Dynamo help hurricane relief efforts

Having grown up in the Houston area, Stuart Holden is used to the hurricane warnings. It's an annual part of life for those who live near the Gulf of Mexico. The Houston Dynamo midfielder would watch the coverage on television and be thankful that his friends and family were spared.

It was a different feeling altogether for Holden when he and teammate Brian Ching were watching the devastation Hurricane Ike wreaked in Galveston and Houston as they were in a hotel in San Jose preparing to take on the Earthquakes in an Major League Soccer game last month.

"When it's your hometown and it could be affecting people, you know, you obviously pay more attention to it," Holden said.

Holden, Ching and the rest of the Dynamo players were lucky. While they lived without power for up to two weeks, the players and staff were relatively unscathed considering the wide-ranging destruction in the Houston area. Some of Holden's family members sustained flooding damage and a family friend had his home split in half by a falling tree.

"They've had to change their plans for a while," Holden said. "There's lot of cases like that around where I grew up about 20 miles from where I live now."

Immediately after the storm passed, Dynamo staff met to discuss how the club can help out, especially the members of the large soccer community in the Houston area.

"Kids playing soccer is a fiber of life and community and that's been taken away from them and if we can help restore that and get that piece back together it brings a bit of normalcy back to people's lives," Dynamo chief operating officer Chris Canetti said. "That alone will help, maybe moreso than a big check or something along those lines."

Through Dynamo Charities and in conjunction with the South Texas Youth Soccer Association (STYSA) and MLS W.O.R.K.S, the charitable arm of Major League Soccer, the club soon designated October as Hurricane Relief Month with activities planned for each of Dynamo's three MLS home games at Robertson Stadium, beginning with the match against D.C. United on Sunday.

The Dynamo will wear white jerseys for the game against United -- just the second time they've worn white at home -- and the jerseys will be autographed and auctioned off after the game. All Dynamo proceeds from the auction and from on-site parking will benefit youth soccer teams.

On Wednesday, Oct. 15, when the Dynamo take on the San Jose Earthquakes -- a game postponed from Sept. 20, the weekend after the hurricane hit -- children 14 and under have been offered free tickets and a portion of the ticket proceeds will go toward helping local soccer clubs affected by the hurricane.

"We thought this was a good opportunity to do two things -- to raise awareness that one of our games had been postponed," Dynamo president and general manager Oliver Luck said. "But more importantly we think it's the right thing to do in terms of helping some folks, particularly some of the soccer communities that have been affected, get back on their feet."

The club will be accepting monetary donations as well as donations of soccer equipment at each game, concluding with the Oct. 18 game against the LA Galaxy, with players' wives collecting donations on Sunday. Through the Passback program, the U.S. Soccer Foundation will assist in the collection of soccer equipment and World Soccer Daily has donated 200 jerseys. Fans unable to attend the match can still donate through the Dynamo website.

"Sports is an important part of life for these kids," Luck said. "We wanted to make sure we did what we could do to at least bring that sports piece (of their lives) back to a level of normalcy in terms of the kids being able to go out and train and compete and do the things they really like doing. That's the genesis of the idea of trying to do what we can to help."

Sunday's game against United has also been designated as the "Championship Salute to the Championship Efforts of First Responders," and Houston police officers, firefighters and EMS workers and their families will be honored on the field before the game.

"They're putting their lives on the line during the crisis when people were supposed to evacuate, they're there for the people in distress," Holden said. "You don't really realize the responsibility they have to help out and that they're putting their lives at stake to help these people. It will be nice to get all those people out to our game on Sunday so they can be recognized by our fans and by our team and anyone affiliated by our organization."

The club is also recognizing the work that hospital volunteers, some of whom worked 48-hour shifts during the storm. They will also join the first responders on the field before the game.

"We said let's do something nice for them, give them and their families tickets for the game, let them come out and be honored at this match," Canetti said.

The rebuilding in the Houston area will take months and perhaps years, but the Dynamo are hoping they can help immediately in the healing process.

"Whatever way we can help out we want to do that," Holden said. "If it's just going out and signing autographs or hanging out and relating to people and letting them know that we're feeling their pain, we'll all do whatever we can to help out."

For online donations to the Dynamo's hurricane relief fund, please click here.

To donate via check or money order, please direct your payment, payable to Dynamo Charities, Hurricane Relief, to:
Dynamo Charities
Houston Dynamo
1415 Louisiana St., Suite 3400
Houston, TX 77002

Revs seek early goal boost at K.C.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Revolution head coach Steve Nicol wants a few things from Saturday night's game in Kansas City.

