LEADING contender for Major League Soccer (MLS) Rookie of the Year, Jamaican Darren Mattocks, scored his seventh goal in 13 matches Friday night as Real Salt Lake clipped his team, Vancouver Whitecaps, 2-1, at the Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.

Mattocks, 21, scored the lone goal for the Whitecaps in the 52nd minute when he right-footed a Camilo Sanvezzo pass. The Brazilian floated the ball over the Salt Lake defence to a speeding Mattocks, who beat goalkeeper Nick Rimando to the ball after easing past him and slotted into the empty net.

Alvaro Saborío converted a penalty in the 34th minute after Jay DeMerit handled the ball and he sealed the win in the 58th from a header for his 13th goal of the season to keep Real Salt Lake in second place of the Western Conference with 42 points, while the Whitecaps remained stuck on third place with 34.

Mattocks has so far logged 865 minutes this season, taking 30 shots, of which 14 were on goal. The speedy six-footer is averaging a goal every 124 minutes.

The Whitecaps will host Real Salt Lake in their next match on August 11 at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Kavin Bryan, meanwhile, netted in the 58th minute for Hai Phong to beat Thanh Hoa, 2-0, in the Vietnam Super League.

A Harbour View player, the 28-year-old Bryan scored his second goal of the season from 17 matches, 11 of which saw him in the starting line-up.