FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Amaechi Igwe scored the game-winning goal in the 37th minute as the New England Revolution Reserves withstood a late rally by the Columbus Crew Reserves to earn a 2-1 victory on Sunday morning at the Lower Practice Field at Gillette Stadium.
New England (4-2-0, 12 pts.) took a 1-0 lead in the 25th minute on a goal by Miguel Gonzalez from Bryan Byrne off a corner kick, and built the lead to 2-0 when Igwe's blast from 35 yards slipped through Columbus goalkeeper Bill Gaudette's hands in the 37th minute.
Columbus (2-3-1, 7 pts.) played with a man advantage for the final 22 minute after Gonzalez was shown his second yellow card of the match, and guest player Mike Caso scored in the 86th minute to pull the Crew within one goal at 2-1 when Jason Garey found Caso in front for the easy goal after Gaudette brought the ball upfield. Two minutes later, Kei Kamara had a chance to equalize, but his shot from inside the six-yard box hit the post after he caught Revs keeper Brad Knighton off his line.
Caso twice had chances for the Crew in the first half, hitting both the left and right posts on chances when the Revs held a one-goal lead. Kamara also had a chance in the 67th minute when his header was saved by Knighton.
Revolution forward Arsene Oka nearly pushed the New England lead to 2-0 in the 36th minute, but his chipped shot over Gaudette nicked the crossbar. One minute later, Igwe's blast pushed the lead to 2-0.
For Igwe and Columbus' Danny Szetela, Tim Ward and Robbie Rogers, this weekend's contests were their last with their club teams for several weeks as they were named to the U.S. Under-20 Team's roster for the 2007 FIFA Under-20 World Cup, which will be contested across Canada, June 30-July 22. All four players departed together after the game to join the U20s for pre-tournament training in Somerset, N.J.
The Revolution's Reserves have a month off before returning to action when they host the Houston Dynamo Reserves on Saturday, July 22, at 6:30 p.m., immediately after the teams' first-team game at Gillette Stadium. The Crew Reserves next see action next Sunday, July 1, when they travel to play the New York Red Bulls Reserves at 10 a.m.
Columbus Crew Reserves at New England Revolution Reserves
June 17, 2007 - Foxborough, Mass. (Lower Practice Field at Gillette Stadium)
Scoring Summary
NE - Miguel Gonzales (Bryan Byrne) 25
NE - Amaechi Igwe (unassisted) 37
CLB - Mike Caso (Jason Garey, Bill Gaudette) 86
Columbus Crew Reserves: Bill Gaudette, Richard Moodaz, Jed Zayner, Rusty Pierce © (Stefani Miglioranzi 46), Ben Hunter (Ashleigh Townsend 56), Aaron Chandler, Danny Szetela, Eddie Gaven (Taylor Canal 56), Kei Kamara, Jason Garey, Mike Caso
Subs Not Used: Andy Gruenebaum, Brad Evans
New England Revolution: Brad Knighton, Amaechi Igwe, Daniel Hernandez (Anders Kelto 46), Kyle Helton, Marshall Leonard ©, Gary Flood, Miguel Gonzales, Bryan Byrne (Willie Sims 59), Ryan Solle, Chris Loftus, Arsene Oka (Geoff Walker 83)
Subs Not Used: None
Misconduct Summary:
NE - Miguel Gonzalez (caution) 14
CLB - Rusty Pierce (caution) 32
CLB - Richard Moodaz (caution) 51
NE - Miguel Gonzalez (caution/ejection) 68
Referee: Niko Bratsis
Referee's Assistants: Russell Wolf (SAR), Jeffery Rousseau (JAR)
Fourth Official: Sean Nolly
Time of Game: 1:50
Weather: Sunny and 80 degrees
