Player Ratings: Houston Dynamo vs NYRB

5 quick observations about this one:

1)    Rule 1 when playing against Thierry Henry: don't ever let him have the ball.

2)    The Dynamo learned to get shots on target (too bad that target was either NY keeper Luis Robles or the stands behind him).

3)    Turning the ball over leads to counter attacks, and the Dynamo do not defend against those well.

4)    We're all hoping Clark's 2^nd consecutive injury scare isn't anything serious.

5)    Defense needs to communicate better. Whether that's through Hall, Horst, or whomever, it needs to be better.

Houston Dynamo Player Ratings:

Tally Hall (5.5) - Made a few great saves to keep the Dynamo "in it" despite being down multiple goals. He can't be too faulted for the goals scored, but still...4 goals scored aren't good for a keeper.

Warren Creavalle (3.5) - His missed tackle led to the 2^nd goal, and his poor coverage on the one person that must be marked at all times (Henry) led to the 3^rd.

Jermaine Taylor (4) - Taylor did not cover Henry which led to goal #1 (also out of position and should have covered Bradley Wright-Phillips), and didn't cover Wright-Phillips on the 2^nd goal.

David Horst (6) - Horst was the best player in the back as he consistently headed out all balls sent in. His distribution is lacking though as his long balls weren't great or really necessary at times.

Corey Ashe (5.5) - Ashe was the defender that pushed up the field the most, but his service was far from his usual standard and he often turned the ball over.

Ricardo Clark (6) - Clark picked out passes and help disrupt play, but wasn't much of a force on offense. Of course we're all hoping his injury is nothing serious since he's such a huge part of this team.

Andrew Driver (6) - Driver twice shot the ball into the sky, but moved the ball up the field into an offensive position more than most.

Oscar Boniek Garcia, MotM, (6.5) - Boniek was by far the best player for the Dynamo. He moved the ball well, but he couldn't do it all by himself as those on the end of his passes often gave the ball right to the keeper.

Tony Cascio (5.5) - Wasn't too involved, but when he was he gave the ball up. He did make a few good runs and played some good D.

Giles Barnes (5.5) - Barnes looked cool and calm over the ball, but his shots lacked pace and accuracy. He did a lot of good things for others, but he can't ride that train for too long without some production from the offense.

Will Bruin (5) - Bruin got stranded. He struggled to get the ball into a good spot, but did have a few good runs and fought and won the ball after some poor passes.

The Subs:

A.J. Cochran (5.5) - Came on for the injured Clark, but really wasn't a huge factor in the game that was already locked in NY's favor.

Servando Carrasco (5.5) - Moved the ball pretty well and had a shot that went over the bar, but NY was in full "no mercy rule" gear and never let Carrasco find himself in this game.

Omar Cummings (5.5) ­­- Had a few looks at the goal, but wasn't in the game long enough to really be an impact. Had one good shot on goal that may have been the hardest save for Luis Robles (it was a low and slow shot, but he had to make a small dive for it).

Coach Dominic Kinnear (5.5) - Kinnear needs to really re-think his offense. The midfield doesn't possess the ball well, the Dynamo is proven to be extremely vulnerable to the counter attack, and shooting continues to be a huge issue. Maybe we should revisit the 4-3-3 and spark something.