It's been a rollercoaster few days for Vancouver Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted.
Saturday saw the Dane sent off 23 minutes into the Whitecaps' match in San Jose. It was a dismissal that cost the 'Caps, as their 10 men eventually surrendered a two-goal lead, going down to a 3-2 defeat.
Fast-forward three days, and Ousted was the Whitecaps’ man of the match in their 2-0 loss to Mexican giants Tigres UANL in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League semifinal on Tuesday night.
Ousted produced six saves, keeping Tigres at bay for 66 minutes before two late defensive lapses gave the Liga MX side a two-goal lead heading into next month's second leg at BC Place.
'Caps coach Carl Robinson hailed the heroics of not just his goalkeeper, but his entire team.
"We know [Ousted] can do that," Robinson told MLSsoccer.com after the match. "We want David to get back to his consistent best and doing the best he does week in and week out. Unfortunately at the weekend it didn't go his way and he rebounded back very well.
"He put in a very strong performance, as did all the players. They gave their all. I asked them to not leave anything on the pitch and leave no regrets and they certainly done that. [Tigres] were the better team on the night. We've got a second leg, and we're still very much in the tie if we can get that first goal."
A Kendall Waston own goal set Tigres on their way midway through the second half. Eduardo Vargas doubled the lead three minutes from time, giving Vancouver a major mountain to climb in three weeks’ time, but certainly not an insurmountable one.
Both goals came from the Whitecaps’ inability to clear their lines and not tracking back well enough. It was that aspect that particularly frustrated Robinson.
"The game panned out as I thought it would in relation to the type of game it was," he said. "We knew they'd have lots of possession and try and put us under pressure in certain ways. It was disappointing that the goals came from two little details that we didn't get right."
Waston's own goal opened the door for Tigres to press for a second, but the Costa Rican center back put in a solid showing aside from that unfortunate moment, with a number of key challenges, earning the praise of his head coach.
"He's been excellent all season," Robinson said of Waston. "The performances he's put on have been very, very strong and today was no different. He picked up an early yellow card, but he handled the game very well. He put on a monster performance."
Waston captained Vancouver again on the night, and having the armband on him certainly seems to have added a calming influence to the Costa Rican's game. Robinson feels he's thriving with the responsibility that goes with it and will be back to his best after an up-and-down 2015.
"I think it does [calm him down] and that's the purpose of it as well," Robinson said. "It's made him concentrate on being a leader. We know he's a leader with the way he plays. We just need to cut out the little bits and pieces he got himself involved in too much last year. The nonsense as I call it.
"As the captain you don't do that. I don't want you to do that. So the added responsibility hopefully will continue to show his good form."
