It was only an exhibition game, and the level of play was typical of preseason, but for a fan base that has been starved of MLS action for 2-1/2 years, Wednesday's 1-0 loss to the Houston Dynamo served as a welcome beginning for the San Jose Earthquakes.
Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark scored the only goal of the game just before halftime, and even though both teams were just 10 days into their preseason program, the cohesion of the defending champs as compared to the expansion Quakes was evident to the 3,182 fans at PAL Stadium. Still, for San Jose head coach Frank Yallop, the game served its purpose.
"I thought it was good for our first game," said Yallop. "Usually you go for a little bit of an easier opponent than Houston, but I thought our guys stuck to it well and did well in little spurts of the game. We don't even know each other yet, and I thought we showed good spirit and kept going. I was quite happy with it."
With Dynamo captain Wade Barrett laid low by a stomach virus, Houston opened in an uncharacteristic 3-5-2 formation, while the Quakes countered with a 4-4-2. That numerical advantage in midfield, combined with the lack of familiarity among the San Jose players, saw Houston assume control early, with midfielder Corey Ashe looking especially dangerous on the left wing.
It took Ashe just six minutes to make his presence felt when his low cross was stabbed just wide by Dynamo forward Chris Wondolowski.
San Jose responded in the 12th minute with rookie Shea Salinas breaking free down the right flank, but his bending cross was headed away by Patrick Ianni.
Houston was soon back on the attack, and their dominance on the flanks began to show as Ashe just missed Wondolowski at the far post in the 23rd minute. The North Carolina product proved more accurate 10 minutes later, but his cross was headed wide by an unmarked Brian Ching.
The Quakes were able to make only sporadic attacks on goal, with Salinas proving to be the most dangerous San Jose player. The frontline tandem of Gavin Glinton and Kei Kamara rarely clicked however, and they got little help from the central midfield pairing of Joe Vide and Ned Grabavoy.
San Jose had looked vulnerable on set pieces throughout the half, and this weakness was exposed again just before halftime. A free kick from Dwayne De Rosario found Wondolowski in the box, and when his toe-poke was deflected by goalkeeper Joe Cannon to Clark, the U.S. international made no mistake, hitting a rocket into the roof of the net.
The second half saw the Quakes make more inroads into the Dynamo's half, especially after both sides made wholesale substitutions in the 64th minute. Former California Victory forward Yuri Morales was involved in the two best chances for the Quakes. His header from an Ivan Guerrero corner kick in the 56th minute flew just over the bar, and his volley attempt in the 79th minute forced a finger-tip save from Dynamo goalkeeper TCorbin Waller.
Quakes forward Matt Taylor was also active in a substitute's role, and his free-kick in the 72nd minute forced Waller into a diving save to his right.
It wasn't all one-way traffic, as Houston substitute James Georgeff went close twice in a two-minute span late in the game, but in the end, Dynamo closed out their first win of the preseason. That they did so while showing some tactical flexibility was even more pleasing to Houston head coach Dominic Kinnear.
"We gave some freedom to some people and it makes the guys on the outside work a little harder than normal," said Kinnear. "There isn't a lot of cover in the back, but we felt pretty good. We kept them in front of us a lot, which helped us out."
The two teams will meet again on Saturday night at San Francisco's Kezar Stadium, and the hope is that the Quakes will make more progress as the ready themselves for their opener against the Los Angeles Galaxy on April 3.
"This field played a little narrow," said goalkeeper Joe Cannon. "I'm looking forward to getting on a wider surface and really seeing how we can cover ground. I think on these narrow pitches, you're not exposed as much, so tactically and organizationally, what you need to work on isn't magnified."
Saturday's match might see the first appearance of new acquisition Ramiro Corrales, with Yallop indicating that he sees the Salinas, Calif. native sliding into the center of midfield. Other than that, Yallop is stopping short of making any definitive conclusions about either game.
"We've still got a number of players that we're trying to bring in and look at," said Yallop. "At this point, [the game] is just a good yardstick to see where we're at."
Houston Dynamo 1, San Jose Earthquakes 0
San Jose, Calif.; PAL Stadium (Attendance: 3,182)
Scoring Summary HOU - Ricardo Clark (Chris Wondolowski) 44
Lineups
Houston Dynamo -- Pat Onstad (Corbin Waller 46); Patrick Ianni, Eddie Robinson (Stephen Wondolowski 64), Bobby Boswell (Mike Chabala 64); Stuart Holden (Jeremy Barlow 64), Richard Mulrooney (Nick Hatzke 64), Ricardo Clark (Geoff Cameron 46), Dwayne De Rosario (John Michael Hayden 64), Corey Ashe (Johnny Alcaraz 64); Brian Ching (Erik Ustruck 64), Chris Wondolowski (James Georgeff 64).
San Jose Earthquakes -- Joe Cannon (Preston Burpo 46); James Riley (Chris Roner 64), Nick Garcia (Taylor Graham 46), Jason Hernandez (Jay Ayres 64), Chris Pozniak (Greg Curry 64 / Robert Sandoval 75); Shea Salinas (Adam Smarte), Joe Vide (Eric Denton 46), Ned Grabavoy (Fabrice Noel 64), Ivan Guerrero (Tim Bohnenkamp 64); Gavin Glinton (Yuri Morales 46), Kei Kamara (Matt Taylor 64).
Cautions/Ejections
HOU - Jeremy Barlow (caution) 74
Jeff Carlisle is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
