Clutching a celebratory beverage, Steve Nicol wore the smile of a happy man in the New England Revolution locker room after his side had clinched a passage to its third MLS Cup Final in five years. Nicol watched as New England took an early lead through a Taylor Twellman goal, before they survived a lengthy spell of pressure from D.C. United.
"We're delighted," said Nicol. "It was a tough afternoon and we probably scored too early. Getting the goal meant they were coming forward and they really put us under pressure but we defended magnificently and I don't remember a chance where you would say that they should have scored."
With his side under constant pressure for 20 minutes following Twellman's second goal in as many games, Nicol made a key tactical adjustment that settled the Revs down, enabling them to keep the home side at bay throughout the remainder of the game.
With Steve Ralston unfit to start, the Revs had begun the game in a 4-4-2 formation with James Riley in central defense. The alignment opened up space for United's attacking midfielders, which led to a succession of chances. Seeing the problems, Nicol switched to the 3-5-2 formation his side has adopted throughout the majority of the season.
"We ended up with six guys at the back at one stage and (D.C.) were piling through," said Nicol. "We really had no choice and had to make the change and it definitely worked. We were happier about how we got things settled down."
The move succeeded in making the Revolution a lot more stable at the back. D.C. had been able to put passes in behind the Revs' backline on a number of occasions in the opening minutes of the game and had put Matt Reis to work several times. The goalkeeper was up to the task once again, however, as his coach knew he would be.
"He's fantastic: his positioning, his anticipation and his reading of the game. The guys in front of him know him well too and he just exudes confidence," said Nicol.
Reis ended the game with eight saves in another commanding goalkeeping display, which was augmented by some poor finishing from D.C. - Jaime Moreno twice shot wide from good positions in the first half - and a defensive display from New England that gradually sucked the life out of the hosts.
"We certainly got bent but we didn't break," said Reis. "A lot of the crosses and the little dink balls that they played, I got to see them but I can't give our guys enough credit -- they really hustled out there. They've done it all year and they don't get enough credit. Everyone that has been back there, we've really got on the same page and worked well together."
The Revolution got off to the perfect start in the game's fourth minute when Twellman took advantage of some space in the D.C. penalty area to fire a shot from 12 yards high into the net. The move which led to the goal featured an intelligent run to the right flank by Pat Noonan, who followed up with a cross to his strike partner.
"Jay [Heaps] played a good ball to Noonan and he got in behind," Twellman said. "He put the ball in pretty much the only spot I could get to and fortunately it went in."
Noonan played the full 90 minutes in his first start since Sept. 9 as a part of a Revolution team effort that began at forward with him and Twellman. The winning goal scorer was only too pleased to do his part, especially given the exertions of the men behind him.
"We had to defend for 87 minutes after that," he said. "The defense and the midfield worked their rear ends off today. I needed to put in a little bit more work and I just tried to at the end of the game."
And so it's off to Dallas for the second consecutive year for the Revolution. Twelve months ago, the Revs scored early in the Eastern Conference Championship against Chicago and held on for the 1-0 win, only to fall to the Los Angeles Galaxy one week later. After a similar victory this year, there was a determined feeling inside the New England camp that there will be no more déjà vu at Pizza Hut Park.
"Three finals in five years is awesome but we've still got one more game," said Twellman, whose comments were echoed by Reis.
"Until the game is over next week and until we have won a championship, I don't think this team will really feel like we've got where we want to be," Reis said.
Andrew Hush is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
