FRISCO, Texas – The season-opening battle for the Brimstone Cup saw both Chicago and FC Dallas get on the board early and, after a straight red card to new center back Brek Shea in the 55th, the rivalry game played to a 1-1 draw at Pizza Hut Park.
Offseason acquisition Diego Cháves of Uruguay gave Chicago the lead, but Dallas veteran Milton Rodriguez was able to provide the answer, much to the relief of the sold-out stadium. Saturday marked the first time FCD had sold out their home opener at Pizza Hut Park.
After some early FC Dallas possession and a disallowed goal from Zach Loyd in the 10th minute, Chicago found the back of the net first. Cháves tapped a Kevin Hartman rebound in the back of the net for the lead in the 17th minute.
The play started with Guatemalan international Marco Pappa’s free kick, which bounced around in the FC Dallas 18-yard box. Fire defender Corey Gibbs pounced and shot at Hartman, forcing a one-handed parry. Awaiting the rebound in the six-yard box was Cháves, who finished it off for the early lead.
It didn’t last a minute. Loyd again attacked down the left side, this time threading a low cross to RodrÃguez, who back-heeled the pass past Johnson for a spectacular equalizer.
Chicago gained back some of the possession lost early on but the teams went into the locker room at halftime tied.
Upon the restart, the second half took a drastic turn 10 minutes in.
A loose touch found center back Brek Shea alone with the Fire’s other new Uruguayan striker, Gastón Puerari. The two became entangled and Puerari went to the ground. Referee Terry Vaughn did not hesitate and showed the 21-year-old Shea a straight red card, forcing FC Dallas to 10 men for the remaining 35 minutes.
Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman then made several defensive substitutions including Ugo Ihemelu for Eric Avila and Andrew Jacobson for Eric Alexander.
After Shea’s red card, the flow of the game became more physical as each team exchanged a series of yellow cards. Seven total cards were issued in the game.
Chicago had the remaining scoring opportunities as the game neared full time. Puerari dribbled in for a one on one with Hartman, but the goalkeeper won the battle, saving the low shot, and preserved the tie game.
Hartman was then forced to make late saves on shots from captain Logan Pause and Pappa, parrying neatly over the net.
The Brimstone Cup rivals will meet again to decide the 2011 series on Oct. 12 at Toyota Park.
Scoring Summary:
CHI -- Diego Chaves 1 (unassisted) 17
DAL -- Milton Rodriguez 1 (Zach Loyd 1) 19
Chicago Fire -- Sean Johnson, Bratislav Ristic (Patrick Nyarko 42), Jalil Anibaba, Josip Mikulic, Cory Gibbs, Logan Pause, Marco Pappa, Gonzalo Segares, Michael Videira (Baggio Husidic 62), Gaston Puerari, Diego Chaves (Orr Barouch 75).
Substitutes Not Used: Dan Paladini, Davis Paul, Dasan Robinson, Jon Conway.
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Diego Chaves 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 6 (6 tied with 1); FOULS: 18 (Marco Pappa 4); OFFSIDES: 1 (Orr Barouch 1); CORNER KICKS: 5 (Gaston Puerari 3); SAVES: 2 (Sean Johnson 2)
FC Dallas -- Kevin Hartman, Jackson Goncalves, George John, Brek Shea, Zach Loyd, Marvin Chavez, Eric Alexander (Andrew Jacobson 72), Daniel Hernandez, Eric Avila (Ugo Ihemelu 62), David Ferreira, Milton Rodriguez (Ruben Luna 65).
Substitutes Not Used: Bruno Guarda, Ricardo Villar, Bobby Warshaw, Chris Seitz.
TOTAL SHOTS: 16 (David Ferreira 4); SHOTS ON GOAL: 3 (3 tied with 1); FOULS: 11 (Daniel Hernandez 2); OFFSIDES: 1 (Milton Rodriguez 1); CORNER KICKS: 5 (David Ferreira 5); SAVES: 5 (Kevin Hartman 5)
Misconduct Summary:
CHI -- Cory Gibbs (caution; Tactical Foul) 30
DAL -- Jackson Goncalves (caution; Unsporting Behavior) 35
DAL -- Daniel Hernandez (caution; Reckless Tackle) 36
DAL -- Brek Shea (ejection; Denied Goal Scoring Opportunity (Foul)) 55
CHI -- Michael Videira (caution; Unsporting Behavior) 59
CHI -- Josip Mikulic (caution; Unsporting Behavior) 71
CHI -- Gonzalo Segares (caution; Reckless Tackle) 78
Referee: Terry Vaughn
Referee's Assistants: George Gansner; Adam Wienckowski
4th Official: Elias Bazakos
Attendance: 20,145
Time of Game: 1:54
Weather: Partly Cloudy-and-81-degrees
