only this time about 200 miles further south -- as the New England Revolution travel to Robertson Stadium to take on Houston Dynamo. The Revolution have continued the form that led them to a third MLS title game in five seasons a year ago, riding a six-game unbeaten streak and carrying the best overall record in the league. Dynamo have struggled this season after lifting the Alan I. Rothenberg Trophy last November, shut out for the fourth time in six games this season in a 1-0 loss to expansion Toronto FC on Wednesday.
REFEREE: Ricardo Salazar. SAR (bench): Rob Fereday; JAR (opposite): David Bragg; 4th: Colin Tait
MLS Career: 56 games; FC/gm: 31.9; Y/gm: 3.6; R: 13; pens: 21
Games involving Dynamo: P2 W1 L1 T0; FC/gm: 39.5; Y/gm: 3.5; R: 0; pens: 0
Games involving Revolution: P10 W4 L5 T1; FC/gm: 32.9; Y/gm: 3.7; R: 1; pens: 5
INJURY REPORT: HOUSTON DYNAMO - OUT: FW Paul Dalglish (R ankle sprain) ... NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION - QUESTIONABLE: MF Daniel Hernandez (R groin strain); PROBABLE: GK Matt Reis (R knee contusion), MF Khano Smith (R ankle sprain)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: HOU: Eddie Robinson
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: NE: Jeff Larentowicz
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (2 meetings): Dynamo 0 wins, 2 goals ... Revolution 0 wins, 2 goals ... Draws 2
AT HOUSTON (1 meeting): Dynamo 0 wins, 1 goal ... Revolution 0 wins, 1 goal ... Draws 1
• This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season, the only one set for Robertson Stadium. The lone league meeting between the two clubs at Gillette Stadium is set for July 22.
LAST YEAR (MLS):
5/27: NE 1, HOU 1 (Ralston 55 - Cochrane 85)
7/22: HOU 1, NE 1 (Holden 63 - own goal 60)
• A year ago in league play, there was nothing between the teams, playing to a pair of 1-1 draws at each stadium.
• Then, of course, the teams met in the incredible MLS Cup Final at Pizza Hut Park - where they again played to a draw over 120 minutes, Taylor Twellman's goal in the 113rd minute answered just 71 seconds later by a Brian Ching header. Dynamo then won the penalty kick shootout 4-3 to cap a dream first season in Texas.
• Coaches record: Dominic Kinnear vs. NE: P7 W3 L0 D4 ... Steve Nicol v HOU: P2 W0 L0 D2
HOUSTON DYNAMO
Houston Dynamo returned to action after an 11-day layoff and suffered a frustrating 1-0 defeat to Toronto FC on Wednesday night at BMO Field. Dynamo are still tied for third place in the Western Conference with seven points from six matches, level with Chivas USA, heading into the week three points behind FC Dallas and four adrift of the Colorado Rapids.
LAST MATCH
• Just four days earlier Toronto FC had scored the first goal - and won the first game - in club history, while Dynamo were returning to action for the first time in 11 days after finally breaking out of an offensive slump with a 3-1 win against Colorado.
• But on a cold, rainy night at Exhibition Place, Toronto scored the game's only goal in the 25th minute. Ronnie O'Brien swung in a free kick from the left flank, and Andy Welsh got his head in ahead of the massed pack to nod home his first MLS goal.
• The TFC defense made that lone strike stand up for the first clean sheet in club history. Greg Sutton made four saves in goal for Toronto - and was helped in the 12th minute when a corner kick deflected past him, but O'Brien was perfectly positioned to hoof it away off the line.
• Dynamo 'keeper Pat Onstad also made four saves, keeping the Orange close in the 81st minute when Edson Buddle came racing in all alone on goal, but standing up to block the angled shot with his chest.
• Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear made one change to the team that defeated the Rapids on May 5. With Paul Dalglish out with an ankle injury, Joseph Ngwenya made his Houston debut after being acquired from the Columbus Crew, starting in attack alongside Brian Ching.
