The New England Revolution claimed their ninth victory on the season with a rousing second-half rally, coming from 2-1 down after 72 minutes to claim a 4-2 victory against the MetroStars at Gillette Stadium on Saturday night.
A first-minute goal by Jose Cancela put the visitors on the back foot before they recovered in the middle third of the match with a pair of strikes set up by the hard work of Sergio Galvan Rey. The former Once Caldas frontman won a penalty in the 66th minute, finished by Youri Djorkaeff, and scored two minutes later to edge the Metros in front.
Jay Heaps tallied the equalizer in the 72nd minute with a powerful near-post header from an Andy Dorman corner. Two defensive blunders then allowed the opportunistic Revolution to claim victory, with Steve Ralston picking the ball off Jeff Parke's foot in the 86th minute and Pat Noonan chipping Zach Wells after he was out to sea in stoppage time to seal the victory in an entertaining game.
It was less than thirty seconds into the match when Cancela struck. Metros 'keeper Zach Wells had inched off his line, and Cancela's looping effort lobbed over his head for an early opener for the home side. It was the first Revolution goal inside the opening sixty seconds since former Revs and Metros striker Giovanni Savarese scored in Miami on March 28, 1999.
The home side nearly doubled their advantage in the fourth minute. Clint Dempsey rattled the joint of the bar and post with a vicious strike that had Wells beaten. A Ralston cross was on point, with Dempsey's deft chest trap down to his feet setting up the blast from 20 yards.
The MetroStars challenged the Revolution occasionally on the counter during the first stanza, but the visitors did not truly establish comfortable possession on the ball. They did have a goal ruled out for offside, as Galvan Rey's 18-yard strike was expertly placed out of the reach of Matt Reis, but the assistant referee correctly ruled that Galvan Rey had ranged behind the last defender.
Cassio, earning a surprise start for New England in place of Marshall Leonard on the left-hand side, challenged Wells in the 12th minute with a well-struck left footed volley. With a diving save to his left, Wells pushed the ball away from its intended destination in the upper left-hand corner.
Djorkaeff threatened for the visitors, who looked better in the final 15 minutes of the opening half, in the 17th minute, educating Cassio on the finer arts of attacking play before firing just wide of Reis's left hand post. Amado Guevara later shimmied past two Revs on the left hand side of the box after 33 minutes, but his shot just missed the right-hand post.
Revolution manager Steve Nicol was evidently displeased with the first half performance, as he made a double substitution at the break. Goal scorer Cancela was withdrawn for the more defensive minded Dorman, while the ineffective Cassio was replaced by James Riley.
Both sides went close in the early exchanges after the restart. Galvan Rey just missed the far post in the 50th minute with a curling attempt, then on the hour, Noonan went close, but Wells was sure-handed at the near post.
The entrance of Eddie Gaven after 66 minutes revitalized the MetroStars, as they scored two goals in the four minutes to take a shock lead. It was deserved, as the pressure had mounted after the interval, and Galvan Rey was at the heart of both attacking forays.
The Colombian won a penalty in the 68th minute, with an incisive long ball from Chris Leitch providing the impetus. Dorman clattered into Galvan Rey from behind, leaving referee Ricardo Salazar with no choice but to point to the spot. Djorkaeff made no mistake with a powerful drive to Reis's right -- that the 'keeper still managed to get a hand to -- to level the score.
The King of Goals found his fourth on the campaign in the 69th minute. With Revolution substitute Avery John sleeping on a throw-in, Gaven got in behind the Trinidad international to whip a cross along the top of the six-yard box. Galvan Rey beat Jay Heaps to the ball, side-footed a volley past the hopeless Reis to give the visitors the lead.
Heaps made amends in the 72nd minute, rising unmarked to meet a Dorman corner at the near post to power his header past Wells to even the match.
A moment of incomparable laissez-faire play at the back gave the Revolution the victory in the 86th minute. Jeff Parke appeared to be expecting a foul call after a forearm to the back of Dempsey. Seeing none, Parke held the ball and was stripped by Ralston. The U.S. international deposited the gift in the lower right hand corner with a curling shot.
The defensive blunders continued just into stoppage time, as Wells was caught wandering upfield by Noonan. Wells was in no-man's land, and Noonan's chip from 35 yards eluded the 'keeper to seal the victory.
MLSnet.com Man of the Match: Steve Ralston (New England Revolution)
Kyle McCarthy is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
MetroStars (5-4-5) vs. New England Revolution (9-1-4)
June 25, 2005 -- Gillette Stadium
Scoring Summary:
NE -- Jose Cancela 1 (Clint Dempsey 7) 1
MET -- Youri Djorkaeff 3 (penalty kick) 67
MET -- Sergio Galvan Rey 4 (Eddie Gaven 3, Chris Leitch 1) 68
NE -- Jay Heaps 1 (Andy Dorman 3) 72
NE -- Steve Ralston 1 (unassisted) 86
NE -- Pat Noonan 8 (Avery John 1) 91+
MetroStars -- Zach Wells, Chris Leitch, Jeff Agoos, Jeff Parke, Tim Regan, Mike Magee (Eddie Gaven 65), Michael Bradley, Mark Lisi, Amado Guevara, Youri Djorkaeff (Seth Stammler 88), Sergio Galvan Rey.
Substitutes Not Used: Danilo da Silva, Carlos Mendes, Michael Ueltschey.
TOTAL SHOTS: 12 (Sergio Galvan Rey 5); SHOTS ON GOAL: 7 (Sergio Galvan Rey 3); FOULS: 12 (4 tied with 2); OFFSIDES: 6 (Sergio Galvan Rey 3); CORNER KICKS: 2 (Amado Guevara 2); SAVES: 6 (Zach Wells 6)
New England Revolution -- Matt Reis, Jay Heaps, Michael Parkhurst, Joe Franchino, Steve Ralston, Jose Cancela (Andy Dorman 46), Clint Dempsey, Shalrie Joseph, Cassio (James Riley 46), Khano Smith (Avery John 68), Pat Noonan.
Substitutes Not Used: Connally Edozien, Ryan Latham, Marshall Leonard, Doug Warren.
TOTAL SHOTS: 14 (Pat Noonan 3, Steve Ralston 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 10 (Pat Noonan 3, Steve Ralston 3); FOULS: 15 (Clint Dempsey 3, Andy Dorman 3); OFFSIDES: 3 (3 tied with 1); CORNER KICKS: 1 (Andy Dorman 1); SAVES: 5 (Matt Reis 5)
Misconduct Summary:
MET -- Chris Leitch (caution; Professional Foul) 4
MET -- Amado Guevara (caution; Dissent) 26
MET -- Seth Stammler (caution; Tackle from Behind) 93+
Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Referee's Assistants: Bill Dittmar; Greg Barkey
4th Official: Gus St. Silva
Attendance: 17,194
Time of Game: 1:54
Weather: Clear-and-87-degrees
All Statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial.
