As is routine for every match, we have our regular Guess the Starting XI and Final Score contest. Let’s see how good you are at getting into the manager’s head and predicting how the game will turn out. In addition, we will have monthly, fun, bonus prediction categories, such as yellow cards, substitutions, goal scorers, etc.

How Scoring is Determined

• Predictions will be ‘valid’ if posted HERE half-an-hour prior to the lineup being officially announced, which means 1.5 hours before kickoff.
• You receive 1 point for every player you correctly guess to be in the Starting XI. Receive 1 bonus point for correctly predicting 10 starters. Receive 3 bonus points for correctly predicting 11 starters.
• You get 5 points for correctly guessing Win/Lose/Draw.
• You receive 1 point for correctly guessing each team’s final score. Receive 1 bonus point for correctly guessing both teams final score (for a total of 3).
• That means, if you correctly predict the Starting XI, Final Score, and Winner, you can earn 22 points!
• After each match, I will tally the scores and update the standings, which will be posted with the following match’s prediction article. I will typically post three sets of standings. First, the results from the previous match. Second, the monthly standings. Third, the first/second half standings (with your worst two match predictions removed).

Match Review (Toronto FC) and Preview (Montreal Impact)

It may have been a new night, but the result was the same - Vancouver Whitecaps looking limp and unable to do anything useful. Despite what we have come to know as the current Whitecaps, some optimism still abound in our predictions. Maybe it is what AmandaC said “I feel like watching the Caps is like being in a bad relationship. You hang in there hoping that things will change back to being like the good old days.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.

We had a tie at the top of the match results between edmondk and GreyHouseEffect. Both ended the match with 17 points, thanks to correctly predicting no goal. GreyHouseEffect did the classic “I predict Caps score for my ‘final score’ prediction, but predict no goal for my ‘first goal’ prediction.” Smart! At the end of the day though, tecate might have the last laugh as they finished 3rd with 16 points, with all 16 counting towards their year-end total (bonus points only count to monthly totals).

Speaking of the Overall Standings, Westsider13 holds a four-point lead over the trio of AmandaC, Isabelt, and Mykvechkin. Of course, with only four matches played you can’t really read much into this. Also worth noting that these standings include the total scores for each match. I will begin calculating the overall scores with the lowest two predictions removed in the coming weeks. I am waiting until we have a few more matches.

One last note, after this match I will include a ‘Canadian Championship’ standings for the matches between TFC, Montreal, and Vancouver. With only two matches so far I felt it was a bit premature to be posting that one. BTW, that one will include the bonus points.

I contemplated changing the bonus category for this one, but I figured we should wait until Vancouver returns home. So, for the two Montreal matches we will keep with the interval of the first goal. Caps have yet to score since the return. Will they break that streak against Montreal? Worth noting that outside of a ten-minute stretch against Chicago Fire, the Caps have not scored in five matches, losing 3-0 to Seattle, 0-0 with Sporting KC, and 3-0 and 1-0 to Toronto FC. Yikes! Hard to predict wins with those types of numbers. Of course, that just means they are going to blow Montreal out right....Sorry, I predicted that for the last match. I am not being caught again!

Time to get your lineup and score predictions in, along with the bonus first Caps goal scoring interval: 0-<15, 15-<30, 30-45+, 45-<60, 60-<75, 75-90+

Good luck!