Though it looked like any other 2-0 result for the Red Bulls, their victory over Columbus on Wednesday night had been a win that the team had been craving for so far this season.
After playing eight games on the road without once earning three points, New York finally earned that crucial win away from Giants Stadium, catapulting them to a three-way tie with idle Chicago and Kansas City at 20 points for third place. It was also the Red Bulls' first win against an Eastern Conference foe in nine tries.
"It's huge," defender Carlos Mendes said about the win's significance. "Hopefully, we get some momentum. We've got to keep this going and we've [still] got a lot of work to do."
Earlier in the season, the Red Bulls were a tough team to break down away from home and they had their chances to win. Wednesday night marked New York's fourth road game in which it scored first this season. However, the Red Bulls record in the first three matches was 0-0-3.
Their fortunes changed at Crew Stadium.
After a first half that saw few chances and strong goaltending by New York's Jon Conway to keep the contest scoreless, the Red Bulls came out with energy in the second half, and their persistence paid off.
"[Acting head coach Richie Williams] said at the end of the first half, we lost a little bit of concentration and gave up a few chances, but other than that, we played a good half," Conway said.
Midfielder Amado Guevara had the first chance in the second half when the Honduran blasted a volley that almost hit the target. Guevara's miss was a warning shot, as the Red Bulls, who have struggled with their finishing in front of goal in 2006, found the back of the net.
During his expansive career, Chris Henderson has made a career of making runs on the wings, waiting for the right pass to spring him onto goal. He got that perfect delivery in the 50th minute.
After Columbus lost possession in the middle of the field, Buddle picked up the ball, took a few touches and looked up before stringing a beautiful pass to an onside Henderson.
Henderson was then in on Crew goaltender Noah Palmer and he fired a low, left-footed shot past Palmer into the corner of the net.
Meanwhile, throughout the contest, Marvell Wynne, Jeff Parke and Seth Stammler - and later, substitute Todd Dunivant - were able to snuff out every Columbus attack. Though there were several standout performers in the back line however, members of the team noted afterwards that center back Mendes was the man of the match.
"It makes my job easier when we are playing better as a team and we're defending as a team and we don't have to defend for 90 minutes," Mendes said, deflecting the praise.
Wednesday's victory gives the Red Bulls their first winning streak in 2006. And despite the absence of starting goaltender Tony Meola due to a bacterial infection of the right foot and ankle, Conway has done an admirable job as his replacement, posting two-straight shutouts with the first one coming against Colorado (1-0) last Friday. It is the first time New York has accomplished that feat since it defeated D.C. United (1-0) and Columbus (2-0) on May 10, 2003 and May 17, 2003, respectively.
"You look at [the next game] and we play another team that's right there [Kansas City] that we can try and hop over," Henderson said. "It's about believing in the guys in the locker room, working for each other and I think now we have competition for spots which is what we've always been looking for."
Laventure Hits First MLS Goal in Stunning Fashion
With only minutes to play and the Red Bulls clinging onto a 1-0 lead, the logical play for Jerrod Laventure would have been to burn time off the clock. However, after goaltender Jon Conway boomed it up field and Jean Philippe Peguero headed it on, Laventure saw Crew goaltender Noah Palmer off his line.
"It's probably something he wasn't going to expect," Laventure said. "I don't know what I was thinking, I probably should have taken that ball up to the corner and wasted some time."
Instead, Laventure took the ball off the bounce and lobbed it perfectly over Palmer's head and right under the crossbar from over 30 yards out - giving him his first-ever MLS goal. It was only less than two weeks ago that Laventure made his league debut.
Conway also earned his first assist on the season on Laventure's strike.
"Guess it was a good kick by me then," Conway said, laughing.
As for Laventure, how does it personally rank among the top goals he's scored?
"I can tell you this: It was definitely my best MLS goal."
The goal was showcased at number six on ESPN SportsCenter's Top Plays on Wednesday.
Dunivant Makes Red Bulls Debut
After missing three games due to a left quadriceps strain, defender Todd Dunivant made his first appearance in a New York Red Bulls uniform, replacing Chris Henderson in the 75th minute. Dunivant slotted into his natural left back position, while Seth Stammler moved to the midfield.
"It was great. I got 20 minutes in and I felt pretty good. Now, it's just a matter of getting better each game and getting that fitness back," he said.
Prior to being acquired from Los Angeles by New York for a partial allocation on June 27, Dunivant started and played in 13 games for the Galaxy.
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