Dynamo at New York Red Bulls: Official Particulars and Notes from Houston's 1-0 Defeat

The Dynamo fell 1-0 at Red Bull Arena last night in a match that was pretty frustrating for all of us to watch. It sucks to lose a second straight match against a conference opponent, but there's still plenty of time left in the season. Thankfully, as we learned last season, MLS can be very forgiving to poor starts, though considering all the road games it's not really a poor start.

There were several changes in the lineup last night and it showed through the team never really seeming to be in sync until late in the match. Brad Davis needs a little more time to get back to full speed after his injury and despite Mac Kandji's excellent play, there's no question Brian Ching and Will Bruin are the right choice up front for the Dynamo.

So we move on to the long anticipated home opener at BBVA Compass Stadium against DC United. I've been very forgiving of results so far, but if Houston wants to make a Sporting KC-like run this year, they need to win at home. Saturday sets the tone for the season.

Houston Dynamo (2-3-2) vs. New York Red Bulls (6-3-1) 

May 9, 2012 – Red Bull Arena, Harrison, N.J. - Attendance: 11,315

Goals by Period 1 2 Total
Houston Dynamo 0 0 0
New York Red Bulls 1 0 1

Scoring Summary: 

New York – Kenny Cooper 8 (unassisted) 7

Houston Dynamo – Tally Hall; Jermaine Taylor, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Corey Ashe; Calen Carr, Adam Moffat, Luiz Camargo, Brad Davis; Macoumba Kandji (Colin Clark 73), Cam Weaver (Will Bruin 61)

Substitutes not used: Tyler Deric, Nathan Sturgis, Je-Vaughn Watson, Andre Hainault

TOTAL SHOTS: 14 (Brad Davis 4); SHOTS ON GOAL: 3 (Brad Davis 1, Calen Carr 1, Cam Weaver 1); FOULS: 6 (Calen Carr 2); OFFSIDES: 1 (Macoumba Kandji 1)CORNER KICKS: 5 (Brad Davis 5) SAVES: 2 (Tally Hall 2)

New York Red Bulls – Ryan Meara; Brandon Barklage, Tyler Ruthven, Markus Holgersson, Brandon Barklage, Connor Lade; Dax McCarty; Jan Gunnar Solli (Roy Miller 86), Joel Lindpere, Mehdi Ballouchy (Juan Agudelo 46); Dane Richards, Kenny Cooper (Jhonny Arteaga 91+)

Substitutes Not Used: Jeremy Vuolo, Jonathan Borrajo, Ryan Maduro, Victor Palsson

Misconduct Summary: 
New York – Kenny Cooper (caution) 45; Connor Lade (caution) 56, Dax McCarty (caution) 59

Referee: Sorin Stoica
Assistants: Kermit Quisenberry, Paul Scott
Fourth official: Hilario Grajeda

Game Notes: The Houston Dynamo fell to the New York Red Bulls, 1-0, Wednesday night at Red Bull Arena. Kenny Cooper scored the only goal in the seventh minute when he blocked an attempted clearance from Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall into an empty net. The goal was setup when Corey Ashe played a soft back pass to Hall, who could not attempt a clean clearance.

After Houston fell behind, it dictated the run of play for many stretches, and finishes with more shots than New York (14-12), more corners (5-1), more possession (53%-47%) and more open play crosses (30-10).

The loss ends a franchise-record seven-game road trip for the Dynamo, who will open up their new downtown home, BBVA Compass Stadium, on Saturday.

The Dynamo created several late chances, beginning with Brad Davis’ chance in the 82nd minute. Davis received a nice pass from Corey Ashe at the top of the box and ripped a first-time shot just over the left corner of the goal.

Five minutes later, Will Bruin found space on the right side of the penalty area and played a pinpoint cross to Davis, who struck a well-hit header from six yards that missed wide of the near post.

In stoppage time, Davis delivered a nice service to Calen Carr, who nailed a header from six yards that required a point-blank save from Red Bull goalkeeper Ryan Meara to preserve the win for New York.

Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall kept the game in reach for the Dynamo in the second half with two strong saves against Juan Agudelo. In the 65th minute Agudelo cracked a shot from the top of the box and Hall made the save. In the 84th minute, Agudelo ripped a volley from ten yards and Hall was well positioned for the save.

Defender Bobby Boswell made his 150th start for the Dynamo in all competitions. He is the fifth Houston player to reach the 150 mark.

Cam Weaver, Macoumba Kandji and Calen Carr each made their first start of the season and Alex Dixon made his season debut as a second-half substitute for the Dynamo.

Geoff Cameron has played full time in 37 consecutive MLS matches (playoffs included) since he last missed a game on May 4, 2011. The defender has played 3,306 consecutive MLS minutes.