Joseph Ngwenya scored in the 80th minute as the Houston
Dynamo rallied for a 2-2 tie with the Colorado Rapids Saturday night at
Robertson Stadium, with the Dynamo breaking a three-game MLS losing
streak in their first MLS game in three weeks due to the World Cup.
Colorado had only allowed two goals from open play all season, but
Houston netted two from open play in Saturday’s game alone. The Dynamo
also became the first team all season to score against the Rapids in
the final 30 minutes of play with Houston’s 80th-minute goal.
The Dynamo return to action on Tuesday with the second of three games
in six days, hosting Miami FC in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S.
Open Cup at Robertson Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Two days later, on July 1,
the Dynamo will travel to face Toronto FC in a nationally televised
match.
On Saturday, the Dynamo struck first in the 17th minute when a corner
kick was cleared, and midfielder Danny Cruz faked to his left foot and
fired a low blast inside the left post for his second goal of the year.
Corey Ashe picked up an assist on the play, the 10th of his MLS regular
season career.
After not threatening most of the half, Colorado tied the game in the
45th minute after a sloppy giveaway from the Dynamo back line, as Conor
Casey faked out several Dynamo players and converted his sixth goal of
the year. Despite registering just three shots all game, the Rapids
took the lead in the 71st minute when a corner kick deflected in off of
Houston midfielder Lovel Palmer.
The Dynamo switched to an attacking 3-5-2 formation and almost tied the
game when Danny Cruz fired another left-footed shot from the top of the
box. The shot hit the left post, rolled along the goal line, and
caromed off the right post as well before being cleared.
Houston finally tied the game in the 80th minute when Brad Davis played
a long ball forward that Brian Ching touched wide to Brian Mullan on
the left. Mullan played a low cross toward the penalty spot, and Joseph
Ngwenya arrived to one-time a shot into the top right corner. It was
Ngwenya’s first goal in MLS since the 2007 MLS Cup final. Ching
registered the 25th assist of his MLS regular season career.
Dynamo midfielder Brian Mullan came on as a second-half substitute and
set up the tying goal. Mullan has now played 1,024 minutes on the
season, marking the ninth consecutive MLS regular season in which he
has played at least 1,000 minutes.
With the tie, Houston remained unbeaten at home against Colorado all-time with a 5-0-2 record.
Goalkeeper Pat Onstad made the 210th and defender Bobby Boswell made
the 150th start of their respective MLS regular season careers.
Midfielder Corey Ashe made his 115th career Dynamo appearance in all
competitions.
Next Game: Tuesday, June 29, 7:30 p.m., Dynamo vs. Miami FC, Robertson Stadium
(Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup – Round 3)
Next MLS Game: Thursday, July 1, 6 p.m., Dynamo at Toronto FC, BMO Field, Toronto ON
Next Home MLS Game: Saturday, July 10, 7:30 p.m., Dynamo vs. Columbus Crew, Robertson Stadium
Postgame Quotes
HOUSTON DYNAMO HEAD COACH DOMINIC KINNEAR
On the game …
“I think we were doing fine until we made a huge mistake for
the first goal before halftime. Give our guys credit though, as we pushed
forward for the [tying] goal and a great finish by Joe. At the end, we could
have snuck away with a win and they could have too. I don’t know if the guys
are disappointed or frustrated, but they are definitely tired because it was a
hot, humid night.”
On each team’s chances …
“It was a pretty dull first half. There was a goal, and then
both teams were sitting back. Either team could have won the game, and the
result was a tie. They didn’t score their chances; they scored on our misplays.
The chances that they got, they didn’t take advantage of, and somehow we
snuffed it out by emergency defending. But I will say I thought we had some
decent chances at the end.”
On standout performances …
“Danny [Cruz] was very bright tonight. He provided us good
energy out there. He is not afraid to shoot, as you can see. I thought Joe
[Ngwenya] was very menacing early in the game, finding pockets underneath, and
he took his goal well later on. So it’s nice to see him back on the field, and
it’s nice to see him being productive for us.”
HOUSTON DYNAMO DEFENDER EDDIE ROBINSON
On the game …
“I think the guys took it a little easy on me, because of
the effort they put in these last two weeks trying to turn things around, and
for me to make a mistake like that, it’s almost like me punching them. It is
certainly disappointing. Mentally it’s tough, but we have a Tuesday night game,
and hopefully I’ll get some time in that and get some confidence back.”
DYNAMO MIDFIELDER COREY ASHE
On rallying from a 2-1 deficit …
“The ways things have been going, I think it’s good that we
showed some fight and we walked away with a point.”
