While the draw the Chicago Fire rescued on Wednesday night against Houston Dynamo wasn't the result they were looking for, they were still happy to have come away with anything in a match that still saw their five-game winning streak in all competitions come to an end.
"It was an interesting night," said Fire head coach Dave Sarachan. "We put a lot into it."
The Fire got a late penalty kick to pull back the 2-2 draw, and Sarachan said it was the effort of his team that still claimed a valuable point, although unable to secure the victory. Still, the Fire boss said, he wasn't sure where the Dynamo goals came from.
"I have to look at the tape to see how it was that we couldn't clear the ball on that play," Sarachan said on the first goal, when Diego Gutierrez cleared it off the line, only for Chris Wondolowski to tap home the rebound of Zach Thornton's save from a resulting second effort by Alejandro Moreno.
On the second goal, Sarachan said "I don't know how to explain it. I don't think you'll see Zach give up another goal like that in his career.
"But I give our guys a lot of credit, because that's a stunner ... They didn't put their heads down and were able to get a point. A guy like Dwayne took his chance at it and hit a home run."
Still, Sarachan believed Justin Mapp's opener in the 36th minute would send his team on its way.
"I thought getting that first goal we'd have two or three. ... Our guys really put their heads down and continued to play and worked to score the second goal. At the end of the day We'll take the point and look to pick up three points another day."
Mapp also played a part in the Houston second goal, the wonder strike from De Rosario from the midfield stripe that sailed over Zach Thornton and into the back of the net.
"I lost control of the ball, and it was me who gave the pass to him and he just turned and shot," Mapp said. "It was a lucky goal, and although I've never seen anything like that in person, I think it was a question of luck."
Andy Herron pulled the Fire level 15 minutes from the end after Brad Davis tripped up Chris Armas from behind in the area, and Herron coolly rolled home the resulting penalty after getting Houston 'keeper Pat Onstad to dive to his right.
"Our group knows what it has to do now with what's coming. These games are sudden-death because the difference between last place and second is so small. We're conscious that we need to take all of the points in our home games. Today we lost two, but we have the maturity to face what's coming," Herron said.
Herron will miss the Sunday game against the New York Red Bulls while on international duty with Costa Rica.
"I'm really disappointed I have to go and leave the Fire. I have to thank God for the opportunity to go to the national team and thanks to all the guys - thanks to all my teammates, thanks to the coach because they have given me time on the field, and if it wasn't for my teammates, I wouldn't be doing what I am doing now," he said. "I have to say thanks to the Fire and I hope when I come back I can keep scoring for the team."
The Dynamo locker room presented a completely different scenario to that of the Fire, and the club was saddened by the result. For Moreno, he felt his club deserved more.
"I think the point is important but I think we deserved a little more. The refereeing wasn't the best but we had to continue playing. It's three weeks now where we've been frustrated by decisions that have affected us. The team always worked to create dangerous opportunities. It should have been enough to win, but ..." he said.
For De Rosario, it was a similar night to the one the weekend before at The Home Depot Center, where Dynamo had claims of a late penalty disregarded and lost 3-2 to Chivas USA. Before Davis clipped Armas from behind, Moreno went down in the Fire penalty area, but instead, referee Baldomero Toledo booked the Houston forward for simulation.
"I'm disappointed with the way things went for us today. I don't know what it is, but we're not getting a lot of breaks," De Rosario said. "If the referees are going to [award] penalty kicks, they should award them to both teams. It's a shame to see. As a player, it's disheartening."
De Rosario has scored the MLS Goal of the Year each of the last two seasons. His effort from some 60 yards on Wednesday could be a third in a row.
"I was just waiting for my moment to actually do it. I got about halfway and I said 'Hey, what the heck, let me go for it.' And I went for it and it went in the net," he said.
And like the Chicago locker room, there was acceptance of one point gained - but also the acknowledgement of two points lost.
"That's the way we have to look at it now -- it's a point. But giving them a penalty shot like that, and not giving us a penalty shot, it's basically a slap in the face," De Rosario said. "We work so hard to get a goal, we scored a great goal and basically it gets taken away. We have to keep our heads up, we have Dallas this weekend, and it's a great opportunity to get up front of them in the standings."
Raquel Ortiz is a contributor to MLSnet.com. Jack Daniel Chavez contributed to this report. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
