Monday Morning Centre Back: Globetrotting

Hope everyone had an enjoyable and safe Halloween (the guy in the picture probably didn't considering the result from the Sounders match, but at least he had a good costume) and you didn't get sick from eating too much candy.

Not a lot of news from the Dynamo over the weekend as MLS was focused on the opening matches of the 2011 MLS Cup Playoffs. I'll offer my thoughts of the first round of games, but first, let's take a look at the one piece of news that did come out.

With the season over, the Houston Dynamo coaching staff is already busy scouting and preparing for the 2011 season. You can read the entire article at the team's website, but I'll hit the high points here.

Dominic Kinnear heads to Brazil tonight, while assistant coaches Wade Barrett and Steve Ralston will leave later in the week to Columbia. Meanwhile, goalkeeper coach Tim Hanley will be traveling checking out collegiate talent here in the states. The coaching staff also has trips scheduled to Martinique, Ghana, the ACC Tournament, and the NCAA College Cup before the end of the year. In addition, the team is planning on bringing in up to 20 players, mostly from Central and South America, for a 4-day combine in Houston later this month.

Busy busy, but it's good to see the guys hard at work looking for some potential new faces for next season.

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The first leg matches on the 2010 Conference Semifinals are complete and there were a couple surprises, depending on your perspective. 

Colorado Rapids 1 - 0 Columbus Crew: Both teams had a ton of chances with the Rapids owning the first half and the Crew dominating the second half, but other than Pablo Mastroeni's 23rd minute goal, no one could find the net. The Rapids will need to press early in the second leg and try to get the first goal and possibly put the tie out of reach for the Crew. Second Leg: 11/6 3pm CT Telefutura

FC Dallas 2 - 1 Real Salt Lake: Probably the biggest note from this game was the red card received by RSL midfielder Javier Morales. After an extremely weak first yellow that probably shouldn't have been awarded, Morales caught Dax McCarty in the chest or stomach with his foot while going for a high ball. The play deserved a yellow card, but McCarty made sure to do his best Robinho impression spending a solid five minutes trying to make blood appear from his mouth. Dallas didn't escape either, as Atiba Harris was red carded for an elbow to the back of Will Johnson. All in all, it was an interesting result and puts pressure of RSL going home to Rio Tinto for the second leg. Second Leg: 11/6 9pm CT FSC

San Jose Earthquakes 0 - 1 New York Red Bulls: Joel Lindpere was the hero for New York, scoring the games only goal and giving the San Jose defense fits all night. Jon Busch did everything he could to keep his team in the game, but Golden Boot winner Chris Wondolowski and the rest of the Quakes offense just couldn't break down the Red Bulls defense and goalkeepr Bouna Coundoul. San Jose now has to find a way to beat New York at Red Bull Arena, something they failed to do in the regular season, falling 2-0 there in August. Second Leg: 11/4 7pm CT ESPN2

Seattle Sounders 0 - 1 Los Angeles Galaxy: All the home field advantage in the world doesn't help if you can't score goals and for the second straight year, the Sounders failed to score in the home leg of the semifinals series. If they want another chance, they'll have to defeat the Galaxy in the Home Depot Center and hopes FCD holds off Real Salt Lake. The Galaxy's goal came off the foot of Edson Buddle who unleashed a highlight real volley that caught Kasey Keller off his line. Second Leg: 11/7 8pm CT ESPN