The Carolina RailHawks had only been practicing for seven days when they opened the 2013 season against Major League Soccer’s Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday.

One might say that it showed.

The Whitecaps went up by two goals in the first half and won 3-0, thanks to a hat trick from Camillo Sanvezzo.

But in a statement, Carolina coach Colin Clarke saw plenty of good things as well.

“We showed a lot of positives today even though the score didn’t reflect it,” said Clarke. “They looked like a team ready to start their season and played well. We were able to keep the ball and move it well so there are things we can improve upon only one week into camp.”

Sanvezzo’s first goal was a converted penalty kick in the ninth minute. He scored again in the 34th and 49th minutes.

It was the 5th annual Hilton Garden Inn Durham Southpoint Community Shield Match at WakeMed Soccer Park.

Former RailHawks Brad Knighton, Matt Watson and Jun Davidson all returned and saw time for the Whitecaps, who are coached by former RailHawks manager Martin Rennie.

At a press conference Friday, the RailHawks introduced a few more new signings for the upcoming year – goalkeeper Tim Murray and midfielder Kevin Burns.