CARSON, Calif. -- Coming into Sunday night's game, the Los Angeles Galaxy knew what they were up against. Sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference standings, anything less than a victory would effectively doom LA to an early vacation for the third consecutive season.
Billed as one of the more glamorous sides in MLS with players like David Beckham and Landon Donovan on the roster, the Galaxy took a much more workmanlike attitude into the contest, scrapping out a 3-2 decision against the Colorado Rapids.
The game didn't start out well for Los Angeles, as they were outplayed for long stretches to open the game. Yet LA avoided disaster early and played their way back into the match.
"The first 15 minutes of the game we were thoroughly beaten all over the field," said head coach Bruce Arena. "I like the way our guys fought back into the game."
The Galaxy took a first-half lead when Edson Buddle scored his 14th goal of the season from just inside the area. A defensive lapse on a corner kick late in the half allowed Colorado to level the score, then things nearly turned disastrous to open the second half.
Tom McManus hit the post with a header just minutes into the second half. Fortunately for the Galaxy, they dodged a bullet and settled in, eventually taking the lead through an own goal from Ugo Ihemelu. The goal came when Bryan Jordan drew a free kick deep in Colorado territory. In fact, Jordan was all over the park on the night, typifying the performance of the entire Galaxy team.
"I give our players a lot of credit. They worked real hard and played a scrappy game and walked off the field with three points, which was certainly the objective for the night," said Arena.
There certainly was no quit in the Galaxy, knowing their backs were against the wall. Donovan contributed 30 minutes of work, despite having gone the full 90 minutes against Cuba in World Cup qualifying the night before. It was that type of energy that put the Galaxy over the hump.
"Coming into the game we knew what we needed to do. What we were trying to do was come out, work hard, and scrap a win out of it," said Jordan. "I thought we played well. We moved the ball well, got our goals and I'm happy."
Even with the workmanlike effort, it was a masterstroke off the right foot of Brandon McDonald that spelled the difference. The rookie scored his first career MLS goal in emphatic fashion, ripping a shot from 35 yards out that will no doubt be a goal of the week candidate.
"I try to strike balls like that quite often in practice, so I'm kind of used to hitting the longer shots," said McDonald. "I looked at the opposition and they weren't stepping to me, so I took a touch to prepare the shot and no one stepped so I just blasted it. The rest is history."
McDonald's goal proved to be the game winner, leaving the Galaxy's playoff hopes alive for at least one more week. The road doesn't get any easier, as the Galaxy travel to face Houston next weekend. For Arena, however, it's all quite simple.
"We have to win games. I've said all along, I don't concern myself with standings or points," said Arena. "We have to win games. Even if we win out, we may fall short. But at least we know what we have to do. We're not going into any games looking for a point. We have try to win."
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