In a locker room filled with veterans and a few newcomers, all of whom have never won a playoff series with the New York Red Bulls, Clint Mathis stands alone.
The 30-year-old midfielder was on the field the last time the New York club advanced past the opening round, scoring three of his team's four goals against Dallas in a 2000 first-round win.
He owned Dallas that season, scoring five goals against the Burn at Giants Stadium on Aug. 26. Mathis finished second in the league in scoring with 16 goals and 14 assists and was named to the MLS Best XI.
"That's quite a long ago," Mathis said. "That was the MetroStars."
Mathis said he sees some similarities with the current crop of Red Bulls and that team that came within a goal of playing for the MLS Cup in 2000.
"We have a guy like Juan Pablo [Angel] and we had Adolfo [Valencia] up top. We had Tab Ramos and we have Claudio now," Mathis said. "The backs are similar, but I think athletically, we have some better players now than we did. There are similarities, but I think the way the team unity is here, we can go a lot further than we did back in the day."
Mathis also had two assists in a 2-0 win June 29, 2002, the last time New York won at New England. And despite the club's history of playoff failure and some miserable results in Foxborough, Mathis believes the Red Bulls can pull out a victory and advance to host the Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference Championship next Thursday.
"I think we definitely have the guys to (win in New England)," Mathis said. "We've proven that throughout the year. We've had some ups and downs, but we're a good ball team. We just have to go out there and have the confidence to go out and play and not worry about it being on the road."
After disappointing seasons in Salt Lake and Colorado in his return to Major League Soccer following two seasons with Hannover 96 of the German Bundesliga, Mathis was traded to the Red Bulls on March 29 for a 2008 fourth-round draft pick and a conditional pick in 2009.
Mathis was a hit immediately. He had a goal and an assist in 3-0 win against Dallas in his first game back at Giants Stadium and had five goals and two assists in the club's opening 10 games.
Mathis has six goals and two assists on the season, more than the previous two years combined, but he hasn't scored since finding the back of the net in a 5-4 win Aug. 18 against the Los Angeles Galaxy.
He came on as a late substitution in the opening leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinal Series, replacing Claudio Reyna four minutes from full time in the scoreless draw against the Revs.
"It's always tough. You always want to play, but this is a team effort," Mathis said. "I want to do what's best for the team and in that situation, we just want to make sure we didn't give up any goals. That's what we did."
And while it's unlikely Mathis gets the start Saturday at Gillette Stadium, if the game remains deadlocked late in the second half, or even into the 30-minute extra session if it's still tied, Mathis' number might be called.
"I just have to wait and be prepared and when I get called upon, try and produce and set up chances or score," Mathis said. "It depends on how the game goes."
Dylan Butler is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
