The Earthquakes enjoy a week off from regular season play this week for the 2004 MLS Sierra Mist All-Star Game, which takes place on Saturday at R.F.K. Stadium at 11 a.m. PT. The match will be televised live on ABC. The Quakes return to action next week with two matches. They take on the Minnesota Thunder on Wednesday, Aug. 4, at 5 p.m. PT in St. Paul, Minn., in the quarterfinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and then get back to MLS action with a game against D.C. United on Saturday, Aug. 7, at 7 p.m. PT at Spartan Stadium.
Injury Report/Suspensions
Out: Chris Ronér (R - ankle surgery); Eddie Robinson (L - ruptured tendon of left hamstring), Troy Dayak - Red Card (D.C. United match)
Questionable: Jamil Walker (Lower back sprain)
Last Match
Revolution 2, Earthquakes 2; Saturday, July 24; Spartan Stadium; San Jose, Calif.
The San Jose Earthquakes scored two goals in the game's final three minutes to pull out an improbable 2-2 tie Saturday night against the New England Revolution at Spartan Stadium. Facing a 2-0 deficit and forced to play down a man due to Troy Dayak's 62nd minute ejection, the Earthquakes stormed back with goals by Landon Donovan and Brian Ching in the final three minutes to come from behind and amazingly tie the Revolution. The Revolution got on the board first in the 25th minute on a goal by Pat Noonan. Jose Cancela sent a pass from the middle of the field over Todd Dunivant to a sprinting Richie Baker on the left side. Baker dribbled to the end line and hit a cross into the middle of the area that Noonan headed past Pat Onstad for the 1-0 lead. The Revs pushed their lead to 2-0 in the 53rd minute on a goal from Cancela. Noonan moved the ball up the right side of the field and crossed it through the area, where Dunivant deflected it to Cancela. Cancela beat a defender and sent a bending shot over a diving Onstad, off the far post and into the net. Already trailing 2-0, the Quakes faced even more trouble when defender Dayak was ejected for colliding with Shalrie Joseph in the 62nd minute as he battled for a header. With San Jose playing down a man for the final 28 minutes, the Quakes picked up the intensity and began bombarding the Revolution net. With the match heading into the final moments both teams picked up the physical play, San Jose attempted to get back into the game and finally came through with a goal by Donovan in the 91st minute to make it 2-1. Donovan finished off a brilliant passing sequence with a hard shot from the left side past a sliding Reis. Richard Mulrooney started the play with a long pass from near midfield to Ching at the top of the penalty box. Ching slid a pass to a cutting Donovan on the left, who then powered the shot past Reis. With just a minute remaining in stoppage time, Ching scored his league-leading 10th goal to give the Quakes a 2-2 tie. Dunivant played a long ball out of the Quakes defense that Ching knocked down, allowing Donovan to control it at the 18-yard box. Donovan knocked a pass to his left to Ekelund, who slid and managed to pass the ball to De Rosario on the left wing in the penalty area. De Rosario's low cross found Ching in front of the goal, and he was able to re-direct the ball into the goal for the tie.
Misc. Notes
Donovan and Lalas Media Tour
Earthquakes president and general manager Alexi Lalas and forward Landon Donovan will embark on a media tour on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week in advance of the Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game. The pair, along with D.C. United All-Star Alecko Eskandarian, will ring the Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Tuesday at 9:25 a.m. ET. The trio will join MLS Deputy Commissioner Ivan Gazidis, MLS Chief Operating Officer Mark Abbott and other Sierra Mist and NYSE executives as the 2004 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game is celebrated at the Opening Bell ceremony. Then at 1:45 p.m. PT, Lalas, Donovan and Eskandarian will participate in a chat on ESPN.com. On Wednesday morning, the three will film a segment with ESPN2's "Cold Pizza".
In July
The Earthquakes are looking to improve on their play in the month of July. Since 1996, the Quakes have a 17-25-5 MLS regular season record in the month. Last season, San Jose went 2-1-2 during July. In 2004, the Quakes finished July 1-3-1.
Quakes On a Roll Against Revolution
After Saturday's 2-2 tie with the Revolution, the Quakes are now unbeaten in their last nine matches against the Revolution, posting a 7-0-2 record in that stretch. The Quakes are 13-8-3 all-time against the New England Revolution in the regular season and have not lost since to the Revs since July 22, 2000. San Jose has outscored New England by a 49-35 all-time total.
