Richards salvages a point in New England, 2:2
August 20, 2011
For a decade, Gillette Stadium has been a House of Horror for Metro. They haven't won at New England since 2002, a remarkable streak that was not stopped tonight. Instead, they went down two goals in the first half and fought back with two from Dane Richards in the second, tying the Revs. Usually, such a comeback road draw is a welcome sight, but at this point of the season, it is wins that are necessary...
Titi Henry decided to stay off the artificial surface after aggravating an injury mid-week, so Juan Agudelo took his place up front. Bouna Coundoul returned between the pipes.
Both Revolution goals were scored by Milton Caraglio on defensive breakdowns. In the 15th minute, a bad bounce off the foot of Rafa Marquez sent the ball to the Rev forward. Coundoul did great to make the initial save, but the ball rebounded in the box, with three Metro defenders freezing. Caraglio easily opened the scoring. Then, in the 37th minute, Marquez lost Caraglio on a free kick, and the forward jumped over the 4.6-million-dollar-man, heading in his second.
Metro looked to get one back before the break, when Rev keeper Bobby Shuttleworth blatantly brought down Dax McCarty in the box. Somehow, McCarty was yellowed for diving, when replays were clear that he went down after contact.
Metro broke through eight minutes into the second half. A perfect long ball from Tim Ream sprung Dane Richards on the left side. The Jamaican held his run, waited for Shuttleworth to commit, and calmly deposited a goal to halve the lead.
The two teams then exchanged red cards. In the 55th, Kenny Mansally was given his second yellow for an elbow in the box. In the 69th, it was Teemu Tainio's time to walk, as he was given his second caution for a clumsy challenge. And with both sides reduced to ten, McCarty looked to have won a penalty kick, when he was clearly elbowed in the head... but the referee must have been napping.
But tonight, it was Richards' time to shine. In the 87th minute, Marquez found Joel Lindpere on the left wing. The Estonian took it to the left side of the box and sent in a pass towards the goal that his Jamaican roommate got a foot on to redirect. It was Richards' first two-goal game as a professional.
So, a point was salvaged. Will it prove a helper come end of the season or just another fruitless draw in a string of many? We'll find out in eight games.
Lineup: Coundoul, Miller, Ream, Marquez, Albright, Tainio, McCarty, Lindpere, Ballouchy, Richards, Agudelo. Subs: Auvray, Mendes.
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