Another weekend passes, the play-offs loom closer, but the qualification picture becomes murkier. Just when it looked as though Toronto had disappeared over the precipice and L.A. Galaxy were set to join them, all fourteen teams are back in the race with only three rounds of fixtures remaining.
Despite registering only one victory since June 14, The Reds’ 3-1 win at New York’s Giants Stadium hauls them back into unlikely contention thanks to the inconsistencies of so many contenders. Red Bulls owned the league’s best home record a fortnight ago, but two successive losses in East Rutherford seriously jeopardises their chances of progression.
After conceding five goals to Colorado Rapids last week, Red Bulls gifted Toronto the lead when defender Gabriel Cichero was woefully short with his attempted back-header to Jon Conway. Chad Barrett seized on the error to lob the stranded goalkeeper. The Toronto striker restored his side’s advantage following an equaliser by Dane Richards with a goal that owed everything to the frightening pace of Marvell Wynne. He raced clear from inside his own half before squaring for Barrett to tap into an empty net.
Wynne comes from a sporting pedigree – his father, Marvell, is a former Major League Baseball player – and he continues to improve his playing abilities to complement his obvious athletic prowess. Whether he gets the chance to show his qualities in November is another matter. Toronto face tough away trips to Dallas and San Jose Earthquakes in their remaining three games and are heavily reliant on results elsewhere falling in their favour.
Galaxy did little to aid their cause by falling 1-0 at Columbus but their Western rivals remain in distant sight with Real Salt Lake, Dallas and San Jose only collecting one point while Colorado lost to Houston Dynamo. Crew Stadium’s first sell-out crowd of the year saw David Beckham take a few corner kicks as Alejandro Moreno’s 43rd minute header split the teams.
Bruce Arena's side will enter next week’s do-or-die match at home to Colorado without Beckham, whose suspension for yellow-card accumulation will be served on the England substitutes’ bench, but since his arrival the team possesses a better record in his absence. His loss, like so many of his performances, will be inconsequential. Of far greater significance is the unavailability of Landon Donovan, the league’s top scorer, due to the US national team’s match with Cuba on October 11.
San Jose will feel aggrieved not to have taken three points after a win at Dallas was snatched away in the final minutes by a horrendous refereeing error. Francisco Lima’s right arm was raised away from his body as he attempted to repel a late Dallas attack. Referee Abiodun Okulaja had no hesitation in pointing to the spot when Eric Avila’s driven cross made contact with the Earthquakes’ midfielder. Unfortunately, the ball appeared to strike Lima on the side of his chest. Kenny Cooper stepped up to score for the 16th time this season to cancel out Ryan Johnson’s opener. The decision was as scandalous as the paltry 7,173 crowd that showed up for a game of this magnitude.
Salt Lake missed the chance to solidify their position in the West’s three automatic play-off places when they surrendered a 2-0 lead at New England Revolution. A sublime lob by Argentine midfielder Javier Morales gave RSL a first-half lead, before his 73rd minute pass was thundered home on the half-volley by Andy Williams to seemingly secure the win. Within six minutes, Steve Ralston and Taylor Twellman had struck for New England to earn a 2-2 draw as The Revs fell short in their attempts to clinch their play-off spot.
Chivas took advantage of Salt Lake’s carelessness to move four points clear in the West’s second place as they destroyed D.C. United by 3-0 at RFK Stadium, aided by the generosity of United goalkeeper Louis Crayton. After recovering from an inconsistent start to the campaign, D.C. have collapsed since lifting the US Open Cup on September 3. They have picked up one point from five league matches since then and suffered three spineless defeats in the CONCACAF Champions’ League. Visits to Houston and Columbus in their final three matches suggest a fourth season outside the play-offs in 13 years for one of the league’s powerhouses.
Houston sealed their place in the post-season and moved a step closer to earning home advantage with a 3-1 win at Colorado. Dynamo were involved in their own goal-fest in midweek, a 4-4 draw in Mexico City against U.N.A.M. Pumas in the Champions’ League, and another looked to be on the cards early on. Only 19 minutes had elapsed when Ricardo Clark gave the visitors the two-goal cushion which ultimately proved to be the final goalscoring act of the night.
Dynamo striker Brian Ching was presented with a chance to complete a hat-trick from the penalty spot early in the second half, but his effort was easily stopped by Rapids’ goalkeeper Preston Burpo. His nomination was surprising given that Dwayne De Rosario and Brad Davis, both far superior dead-ball exponents, were on the field. By contrast, Ching has missed vital kicks in recent Superliga shootouts against Pachuca and New England Revolution. On this instance his poor effort was free of reprisals on the field, although head coach Dominic Kinnear may not have been best pleased.
Rapids’ striker Conor Casey received a harsh red card two minutes after Ching’s miss following an aerial collision with Dynamo defender Eddie Robinson. The numerical advantage allowed Kinnear’s men to comfortably control the closing stages. Terry Cooke had an opportunity to reduce the deficit in injury-time, but he hooked his disappointing effort from the penalty spot wide of Pat Onstad’s post.
The drama continues to build. Will Week 29 finally see some of the contestants waving goodbye to the MLS Play-Off House?
Despite registering only one victory since June 14, The Reds’ 3-1 win at New York’s Giants Stadium hauls them back into unlikely contention thanks to the inconsistencies of so many contenders. Red Bulls owned the league’s best home record a fortnight ago, but two successive losses in East Rutherford seriously jeopardises their chances of progression.
