Weekly Update: Quakes face Revs

The Earthquakes hit the road this weekend to play the New England Revolution after playing two straight matches at home to start the month. San Jose squares off with the defending Eastern Conference Champions on Saturday, May 17 at 4:30 p.m. PT at Gillette Stadium. Fans can catch the game on HDNet and in Spanish on the radio on KLOK 1170 AM.

Earthquakes vs. New England All-Time

MLS Regular Season:
15-8-4


Season Series:
First Meeting


Home:
6-4-3


Away:
9-4-1


Shootout (1996-99):
0-2


Overtime (2000-03):
0-0-3


Playoffs: 0-0-0; U.S. Open Cup:
0-0-0


All-Time Scoring:
San Jose - 54, New England - 37

Earthquakes Schedule for the Week of 5/12/08

Injury Report Out - Jay Ayres (facial fracture); Gavin Glinton (sports hernia)

Last Match

Columbus Crew 3, Earthquakes 2; May 10, 2008; Buck Shaw Stadium; Santa Clara, Calif.


For most of their home games this season, the San Jose Earthquakes were unable to turn solid performances into victories. Saturday's match against the Columbus Crew proved to be more of the same. A game that was seemingly in the Quakes' grasp got away from them, as the visitors scored three times in the last 17 minutes to record a come-from-behind 3-2 victory. A Ramiro Corrales header put the home side ahead just three minutes before halftime, but Robbie Rogers scored twice and substitute Brad Evans added a third to put Columbus in the driver's seat. Ryan Johnson pulled a goal back for San Jose to make for a tension-filled final few minutes, but the Crew hung on for a priceless road victory. The opening exchanges were played out entirely in midfield, but it was the Crew who first took control. Their sizable height advantage in defense blunted San Jose's direct approach, while in attack, Rogers found space down the left wing. One such foray in the 12th minute almost saw the Crew break on top. Rogers' hard work won a corner kick, and Schelotto's subsequent delivery was headed against the bar by Ezra Hendrickson. San Jose countered by finding some space on the wings, with Ronnie O'Brien seeing plenty of the ball. His feed in the 19th minute found Kei Kamara with some room near the top of the box, but his shot was deflected wide by the Crew defense. The Quakes then had a glorious chance to break on top in the 28th minute, when Eric Denton's pass gave Ivan Guerrero a clear look at goal, but the Honduran failed to put enough bend on the ball, and his shot went inches wide of the far post. The Quakes continued to find space out wide, and just missed connecting on a series of crosses. But the home side's persistence paid off just three minutes before halftime, when Denton's attempted cross was knocked over the end line. Ronnie O'Brien swung in the resulting corner, and Corrales' diving header gave Hesmer no chance in the Crew goal. San Jose nearly doubled their advantage just five minutes after the break, when O'Brien's curling effort was snared by Hesmer. The Quakes 'keeper nearly gifted the Crew an equalizer in the 61st minute when he slipped trying to clear a ball in his own penalty area, allowing Alejandro Moreno to steal the ball. But Cannon was able to force the Venezuelan into a poor shooting angle and Moreno could only put his shot across the face of goal. Cannon was forced into two sprawling saves just seconds apart in the 71st minute, one at the feet of Hendrickson, and a second from an Evans header. It proved to be the briefest of respites. Ekpo's pass from midfield released Rogers on a clear breakaway on the left, and he coolly slotted home the equalizer between Cannon's legs. Ten minutes later, Rogers added his second on a pass from Moreno, this time rounding Cannon to score into an empty net. The remarkable sequence was completed by Evans, who with the Quakes' backline exposed, was put through by Schelotto and hit his shot into the roof of the net. The Quakes weren't done, as Johnson nodded home Ned Grabavoy's corner with just three minutes remaining, but it wasn't enough, as San Jose remained winless at home, while Columbus continued their hot start.

Last Match vs. New England

Earthquakes 2, New England 0; Saturday, October 1, 2005; Gillette Stadium; Foxborough, Mass.


