HOUSTON - Entering Sunday night's second leg of the Western Conference Semifinals against Chivas USA, Houston Dynamo were glad to be at home at Robertson Stadium.
Needing to overturn a one-goal deficit from the first game at The Home Depot Center a week earlier, Dynamo knew they would have to play with passion to the Western Conference Championship.
"The commitment from the guys until the whistle was blown for the end of the game was fantastic," Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear said of his team's effort.
Dynamo forward Brian Ching agreed, saying that his teammates "put their hearts and soul into the game, and we came out with a great result."
Chivas were able to protect their slim advantage for the opening hour. But Juan Francisco Palencia was sent off, then shortly thereafter Tim Regan pulled down Dwayne De Rosario in the penalty area, and Brad Davis converted from the spot to pull Dynamo even on total goals.
"Things went our way tonight. I think it was a penalty and I think it was a red card; the referee was on top of that," Kinnear said. "Our guys kept our cool, and got the equalizer."
Then, two minutes into stoppage time and mere seconds before the game would have headed into extra time, Ching headed home the series winner in the 2-0 result on the night.
For Ching, the goal was a bright spot on a night when he was disappointed in his overall performance.
"Good play by Dwayne (De Rosario) to get it across," Ching said. "The ball just came to me, and I was open. I didn't feel like I played particularly well all game, but it felt great to get the winner, especially in the 90th minute."
Chivas defended stoutly all night long, venturing forward to take just two shots all evening long, both after Dynamo had already pulled level in the series. Houston won 10 corner kicks to just one for Chivas.
"They were defending the corners well," Kinnear said. "They sit 11 guys in the box, and we send about six, so you have 17 guys in one area. It's hard to get room at times. We had some good service, and a couple of times we were close."
The goal also kept the Orange from needing another 30 minutes to get the goal they were so desperately seeking.
"We put a lot of effort into the 90 minutes. Our guys were pretty tired emotionally and physically," Ching said. "A couple of guys came up to me and said that they were glad they didn't have to go the extra 30 [minutes]."
Houston Dynamo will face the Colorado Rapids, who upset FC Dallas in their semifinal series, in the Western Conference Championship next Sunday at Robertson Stadium. The winner will advance to the MLS Cup Final on Nov. 12 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas.
De Rosario, who called the Robertson Stadium crowd "a 12th man on the field," also thinks those fans will provide an advantage when Houston plays host to Colorado.
"Having the fans to back you helps a lot," De Rosario said. "We're confident in playing Colorado ... we'd rather play here than [away] for the championship."
The Canadian international said his team will need a performance equal to their performance against Chivas to advance to the final.
"It's going to take everything that we did tonight [to advance]," said De Rosario. "It's going to take desire, fight and finishing when we get our chances."
Lucas Ogden-Davis is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