After conceding five goals to Colorado Rapids last week, Red Bulls gifted Toronto the lead when defender Gabriel Cichero was woefully short with his attempted back-header to Jon Conway. Chad Barrett seized on the error to lob the stranded goalkeeper. The Toronto striker restored his side’s advantage following an equaliser by Dane Richards with a goal that owed everything to the frightening pace of Marvell Wynne. He raced clear from inside his own half before squaring for Barrett to tap into an empty net.
Wynne comes from a sporting pedigree – his father, Marvell, is a former Major League Baseball player – and he continues to improve his playing abilities to complement his obvious athletic prowess. Whether he gets the chance to show his qualities in November is another matter. Toronto face tough away trips to Dallas and San Jose Earthquakes in their remaining three games and are heavily reliant on results elsewhere falling in their favour.
Galaxy did little to aid their cause by falling 1-0 at Columbus but their Western rivals remain in distant sight with Real Salt Lake, Dallas and San Jose only collecting one point while Colorado lost to Houston Dynamo. Crew Stadium’s first sell-out crowd of the year saw David Beckham take a few corner kicks as Alejandro Moreno’s 43rd minute header split the teams.
Bruce Arena's side will enter next week’s do-or-die match at home to Colorado without Beckham, whose suspension for yellow-card accumulation will be served on the England substitutes’ bench, but since his arrival the team possesses a better record in his absence. His loss, like so many of his performances, will be inconsequential. Of far greater significance is the unavailability of Landon Donovan, the league’s top scorer, due to the US national team’s match with Cuba on October 11.
San Jose will feel aggrieved not to have taken three points after a win at Dallas was snatched away in the final minutes by a horrendous refereeing error. Francisco Lima’s right arm was raised away from his body as he attempted to repel a late Dallas attack. Referee Abiodun Okulaja had no hesitation in pointing to the spot when Eric Avila’s driven cross made contact with the Earthquakes’ midfielder. Unfortunately, the ball appeared to strike Lima on the side of his chest. Kenny Cooper stepped up to score for the 16th time this season to cancel out Ryan Johnson’s opener. The decision was as scandalous as the paltry 7,173 crowd that showed up for a game of this magnitude.
Salt Lake missed the chance to solidify their position in the West’s three automatic play-off places when they surrendered a 2-0 lead at New England Revolution. A sublime lob by Argentine midfielder Javier Morales gave RSL a first-half lead, before his 73rd minute pass was thundered home on the half-volley by Andy Williams to seemingly secure the win. Within six minutes, Steve Ralston and Taylor Twellman had struck for New England to earn a 2-2 draw as The Revs fell short in their attempts to clinch their play-off spot.
Chivas took advantage of Salt Lake’s carelessness to move four points clear in the West’s second place as they destroyed D.C. United by 3-0 at RFK Stadium, aided by the generosity of United goalkeeper Louis Crayton. After recovering from an inconsistent start to the campaign, D.C. have collapsed since lifting the US Open Cup on September 3. They have picked up one point from five league matches since then and suffered three spineless defeats in the CONCACAF Champions’ League. Visits to Houston and Columbus in their final three matches suggest a fourth season outside the play-offs in 13 years for one of the league’s powerhouses.
Houston sealed their place in the post-season and moved a step closer to earning home advantage with a 3-1 win at Colorado. Dynamo were involved in their own goal-fest in midweek, a 4-4 draw in Mexico City against U.N.A.M. Pumas in the Champions’ League, and another looked to be on the cards early on. Only 19 minutes had elapsed when Ricardo Clark gave the visitors the two-goal cushion which ultimately proved to be the final goalscoring act of the night.
Dynamo striker Brian Ching was presented with a chance to complete a hat-trick from the penalty spot early in the second half, but his effort was easily stopped by Rapids’ goalkeeper Preston Burpo. His nomination was surprising given that Dwayne De Rosario and Brad Davis, both far superior dead-ball exponents, were on the field. By contrast, Ching has missed vital kicks in recent Superliga shootouts against Pachuca and New England Revolution. On this instance his poor effort was free of reprisals on the field, although head coach Dominic Kinnear may not have been best pleased.
Rapids’ striker Conor Casey received a harsh red card two minutes after Ching’s miss following an aerial collision with Dynamo defender Eddie Robinson. The numerical advantage allowed Kinnear’s men to comfortably control the closing stages. Terry Cooke had an opportunity to reduce the deficit in injury-time, but he hooked his disappointing effort from the penalty spot wide of Pat Onstad’s post.
The drama continues to build. Will Week 29 finally see some of the contestants waving goodbye to the MLS Play-Off House?
Week 28 Results
Dallas 1 San Jose 1
D.C. United 0 Chivas 3
Columbus 1 L.A. Galaxy 0
New England 2 Salt Lake 2
New York 1 Toronto 3
Colorado 1 Houston 3
Kansas City 1 Chicago 1 (Harrington equaliser ends Fire's slim Supporters' Shield hopes)
Standings
Eastern Conference
1) Columbus 53 points (played 27)
2) New England 43 (27)
3) Chicago 42 (27)
4) *New York 35 (27)
5) Kansas City 33 (27)
6) D.C. United 33 (27)
7) Toronto 31 (27)
Western Conference
1) Houston 43 (26)
2) Chivas 39 (27)
3) Salt Lake 35 (27)
4) *Colorado 34 (27)
5) Dallas 34 (27)
6) San Jose 30 (26)
7) L.A. Galaxy 29 (27)
*Lines show teams occupying play-off positions.
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