3:1 New England MetroStars Cancela Noonan Smith Djorkaeff 10.29.05 · Playoff

The season that started with rain ended with snow as the MetroStars failed to hold a two-goal aggregate lead, allowing three goals in the late stages of the game to be knocked out of the playoffs by the New England Revolution. The match ended 3:1, with the aggregate at 3:2, meaning that for the tenth straight season, Metro is still trophyless. Well, they won La Manga Cup in 2004. So let's say without a trophy that means something. Because that 2000 Eastern Conference Champion vase surely wasn't breathtaking.

But it all started so well; Mo Johnston kept the same lineup that shut down New England a week ago, and for the first two thirds of the match, the defense held. Then, in the 59th, the Revs hit the post, and on the ensuing counterattack, Youri Djorkaeff fought off Michael Parkhurst and bent the ball into the Revolution net. And all seemed great.

But it wasn't; and if you have been a Metro fan for even a small portion of these ten seasons, you might have expected that the result would not stand. But that didn't seem to be the case for these few minutes... a two-goal lead, the Revs haven't been able to score for two and a half hours... Maybe this was the year?

Wrong. First Jose Cancela in the 68th, then Pat Noonan heading in a corner kick that Tony Meola misjudged in the 73rd, and then Khano Smith beating Meola on the short side in the 83rd. Wrong. This is Metro. Can it ever be right?

But it wasn't over, as Metro pressed on for dear life. And in the 87th minute what looked like a sure Metro goal off a corner kick crossed the line... and was cleared out by Shalrie Joseph. Our favorite referee of all time, Brian Hall, stayed silent, and they played on.

They played on through nine minutes of stoppage time (prolonged because Smith had to be carted off the field), the played through... through what? Through their Metro career? How many of these players will be back next year? How many of these fans?...

Lineup: Meola, Agoos, Mendes, Hernandez, Stammler, Bradley, Lisi, Guevara, Gaven, Djorkaeff, Galvan Rey. Subs: Razov.