The Province from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada • 3

THEPR0V.NC?TBBlllfftA3 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2007 B.C. IN BRIEF ft Fuels CHILLIWACK B.C. place: Crowd of 48, 172 drawn to WhitecapsGalaxy game Police probe shots fired on reserve BY DAVID CARRIGG STAFF REPORTER S- rJ fe5S toll 4 Mi mmu Ift. 1 Almost 50,000 turned up to see the David Beckham show in Vancouver last night, and a soccer match broke out. Anna Correia of Victoria had never been to a pro soccer game but came all the way over the Georgia Strait to see "gorgeous" Beckham, the $250-million Los Angeles Galaxy player and legendary former England soccer captain.

"I'm a huge Beckham fan," she said. "What's not to like? From what I've seen he seems like a really nice guy." Beckham and the Galaxy were in town to play an exhibition match against the Vancouver Whitecaps at B.C. Place Stadium. The Galaxy play in Major League Soccer, which is a tier higher than the Whitecaps' United Soccer League. The game ended with no score but was full of excitement, with lots of scoring chances and 72 minutes of Beckham.

Official attendance was 48,172. There was heavy cheering every time the Rose of England got the ball, matched only by the applause for the male streaker who pranced around the pitch for at least three minutes before being politely shoved over by a female security guard. When Beckham left the pitch he edged the crowd then sat down and had his left ankle heavily iced. Kristoph Farreil, 28, of White Rock is a ey fan but played soccer when he was young. "I'm back into it now for sure," said Farreil, who was impressed by what the Whitecaps had done with B.C.

Place. Turf had been laid over the Canadian football Held and the stadium was all blue and white, with thousands of Whitecaps towels on every seat Amanda Weins of Surrey was beaming as she and her mom Kim and younger sister Jennifer settled into their seats. Weins has been playing soccer since she was five years old and came to see how Beckham plays, and just to see Beckham. "Ivooks, he's 10 out of 10," she said. "As a player now, he's probably eight out of 10." Soccer mom Angie Thomson of Chilliwack came to the game with her 10-year-old son Tristen and dished out $120 for two jerseys.

"The Galaxy one is for Tristen and the White-caps one is for me. I thought I should even it out," she said. Tristen has played soccer since he was three years old and is especially fond of Beckham. Thomson, while a big fan of Beckham's soccer skills, was trying to downplay his role as a sex symbol. "Really it should be about the sport not the person.

I think the sex symbol thing is a little overrated she said. Beckham and his team arrived in Vancouver on Monday. During his short stay he charmed the media with humility and humour and visited sick eight-year-old Siobhan Bostock. Beckham, who is still a member of the England national team, struggled with injury in his first season with the Galaxy. I le will return to Vancouver on Dec 2, accompanying his wife Victoria, a.k.a.

Posh Spice, at the start of the Spice Girls reunion tour. ikwrlggPimg.canuyni.com Police are investigating complaints that four or five shots were fired at a vehicle on the Skwah Reserve in Chilliwack. Police said the shots came from a home on Landing Drive. "The intended targets and the occupants of this home are known to have links to organized-crime groups and drug-related activities," RCMP Const. Lea-Anne Dunlop said yesterday.

Those involved are not co-operating with police, she added. CHILLIWACK Man facing charges A 27-year-old man faces charges oi possession of stolen property, robbery, kidnapping, pointing a firearm and aggravated assault after a man was violently attacked at his home and had his truck stolen last weekend. Both the suspect and the 48-year-old victim are well-known to police. ESQUIMALT Store clerk injured A store clerk is recovering from injuries sustained when he refused to hand over money during a robbery. Police said a man about 30 years old entered the Stop Go market on Esquimalt Road on Tuesday evening and indicated he had a knife.

The clerk was assaulted and received an abrasion on his neck when he balked at handing over the money. Hie man fled on foot with a small amount of cash. Police identified a suspect using footage from tho store's security camera. A police dog was brought in and the suspect was tracked to a nearby home. I Ie faces robbery charges.

PENTICTON 3,000 pot plants found Armed with a search warrant, police yesterday uncovered a "sophisticated underground bunker-style'' marijuana grow-op at a remote spot near Twin Lakes, about 20 kilometres southwest of Pcnticton. An estimated 3.000 pot plants were found in the bunker. A 28-year-old man was arrested. MEW WESTMINSTER Pickton trial moved Closing arguments in the trial ol Robert "Willie" Pickton, set to start Tuesday, have been rescheduled and will now start Nov. 19 in B.C Supreme Court justice James Williams has estimated those arguments will take three days, with another three days needed for his Instructions to the jury.

The Jury is expected to be begin deliberating Nov. 26 or 27. Staff Rtporttn Tristen Thomson 1 0, holds up LA. Galaxy David Beckham jersey before friendly match between Galaxy and Whitecaps at B.C. Place yesterday.

See SPORTS pages A73-75. mc ihnst thi province.