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JM: No, I think we can go down the lineup and go up against anybody. One, it goes back to consistency and discipline. And I think maybe the mindset coming in — we didn’t have the bite coming out of the gate. Coming off a third-place finish the year before, and most of the reports had us as one to watch for MLS Cup, all those sorts of things, I don’t think we got ahead of ourselves but I think we came into camp thinking we had a pretty good run last year and we were progressing, and when we didn’t deliver we got ourselves in a hole we couldn’t get out of.

MW: So what have you learned from this year?

JM: Every part of our business needs to be constantly looked at. We’re trying to set a culture — this is (majority owner) Greg Kerfoot and myself — where we have a high bar, high expectations, a realistic operating plan, and when things are not going to plan, we have the ability to really peel it back and be tough. So we look across our organization and every element is being looked at. How do we improve it? How did we get ourselves in this situation?

We still have two games to go (heading into Sunday) and we’re going to be professionals and put on a show for our fans but after that, we know what’s in front of us. We’ve identified the areas we need to focus on.

MW: How does the approach change this off-season compared to last year?

JM: There’s a number of areas but one that resonates with me is re-evaluating what a player’s commitment to the first team is for Major League Soccer. What it means to be a Whitecap, and what are those expectations coming in? From physical fitness, the mental side, lifestyle, everything.