The MetroStars turned their ship around last weekend at home, and now to look to keep things headed in the right direction against a suddenly reeling Dallas Burn outfit. Metro won for the first time in more than a month with a 1-0 victory against Kansas City - but they still haven't lost in four matches while maintaining a share of the Eastern Conference lead. But the Burn have lost four consecutive matches after opening the season with a four-match unbeaten run, falling into last place in the Western Conference.
REFEREE: Gus St. Silva. SAR (bench): Craig Lowry; JAR (opposite): David Bragg; 4th: Andrew Chapin
MLS Career: 25 games; FC/gm: 35.5; Y/gm: 4.0; R: 6; pens: 6
Games involving MetroStars: P7 W2 L4 T1; FC/gm: 40.9; Y/gm: 4.8; R: 2; pens: 3
Games involving Burn: P7 W5 L1 T1; FC/gm: 31.9; Y/gm: 3.1; R: 0; pens: 1
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: MET: DF Tenywa Bonseu (Uganda, June 5 v DR Congo); FW Cornell Glen (Trinidad & Tobago; June 2 v Northern Ireland)
SUSPENDED: none
YELLOW PERIL: DAL: Simo Valakari (16 CP)
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (19 meetings): MetroStars 10 wins (1 shootout), 29 goals ... Burn 10 wins (0 shootout), 37 goals ... 1 draw
AT MEADOWLANDS: MetroStars 5 wins (1 shootout), 14 goals ... Burn 5 wins, 18 goals ... 1 draw
The clubs meet for the first time in three meetings this year, the first of two in New Jersey. They'll meet again at Giants Stadium on Aug. 15, before coming together for the only time at the Cotton Bowl on Sept. 25.
A year ago, the MetroStars won the first two matches before the teams played a remarkable scoreless draw. On May 24 at Dragon Stadium, Metro came back to snatch a late 2-1 victory (Kreis 63 - Mathis 60, Jolley 84), then they won by the same scoreline, again thanks to a late comeback and this time on a John Wolyniec golden goal (Magee 84, Wolyniec 95 - Davis 26)
The teams then played to a scoreless draw on Oct. 11, as three penalty kicks were saved, two by Dallas 'keeper D.J. Countess (Amado Guevara 2, Clint Mathis 86), then one by Metro 'keeper (Eddie Johnson 88).
The MetroStars have not lost in the last four meetings against the Burn, winning three in a row before the scoreless draw last year. The MetroStars have also won their last two games in Dallas.
Only three current MetroStars have scored goals against Dallas - John Wolyniec (2 goals, 1 assist), and Mike Magee and Eddie Pope (1 goal each). Clint Mathis is the Metro all-time leader against the Burn with 9 goals, 1 assist.
Jason Kreis is the all-time Burn leader with 11 goals, 6 assists. Only one other Burn player has more than 1 goal against the MetroStars - Carey Talley, with 2 goals, 2 assists (but none with Dallas). Oscar Pareja is one of four Burn players with 1 goal v Metro, but also has 8 assists.
Coaches record: Bob Bradley vs. DAL: P20 W10 L8 D2 ... Colin Clarke v MET: P1 W0 L0 T1METROSTARS
The MetroStars won for the first time in more than a month, defeating the Kansas City Wizards 1-0 at home on Sunday evening. While the victory snapped a five-match winless run, it also extended their unbeaten run to four games, and allowed Metro to keep pace with the rest of the Eastern Conference, now level on 13 points with the Chicago Fire atop the division with a match in hand.
The MetroStars finally broke down a stubborn Wizards defense, John Wolyniec diving to head home the rebound of an Eddie Gaven shot that came back off the face of the crossbar 17 minutes from time.
The victory was the first for Metro since April 17, after two victories to begin the season, while the Wizards are still winless and goalless away from home in three matches this season.
"Even though we gave up some chances, we finally were able to manage a result," said goalkeeper Jonny Walker. "To be up on a team and hold the end result for the win. The three points were humongous."
MetroStars head coach Bob Bradley made two changes to the team that drew 1-1 with the New England Revolution the previous weekend - his strike partnership. Sergio Galvan Rey made his first start in four games and John Wolyniec his first start in six, as Cornell Glen was away on international duty with Trinidad & Tobago and Fabian Taylor returned to the substitutes bench.
