Competition intense in friendly

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill.-- The Chicago Fire's friendly on Wednesday might have looked like a quiet scoreless draw vs. Polish side Wisla Krakow. But within the squad, a number of otherwise reserves got some quality playing time. And Fire original C.J. Brown made his first appearance of the season.

"They don't call these games friendlies anymore -- I thought both teams went out there to compete and try to win," Fire head coach Denis Hamlett said. "Usually in a friendly game you don't see seven yellow cards thrown out, that just shows you both teams went out to try to win the game.

"It was a good game for some of our young guys to be thrown in a real game that was very competitive, so I was happy with their performance."

Andy Herron and Wilman Conde played a full 90 minutes. Herron was all over the field, while Conde had a number of strong defensive plays.

"I count this game as my first game back with the Fire," Herron said. "It's a friendly, but we tried to push tonight. I feel overall I did pretty well. I didn't get a clear chance to finish, but I feel happy with the way I performed today."

Conde made a few key plays, including slowing down Wisla's attack with a key tackle in the 34th minute.

"I am thankful that I had the chance to show the coaching staff and the fans how I am and what I can bring to the team as I await the chance to play on this team," Conde said. "I would've liked for the Fire to win the game but I was pleased to be part of a good game. It was exciting and even fun to see the fans running on the field."

In the second half, Brown started warming up and Section 8 began chanting "C.J. Brown." And in the 64th minute, Brown entered the game.

"It's such a great feeling to hear the fans," Brown said. "I work so hard for this club. When I was warming up and the fans started cheering, it was great. They appreciate what I do. It's really nice to have them in my corner.

"It was a fun game, but exhausting to get back out there. I'm not used to that pace anymore."

Fire midfielder Brian Plotkin also entered the match in the second half, making his first appearance of this season.

"It's been a long time, since I played," Plotkin said. "It was fun to get back out there. It was a physical game -- more physical than most games. But it was a chance for a lot of guys to prove themselves."

Hamlett said he was pleased overall with the play of his club. Now the team will regroup and get ready for Sunday's match at New York.

"I think it's important that these guys are training, hard throughout the season, and now they have a game in front of a good crowd and good opponent," Hamlett said. "It's a good exercise to see how they measure up. All in all it was just good."