• Here's Kinnear's team (4-3-1-2): Pat Onstad - Richard Mulrooney, Ryan Cochrane, Eddie Robinson, Wade Barrett - Brian Mullan, Ricardo Clark, Brad Davis - Dwayne De Rosario - Joseph Ngwenya (Stuart Holden 68), Brian Ching. Substitutes Not Used: Corey Ashe, Kelly Gray, Patrick Ianni, Craig Waibel, Zach Wells, Chris Wondolowski
• "Obviously you lose and it's disappointing, but I thought we were very good tonight, Kinnear said. "Especially the first 15 minutes we were all over them, and after that they took advantage of the spell they had, and after that I thought we carried the game. We were good tonight, we just couldn't score."
TEAM NEWS
• Dynamo haven't allowed more than one goal in any game yet this season, yet they've won just twice in six outings. Three times they've lost by 1-0 scorelines.
• "It was a frustrating night on our part, you know. We created a number of opportunities and we didn't put them away," Brian Ching said. "They created one more opportunity that first half and they put it away and that was the difference in the game. I think they came out to kick and grab and frustrate us, that's what they needed to do to win, and that's what they did."
• The loss was particularly frustrating for De Rosario, a native of the Toronto suburb of Scarborough. De Rosario hoped to score his third goal of the season in front of his hometown crowd, but was held to three shots, none on goal, after receiving a big ovation during pre-match introductions.
• "I thought we did well. We created a lot of good chances, we played well, we moved the ball well. When you don't finish and another team finishes, you get buried quick," he said.
• Dynamo ended up level with Toronto in actual shots on goal, each with five. Toronto's total was boosted by the fact that they had a pair of breakaway opportunities in the second half. With the score 1-0, Houston was pushing numbers forward looking for the tying goal.
• "We pushed our outside backs forward a bit more than I liked, but we're chasing the game," goalkeeper Pat Onstad said. "We've got to find some way to break them down and tie it up. When you do that you take risks at the back, but we didn't pay for it."
• Said Kinnear: "When you're behind you've got to go. If it ends up 2-0 or 3-0, what's the difference, you know? We tried to put more guys forward, put guys in the box, but that final pass was missing tonight."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION
The New England Revolution ran their undefeated streak to six games in winning their second game on the trot, answering a late equalizer with an equally dramatic game-winner in a 3-2 victory against the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday night at The Home Depot Center. The Revolution lead the Eastern Conference with 14 points from seven games, two ahead of the Kansas City Wizards and hold the best overall record in MLS.
LAST MATCH
• The Revolution headed to southern California riding a five-game unbeaten streak, but had beaten the Galaxy on their home ground just twice in MLS history. The home side were playing just the fourth league game of the season, after a second layoff of nearly two weeks.
• But the Galaxy got the start they were looking for. Peter Vagenas slotted an inch-perfect through ball between the Revolution defense, and Kyle Martino raced onto it in the area before curling a wonderful shot around Matt Reis and inside the far post to give L.A. a 14th-minute lead.
• Yet the Revolution struck twice within the first seven minutes of the second half to take the lead. First, just two minutes after the break, a free kick was flighted into the area from the left and Steve Ralston flicked it on to the back post. With his back to goal, rookie Adam Cristman swung around and sliced a side volley home inside the far side-netting for his first MLS goal.
• For Ralston, on a night he was making his 318th league appearance, taking over the all-time lead from Chris Henderson, it was his league-leading sixth assist, giving him 113 for his career. That is just one behind Carlos Valderrama for the all-time MLS lead.
• Then in the 52nd minute, Taylor Twellman nosed the visitors in front. Jay Heaps lofted in a high ball from deep on the right, and Twellman beat his defender to powerfully head toward goal, only to see it crash off the face of the bar. But he was quickest to the rebound, easily heading into the empty net over the fallen Joe Cannon.
