PORTLAND – Coming into Sunday's match, the Portland Timbers were on a three-game skid, losing players to injuries after each match, and struggling to stay afloat in the cutthroat Western Conference.
Ninety minutes later, the Timbers had righted the ship, at least momentarily, thanks to important contributions from players all across the pitch in their 4-2 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps.
The Timbers' scoring haul came from four different players, as Diego Valeri, Jack McInerney, Dairon Asprilla and Darlington Nagbe each found the back of the net.
"Our guys looked confident this week," Timbers head coach Caleb Porter told the press after the match. "They had a little bit of extra hunger to go into this game and prove that we are better than we have shown."
The Timbers were not only feeling that hunger along the front line. The defense wanted the win just as badly, and helped Portland take a 2-0 lead in a strong first half before Kekuta Manneh gave life to Vancouver in the 49th minute.
"We gave up another fluky goal and we all thought, 'Here we go again,' when it goes 2-1," said Porter, referencing the club's recent defensive struggles. "I think that did change the game for about 10 or 15 minutes, but the nice thing is that we weathered that and we broke the pattern.
"That is key, because now moving forward we have that experience and that confidence managing games in the second half."
Rather than bunkering down as the Whitecaps looked for the tying goal, the Timbers fought their way back into the match, eventually getting the third and fourth to secure the win.
"It certainly shows the character of the team," said Liam Ridgewell. "We have had to grow into the new players coming in and they have got to learn the character of the team as well, so it was good to see that today and hopefully it is something that we can carry on into the next game."