Donovan, Ching Score in Two Straight
Earthquakes forwards Landon Donovan and Brian Ching have each scored in the past two games. Against Colorado on July 17, Ching netted two goals, while Donovan scored one goal and dished out two assists. Last Saturday versus New England, each player found the back of the net in stoppage time to earn a 2-2 tie. Ching also recorded an assist.
Ching on Top of League Scoring Charts
Brian Ching continued his hot play with a goal and an assist against New England last weekend. He now has 10 goals and three assists on the season for 23 points, putting him into a tie with the MetroStars Amado Guevara for the league lead in points. Ching is also tied for first in the league in goals with Carlos Ruiz. Ching, however, has scored all his goals in the run of play, while Ruiz has netted two penalty kicks among his 10 goals.
Quakes Atop Assist Leader Board
With an assist against New England, Quakes midfielder Richard Mulrooney remains in a tie atop the assist leader board with eight assists. He is tied with Chris Klein of the Kansas City Wizards. Landon Donovan is currently tied for third in assists (7) with three other players. Mulrooney's career high in assists is nine (2000, 2001), while Donovan recorded a personal best 10 assists in 2001.
In the Community
WHERE: Cathedral of Faith - Soccer Camp - Wallenburg Park, San Jose
WHEN: Monday, July 26 - 1:30 to 2:15 pm
WHO: Dwayne De Rosario
DETAILS: De Rosario will visit the soccer camp at Cathedral of Faith to speak to the kids about soccer and to sign autographs. The event was re-scheduled from last week.
Where: Pomeroy Summer Program - Santa Clara
When: Monday, July 26 - 1:30 PM to 3 PM
Who: Brian Mullan
Details: Mullan to visit the summer camp kids to talk about soccer, perform a mini-demonstration, and sign autographs
Where: Network Associates Coliseum (formerly known as Oakland Coliseum)
When: Wednesday, July 28 - Prior to Oakland A's Game
Who: Craig Waibel and Brian Mullan
Details: The San Jose Earthquakes pair will be "celebrity scoopers" in the MUG Root Beer Float Day supporting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).
Nine Players with San Jose Ties To Play In All-Star Reunion Match
The rosters for the 2004 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Weekend Celebration Game have been announced for the MLS USA Legends and MLS World Legends teams. The reunion match will kick-off at 12:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 31 at RFK Stadium in Washington D.C. before the 2004 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game. The game will mainly feature players who participated in the 1994 World Cup and who then continued their career by playing or coaching in MLS. Nine players in the reunion match have ties to the Earthquakes, from both the MLS USA and World Legends teams. Alexi Lalas (current general manager of the Earthquakes), Eric Wynalda (1996-1998), and Mike Burns (2000) will play for the American side, while Frank Yallop (Quakes head coach from 2001-2003, Canada), Michael Emenalo (1996-1997, Nigeria), Raul Diaz Arce (1999, El Salvador), Giovanni Savarese (2000, Venezuela), Richard Gough (1998, Scotland), and Martin Vasquez (1998, Mexico) will be members of the World roster.
Five Quakes See Stars
Five members of the San Jose Earthquakes have been selected as starters for the Western Conference All-Star team in the Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game on July 31 at 11 a.m. PT at RFK Stadium. The game will be televised live on ABC. Landon Donovan, Brian Ching, Richard Mulrooney, Jeff Agoos and Pat Onstad will all represent the Quakes in the starting lineup. It is Agoos' record ninth straight selection, while it is Onstad and Ching's first All-Star Game appearance. Mulrooney will be making his second appearance in the All-Star game, and Donovan will be in his fourth game. Donovan has scored five career All-Star goals and earned the All-Star Game MVP award in 2001.
San Jose Downs Timbers in U.S. Open Cup; Will Play Minnesota Thunder in Quarterfinals
The San Jose Earthquakes began play in the 2004 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday, July 14 with a 3-0 win over the A-League's Portland Timbers at PGE Park in Portland, Oregon. Ronnie Ekelund, Ramiro Corrales and Dwayne De Rosario scored for the Quakes. The Earthquakes will play the Minnesota Thunder, a 1-0 winner over the Los Angeles Galaxy, in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, August 4 in St. Paul, Minn. at 5 p.m. PT. The game will mark the Quakes second-ever match against the Thunder. The teams met on July 14, 2002 in an exhibition match, which the Quakes won 2-0 on goals by Dwayne De Rosario and Luchi Gonzalez. San Jose has now advanced to the quarterfinals six times in their seven Open Cup appearances and is 8-6 overall in U.S. Open Cup play.
