Photo: Paul Rudderow

Conor Casey isn’t washed up. He just needed a little rinse.

Two goals against a woeful Chivas USA side gave Union faithful a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, in Casey there was a striker on the roster that could score some goals. Doing it against one of the rising star squads of the Western Conference, the Vancouver Whitecaps, in a game where everything looked to be going wrong again, confirmed it: Conor Casey is back.

Maybe he just loves the summer time. After spending most of his career in Colorado, perhaps a little sun and heat are what is needed to get Big Country’s old joints loose. Last year, after an injury delayed the beginning of his season, Casey scored seven goals in ten games through June, July, and August. Given Jack McInerney’s absence with the national team and subsequent slump, those goals were vital.

This season, the Union’s straits are far more dire, and the team is crying out for someone—anyone—to score some freaking goals. With four goals in two games, Casey is finally doing that.

Now, of course, there is a break for the World Cup, where cynics might say that momentum dies, while optimists might say teams get a fresh start. Regardless, the Union will have to hope that Casey can maintain his scoring touch once league games resume in a few weeks’ time.

But that’s for another day. Today, Casey contributed mightily on a day when the Union dearly needed him to. That’s why he’s PSP’s Player of the Week.

Honorable mentions: Cristian Maidana and Sebastien Le Toux. Maidana made history against Vancouver, becoming the first Union player to record three assists in one game. As if it wasn’t clear already — he had a goal and an assist in the win over Chivas USA the week before — the man has talent. It’s up to the Union to keep using it appropriately. Le Toux gets the nod here simply for putting a smile on Vincent Nogueira’s face. Le Toux actually made the run that Nogueira had been wishing and hoping one of his teammates would make for weeks, and the result was a goal. It’d be nice to see more of this French connection after the World Cup.