FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – It seemed like a lifetime – 21 appearances, in fact. But through injury, a change in scenery and the will to never get down, New England Revolution striker Teal Bunbury got back in the scoring column.
And the winning goal.
On Saturday night against Sporting Kansas City, the club with whom he played his first four professional seasons, Bunbury followed a long cross into the box from Diego Fagundez on the right wing and redirected into the back of the net with his chest in the second minute of stoppage time to break a scoreless deadlock.
“The first thing I was thinking was just get a cross in,” said Fagundez, who delivered the ball from just outside the right side of the box. “Teal made a good run and I’m very happy for him to get his first goal.”
Bunbury started the game on right wing, unfamiliar ground for the man who has stood at the top of the attack in the seven games prior for New England.
Despite playing from a different spot, Bunbury had some solid chances in the first half from point-blank range on the right doorstep, one blocked and one saved.
“It’s definitely a different position for me, but I enjoyed it,” said Bunbury following New England’s 2-0 victory. “I had some chances and probably should have done better with those.”
In typical Bunbury fashion, he was quick to give credit to those around him, while humbly touching on breaking the ice with his game-winning goal.
But the ear-to-ear grin on his face told a story of relief, delight and a hunger for more.
“I’m just excited that we were able to get a win,” Bunbury said. “It feels good to beat the former champs, it feels good to get my first goal and that’s really what I’m happy about."
