A season that began in February with a CONCACAF Champions' Cup tie in Bermuda ended with the New England Revolution back at Pizza Hut Park -- where they had wanted to be ever since they had trudged off that same field in anguish last November, having been defeated in MLS Cup 2005 by the Los Angeles Galaxy.
All year the mantra from within the Revs camp had been to put right what went wrong 12 months prior. And, for a fleeting moment, they did. Taylor Twellman's goal, for 71 glorious seconds, put Steve Nicol's side were exactly where they wanted to be. The Alan I. Rothenburg trophy was theirs.
At least it was until Houston Dynamo took on the role of the Galaxy and broke their hearts. Until a side that had prided itself on its mental strength all season lapsed at the worst possible moment. Until the Revs lost what had, for that tiny but magnificent period, been theirs in the unforgiving circumstances of a penalty shootout.
The raw emotion in the Revolution locker room following the defeat was tangible. This one will linger and linger.
"It's going to take quite a while," said Andy Dorman. "I am sure that in the first game of next season it won't be out of our system. It stays a part of you. Next year is a new season and, after tonight and the next week or so, you have to look forward to that."
For five players - Taylor Twellman, Joe Franchino, Steve Ralston, Jay Heaps and Daniel Hernandez - this was the third final in which they had experienced the low of losing. If the first two were bad enough, this one was even harder to take.
"We let our guard down and gave the game away," said Hernandez. "It wasn't any particular person's fault. If you want to win championships, you can't let that happen. We thought we had them. I still can't believe it. You can't win championships like that."
In each of his two seasons in MLS, Michael Parkhurst has seen his campaign ended just short of glory. Last year following the final defeat, he was asked what the aim would be for 2006. His answer was simple: "To win one more game than we did this year." So close.
"Both (years) we felt like we had the better team, going in and felt like it was ours to win or lose," said Parkhurst. "I felt we had a better performance this year than last year, which makes it harder. If it had been 0-0 and we had lost on penalties then that would have been unfortunate but someone has to win and someone has to lose. But, to get the goal and have the lead and give up the lead that quick was backbreaking."
After such a devastating finish to the season, the Revolution must turn their attention to the future. For many that were involved on Sunday, what happens next is uncertain. Last year, Nicol was able to hang on to his key men. That is almost certain not to be the case this offseason.
The Revs could lose a player as soon as Friday, when Toronto FC will fill 10 roster spots in the expansion draft. Meanwhile, rumors have linked several New England players with transfers throughout the season and the hot stove is about to warm up again.
In the aftermath of Sunday's loss, Clint Dempsey reiterated his desire to move overseas and quite probably played his last game in a Revolution uniform. Shalrie Joseph was rumored to be the subject of a bid by Celtic during the summer and could be coveted by the Scottish club, and others, once again.
Pat Noonan is out of contract while several, including Taylor Twellman, Andy Dorman and Avery John, could seek to renegotiate their own deals with MLS. Twellman's playoff form is also likely to have caught the eye of clubs in need of a goalscorer.
There may be more of a revolving door at Gillette Stadium this winter but, for the next few days, the Revolution's players are more likely to be looking back than forward. After being so close to their utopia, they must now face up to the harsh reality of a New England winter without a championship ring to keep them warm, wondering what might have been.
"It's hard. There are so many things that go into a season and so many different possibilities and you never know when you are going to have the chance to play for a championship," said goalkeeper Matt Reis. "There are no guarantees that next year we will be in or even ever again in your career. Any chance that you waste is one that hurts bad."
The Revolution have been in this position before and have bounced back. Five consecutive Eastern Conference Championship appearances and three finals is an impressive body of work, and chances are that New England will be there or thereabouts again come playoff time next season.
However, the emotional torment of what happened on Sunday, which was especially evident in the answer of Nicol to one question in particular, is set to remain. Nicol was asked whether he thought his squad could recover from what it had just been through.
"I don't see why not," was all the Revs coach could muster.
Andrew Hush is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
