CHESTER, Pa. — Jack McInerney’s hot streak continued as the Philadelphia Union edged the New England Revolution, 1-0, on Saturday night at PPL Park.
In an Eastern Conference matchup pitting two teams already eliminated from playoff contention, McInerney snuck to the back post and headed home a Keon Daniel set-piece cross in the 73rd minute. Michael Farfan drew a foul to earn the free kick to help the Union capture their second straight win and third in their last four games.
The eighth-place Union, who have never lost to New England in their three-year history, move to 10-15-6 on the season.
The ninth-place Revs fall to 7-17-8 and are just 1-13-2 on the road.
McInerney — who now leads the club with seven goals, having scored in his past three games — came out to a big ovation in the 81st minute in favor of veteran defender Chris Albright. McInerney had other opportunities to score but couldn’t convert a couple of early looks to give the Union a halftime lead, even as the hosts controlled more than 60 percent of the possession in the first half.
The Revs, despite being back on their heels at times, actually had the best chance to score when New England forward Jerry Bengston made a move around Union goalie Zac MacMath and found himself shooting on an empty net in the 29th minute. Yet Bengtson somehow pinged his wide-open attempt off the upright.
Later in the first half, New England’s Alec Purdie got around the defense but took a weak shot that MacMath easily scooped up. In the second half, New England substitute Fernando Cardenas used a deflection to also get behind Philly’s backline but couldn’t even get a shot off as the Revs wasted a prime opportunity to score.
In the 85th minute, MacMath smothered a close-range header from Ryan Guy to preserve the shutout, Philly’s eighth of the season.
OPTA CHALKBOARD: The X's and O's of Philadelphia's victory
It didn’t help for the Revs when midfielder Benny Feilhaber was sent off in the 89th minute for his second yellow card and New England went down a man.
Both teams were shorthanded, with the Union missing starters Danny Cruz (right achilles strain) and defender Sheanon Williams (yellow card accumulation) and New England playing without Stephen McCarthy (concussive-like symptoms), Lee Nguyen (shoulder surgery) and Saer Sene (knee surgery), among others. Philadelphia’s Freddy Adu (quad strain) also didn’t play for his third straight game, although he did make the 18-man roster.
Both the Union and Revs are off for two weeks. Philly return to action with a game at Houston on October 20 (7:30 pm ET, NBC Sports), while New England will host Chicago that same day (7:30 pm ET, MLS Live).
MLSsoccer.com Men of the Match
Rank |
Player |
What We Saw |
1 |
<a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/node/76272"><span style="font-size:12px;">Jack McInerney</span></a> |
Threatened the Revs defense before finally scoring to extend his streak and give Philly the win. |
2 |
<a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/players/gabriel-gomez"><span style="font-size:12px;">Gabriel Gómez</span></a> |
Panamanian was sharp during his 71 minutes on the field, got the job done at both ends for the Union. |
3 |
<a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/players/benny-feilhaber"><span style="font-size:12px;">Benny Feilhaber</span></a> |
The Revs man did well to pull the strings from his midfield spot, but the stain on his night was the red. |
