but had three consecutive draws.
The home side got off to a dream start. Brian Mullan went streaking down the right flank after taking over from Ching, and after getting to the byeline, sent a driven cross into the six-yard box where Ching raced to get on the end of it and stuck his head in bravely to stab home for his first goal since April 29.
But the Crew pulled level in the 66th minute. Joseph Ngwenya twisted the Dynamo defenders in knots in the Houston penalty area, eventually wriggling free before being pulled down by Eddie Robinson. Eddie Gaven converted from the spot and once again gave Columbus a share of the points.
Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear made one change to the team that played Chivas USA to a 1-1 draw in Carson the week before. Eddie Robinson returned from suspension and reclaimed his place in the center of the back four, Craig Waibel returning to fullback and Kelly Gray back to the substitutes' bench.
Here's Kinnear's team (4-3-1-2): Pat Onstad - Craig Waibel, Eddie Robinson, Ryan Cochrane, Kevin Goldthwaite - Brian Mullan, Ricardo Clark, Wade Barrett (Brad Davis 83) - Dwayne De Rosario - Alejandro Moreno, Brian Ching (Ronald Cerritos 69). [Substitutes Not Used: Chris Aloisi, Kelly Gray, Stuart Holden, Zach Wells, Chris Wondolowski]
"Let's just say I think we're playing below ourselves right now, and the results are showing that," Kinnear said.
TEAM NEWS
Since exploding for four goals in a wild home victory against in-state rival FC Dallas on May 6, Dynamo have scored just nine goals in nine matches. They scored 13 in their first six. "With all the attacking players, with the chances that we create, we're better than a goal a game," Kinnear said to the Houston Chronicle.
In his third game back after the World Cup - his first at Robertson Stadium - Brian Ching finally added to his goal scoring total. He left in the league lead with seven goals; now with eight, he's a tie for third place with Carlos Ruiz, one behind D.C. United's Jaime Moreno and two behind Chivas USA's Ante Razov.
"It's fun to be in front of the Houston fans again; they're fantastic," said Ching to the Chronicle. "I'm just a little bit disappointed with the result. I think we should be beating these teams and we're actually tying them."
Kinnear was again pleased the play of his U.S. international - and not just because he got back on the scoresheet. "His overall play was good tonight, he held the ball well. Both him and Alejandro [Moreno] did that well. Both of them were dangerous together, so I was pleased with that," Kinnear said.
But since he's been back, Ching has yet to see the Orange claim a victory. "We need to come out and play soccer for 90 minutes, not 45 or 60," he said. "We need to concentrate on playing complete games."
The return match against Chivas will mark the second time this season Dynamo have played two games in a week. They also played Chivas USA on the back end of a two games in five-day stretch just a few weeks ago.
But, said Dwayne De Rosario: "I enjoy it. I like playing as much as possible. Especially this time, it's important so that we can get into a good flow."
Brad Davis is getting closer to full fitness, coming on for the final seven minutes in a big to grab the full points. "The strategy was to win, that's why I brought in Brad [Davis] to give us some more attacking looks, set pieces, balls from wide," Kinnear said. "I just kept telling guys to go forward, to play the game the same way from the first to the 90th ... just to keep putting pressure on them."
CHIVAS USA
Chivas USA ran their unbeaten streak to six games, going to Real Salt Lake and playing to a goalless draw in another match between last year's expansion clubs. Chivas are still in third place in the Western Conference with 23 points from 16 matches, two points ahead of the Colorado Rapids, still just a point behind Houston Dynamo and four points off the lead of FC Dallas.
LAST MATCH
Real hadn't won in four games, while Chivas USA hadn't lost in five. And the rematch of the expansion teams from a year ago petered out into a scoreless draw, although RSL - flagged for offside 11 times on the night - had apparent goals from Atiba Harris in the first half and Jason Kreis in the second ruled out when the linesman's flag went up.
Chivas head coach Bob Bradley had Ante Razov back from suspension and that was the only change he made from the team that beat FC Dallas 3-0 on Saturday at The Home Depot Center. Orlando Perez returned to the substitutes' bench as Bradley returned to the his first-choice group.
Here's Bradley's team (4-4-2): Preston Burpo - Tim Regan, Jason Hernandez, Claudio Suarez, Jonathan Bornstein - Juan Pablo Garcia, Sacha Kljestan, Jesse Marsch, Francisco Mendoza - Juan Francisco Palencia, Ante Razov. [Substitutes Not Used: Esteban Arias, Rene Corona, Brad Guzan, Orlando Perez, Matt Taylor, Brent Whitfield]
"Tonight I felt as though we had stretches where we moved the ball around but I didn't think we did well enough to turn our possession into chances on goal," Bradley said. "That's a challenge on this field but that is certainly something that we needed to do better tonight."
TEAM NEWS
With the tie in Salt Lake, Chivas have now earned 10 points in their last six outings. They've lost just once since May 20, with five victories and four draws in that time.
"Every game's been a little different," said Bradley. "We've had games where we had the lead. We've had games where we've come from behind. Tonight's one where it stays at zeros the whole time."
Although four of those games have been ties, Chivas captain Francisco Palencia said every result pulls them that much closer to the playoffs.
"I think the most important thing is that we have one point," said Palencia. "I don't care if it's a tie or win. Sometimes you tie three times - like we did before the last game - and at the end we won the last game and had six points. The most important thing is to not lose."
At the halfway point of the season, Chivas sit in third place, fully entrenched in the Western Conference playoff picture. "Our record [this year] is better than last year. In 16 [games], it's better than the whole year," said Palencia. "That's the first goal we wanted to reach. The second one, most importantly, is that we want to go to the playoffs."
While Chivas have continued to get results and firmly put themselves in the playoff picture, Bradley said there is still room for bettering the team. "We feel like we need to continue to improve - we feel like we have a good team," he said. "Our goal is to compete with the best teams in the conference and feel that we're playing our best at the end of the year."
A win would put Chivas USA into second place in the Western Conference - a stunning reversal in less than a season after finishing at the foot of the MLS overall table a season ago. "As an organization Chivas USA realized that some adjustments were necessary after the first year," said Bradley. "I think we've been able to improve our team by bringing in a few veterans - a few that know the league - and combining them with players that were already here. Hopefully, we can continue to build on that."