The San Jose Earthquakes extended their unbeaten run to 12 games with a 2-0 victory over the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium. Brian Ching and Dwayne De Rosario scored goals in the second half to push the team's road winning streak to five games and put the team within one point of clinching the Supporter's Shield. Pat Onstad posted his league-leading 12th shutout of the year to pass Joe Cannon and move into first on the club's all-time list with the 27th shutout of his career. Taylor Twellman nearly got the Revolution started in the second half as he got free behind the Quakes defense. A cross from the right wing was deflected to the far post and Twellman slid but his shot deflected off the crossbar and out of danger. Ching gave San Jose the lead in the 60th minute on a corner kick. Kevin Goldthwaite, who was making his first MLS appearance, whipped a left-footed cross into the heart of the box and Ching beat his defender to the ball to nod home his seventh goal of the season. One minute after Ching's goal, the Quakes went up a man, as Revolution midfielder Daniel Hernandez was shown a red card for a hard foul on Moreno. De Rosario scored again for the Quakes in the 80th minute after a long run through the Revolution defense. De Rosario picked up the ball in the Quakes own half and De Rosario took the ball upfield in a three-on-one break with Brian Mullan to his right. The Canadian international then beat his man just inside the 18-yard box before blasting a shot past Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis.

Misc. Notes

Corner Kicks
The Earthquakes and Columbus Crew combined for 25 corner kicks Saturday night at Buck Shaw Stadium, setting a club record for combined corner kicks in a regular season game. The previous Quakes record for combined corner kicks was 21, set on Aug. 5, 1998 in a match against the New England Revolution. Columbus also set an opponent's record for corner kicks in a game and a half against San Jose. The Crew had 18 corner kicks with 11 of them coming in the second half.

Scoreless Streak Snapped
The Earthquakes scored two goals against Colorado on Apr. 19 with the last coming in the 61st minute. The team then went 251 minutes without scoring a goal prior to the match against the Columbus Crew. The streak was snapped Saturday against the Crew when Ramiro Corrales scored in the 42nd minute.

Corrales First Goal Since 2004
Ramiro Corrales scored the Quakes first goal on Saturday against the Columbus Crew. It was Corrales' first goal in MLS since his return from Norway. Corrales last scored for the Quakes on Oct. 16, 2004 against FC Dallas. His goal against Dallas that night helped the Quakes earn a 2-2 tie and qualify for the playoffs. He then signed in Norway, where he played from 2005-07. Corrales now has 10 career goals in MLS.

Peguero Jean Philippe Starts
Peguero Jean Philippe signed with the Earthquakes on Apr. 24 and had appeared in two games as a sub since his signing. He made his first start for the Quakes Saturday night against the Crew. He started and played 64 minutes in the match.

Corrales Sixth in Appearances
By starting and playing 90 minutes against Columbus on May 10, Ramiro Corrales has now appeared in 127 games with San Jose. He is sixth in appearances in team history. Next on the list is Ian Russell (2000-05), who appeared in 131 games. Corrales has played 9,995 minutes for San Jose. By playing five more minutes, he will become the sixth player in team history to reach 10,000 minutes played with San Jose.

Quakes on a Roll Against the Revolution
The Quakes are 15-8-4 all-time against the New England Revolution in the regular season, and recently have dominated the series. The Quakes have not lost to New England in their last 12 games, putting together a 9-0-3 record since May 5, 2001. The Revs have not beaten the Quakes since July 22, 2000. San Jose has outscored New England by a 54-37 all-time total. The Quakes have also never lost at Gillette Stadium, home of the Revolution, posting a 5-0-1 record there since 2002.

Earthquakes - Revolution Connections
Revolution midfielder Steve Ralston and Earthquakes head coach Frank Yallop were teammates on the Tampa Bay Mutiny from 1996-1998 ... Quakes midfielder Ryan Johnson is from Boston ... New England defender/midfielder Amaechi Igwe played with current Quakes Jamil Roberts and Matt Hatzke at Santa Clara University in 2006 ... Quakes defender James Riley played for the Revolution from 2005-07 and he also played at Wake Forest with the Revolution's Michael Parkhurst and Wells Thompson.

