After limping into the 2007 MLS Cup Playoffs with a 2-6-2 mark in their last 10 matches, FC Dallas now has the chance to put any regular season issues behind them and focus on the postseason. On Saturday, the Hoops open their Western Conference Semifinal Series with defending league champion Houston Dynamo at Pizza Hut Park.
The Hoops have had their share of difficulties against Dynamo, with a 0-3-1 record against their in-state rivals this season. FCD also hasn't scored on the Orange in some 330 minutes, and head coach Steve Morrow knows that must change if the Hoops are to strike a first blow on Saturday.
"It's important to get off to a good start at home," Morrow said. "But we also know that our road record has been good for the most part. No matter what the result is on Saturday, I still feel that we can go to Houston and win as well."
The last time the teams met, Dynamo claimed a 3-0 victory on Sept. 30 at Pizza Hut Park. The FCD players know they can't allow that to happen less than a month later.
"It's important," said Adrian Serioux, a member of Houston's 2006 league championship team before coming to FCD. "Bottom line is that it's a crucial game for us, especially since we haven't done too well against them in the regular season.
"This game being a playoff game, it's going to be important for us to get off to a good start because you don't want to go down a goal or two in the first leg of these two-game series," he continued. "We'll just have to come out there and put on a good performance and hopefully, we play well together."
The clubs also have developed a rivalry that has grown increasingly heated even though it is only two years in length.
"It's a big game," forward Kenny Cooper said. "It's a good way to start the playoffs for sure, against the defending champions. We're all excited. We've had a great week of training. It's a great time of the year and we're all looking forward to it."
After a disappointing 2-0 loss to Kansas City in Frisco last Saturday in their regular season finale, Morrow challenged his team to step it up in training and the Hoops responded with their most intense workouts of the year throughout the week.
"The intensity in practice this week has been better than anything I've seen all season," Morrow said. "That's what I demanded at the start of the week from the boys and they've stepped up and done that. I know we'll bring that to the game on Saturday."
His players have also enjoyed the spirited sessions. "It (the playoff opener) is something to get pumped up for," Serioux said. "The camaraderie, motivation, talk and energy of this team is good. We'll try to carry that into Saturday."
Added Cooper: "Training this week has been awesome," he said. "It's great to see how intense it's been. There's been a great atmosphere and we know it's going to be like that during the game. So, it's great to have that in practice."
All-time, FCD is just 6-7-1 in home playoff games. The Hoops have dropped their last two postseason matches at home and are 0-2-0 in Frisco since Pizza Hut Park opened two seasons ago. Their last home playoff win was on Sept. 25, 2002, when the Dallas Burn delivered a 4-2 win against Colorado at the Cotton Bowl.
In their last two postseasons, both of which ended with first-round defeats to the Rapids, FCD has scored six goals and four of those have come from top offensive threat Carlos Ruiz. Morrow knows that if his team is to go through to the next round, it could be because of "El Pescadito".
"Carlos (Ruiz) knows my expectations and very much accepts them," he said. "He knows that he has to step up and score goals. He knows it could've been better this year at certain times and accepts that because he's a smart guy. He's stepped up at the right times in the last few years and has scored goals in important games for us, so that's what I expect from him."
Morrow added that the Guatemalan international has looked especially sharp in training this week.
"He's looked very good for us this week in practice, had a lot of good finishes in and around the box," he said. "We need him to stand up and fight on Saturday and I'm very confident that we will get that from him."
The FCD boss will have several lineup decisions to make and those all start in the back. At goalkeeper, Dario Sala who played the entire 2006 playoffs, is locked in a battle with second-year 'keeper Ray Burse, who has allowed just six goals in his six starts.
On the back line, left back Chris Gbandi is back in the picture after losing form in the last month and is vying with David Wagenfuhr for the starting spot on the left. Right back could go to either Drew Moor or Bobby Rhine but with Moor looking more comfortable in the middle alongside Clarence Goodson, Morrow could move centrally and put Rhine on the right.
The four-man midfield of all-star Juan Toja on the left, Serioux and Pablo Ricchetti in the middle with Arturo Alvarez on the right also looks set. Up top, it will be Ruiz likely paired with Cooper, who have worked together for much of the week in practice.
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
