SAN JOSE, Calif. ā The San Jose Earthquakes set a franchise record this year with 13 shutouts, more than even the 2005 edition put up while wining the MLS Supportersā Shield.
Yet the Quakes ended the regular-season by allowing more goals than in any other match, and the sight of Kansas City's Birahim Diop scything through San Joseās back line for his first MLS hat trick last weekend was perhaps SJ's lowlight of the season.
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The question is, which Quakes defense will show up Saturday for the franchiseās first playoff match since being reestablished in 2008?
āI would say itās probably the defense [of the 13 shutouts],ā Quakes defender Tim Ward said. āWe had worked so hard in the last 10 or 15 games to make the playoffs, once we got there, I donāt know if everybody felt like we could take it easy or what, but we just werenāt the same team we were when we were fighting and battling and trying to make the playoffs.
āThatās the kind of team we are ā a team that has to fight. Nothingās going to come easy for us. If we expect it to come easy, itās not going to happen.ā
Certainly, very little will be easy when it comes to stopping New York and their fearsome array of weaponry in the Eastern Conference semifinal, which begins Saturday night at Buck Shaw Stadium (Telefutura, 10 p.m. ET).
Even if Thierry Henry canāt play due to injury, Red Bulls coach Hans Backe can still run out the likes of Juan Pablo Ćngel, Joel Lindpere and Dane Richards to put pressure on the Quakes.
[inlinenode:321974]Richards had a standout game in the teamsā last meeting, scoring one goal and assisting on another ā Henryās MLS maiden ā in a 2-0 Red Bulls victory on Aug. 28. Even with the tireless Bobby Convey playing left back, Richardsā speed down New Yorkās right flank simply bedeviled the San Joseās backline on several occasions.
āTo be honest, thereās not many guys in the league with that pace,ā Quakes center back Brandon McDonald said. āYou canāt really prepare for it. Youāve just got to come out and execute your game and do it well. Weāve gotten this far for a reason. I think we just keep continuing on that path and weāll be alright.ā
San Jose coach Frank Yallop took pains to point out that the Quakes had several solid chances go by the boards in that defeat at Red Bull Arena. And heās looking for the same kind of wide-open contest this time around.
āTheyāve got a lot of weapons,ā Yallop said. āWe feel that we can get at them, though. Going forward toward our goal, hopefully it leaves them a little open in the back. I expect it to be an end-to-end game. They wouldnāt come down here and sit back, I wouldnāt think. So weāve got to be on our game, but we feel good about the matchup.ā
As for the lack of motivation on display in Kansas City, Yallop has no qualms about his teamās readiness.
āWhen we needed to win, in the right moments, we did it this year,ā Yallop said. āSo it showed you the mental toughness of our group. Theyāve already forgot about it. That wonāt be a factor in this series at all.ā
Ward understands the skepticās view that increasing the amount of urgency injected into a team canāt be easy as flipping a proverbial switch. But he still maintains thatās what will happen Saturday.
āI think weāll have it, because we brought it every game until we clinched,ā Ward said. āThen we let down for some reason. But I think everybody knows now that the real work begins this weekend.ā
Geoff Lepper covers the Earthquakes for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached at sanjosequakes@gmail.com . On Twitter: @sjquakes
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