Earthquakes Leaders vs. Revolution
Eric Denton has scored two goals and recorded three assists in his career against New England in 18 games ... Both Peguero Jean Philippe and Kei Kamara have scored two goals in three career games against New England ... Ryan Cochrane scored his first career goal against New England in 2006.

Revolution Leaders vs. Earthquakes
Taylor Twellman has scored three times against San Jose in his career in nine games, while Steve Ralston has notched two goals and 13 assists in 23 games against the Quakes.

Cannon Among the All-Time Leaders
Earthquakes goalkeeper Joe Cannon is among the all-time league leaders in Major League Soccer history in a number of goalkeeping categories. He is currently tied for fourth all-time in MLS in appearances (222), fourth in minutes (19,995), fourth all-time in saves (929), third all-time in shutouts (58), fifth all-time in wins (85) and seventh all-time in goals against average (1.30). For San Jose goalkeepers, Cannon is first in club history in appearances (107), first in minutes played (9,801), first in saves (461), first in wins (47), first in shutouts (28) and second in goals against average (1.26) and saves percentage (74.4). He also holds the team's all-time record for saves in a game with 12 on July 8, 2000 at Colorado.

San Jose in May
The Quakes are now 20-21-1 all-time in May in MLS play.

Quakes in May
Eric Denton has notched five of his 19 career assists in the month of May ... May has typically been a big month for Ronnie O'Brien as he has four goals and eight assists in 22 career games in the month.

Biggest Crowd at Buck Shaw
The game between the Earthquakes and FC Dallas on May 3 was a standing room only sellout at Buck Shaw Stadium with 10,515 people in attendance. That crowd set a record for the largest soccer crowd in Buck Shaw Stadium history. The previous high was 8,800, which happened twice during the 1996 Women's College Cup at Buck Shaw. The game also marked the first appearance by the Quakes at the stadium. The Quakes have previously played games in the Bay Area at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto and Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The Quakes played the majority of their home games at Spartan Stadium from 1996-2005. The team played the first three games of 1998 at Stanford, while Spartan Stadium underwent renovations, and then played at Stanford on July 4, 1999 in a doubleheader with the U.S. Women's National Team during the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup. The Quakes also played an exhibition against Club America at Candlestick Park on Sept. 18, 2002. Earlier this season on Apr. 12, the team played its first ever game in Oakland at McAfee Coliseum.

Earthquakes Support the Nothing But Nets Campaign
The Earthquakes and Major League Soccer's community outreach initiative, MLS Works, are teaming up with the UN Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign in an attempt to cover an entire continent with long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets. Malaria is the leading killer of children in Africa and every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria. Throughout 2008, Major League Soccer and national partner Makita industrial power tools - - along with other professional sports leagues including the NBA and the WNBA - - will engage teams and fans through a series of in-stadium events, halftime presentations, auctions and fundraisers. Longtime MLS partner Makita industrial power tools has made a commitment to save 10,000 lives by donating $100,000 to Nothing But Nets. In addition, Makita and MLS W.O.R.K.S. have created the "Makita Team Up For Nets" program that will challenge MLS fans to save additional lives. Makita and MLS W.O.R.K.S., through the Makita Team Up For Nets program, have developed three ways for MLS fans to make donations to Nothing But Nets. Makita will match the donations made between April 25 and June 30, 2008 via the following methods:
1. Buy any Makita tool and register it at www.makitatools.com - Makita will donate a net with your purchase and credit it to your favorite MLS team.
2. Donate at your MLS team's page at www.NothingButNets.net/mlsworks (drop down menu will enable fans to attribute their donation to their favorite MLS team).
3. Come to Buck Shaw Stadium on Thursday, May 22 when the Earthquakes take on the Houston Dynamo and donate directly.

