Metro caught by 10-man Revs
April 19, 2008
A moment of individual brilliance on one end, and a single lapse on the other, produced the only two goals as New York tied New England 1:1. The non-win, Metro's 11th straight against the Revs, came in a match where they held a man advantage for almost the entire second half. Jozy Altidore's amazing goal in the first looked to be the winner, until the Revs equalized in the second and held on for dear life to grab the point.
Metro reverted back to a 3-5-2 with a lineup similar to the season's opener. Jeff Parke came back from suspension, and Carlos Mendes made his first appearance of the year, this at right back. Chris Leitch was pushed onto the right flank, and we saw our first glimpse this year of the A-A Connection, as Juan Pablo Angel returned from his injury to partner Altidore. Oscar Echeverry and Luke Sassano sat.
The first half hour of the match produced dour play with the Revs controlling most of the ball, but no real opportunities for either team. Then, Altidore took the ball at the center circle, and raced down the Revs' gut, splitting defenders and reaching the top of the box, where he blasted his first of the season past Matt Reis.
After the goal, the tide seemed to turn, with now Metro holding the bulk of play. And a minute into the second half, when the Revs' Mauricio Castro was shown a straight red for kicking Kevin Goldthwaite, it looks like the three points might be in the bag. That wasn't the case, for ten minutes later, a Claudio Reyna turnover resulted in a free kick inside the penalty circle next to the Metro goal; there looked to be no contact on the supposed foul. Metro put eight men in the wall, but Jeff Larentowicz's shop split it low, and New England had their equalizer. Jon Conway, screened by the wide wall, had no chance. It was the Revs' only shot on goal of the entire match.
At that point, the Revs' Steve Nicol decided a point is more than enough, so the Revs bunkered up. Metro unleashed the avalanche, led by halftime sub John Wolyniec, who came on for still-not-healthy Angel. Two terrific opportunities for Woly, one off a perfect pass by another sub, Danleigh Borman, went begging. Altidore and Seth Stammler both had excellent chances, both saved by Reis. Then, in injury time, Woly's long shot trickled just wide of the post in what turned out to be Metro's last opportunity of the game.
Lineup: Conway, Goldthwaite, Parke, Mendes, Stammler, Ubiparipovic, van den Bergh, Leitch, Reyna, Altidore, Angel. Subs: Wolyniec, Borman, Magee.
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