Playing their third match in eight days, D.C. United fought off the fatigue to ride out a 1-0 victory over the New England Revolution on Saturday night thanks to a 14th-minute Jaime Moreno tally.
With the club celebrating Armed Forces Appreciation Day at RFK Stadium, the Black-and-Red's disciplined, workmanlike effort was altogether fitting and it drew raucous cheers from their loyal supporters -- and high praise from their coach.
"We got nine points in a week, in very difficult weather conditions," said head coach Peter Nowak, in reference to the early-summer heat and humidity. "I'm very proud of this team. They did everything I asked for and they did everything right. It's easy to win 3-, 4-, 5-0 and it's very difficult to win 1-0, and to keep playing and carry the situation."
Moreno notched his seventh goal of the season after Christian Gomez's through ball gave him a one-on-one opportunity with New England goalkeeper Matt Reis, and a late-arriving Michael Parkhurst was unable to keep the United captain's soft shot out of the empty net. The Revs were irate to see the linesman's flag stay down on the play, and even Moreno didn't fully discount their claims for offside.
"I don't know if I was offside, some people said that I was, but when I didn't hear the whistle I kept playing," explained the Bolivian. "I dribbled around the 'keeper and I was lucky that the defender missed the ball. We'll count it."
Hampered by nagging injuries to key players, New England has thus far struggled to recapture their conference-winning form from last season, and their woes continued as striker Pat Noonan limped off with a hamstring strain just 13 minutes in.
Nonetheless, Moreno paid tribute to the doggedness of the side which has become United's most competitive rival in recent years.
"They're always trying to play (skillfully) and they're a tough team to beat," he said. "Tonight was one of those games where we could've scored another goal and the game was over. But you've got to give them credit too, because they worked hard. That's a team that always gives you a battle, but we're just happy that we got the win and the three points."
Nowak was somewhat less impressed with the visitors' approach. The former Polish international denounced the rough treatment handed out to D.C.'s skillful Latin American playmakers, typified by Jay Heaps' blow to Moreno's face in the 41st minute.
"I think Jaime and Christian (Gomez) got abused tonight," he said, "and I have a message for the other teams -- it's not going to work this year like it did last year. We have enough guys that can take the responsibility and do something about it. People were kicking them every time they touched the ball. ... I was very proud of them, they kept their heads in the game and they still kept playing."
The Chicago Fire used similar tactics to shut down United's explosive attack in the 2005 MLS Cup Playoffs, and other MLS clubs seem to have taken note.
"I think if you look at the game, Jaime got fouled by maybe 10 different players, except for Reis," said Nowak. "You have to think about that. Try to play good soccer, fair soccer against us and don't look for this kind of stuff, because it won't work."
For the moment, United seem to have found all the answers. In this week's wins against Kansas City, Columbus and now New England, D.C. has scored eight goals and allowed only two. With New York holding the second-place Wizards to a 1-1 draw at Arrowhead Stadium, United is now 10 points clear of the competition in the Eastern Conference with 24 points, having lost only one game thus far this season.
"We feel like we're the best team in MLS right now," said midfielder Freddy Adu. "Everybody's confidence is high, and it's a great ride right now, so hopefully we can keep it going."
Charles Boehm is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
