Behind a pair of goals from Paul Dalglish, Houston Dynamo advanced to the MLS Cup Final with a 3-1 win against the Colorado Rapids in a hotly contested Western Conference Championship on Sunday night at Robertson Stadium. Down 1-0 only four minutes into the game, Dynamo scored three unanswered goals to win the West title their their first season in south Texas and move into next Sunday's championship game against the New England Revolution.
Dalglish, a mid-season acquisition who has quickly become an integral part of the Dynamo side, provided a quick answer to a Jovan Kirovski penalty kick, scoring twice in the opening 21 minutes. Dalglish received a standing ovation from the home crowd of 23,107 when he was taken out of the game by Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear in the 68th minute.
The scoring started early when Kirovski converted from the penalty spot thanks to a handball inside the box by Houston defender Adrian Serioux. Kirovski put his spot kick to Dynamo goalkeeper Pat Onstad's left as Onstad guessed wrong, diving the other way.
Houston struck back quickly with Dalglish's first goal of the night in the 10th minute. He was on the receiving end of a beautiful passing series in which midfielder Ricardo Clark sent the ball up the middle to fellow midfielder Dwayne De Rosario, who flicked the ball on behind him with his heel as Dalglish made a perfectly timed run past the Colorado defense before slotting the ball under Rapids 'keeper Joe Cannon as he raced in all alone.
The Rapids threatened after Dalglish's goal, earning a free kick, three corner kicks and a throw-in deep in Houston territory in the four minutes following the equalizer. Colorado's momentum was finally broken when forward Clint Mathis was issued a yellow card in the 16th minute for dissent. Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark was issued a caution one minute later, meaning that he will be unavailable to play in next week's MLS Cup Final.
Dalglish put his team ahead 2-1 in the 21st minute, when he met midfielder Brian Mullan's cross at the back post and caught Cannon out of position, sending his header into a wide open net. Houston midfielder Brad Davis initially sent a long cross completely over the goal after De Rosario found him in the left corner; Mullan came racing in at the back post to volley the ball back to Dalglish.
Dynamo had a few more scoring opportunities in the second half. Forward Brian Ching had a clear 1-on-1 opportunity against Cannon after a Rapids defender whiffed on his attempt to clear the ball out of the box. Ching tried to get past Cannon with a step-over move, but Cannon slid in and took the ball away before Ching could shoot.
Dalglish also had an open shot at the goal after Ching slid in to knock the ball loose from Colorado defenders Matt Crawford and Mike Petke. Dalglish corralled the loose ball and had an open look from the top of the box, but sent his shot high over the crossbar and into the crowd.
Colorado came out swinging in the second half trying to overcome the Houston lead, but was unable to penetrate the Dynamo defense, managing only one shot in the second half and never mounting a serious threat.
Mullan iced the win for Houston in the 71st minute with a spectacular sliding volley into an open net. The scoring sequence began when Davis squeezed a precise pass through two Colorado defenders to Dynamo forward Alejandro Moreno, who had come in to the game to replace Dalglish only three minutes earlier. Moreno then sent a curling cross with the outside of his foot to the back post, where Mullan slid in to drive the ball into the goal.
After Mullan's score, Houston went into lockdown mode, concentrating on preserving their lead. During one late corner kick, Dynamo had only their two forwards in the box, leaving the rest of the team back at midfield to defend against a Colorado counterattack.
Lucas Ogden-Davis is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
