Most of us celebrate our birthday with a cake. Revolution striker Pat Noonan reveled in his 27th birthday by scoring a goal and leading his team to a 2-0 win over Kansas City on Thursday night.
Noonan's goal came in the 55th minute after Taylor Twellman knocked a Khano Smith cross into his path and Noonan bundled it past Kevin Hartman to put his side ahead.
"It was nice because my family was here to see it," Noonan said. "It was nice to get the win."
Adam Cristman scored in stoppage time to solidify the Revolution victory, one that gives the team a four-point cushion atop the Eastern Conference standings.
It was a tale of two halves after the teams created chances in the first half, but 'keepers Kevin Hartman and Matt Reis kept clean sheets as the match went to halftime.
Noonan's goal was the result of an early second-half barrage that saw New England storm out of the locker room and grab the game by the scruff of its neck.
Revolution midfielder Shalrie Joseph believes that his team had to come out and assert its dominance to start the second stanza.
"We came out with a lot of intensity in the second half," Joseph said. "We wanted to pressure them. It was important that we get control of the game."
Control the game they did, as New England limited New England to three shots on goal in the second half and saw Kansas City struggle to regain its composure after Noonan put the home side in front.
"There were times when the play was slow [in the second half]," Noonan said. "I felt some fatigue."
Cristman's fourth goal of the season sealed the points merited by a second-half performance Noonan believed was indicative of the performance on the evening.
"I think we did a nice job on their counter[attacks]," Noonan said. "We had a lot of decent chances. We kept them on their back foot and we limited their chances."
The victory snapped a nine-match winless streak against Kansas City at Gillette Stadium. Joseph admitted that his team had some extra motivation to obtain the victory.
"It was a huge win tonight for us," Joseph said. "It's a big game on Sunday for us as well."
The match started a difficult run of four matches in 11 days as the team faces three league contests and a quarterfinal contest in the U.S. Open Cup.
"It was a good way to start it with D.C. on Sunday and then the Open Cup," Noonan said. "This stretch coming up is big for us. There are a lot of Eastern Conference foes coming up with D.C. and K.C."
By strengthening its grip on first place with the victory, New England is reaching its own high standards, according to Noonan.
"We expect to be here and we expect to win games," Noonan said.
Kyle McCarthy is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
