The battle for the MLS playoffs continues in Frisco, Texas tonight, where the San Jose Earthquakes take on FC Dallas in a batle for a Western Conference playoff lifeline (9pm, ESPN2).
San Jose had its nine-match unbeaten run snapped by Real Salt Lake last week while FC Dallas posted another victory to push closer to the post-season. You have newly-minted MLS player of the month Darren Huckerby leading the Earthquakes against everybody’s favorite U.S. national team outcast Kenny Cooper. How can you miss that?
If you will be watching the match, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.
Enjoy the match.
Joe k-
I thought the Cunningham call could have gone either way. But the Lima PK was a horrible call. First off the ball is playing him, he is moving his arm away from the ball when it happend, and to top it all off… the ball hits his ribcage and BARELY could be said to touch the bottom of his arm. that ball was going to hit him whether is arm there or not.
i love Franken Coop as much as the next man, but what is up with his diving ?
About the foul on Cunningham: watching the replay it was clear the tug that threw him off-balance came outside the box. There was no contact inside the box that would have waranted a PK. It seems to me that the ref can therefore either play the advantage and allow Cunningham to shoot, even if the shot comes with him off-balance/falling down, or blow the play dead and give a free kick from outside the box. I’m fine with him continuing play there.
Ok, I have had it with the referee situation in the MLS! I have seen better calls in the WWF!!!!! These are not minor fouls being missed here. These are game changing, playoff making, in front of the ref, major screw ups!!!!
I hope this shameful topic was discussed in the MLS Chicago meeting last month. This can’t go on. The league’s credibility is falling off a cliff.
I guess this was MLS’s attempt to get in on all the horrendous blown calls around world soccer lately. It was no phantom goal…but Okulaja (MLS’s anointed WORST referee) 3 major blown calls set’s some sort of imcompetence record.
Cunny was PK
Davino WAS a red card (not even up for debate)
Lima was NEVER a PK.
Shocking. Ruined the game and robbed SJ of 2 crucial points.
davino definitely deserved a red card, but the PK was also deserved — lima’s forearm was extended outward, making himself a bigger target. it was a dumb play that isn’t always called, but it is a valid pk.
Cunningham had earned a penalty earlier. The bad calls evened out.
Robert: Not necessarily true. Confused MLS instructions to referees — you can thank Joe Machnik — have been the cause of much confusion in the ranks and/or “following orders to get ahead” instead of apply the Laws as written. Many ref blogs out there on the subject …
I *knew* when I saw Okulaja on the MLSNet match update that bizarre decisions would abound …
Big missed and made game changing calls by the referee both ways… Cunningham was pulled down, Davino should have been sent off and the penalty kick was terrible.
BTW – MLS referees are U.S. Soccer referees. MLS does not train, assign or evaluate the refs. If you complain, which you should, complain to US Soccer.
It’s nice to see Cooper on the scoresheet, but that was never a fair result. Davino should have been sent off for his handball, and the penalty was hard on Lima.
Unbelievable. . .
Complete disrespect to the game having officials of such poor quality.
Obvious sending off missed, and a penalty given for a ball off Lima’s six-pack.
Same sh!t different week. . . absolutely shocking!
that was no handball on san jose. it hit ’em in the chest
Goal Dallas – 89th. Cooper scores a penalty, I missed the infraction (argh! actual action!) but it appears to be from a handball on Lima, and he wasn’t thrilled with the call.
3 points stolen. with all the hand balls not called at every game, they choose to give that one?!
anybody think that wagner will be the starting lb for the usa one day?
WOW! MLS referees SUCK! WTF was Abbey thinking when he gave Davino a yellow card. That was the clearest red card ever. He deliberitly reached out and hit the ball with his hand. That’s why I hate MLS referees. They’re so incompetent!
66th min and the game is picking up a bit. Nick Garcia makes a clearance near the line after a good spell of Dallas pressure.
Dallas keeps having Cooper send the crosses in, instead of getting in the box and causing problems.
Goal San Jose 60th! Ryan Johnson takes advantage of a break away and beats Sala, barely a minute after another good kick save had kept it level.
58′
THE FRESH LEG MAN SCORES!
RYAN JOHNSON!!!
I went with the debate on the radio and the game without sound. So far, Jose Francisco Torres is the highlight of my night.
Pretty dull first half almost gets a goal at half time when a terrible back pass leads to Cooper with the ball in the box, but a nice sliding tackle from Nick Garcia keeps it scoreless.
Trying to flip back and forth between this and the debate. From what i’ve seen it has been a pretty slow game.
Sala to the rescue! Huckerby is sprung free by a great pass that cuts open the defense, but Huckerby stands tall to force a corner.
anyone have a live feed for this game? my roommates have decided this is the perfect time to mount the flatscreen on the wall. i disagree.
Ok soooooo who ever is running the marketing in Dallas SUCKS!!! And they should be FIRED! There is NO ONE AT THE GAME! Funny thing is this has happened every game at Dallas!!! Either move the team or start using your brains, market to the soccer fans, and get people in the seats!!! This is depressing to watch on espn2!!
Lets go San Jose!
Let’s go San Jose.
Huckerby is the best european signing in league history so far and Yallop deserves some good things after last years load of crap from the Galaxy.
In other news…Jose Francisco Torres to U.S. Awesome.
Sorry, couldn’t help it.