Monday, November 10, 2008

MLS Conference Semi-Finals - 2nd Legs

Houston Dynamo’s reign as MLS champions is over. The 2006 and 2007 winners, seeking an unprecedented third consecutive title, were eliminated from the play-offs on Sunday after a sensational performance by New York Red Bulls, or more precisely by goalkeeper Danny Cepero and winger Dane Richards.

After drawing 1-1 draw on the lamentable FieldTurf of Giants Stadium, Houston were overwhelming favourites to progress to the Western Conference Final in front of a near-capacity 30,053 crowd at Robertson Stadium. Houston had suffered only one home loss during the regular season while New York managed one solitary road victory.

Richards ignited the flames ahead of the first leg by suggesting that he would “run that left back into the ground”, a tasteless jibe directed at Dynamo captain Wade Barrett in the wake of Red Bulls’ 3-0 win over Houston in August. The Jamaican international proved to be a man of his word as two of Houston’s early season frailties returned: an ageing defence and the lack of a top-class finisher.

Dynamo started on the front foot, pinning New York deep within their half, but the visitors emerged to take a shock lead on 25 minutes. Bosnian midfielder Sinisa Ubiparipovic’s pass exposed Barrett’s poor positioning and allowed Richards to burst inside the Dynamo veteran before finishing high past goalkeeper Pat Onstad.

Richards left Barrett in his wake again on 36 minutes before trying to pick out Juan Pablo Angel. His cross struck the arm of Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark inside the penalty area and referee Baldomero Toledo had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. It was a harsh decision and one that swung the tie firmly in New York’s favour as Angel calmly doubled the visitors’ advantage.

Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear withdrew his embattled captain at half-time and switched to a 3-5-2 formation in an effort to turn the game around. Winger Corey Ashe was employed wide on the left with the dual responsibility of carrying the fight to the Red Bulls’ rearguard while remaining cognisant of Richards’ pace on the break. Nate Jaqua replaced Kei Kamara shortly afterwards as Kinnear looked for more presence in New York’s crowded penalty area, but try as they might Houston could not beat a defiant Cepero.

Jaqua came closest, rattling the crossbar with a header before Brian Ching sent the rebound wide. Time and again, Houston sent in inviting crosses that slipped agonisingly past outstretched legs. When they did create shooting opportunities, their efforts either narrowly missed the target or were repelled by an inspired Cepero.

Richards confirmed Houston’s demise with one final act of brilliance on 81 minutes. He skipped clear of Bobby Boswell and the chasing Ashe before squaring for John Wolyniec to complete an unlikely 3-0 win. Still Dynamo failed to submit, but even in the fifth and final minute of injury time Jaqua could only watch one last effort evade the target.

Houston’s exit comes as a huge boost to the remaining sides, none more so than Real Salt Lake who now host this Saturday’s Western Conference Final against New York. Similar to the first leg, Salt Lake dominated against Chivas without being able to demonstrate their superiority on the scoreboard.

Chivas adopted an aggressive approach to prevent Salt Lake from settling into their now-customary passing style. Atiba Harris was lucky to escape punishment after his late follow-through on Real defender Robbie Russell went unnoticed and the visitors were further incensed when referee Michael Kennedy awarded Chivas a penalty on 30 minutes after Javier Morales collided with Ante Razov. Sacha Kljestan dispatched the kick impeccably to tie the aggregate score.

The visitors refused to be rattled and drew level on 39 minutes. Morales atoned for his error by curling in a superb cross for a determined Dema Kovalenko to glance beyond Chivas goalkeeper Zach Thornton. Real created a handful of great opportunities to wrap up the tie after the interval: Yura Movsisyan forced a brilliant low save from Thornton before firing another effort into the side netting, while Morales raced clear before botching an attempted chip over Thornton.

Morales finally gave Salt Lake the lead on the night with 13 minutes remaining. Robbie Findley retained possession after being forced wide by Thornton and found Morales at the corner of the penalty area. The Argentine skipped past Kljestan’s poor challenge before side-footing into the far corner. Justin Braun kept Chivas’ slim hopes alive with a late goal on 83 minutes, but Salt Lake survived to record a 2-2 draw which carries them into the next round.

Supporters’ Shield winners Columbus Crew will host Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference Final this Thursday. Columbus easily overcame the challenge of Kansas City with a 2-0 win watched by 11,153 at Crew Stadium. Brad Evans raced clear to beat Wizards’ goalkeeper Kevin Hartman after only 7 minutes before Robbie Rogers sealed the win on 58 minutes. He steered Alejandro Moreno’s cross inside Hartman’s near post before the goalkeeper could get across his line to cover.

Columbus have yet to appear in an MLS Championship Final having previously lost out in each of their four Conference Final matches. If they are to reverse the trend they will have to overcome Chicago Fire who arguably enter the match in better form. Chicago finally progressed beyond New England Revolution after falling to Steve Nicol’s side in each of the last three post-seasons.

Blunted by the loss of their top three regular season scorers (Taylor Twellman, Adam Cristman and Steve Ralston), New England received better news when All-Star midfielder Shalrie Joseph passed a late fitness test. Unfortunately, his fellow midfielder Jeff Larentowicz was forced out of the game on 39 minutes after a late challenge by John Thorrington. Nicol’s deeply-depleted squad finally yielded in first half stoppage time when Chris Rolfe pounced to convert a rebound after Matt Reis could only parry Cuauhtemoc Blanco’s curling effort.

Defender William Conde all but sealed Chicago’s victory four minutes into the second half when he jumped unchallenged to convert Justin Mapp’s free kick. Another defender, Gonzalo Segares, completed the scoring on 74 minutes by converting an easy chance created by Rolfe’s trickery on the right wing. It was a fitting reward for the left back who provided a constant attacking threat throughout the match.

Conference Semi-Final Results (Second Leg)

Eastern Conference
Chicago 3 New England 0 (Agg. 3-0)
Columbus 2 Kansas City 0 (3-1)

Western Conference
Chivas 2 Salt Lake 2 (2-3)
Houston 0 New York 3 (1-4)

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