Three MLS Cup Final appearances. Three overtime contests. One goal.
Those grisly statistics make it evident why New England Revolution head coach Steve Nicol said after Saturday morning's training session at RFK Stadium that his team needs to get off to a bright start in Sunday's league championship finale.
"We need to start well," Nicol said. "That leads you through the game. We want to get out of the box quickly."
Nicol's team wants to translate the loose confidence it showed during training this week in Sunday's contest. In the past, the Revs have played tightly, struggling to generate chances and failing to really open up the game.
Nicol said his team doesn't want to sit back and let the game come to them.
Revolution captain Steve Ralston agreed with his coach but indicated it might not be possible to get the offensive movement flowing in the first few minutes, especially with Houston's stingy defense on display and the tendency of teams to keep it tight at all costs in the opening minutes of a final.
"We'd like to start off well," Ralston said. "Sometimes, the game dictates that you won't be able to attack at the start, but we feel like we're going to create some chances."
Creating chances starts by winning the midfield battle and subsequently spraying the ball out onto the flanks in order to get service to Taylor Twellman and Pat Noonan in the attacking third. Nicol said Khano Smith and Wells Thompson have a large role to play in getting the front two involved.
Revs goalkeeper Matt Reis thinks his side will need to find a way to conjure up a special moment, such as the bicycle kick Twellman used to oust Chicago in the Eastern Conference final, in order to claim its first championship.
"When you get into final games, it takes something special," Reis said. "We're trying to do everything we can to find that. You learn you don't have that many chances to get here. It could be the last time we get here."
Chances to play in this game have piled up over the past six years, but Revs defender Michael Parkhurst believes his team is approaching this final with a lighter mind.
"I think there's less pressure on us this time," Parkhurst said. "Everyone's more confident. We're not cocky or complacent. There's a quiet confidence about this team. We have a trophy to win."
Nicol knows there's one thing he wants to do Sunday beside hoisting the team's first MLS crown.
"We're winning the game in 90 minutes," Nicol said. "That's what we're setting out to do."
Kyle McCarthy is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
