WINNIPEG 鈥� Rocco Romeo gave his dad an unexpected birthday gift on Tuesday.
The Valour FC defender leaped up to head in a corner kick in the 38th minute as his Canadian Premier League side battled Major League Soccer's Vancouver Whitecaps to a 2-2 draw in the first leg of the Canadian Championship quarterfinals.
鈥淚 just saw the ball come in, perfect ball. And then when the ball hit my head, I couldn鈥檛 really believe it, honestly,鈥� Romeo said.
In that moment, he thought about his grandmothers and his dad, who marked his birthday Tuesday.
鈥淎 nice birthday gift for him," Romeo said with a grin.
Few expected the performance Valour put in against the 'Caps.
Vancouver came into the matchup as three-time winners of the Canadian Championship and one of the hottest teams in MLS.
Valour entered with a 1-4-1 record in CPL play this year, but was coming off its first victory after beating York United 2-1 on Friday.
Battling the Whitecaps to a 2-2 draw showed the team's character, said head coach Phillip Dos Santos.
鈥淵ou need to be going through adversity to display character," he said. "In-between being in a really difficult zone and finding success, that鈥檚 the area where you grow. And I think we spent a lot of time in that area today.
鈥淚鈥檓 proud of the guys. I think the most important thing now is what can we take out of this match.鈥�
Valour earned its way into the quarterfinals with a 1-0 victory over semi-professional side TSS Rovers in the preliminary round. As defending champions, the Whitecaps had a bye through the tournament's first round.
Vancouver struck just six minutes into the game, when defender Sam Adekugbe blasted a shot off from the top of the penalty area. The ball pinged in off the bottom off the crossbar to give the 'Caps an early 1-0 lead.
Valour settled in over the next 30 or so minutes and came on strong toward the end of the half.
The home side nearly levelled the score in the 31st minute when Vancouver defender Bjorn Utvik played the ball back to his 'keeper and Isaac Boehmer bobbled it. Valour's Jevontae Layne was in good position to poke the ball off the Canadian's foot, but Boehmer quickly covered it up.
Romeo then capitalized off a corner in the 38th minute. Themi Antonoglou curled the ball into the six-yard box where the six-foot-five defender jumped up from the pack to head a shot in off the back post.
Valour took the lead in the 51st minute when Bruno Figueiredo launched a rocket from above the penalty area, sailing the shot in over the diving Boehmer to make it 2-1.
鈥淢ore than the fight was also what we were able to do when we did get our moments," Dos Santos said of his team's play.
"Being able to score two goals against a team that doesn鈥檛 concede much, that was the most important. If we can translate that to CPL play and find that consistency 鈥� that鈥檚 huge. That鈥檚 the most important thing for me today.鈥�
Tempers began to flare late in the game when Kris Twardek shoved Vancouver's Jeevan Badwal to the ground. The Valour midfielder received a yellow card. Assistant coach Jean-Baptiste Pierazzi was shown the red following a short interaction with officials.
The Whitecaps made a series of substitutes, including bringing on American striker Brian White in the 64th minute, to inject some offence into the visiting side.
The moves paid off in the 80th minute when Sebastian Berhalter 鈥� who came on for Belal Halbouni in the 54th minute 鈥� curled a ball in on a corner kick. His initial service didn't create any chances, but when the ball fell near the top of the area, Ali Ahmed 鈥� who replaced Jayden Nelson in the 65th minute 鈥� collected it, turned and fired a shot in past Valour 'keeper Eleias Himaras to tie the match at 2-2.
鈥淚 think I was quite happy with what we got out of the game," said Whitecaps head coach Jesper Sorensen.
"Of course I would have loved a win. I would have loved if we had played a little better with better connection. But we didn鈥檛. And that鈥檚 sometimes how it is. Also, credit for Valour for playing a very good game tactically against us.鈥�
The result stretched Vancouver's unbeaten streak to 13 games (6-0-7) across all competitions, but the club has now settled for three straight draws.
That's no cause for concern, said Ahmed.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a long season," the Canadian midfielder said. "We expect some adversity. And now it鈥檚 up to us, in the moments of adversity, how we bounce back. And I think this group is more than capable of showing who we are and bouncing back.鈥�
The second half of the two-legged aggregate quarterfinal will be held at B.C. Place on July 9.
Dos Santos knows Valour will face a hungry Whitecaps side that night.
鈥淭hey鈥檒l be waiting for us. That鈥檚 what I know, that they鈥檒l be waiting for us," the coach said. "And they鈥檙e not happy.鈥�
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 20, 2025.
The Canadian Press