Colonel's Corner
The San Jose Earthquakes announced Mar. 24 that the team has partnered with KFC to launch the Colonel's Corner promotion at every home game for the 2008 season. The promotion will give fans the opportunity to purchase great seats for only $15-the most affordable Earthquakes tickets in town. The Corner View Section 107 at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara and sections 231 and 232 at McAfee Coliseum in Oakland will be officially branded as the KFC Colonel's Corner. Fans can purchase tickets regularly priced at $22 for Buck Shaw Stadium and at $30 for McAfee Coliseum for only $15 at participating KFC restaurants. The Colonel's Corner vouchers can be purchased at 26 participating KFC restaurants across the South Bay and will be redeemable for any game, subject to availability. The vouchers can be redeemed at Earthquakes Offices or at the stadium on the day of the game. KFC will have 500 tickets available for each game. For more information on KFC Colonel's Corner promotion and participating stores please visit sjearthquakes.com.

Quakes Above .500
The Earthquakes all-time MLS record is above the .500 mark. The Quakes all-time regular season MLS record is 135-130-47. They had the third-best regular season record in MLS history at the conclusion of the 2005 season at 134-125-47.

Halftime Success
The Earthquakes remain amongst the best in league history in holding onto a half-time lead despite losing to the Columbus Crew 3-2 on May 10. That game marked the team's first loss since 1999 when holding a halftime lead. Since the beginning of the 2000 season, the Earthquakes are now 49-1-8 in games when leading at the half, including 8-0-1 in 2003, 7-0-1 in 2004, 7-0-3 in 2005.

Record Unbeaten Streak At Home Snapped
The Earthquakes set an MLS record with their August 7, 2004 win against D.C. United, extending their unbeaten streak at home to 46 games when scoring first. That streak reached 57 games after San Jose's 2-2 tie with Real Salt Lake on October 8, 2005. However, after scoring first against the Columbus Crew on May 10, 2008 the Quakes fell 3-2, halting the streak at 57. The Quakes had not lost at home when scoring first since April 3, 1999.

Making The First One Count
The Quakes scored first, but lost to the Columbus Crew on May 10. That loss marked their first defeat when scoring first since July 4, 2004 against the Los Angeles Galaxy. The Earthquakes own a 62-4-9 record in their last 75 matches when they score the first goal of the game. In 2005, San Jose went undefeated at 14-0-5 when scoring first. The Earthquakes were 25-2-2 in 2001 and 2002 when finding the back of the net first. The Quakes only gave up leads two times in 2002, losing 2-1 to Los Angeles on July 4 and falling 2-1 to Kansas City on July 27. The team continued that trend in 2003, possessing an 11-0-1 mark in the regular season when they scored the first goal. In 2004, the Quakes went 8-1-1 when scoring first, the top mark in MLS. The Quakes gave up their lead and lost to Los Angeles on July 4, 2004 for the first time since July 27, 2002 against Kansas City. The Quakes are also impressive in the playoffs when scoring first, posting a 6-0-0 record.

Scoring First Under Yallop
During Frank Yallop's first tenure with San Jose, the Earthquakes were one of the best teams in the league when scoring the first goal. The team went 36-2-1 from 2001-03 when scoring the first goal of the game. The Quakes only gave up leads two times in 2002, losing 2-1 to Los Angeles on July 4 and falling 2-1 to Kansas City on July 27. Yallop is now 1-1-0 in 2008 when scoring first after losing to the Columbus Crew on May 10.

Individual Tickets on Sale Now
Individual tickets for 2008 San Jose Earthquakes games are now on sale. Tickets for the Earthquakes long awaited return are available online at sjearthquakes.com, by calling (800) 225-2277 or by visiting your local authorized Tickets.com outlets. Prices for individual tickets range from $20 to $70.

Season Tickets on Sale Now
San Jose Earthquakes season ticket packages for the 2008 season are now on sale. The Earthquakes 2008 season ticket package features 17 games, including all MLS regular season games and special bonus games. Prices for the ticket packages are $306 for Goal View, $340 for Corner Flag, $595 for Field View and $595 for Sideline. Tickets for the Earthquakes long awaited return will be available online at sjearthquakes.com, by calling (800) 225-2277 or by visiting your local authorized Tickets.com outlets.