Here's Bradley's team (4-4-2): Jonny Walker - Craig Ziadie, Jeff Parke, Eddie Pope, Chris Leitch - Joselito Vaca (Tim Regan 89), Amado Guevara, Mark Lisi (Ricardo Clark 79), Eddie Gaven - Sergio Galvan Rey (Fabian Taylor 69), John Wolyniec
"Kansas City had some chances late," Bradley said. "But I think we had some stretches where we controlled the ball better."
For Wolyniec, it was his third goal of the season - all coming in the games that he has started. "That's what John does," Bradley said. "He works hard and looks for chances like that. He has the ability to score late in games, because he's constantly working hard and making the most of his minutes on the field."
Said MetroStars goalkeeper Jonny Walker of Wolyniec "He's the heart and soul of the locker room. He brings that when he gets out there on the field. Any half chance that's left out there, you know he's going to go for it."
But Wolyniec has no illusions about owning a starting spot: "It's definitely going to be a game-to-game thing. Unless somebody's scoring two goals a game, I don't think they're going to solidify a spot."
Central defender Tenywa Bonseu was also unavailable as he left for Uganda to join his country's national team in advance of its FIFA World Cup qualifier against DR Congo on June 5.
Glen started in Trinidad & Tobago's 4-1 loss to Scotland on Saturday in Edinburgh, but played just 28 minutes before being forced off with a thigh strain. Scotland scored four goals in the first 34 minutes to put away the match early; the lone T&T goal came from former Columbus Crew striker Stern John in the second half.DALLAS BURN
The Dallas Burn went down to defeat for the fourth consecutive week, falling 4-1 to the Los Angeles Galaxy at The Home Depot Center on Saturday night. The Burn remained in last place in the Western Conference, but despite the loss lost no real ground in the division as the rest of the division (save L.A.) also lost on the night. The Burn now have eight points from eight matches, two points in arrears of the Colorado Rapids and seven points behind the Galaxy.
Jovan Kirovski scored a pair of goals as the Los Angeles Galaxy maintained their best overall record in the league with a 4-1 victory against the Dallas Burn, who fell to their fourth consecutive loss after starting the season with a four-game unbeaten streak.
Sasha Victorine headed home a Cobi Jones cross from close range when the Galaxy took advantage of a defensive error after just nine minutes, then after the break, the Galaxy doubled their lead through an own goal after Steve Jolley headed a free kick past 'keeper Scott Garlick when battling Victorine in the area (65).
Ronnie O'Brien pulled a goal back for the Burn six minutes later when he finished off a long run through the heart of the Galaxy defense, hooking a shot home from inside the area while falling, but just a minute later the home side restored their margin to two when Kirovski headed home a Marcelo Saragosa cross that the luckless Jolley again helped over the line.
Kirovski then secured his double, converting a penalty kick four minutes deep into second-half stoppage time for his fifth goal of the campaign, tied for second in the league with teammate Alejandro Moreno and San Jose's Brian Ching, one behind still-injured Galaxy marksman Carlos Ruiz.
"Some bad individual mistakes cost us," said Burn coach Colin Clarke.
Clarke made just two changes to the team that lost 2-0 away to the Kansas City Wizards the previous weekend. Carey Talley came into a deep midfield role alongside Simo Valakari as Brad Davis moved to the left side of midfield, Eric Quill the odd man out. Jason Kreis also made his first start of 2004, coming in for the injured Bobby Rhine.
Here's Clarke's team (4-4-2): Scott Garlick - Philip Salyer (Toni Nhleko 74), Cory Gibbs, Steve Jolley, Chris Gbandi - Ronnie O'Brien, Carey Talley (Oscar Pareja 79), Simo Valakari, Brad Davis (Eric Quill 74) - Jason Kreis, Eddie Johnson.
"We gave up three bad goals at three bad times," Clarke said. "We didn't defend crosses very well. We let them boss us around. We made it too easy for them." Said O'Brien: "We weren't good enough all over the field from the attack to the defense. We're not defending as a team and we're not playing as a team so that's why we're getting beat."
