The New England had to settle for their sixth draw of the young season -- and their fourth at home -- on Wednesday night as the Portland Timbers soaked up plenty of pressure and rode Jack Barmby's first MLS goal to a road point at Gillette Stadium.
Barmby's bouncing side volley looked to have earned all three points for the defending MLS Cup champions, who welcomed Darlington Nagbe back to the starting lineup. But an increasingly desperate Revs side cranked up the urgency in the final minutes and were finally rewarded when Timbers goalkeeper Jake Gleeson, deputizing for the injured Adam Kwarasey, was beaten from close range one minute from full time.
New England rookie Femi Hollinger-Janzen appeared to have netted his first professional goal, but the final touch was eventually judged to have come off Portland defender Jermaine Taylor.
Box Score
- 64’ – POR – Jack Barmby (Darlington Nagbe, Fanendo Adi)
- 89’ – NE – Jermaine Taylor (OG)
- Full box score
- Stats
- Highlights
Three Things
1. BLUNT REVS: With Portland sitting back, New England hit a whopping 496 passes (more than 400 of them in their attacking half) and connected on a respectable 82 percent of them, but as the forest of red lines in the Timbers' penalty box on their OPTA passing chalkboard indicates, they were hapless when they reached the danger zone, lumping in 42 crosses and completing barely a quarter of them. It's been a worrisome trend for Jay Heaps' squad this season.
2. CD9 SIDELINED: Charlie Davies' night ended early when he limped off with what was later described as a groin injury, which could leave the Revs shorthanded up top for some time to come. Will Heaps give Juan Agudelo a run in the starting XI?
3. TIMBERS CRACK: Portland started two out-and-out strikers in Fanendo Adi and Jack McInerney, yet largely allowed the Revolution to dictate terms. It was understandable given their travel and injury absences, and they seemed comfortably organized for the most part. Yet the late breakdown washed away much of that hard work and leaves them with a point to prove at home to Toronto this weekend.
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