COLUMBUS, Ohio – When rivals of Columbus Crew SC are discussed, teams like the Chicago Fire, D.C. United and Toronto FC are often mentioned.
But in the last two seasons, no matchup has been more heated than when the club plays the New England Revolution.
The clubs met five times in 2014. Crew SC won two of three matches in the regular season before being blasted 7-3 on aggregate goals in their 2014 MLS Cup Playoff series that included a 4-2 home loss to the first leg.
After a 0-0 draw early in 2015, the teams meet again Wednesday night in Columbus (7:30 pm ET; MLS LIVE), where Crew SC are not shying away from what the matchup means to them.
“There are definitely games that, as a player, you get more up for,” Crew SC captain Michael Parkhurst said. “New England is definitely one team that most of the guys get more up for. … The internal fumes get going a bit more when it’s New England. That’s just the way it is. I’m sure some of their guys feel the same way.”
Head coach Gregg Berhalter called it an “intense rivalry,” and strayed from his usual refrain of every match being the same.
“I’m not going to start stifling players’ feelings and emotions, if that’s the way they see it,” he said with a laugh. “It’s a game that the intensity rises because of the nature of the opponent and because of the aspirations of both opponents and because of the past games. So that’s the nature of when we play New England.”
Do the players let themselves get caught up in the emotion of the match? Winger Ethan Finlay said it can be a positive.
“You have to; if you don’t, you’re being too much of a robot,” he said. “The passion is part of it. It can bring out incredible moments, and it can bring out bad moments. We hope we can challenge that to bring out some extra energy and give us an opportunity to win the game. The passion becomes contagious. When you see one guy who’s getting in, it makes everyone around you want to get in and give everything you’ve got.”
And while players and coaches often shy away from the word “rivalry,” Crew SC seem to be embracing the idea with the Revolution, especially after what Finlay called an “embarrassing” game the last time the clubs met at MAPFRE Stadium.
“I think it has become a little something,” Finlay said. “We have a bad taste in our mouth after the playoffs last year and going out the way we did. It wasn’t our finest hour, and I think that’s something we think about this year. … We relish the opportunity for them to come here and, in a way, get a little revenge.”
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And rather than playing for a “cup” created out of thin air or in a rivalry based on geography, Parkhurst said the competition between the two teams is what drives a “chippy” spirit between the clubs.
“It wasn’t because the fans said it was a rivalry or anything, it was because we were battling for second or third place there in the East,” he said. “I think, even though we’re a little lower in the table, that’s still a team we’re going to battle with for a playoff spot later in the season. That’s what makes it fun for us.”
While he hopes to avoid a heated, double-red card showing that Crew SC put up in the second leg playoff loss last season, Parkhurst says to expect plenty of physicality in this second matchup of the season.
“The blood starts rising, and things start happening,” he said. “You expect the same on Wednesday night. There will be some tackles – some of them will be good and some of them won’t be. There will be some cards for sure; that’s just the way it is.
“Nobody wants to go overboard like we did in the second playoff game last year. That was unnecessary. But we want it to be intense; we want it to be hard-fought.”
Andrew King covers Columbus Crew SC for MLSsoccer.com.
