The New England Revolution battled the Columbus Crew for their 3rd game this season. The previous two meetings ended in one goal losses to the Crew, 1-0 and 2-1. In both games Federico Higuain scored for the Crew, both goals coming from free kicks. This game will have huge implications on the standings. If the Revs can win, they will over take Sporting Kansas City for sole possession of 2nd place in the east, putting one foot in the playoff door. If they lose, then the Crew will  over take the Revs for 3rd in the East, dropping them to 4th place. Including tonight’s game there are 4 games left, with 3 of them against other teams either in or fighting to get into a playoff spot. A WIN TONIGHT AGAINST THE CREW IS A MUST!! Even though a win won’t claim a playoff spot, the Revs can take a huge step forward with a win tonight. Revs leading scorer Lee Nguyen has been shut down this season in the two games vs the Crew. If the Revs want to win this game, clearly he needs to be the one who leads, with either a goal, or assists.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFd0vcHCfGQ&w=420&h=315] Jay Heaps post game interview (skip to 25 second mark)

  • Revs apply plenty of pressure on Crew early, forcing plenty of bad passes, turnovers
  • 18th minute Revs keeper Bobby Shuttleworth forced to make a great save on Schoenfeld, but his shot was poorly taken
  • 20th minute Teal Bundbury assist Lee Nguyen’s 14th goal of the season 1-0 Revs
  • 25th minute Crew ties game with Ethan Finlay goal
  • 6 players total booked, Crew’s Waylon Francis was sent in the 70th minute for unsporting behavior
  • 67th minute on a free kick, Tierney with the inswinger into Crew’s penalty area, where Jermaine Jones was able to head in his 2nd goal of the season 2-1 Revs lead
  • despite playing a man down, the Crew were still able to maintain possession and put pressure on the Revs
  • Bobby shuttleworth made 6 saves tonight, 2nd highest season total, winning Man of the match award.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5pW-XRIR18&w=420&h=315]

my question to Jermaine Jones 29 seconds in about adjusting to MLS style of play.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhDgZb1gMx8&w=420&h=315]

My question to AJ Soares 1:10 in about difference vs Columbus tonight vs previous games

The rain came down hard at times before the game started tonight. And it came down hard at times during. It is not easy playing on turf, even harder in heavy rain. As a result, the Revolution are now alone in 2nd place in the East. They still haven’t clinched a play off spot, but tonight was a big step forward. With 3 games left they not have a 5 point cushion over the last playoff spot. Despite the Crew going down a man at the 70th minute, they were able to apply plenty of pressure on the Revs defense. They bent but didn’t break, and hung on to win. They are playing well, regardless of who manager Jay Heaps puts in the lineup, or at least that’s what it looks like. With the constant change to the starting 11, mostly in the midfield, Jay Heaps has no shortage of talent, different playing style of players for whatever the teams needs are, and as long as they can avoid injuries, I feel more optimistic about their playoff chances and what kind of performance.

With only a handful of games in with the Revs, Jermaine and the rest of the crew seem to be gelling well, understanding when one goes forward one must fall back to cover. This is the second straight game Jermaine has scored, both times game winner. With many fans without a doubt happy to see him getting involved with the scoring, thinking of him as a more defensive mid, Jermaine has shown he is more than a defensive minded player, who can go forward and get involved with the offense.