WASHINGTON - Midweek game. Weekend game. Rinse, lather and repeat for four weeks. It's the type of fixture backlog that makes coaches cringe and forces them to make difficult decisions about when to rotate the squad.
"It's physically impossible [to play all of those games]," New England Revolution head coach Steve Nicol said.
That's why Nicol sent out most of his squad players to defend the U.S. Open Cup in the semifinals and left most of his first-team players at home.
That's how the Revs' title defense ended two matches short of a repeat after a 3-1 loss to D.C. United at RFK Stadium.
"Something has to give, but these guys have put the work in and we're disappointed because we didn't get to the finals," Revs midfielder Shalrie Joseph said. "It's a lot of games in a lot of days, but that's why you play soccer. We have to get up and be better the next time."
Joseph was the fulcrum of the reserve-laden side. Unable to match United's quality after Tom Soehn decided to play his first team, the Revs were content to sit back and watch United play around them.
"We tried to keep numbers behind the ball," Joseph said. "We gave them possession. They had a lot of possession in our attacking third, but we tried to close the gaps. They did a good job of keeping the ball and moving the ball. They interchange pretty well."
It worked for most of the first half. An early Luciano Emilio goal made United look like run away winners, but the Revs managed to grab a goal back before halftime when Joe Germanese poked home a rebound after Gonzalo Peralta failed to clear.
"I'd like to think the original shot, had the guy not stuck his foot out like that, it was going in, but fortunately, it came right back to me," Germanese said. "I was able to collect myself, I saw the goalie coming out and slid it right underneath him. It was a bit of a fortunate bounce, I guess, but at the time, that's what we needed."
New England could have also used another goal before the break. Khano Smith's shot skidded just wide of the far post after Adam Cristman played him in on a diagonal run.
"They were better at keeping the ball than us, so we were hitting them on the break and surprising them," Smith said. "That one Adam played me, I almost scored with my right. If we had scored that, it would have been a different game. They came out ready to go in the second half."
Santino Quaranta scored shortly after the break to give United a lead it wouldn't relinquish. The Revs struggled to create any further chances and Wells Thompson's 71st-minute ejection after a tackle on Jaime Moreno brought out a second yellow meant a repeat wasn't in the cards.
Emilio's second in the 81st minute just ensured the Revs would go away from the game wishing that better individual performances would have allowed them the chance to play the USL1 Charleston Battery in the final.
"Our first team or our second team, we could win that game," Cristman said. "We didn't have the performances we needed. They are capable players who could have played better, including myself."
But with games coming quickly, there isn't much time to rest and reflect on the disappointment.
"We lost, but we still have a long season ahead," Joseph said. "We have to look forward to the next game and the next cup and move on."
Kyle McCarthy is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
