The Houston Dynamo grabbed a point from second-place FC Dallas Thursday night in MLS action.
Ricardo Clark struck for the Dynamo in the second half and was the hero as the West bottom-dwellers held FCD back from a move into the top spot in the conference.
Clark’s goal in the 51st minute canceled out a tap-in from Ryan Hollingshead in the 23rd minute.
The 1-1 draw at a rain-soaked Toyota Stadium keeps the Dynamo within reaching distance of Seattle in the second-to-last spot in the West.
A weather delay pushed the start of this match almost two hours further than it was scheduled to kick off. The heavy rain made its impact in the match, too. Mud at the mouths of both goals made it difficult for players to find their footing in front of goal and the slick surface kept some passes from being completed.
As expected, FC Dallas was firmly in control of the play for the majority of this match. The chances the Dynamo came close to scoring on were off set pieces or quick runs up the field.
FC Dallas missed out on a myriad of opportunities to get the win late in the match. Several set piece opportunities were successfully battled away by the Dynamo.
MAN OF THE MATCH
Holding onto the point in the last 20 minutes was a tall task for the Dynamo. Tyler Deric made some key saves in the closing moments of this game to preserve the point.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH
While FC Dallas held most of the initiative to score in this match, Ricardo Clark’s 51st minute goal made none of that matter. Clark leveled the match against the run of play and secured the
MATCH TO FORGET
FC Dallas put the ball in front of goal plenty of times, but the finish wasn’t there most of the time. Maximiliano Urruti played 90 minutes in this match but only recorded one shot.
Good write up, just a couple of things I would add in (I was there for the whole watery affair):
The delay lasted 113 minutes, not 30 minutes. They actually played 3 minutes and the delay started. I went home at midnight.
FCD controlled the first half, but Houston dominated a good 30-35 minutes of the second. I think the Clark goal was a bit flukey (the shot was not, don’t get me wrong), but Houston could have added 2 more after that. FCD controlled and could have scored in the last 15 min or so.
Otherwise this was exactly what it sounded like, a wet, rainy, slower game.