Limiting Chances
The Quakes have allowed a league-low 193 shots against in 2004.
Alvarez With U.S. Under-20 Team
Quakes midfielder Arturo Alvarez has spent last week in Northern Ireland with the U.S. Under-20 National Team for the 2004 Milk Cup. Alvarez played 74 minutes for the U.S. in the 2-2 draw against Denmark on July 17 at the grounds of Donegall Celtic FC in Belfast in their first match of the tournament. The U-20s also tied Turkey on July 19 in Ballymena, Northern Ireland with a final score of 0-0 with Alvarez playing nearly the whole match before being subbed out in second half stoppage time. In the final game of the group, the U.S. tied for the third straight game, earning a 1-1 draw with Wales. Alvarez entered as a sub at halftime of the Wales match. In the 5th/6th place game, the U.S. fell 2-1 to finish the tournament sixth overall. The Quakes 18-year old midfielder played the whole game and notched an assist on the team's lone goal. Alvarez will rejoin his teammates in San Jose after the all-star break.
August is Donovan Time
In his four-year MLS career, Landon Donovan has dominated in the month of August. In 14 career games in the month, he has scored nine goals and notched five assists for 23 points, making August his highest scoring month.
Starting Line-Up Turmoil
Due to numerous injuries, national team duties and suspensions, the Earthquakes have had 15 different starting lineups in the 17 games they have played in 2004. Landon Donovan missed three games to play with the U.S. National Team, while Dwayne De Rosario and Pat Onstad both missed two games for Canadian National Team duty. Also, the team has lost 67-man games to injury over the first 17 games of the season.
Mulrooney Is Quakes Only Constant
Earthquakes midfielder Richard Mulrooney is the only member of the San Jose roster who has started and played 90 minutes in all 17 games for the Quakes in 2004. In his 1,530 minutes of play, Mulrooney has scored one goal and notched eight assists for ten points, which is third highest on the Quakes.
Quakes Find Net At Home
The Earthquakes have done well scoring in San Jose in 2004, hitting the net 20 times in just nine appearances at Spartan Stadium, averaging 2.22 goals per game at home. The team is first in the league in goals scored at home.
Quakes Closing In On .500
The Earthquakes are closing in on bringing their all-time regular season MLS record to the .500 mark. The Quakes all-time regular season MLS record is 112-117-32.
Halftime Success
If the Earthquakes enter the half-time break with the lead, recent history suggests they will keep it. Since the beginning of the 2000 season, the Earthquakes are 39-0-5 in games when leading at the half, including 8-0-1 in 2003.
Making The First One Count
The Earthquakes were 25-2-2 in 2001 and 2002 when finding the back of the net first. The Quakes only gave up leads two times in 2002, losing 2-1 to Los Angeles on July 4 and falling 2-1 to Kansas City on July 27. The team continued that trend in 2003, possessing an 11-0-1 mark in the regular season when they scored the first goal. In 2004, the Quakes are 4-1-1 when scoring first. The Quakes gave up their lead to Los Angeles on July 4, 2004 for the first time since July 27, 2002 against Kansas City. Dating back to the 2000 season, the Earthquakes own a 43-3-4 record in their last 50 matches when they score the first goal of the game. The Quakes are also impressive in the playoffs when scoring first, posting a 6-0-0 record.
"We Believe" - The Story of the 2003 San Jose Earthquakes DVD on Sale Now
For the first time ever, Earthquakes fans can relive the Quakes incredible ride to the 2003 MLS Cup Championship with "We Believe, The Story of the 2003 San Jose Earthquakes." This special two-disc DVD set captures all of the drama and excitement from the Earthquakes unbelievable season. In addition to a 33-minute season in review that includes player interviews and game action, Disc One features an exclusive behind the scenes package as well as a highlight reel. Disc Two of this one-of-a kind set is the original television broadcast of the "Greatest Game In MLS History," the Earthquakes dramatic 5-2 win over Los Angeles in the Western Conference Semifinals on Nov. 9, 2003. Earthquakes fans can Believe Again with this extraordinary two-disc DVD set. Fans can purchase this special two DVD set on the Earthquakes website at sjearthquakes.com or by calling 408-985-GOAL.