• The Galaxy seemed to have fought back for the equalizer in the 84th minute, when Tyrone Marshall got to a corner at the near post and headed it home, just after Michael Parkhurst had cleared a shot off the line.
• But from the ensuing kickoff, the Revolution hit for the game-winner. Sharlie Joseph found Pat Noonan, and his low pass into the goalmouth was knocked home by Twellman, sliding in front of his marker and Cannon. It was the league-leading sixth goal on the season for Twellman and extended the Revolution's unbeaten run to their last six league games against the Galaxy.
• Revolution boss Steve Nicol made one change to the team that defeated the Chicago Fire 3-1 at Gillette Stadium the weekend before. With Shalrie Joseph back from his one-match suspension, Michael Parkhurst returned to the center of the back three and Avery John returned to the substitutes' bench as James Riley moved to the left.
• Here's Nicol's team (3-4-1-2): Matt Reis - Jay Heaps, Michael Parkhurst, James Riley - Steve Ralston, Jeff Larentowicz, Shalrie Joseph, Khano Smith - Andy Dorman - Adam Cristman (Pat Noonan 72), Taylor Twellman. Substitutes Not Used: Bryan Byrne, Joe Franchino, Avery John, Marshall Leonard, Wells Thompson, Doug Warren
• "I think that it was an excellent game to watch if you were a neutral. In the second half we were much better with the ball. Our movement was better and we created some chances and took them," Nicol said. "It was a great tying goal but our guys showed what we're made of: good passes, good ball into the box and a magical finish by Taylor. It's a real simple game when it's done well."
TEAM NEWS
• Nicol said his halftime team talk was a simple one: Make better passes. "It really came down to us looking after the ball," he said. "We were giving each other bad passes, making it hard to get the ball in front of the net, or just giving the ball up. Once we stopped that we became dangerous on the break so it changed the rhythm and it all went from there."
• Led by Andy Dorman, Shalrie Joseph and Ralston, the Revolution midfield took charge."We had one up in the midfield," Ralston said. "We had five to their four so we were just trying to find the open guy in the middle of the field. That was really it."
• The Revolution got off to great start when Cristman hit for his first professional goal just two minutes after the restart.
• "I was pretty excited, and kind of relieved as well. I've missed a few chances in the last couple of games that I thought I should have put away, so I was starting to get a little frustrated," he said. "It's a little release, now -- some of the pressure that I've been putting on myself is off. I think I will be able to be more productive."
• Twellman scored the game-winning goal exactly 57 seconds after Marshall headed home a corner kick for the equalizer. It was already his second two-goal game of the season and his sixth goal in six games.
• "Two words: Pat Noonan," Twellman said of his strike partner the last four seasons, who came on in the 72nd minute. "He did his job. Obviously he's one of the few forwards in the league that given the right spot he can put a dime in."
• In addition to Cristman's noteworthy achievement, Steve Ralston became the MLS ironman. Of his 318 league appearances, he has started 316 of those contests and racked up 28,178 minutes as of Sunday; both are also league records.
• "It's a great personal accomplishment," Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis said. "It shows his longevity and ability. A lot of players in this league have gone the way of the dodo." Added Nicol: "For an appearance record, it shows what he is made of. There are times when he should have sat on his backside, but he's played through those injuries."
• In addition, the MLS assist record will almost certainly fall very soon after Ralston earned the helper on Adam Cristman's goal. Ralston and current record holder Carlos Valderrama spent parts of five seasons together with the now-defunct Mutiny in Tampa Bay.
• "You can see what he's learned from Carlos," Reis said. "[Ralston]'s a great professional." But, said Ralston, "[The assists record] is just a reflection of longevity. I've played with some great forwards, guys who could score. Look at Preki, Valderrama, and Etcheverry. It took me six years longer to get there."
• After dropping the first game of the season by 1-0 to Chicago, the Revolution have answered with goals in six consecutive matches and have scored two or more goals in four of the games. "So far, so good," Nicol said. "We're obviously delighted with the points we've got but we want some more."
