A red card, a late equalizer, and a flurry of missed chances – Pacific FC and Vancouver FC shared the points for the first time in Salish Sea Derby history, drawing 1-1 on Saturday at Willoughby Community Park.
This was the second of three games on the Tridents' road swing, after dropping their first match on April 19 in a 3-1 loss to the Halifax Wanderers.
It was a chance for Pacific to snap a two-game slide, having fallen to Forge at home following their season-opening victory over Valour.
Vancouver struck first in the 18th minute.
GOAL 🦅
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) April 27, 2025
Nicolas Mezquida opens the scoring for @vanfootballclub with a great finish 🧉#CanPL | 🔴 Watch LIVE on @onesoccer pic.twitter.com/ZTGOQbTTD0
Former Pacific striker Terran Campbell intercepted a pass in midfield and quickly fed Nicolas Mezquida, who calmly slotted home his second goal in as many matches.
The Uruguayan midfielder, who completed 88 per cent of his passes, earned man of the match honours.
The remainder of the first half was scoreless, which led to a turning point early in the second half.
Facing his former club for the first time, Vancouver’s Kunle Dada-Luke was shown a red card in the 51st minute, leaving the hosts down to 10 men for the remainder of the contest.
Pacific, who had struggled to establish control in the first half, began to push forward with more urgency.
Their breakthrough came in the 70th minute, when Marco Bustos worked a set piece to perfection as he delivered a pinpoint cross to Aly Ndom, who buried a close-range header to level the match.
GOAL 🔱
— Canadian Premier League (@CPLsoccer) April 27, 2025
Aly Ndom ties things up for @Pacificfccpl with a perfect header ⚽️ All level in Langley 🔥#CanPL | 🔴 Watch LIVE on @onesoccer pic.twitter.com/Eap2ZA81bM
Ndom was named to the Canadian Premier League (CPL) Team of the Week for his performance.
Despite their man advantage and a flurry of late chances, the visitors couldn’t find a winner.
Pacific finished with 13 total shots, seven of which were on target. Vancouver goalkeeper Callum Irving came up big with six saves, preserving the draw for the home side.
Pacific head coach James Merriman expressed frustration with his team’s performance and the disjointed rhythm of the match.
“The first half, we weren’t good enough, I thought we were poor. Then the red card changes the game, but still, in the second half we were very slow, it was stop, start, stop, start, a lot of free kicks, a lot of throws, and there was no flow, which made it very difficult," Merriman said. "Yes, we went up a player, and we can be better in that situation, but it felt like it was stopping every minute, so it made it hard to establish flow and rhythm in the game.”
Saturday marked Pacific’s third straight match without a win. Through four games this season, they’ve scored just four times, tied for the fourth fewest in the CPL.
The Tridents will wrap up their road trip on Saturday with a visit to first-place Atletico Ottawa at TD Place. Kickoff is set for 10 a.m.
They’ll then return home to host Vancouver on Tuesday, May 6, with a spot in the Canadian Championship quarter-finals on the line.
