Dynamo 1, Union 0: The Particulars
by Zach Woosley on Nov 4, 2011 8:31 AM CDT
in Match Reports
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Philadelphia Union vs. Houston Dynamo
November 03, 2011 -- Robertson Stadium
Eastern Conference semifinals -- Game 2
Attendance: 24,749
Scoring Summary:
HOU -- Brian Ching 1 (Brad Davis 2) 48+
Philadelphia Union -- Faryd Mondragon, Sheanon Williams, Carlos Valdes, Danny Califf, Gabriel Farfan (Roger Torres 66), Michael Farfan, Brian Carroll, Veljko Paunovic (Freddy Adu 66), Sebastien Le Toux, Jack McInerney, Danny Mwanga (Justin Mapp 66).
Substitutes Not Used: Zac MacMath, Stefani Miglioranzi, Kyle Nakazawa, Amobi Okugo.
Houston Dynamo -- Tally Hall, Andre Hainault, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Corey Ashe, Danny Cruz (Je-Vaughn Watson 57), Adam Moffat, Luiz Camargo, Brad Davis, Brian Ching (Carlo Costly 81), Calen Carr (Will Bruin 91+).
Substitutes Not Used: Tyler Deric, Alex Dixon, Hunter Freeman, Jermaine Taylor.
Game Notes:
The Houston Dynamo advanced to their fourth conference championship game in six seasons with a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Union on Thursday night at Robertson Stadium, completing a 3-1 aggregate victory in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Houston will take on Sporting Kansas City on Sunday in Kansas City, Kan., with the kickoff time still to be announced.
Dynamo all-time leading scorer Brian Ching scored the games only goal in first-half stoppage time, heading in a free kick from MLS assist king Brad Davis. The goal was Chings eighth career playoff goal five have come at Robertson Stadium and lifted the Dynamo to the 100th win in club history in all competitions (100-72-75). Davis has now recorded assists in four consecutive games and five of his last six to run his season total to 18 in all competitions, plus a 19th in an in-season friendly.
The Dynamo extended their unbeaten streak to eight games (6-0-2) and are now 9-2-4 in their last 15 games. The unbeaten streak is the longest since an 11-game regular-season unbeaten streak from April 19-June 20, 2009.
Houston is now 6-1 all-time in home playoff games, including a 4-1 record in the second leg of conference semifinal series. The Dynamo are now 8-4-3 all-time in playoff games.
The conference championship game matchup between Houston and Kansas City is a rematch of the 2007 Western Conference championship game, which the Dynamo won 2-0 at Robertson Stadium en route to a second consecutive MLS Cup title.
In Thursdays game, Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall needed only four saves to record the shutout, his seventh of the season, running Houstons shutout streak in the series to 173 minutes. Halls biggest stop came in the 59th minute, when he dove to his left to stop a long-range shot from Veljko Paunovic and did not allow a rebound. The shutout is the fifth playoff shutout in Dynamo history in 15 games.
Houston defender Corey Ashe made his 100th career start for the Dynamo in all competitions, the 13th player in club history and the second this season (along with Geoff Cameron) to reach that milestone. Midfielder Brad Davis played in his 199th career game for Houston, while defender Bobby Boswell made his 140th career start for the Dynamo. Forward Brian Ching played in his 20th career playoff game. Midfielder Danny Cruz tied a career high with his 16th start of the season.
The Dynamo played without forward Cam Weaver (right hip surgery).
Next Match: Sunday, November 6, Dynamo at Sporting Kansas City, LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kan., time TBA (Eastern Conference final)
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Yup
One more win = We go to the cup Final AND get ConcaChampions League games at Dynamo Park next year
Two more wins = All of that and much, much more
"We don't care who finishes second." -- Celtic's Peter Lowrie
The double-edged sword
that is single-game elimination. SKC is a formidable opponent but you never quite know what can happen…I just feel that given our confidence, form and the fact that we have a rotation that has been working quite well at the end of the season that we can find a way to nullify the young legs they have at forward. I see shades of the FCD game as well as some from the Union series in terms of opposition speed and spacing and how we’ve had trouble with that…we’re still not quite comfortable with it but I think we have a much better handle on how to deal with it.
And wow, can you imagine CCL games at Dynamo Park next year???
/Can’t get ahead of myself…but its hard not to :)
One thing at a time.
This game against SKC will be a bitch, in fact the winner of this game would probably be a shoe in for the Cup if not for LA getting the damn thing in their home stadium (assuming they get past RSL).
Still, it’s winnable. The Dynamo are rolling right now and if they can control the game like they did against Philly, they can win.
--
"You live and learn. At any rate, you live." -Douglas Adams
Managing Editor of Dynamo Theory
Yo si le voy, le voy al naranja!
Exactly
I’d like to think we can use the Philly series as the blueprint against SKC…mind you, SKC is more dangerous but still, its roughly the same in terms of attacking impetus.
I think we’re going to try and slow and control the tempo and maybe even try testing their backline some. I do agree that its definitely a winnable game, its just going to be a matter of concentration (which we’re prone to lose every now and again) and execution.
IT'S GONNA BE A HELLUVA GAME!!!!
We match up so well against eachother. Both very strong at controlling the ball and set pieces. It’s all going to come down to who imposes their will on the other. Useless presiction: good guys 3 the wiz 1.
by HTown80 on Nov 4, 2011 2:49 PM CDT via mobile reply actions
I need to put in a little more analysis. I worry about KC’s speed on attack mostly as if they get going they can score in bunches.
However, I don’t think a 3-man midfield can contain us, and I know for a fact our back line is better than theirs. We have to keep possession. Make them chase us and use up energy. And then score. Exploit their inexperience. Make their young guys make mistakes and feel the pressure. Stay in shape. And perhaps most of all, score early. That team is mentally soft and we can get in their domes if we can either score early or just keep them from scoring. An ounce of frustration can be a Mickey of a brew to them.
"We don't care who finishes second." -- Celtic's Peter Lowrie
by Martek on Nov 4, 2011 5:31 PM CDT via iPhone app reply actions
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