2:2 DC United New York DeLeon De Rosario Lindpere Conde 08.29.12 · League

You gotta hand it to "Clever" Hans Backe. Just when you though that the grizzled one has lost what was left of his marbles by starting Wilman Conde at left back -- a position he has NEVER played before -- the move pays off, and bigtime. Not only was the big Colombian excellent for the entire match, he blasted in the game-tying goal two minutes from time, as Metro tied DC Scum 2:2.

Backe decided to go with a 4-5-1, with Titi Henry as the lone striker. The defense stayed the same, with Joel Lindpere taking over on his usual left, Jan Gunnar Solli swinging to the right and Kenny Cooper and Sebastien Le Toux sent to the bench.

The early game had numerous excellent scoring chances off set pieces. First, DC failed to convert from the Metro doorstep following a corner kick. Then, Henry found Tim Cahill's head twice off free kicks, but the first shot was saved by Bill Hamid, the second sailed just wide.

Metro opened the scoring in the 19th minute. Teemu Tainio centered the ball to Henry. The Frenchman, in a middle of a slide, redirected it to Lindpere. The Estonian entered the penalty area and slammed home the opener. Sadly, the lead only lasted two minutes, as following a poor clearance by S. Markus Holgersson, the Scum's Nick DeLeon equalized on a shot that Bill Gaudette should have done better on.

Metro seemed to be in control of the match until the 68th minute. A quick pass from the Scum sailed over half of the field and onto the edge of the penalty area. Gaudette decided to come out, but failed to get the ball, with Metro reject Dwayne De Rosario heading in to put the Scum ahead.

It stayed 2:1 until the 88th minute. The Scum failed to clear the ball from the box, and Conde pounced on it. Juan Carlos Osorio's prodigal son took it on one hop, and sent a rocket that burned a hole behind Hamid. Conde got his first as a Metro, and Metro got their draw.

Lloyd Sam made his first-team debut as a late sub.

Lineup: Gaudette, Conde, Holgersson, Pearce, Lade, Tainio, McCarty, Lindpere, Solli, Cahill, Henry. Subs: Le Toux, Cooper, Sam.