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Archive for November 18, 2007
A Classic Championship Battle
November 18, 2007 by wilmington.
NOVEMBER 18, 2007 - Houston Dynamo are Back-To-Back MLS Champions!!!
It was an awesome final. Neither team tried to play it safe, two amazing headed goals, one scramble and finish in the box. Physical play, good refs, attacking style from both sides.
Most people focused on New England’s chance to avoid talk of a curse (going 0-4 in MLS Cup games, 0-3 in the past 3 years!), but the Houston story was just as compelling. After winning the championship last year (a goalkeeper save in PK’s vs. New England), Houston started the season 2-5-1 and then turned it all around to go 7-0-1 in the next 8 games (which included victories over 6 of the eventual playoff teams..2 of them semifinalists)!!
Over the course of the season, Houston proved to be the best defense in MLS history giving up only 22 goals in 31 games. They also broke the record for longest defensive scoreless streak in MLS history: 726 minutes without giving up a goal. Average crowd was about 15,000 (better than many MLB teams) and the home playoff games were sold-out, standing room only crowds (30,000 and 31,000).
In the Cup Final:
Even without injured main forward Brian Ching, Houston finds a way to come from behind and win. And once again, Dwayne DeRosario has a quiet game (or 3) but then rises up to score THE big goal in THE big game. 40,000 people cheering at RFK stadium - most for New England - with passionate support and reactions from fans of both teams.
It was the kind of game that can create new soccer fans.
Regardless of how ESPN or any other sports media cover the game on their shows tonight (and past experience suggests that SportsCenter will devote less time and respect to this than they will to way-early NHL games that mean almost nothing and had 1/3 of the attendance), this was a game you should try to watch and record if they re-play it on any of the ESPN channels later tonight or this week (check www.soccertv.com or the ESPN site).
I’m already looking forward to taking my son to the games in Houston next season.
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