E. RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Brad Davis remembers the last time he took a penalty kick in a United States uniform. And just in case he forgot, Glenn "Mooch" Myernick reminded him.
It was in Mexico against Honduras in the third place game of the 2004 Olympic qualifiers. That kick was saved, but Sunday at Giants Stadium, Davis converted his attempt, lifting the United States past Panama in the CONCACAF Gold Cup final.
"It was great, I waited for that for a long time and to do it with the full team back here in New York was a great feeling," Davis said.
Davis' penalty kick, slotted low to the left of Panamanian goalkeeper Jaime Penedo, gave the U.S. its third Gold Cup title after the two teams played 120 scoreless minutes.
The San Jose Earthquakes midfielder, who has also played for the MetroStars and the then-Dallas Burn, replaced Clint Dempsey in the 84th minute. He said he chose to take the fourth, and what proved to be the decisive kick, partially because his older brother Jeff wore No. 4 when he was at St. Louis University.
"Being a substitute in a game is never easy and he doesn't have a whole lot of experience," said Myernick, who coached Davis on the U-23 team and replaced a suspended Bruce Arena on Sunday. "But he's a kid with a great deal of confidence and I thought he injected the game with a great deal of energy, he hit a whole bunch of good crosses, he got behind them, he made good combination play.
"Being a young guy, he significantly improved the quality of the soccer when he came into the game."
Davis would love to be in Arena's plans should the U.S. qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, but he's realistic with left sided players DaMarcus Beasley and Eddie Lewis in front of him.
"I don't have any anticipation of jumping in and taking a spot," Davis said. "I just wanted to come in and be able to play with these guys, train with them and get used to the atmosphere."
Davis was called up to the full national team for the first time because of a combination of injuries and European-based players concentrating on their preseason. He earned his first cap in the United States' Gold Cup opening 4-1 win over Cuba July 7 in Seattle.
But he was replaced by John O'Brien after badly spraining his left ankle and he didn't play again until Sunday.
With Eddie Pope, Pablo Mastroeni and Pat Noonan all out with sprained ankles while Steve Ralston missed the match with a mild concussion - all suffered in a 2-1 semifinal win over Honduras Thursday night - Davis was brought on because he had fresh legs and a "good left peg," Mynerick said.
Davis started his MLS career with the MetroStars, the No. 3 pick in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft after two stellar seasons at St. Louis University. He was traded to Dallas in a 2003 draft-day deal for the fourth overall pick (which ended up being Mike Magee), and he was then shipped to San Jose for Richard Mulrooney and Arturo Alvarez the day of the 2005 draft.
That move has paid major dividends for Davis, 23, and helped earn his first full national team call-up.
"Brad's move to San Jose, we think, has benefited him," Myernick said. "Brad's a technician. He's not a runner, he's not a battler. So on a small field in San Jose he's really shown some of the qualities he has in terms of passing and crossing the ball."
Dylan Butler is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
