happiness. It was a magical moment that I will never forget. People have been saying I’m a hero in Costa Rica now. I don’t know about that. I’m just happy to have helped make history for my country.
And now, I want to help make history for Vancouver.
On Wednesday night at B.C. Place, we begin our journey in the MLS Cup playoffs.
We’re disappointed not to have finished first in the Western Conference, but that’s OK. We have bigger goals.
We want to win our first playoff game. And we want to win our first championship. Our goal is to lift a trophy. For this club. For you. For Vancouver.
This city has truly become a home for me and my family. To be honest, I fell in love the first day I arrived in 2014. It would have been hard not to. Everything is beautiful here. And the people embraced us right away. Seeing my family happy here is everything.
I’m so thankful for the opportunity I was given and I’m so honoured to wear the captain’s armband for this great club. I was surprised when Robbo (coach Carl Robinson) told me I was going to be captain in the pre-season, but I was ready to embrace the challenge.
It’s a big responsibility.
I’m a very emotional person. And I want to win so badly. Sometimes in the past, that got me in trouble on the field. But this year, I’ve tried to be better.
I don’t want to disappoint Robbo, who has put a lot of faith in me, my teammates, who work so hard every single day, or especially you — the fans. We know how much you care. And we know how much you want us to win.
We want that, too.
I promise that we will give everything we have during these playoffs to go as far as we can. We’ll fight for every ball. We will run harder than we ever have before.
And we won’t stop working until we hear the final whistle.
That’s the mentality of this team. We don’t always have a lot of possession, but we believe in each other. Everyone on the roster has been very important to our success this season. It’s not just one or two players. We are all in this together. And that includes you. Without your support, none of this would be possible. We hear you. I definitely heard you in our last game of the 2014 season, when we needed a goal to qualify for the playoffs. I remember you all stood up before our corner kick. It was so loud. I thought to myself: “We have to score.” Thankfully, we did.
We’re going to need you to be loud again during the playoffs. Together, I hope we can create another magical moment.