But perhaps his first priority is finding a way for his team to get the first goal.

In the Revolution's last three games, the team has scored the first goal zero times. Not coincidentally, the Revs have mustered only two points from those three games.

For a team that hasn't played as well as it would like for quite some time now, getting an early goal would provide a boost, Nicol thinks.

"Getting the first goal is huge," Nicol said. "It settles everybody down. It makes the other team gamble more than they normally would. They both go hand in hand. We want to defend well. If teams are coming at us, we want to be able to stop them."

Times have been tough recently as the Revs have struggled for form since their SuperLiga triumph on Aug. 5. Player injuries, fatigue and mental strain have hindered performances.

"For us, it's definitely been a new challenge with all of the games we've played in the summer," Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis said. "We have finally gotten over the physical aspect of it, but there's definitely the mental aspect of it. Everybody getting back and getting on the same page has been difficult for us."

In order to fulfill Nicol's wishes, the team will have to improve its play through midfield. A team that prides itself on quick passing and wide play has struggled to establish possession in recent games.

"The passing contributes to losing the goals as well," Nicol said.

Reis thinks the team needs to step things up as the regular season winds to a close with Chicago only one point behind in the race for second place.

"In these last three games, we need to give an overall 90-minute performance and keep going," Reis said. "It's good to get one, but it's also good to get two, three and four too."

While a good performance would be nice, the object remains to get points from a city that has yielded seven of them (2-0-1) in the Revs' past three trips.

"We want to go out there and get points," Nicol said. "We want to put a good performance in as much as anything."

Gambian duo Kenny Mansally and Sainey Nyassi will miss the match. The pair will be in Senegal on World Cup qualifying duty. Both players are expected to return in time for Thursday's game against D.C. United. Mauricio Castro is expected to slot into Nyassi's role on the right wing.

The Wizards present a different and difficult challenge as Curt Onalfo's team struggles to score goals (27 goals in 30 games) yet manages to keep touch in the playoff race.

"It's important for us to get into Kansas City and play solidly," Reis said. "They are playing for their season and playing on that small field will be tough."

Much of the emphasis will come from negating set-piece opportunities. Jimmy Conrad is tied for the team lead in goals with five. Conrad's goal haul is a sign that K.C. wants to use one of the smaller surfaces in the league to pump as many balls into the box as possible when given the opportunity.

"If you're giving away corner kicks and wide free kicks, they are going to be put right on top of you," Reis said. "They have a lot of big guys and a lot of guys that attack the ball well."

Crew maintain form, shut out Galaxy

COLUMBUS -- The matchup of the Columbus Crew and Los Angeles Galaxy didn't produce goals galore like the 3-3 tie in Carson, Calif. in June, but this time for the home side, one was enough.

Forward Alejandro Moreno scored just before halftime against his former team and Will Hesmer recorded his second consecutive shutout as the Crew continued their march to the Supporters' Shield with a 1-0 victory before a black-clad mass in the first sellout of the season at Crew Stadium.

The Crew are 7-0-1 in their past eight games and now sit 10 points ahead of the New England Conference atop the Eastern Conference. The Galaxy were desperate for a win after falling to the bottom of the Western Conference with a 1-8-6 record over their past 15 games, and now face an seriously uphill climb if they are to avoid missing out on the playoffs for a third year running.

Los Angeles allows more than two goals per game for one of the poorest defensive performance in the history of the league but made the Crew earn their score.

Columbus took the lead in the 43rd minute on the career-best ninth goal from Moreno but the euphoria was nearly cut short less than two minutes later when Landon Donovan streaked into the left side of the penalty area. He was hounded by defender Chad Marshall toward the end line and Hesmer came out to challenge but Donovan deftly slid the ball through the goal area and barely missed putting it into the right netting.

Moreno scored eight times for San Jose in 2005 but surpassed that total after heading a service off the right flank by defender Danny O'Rourke after he got position on defender Chris Klein at the far post.

A possible battle between MVP candidates Donovan of Los Angeles and the Crew's Guillermo Barros Schelotto became a reality when Schelotto made a surprise appearance in the starting lineup.

He had missed the previous three matches with a strained hamstring and was expected to come off the bench last night. He played 61 minutes. Schelotto has a league-high 18 assists to go along with six goals. Donovan leads MLS with 19 goals and nine assists.

Schelotto replaced Pat Noonan, who was instrumental in helping Columbus to two wins and a tie in his absence. The other change for Columbus was necessitated by the red card suspension of U.S. defender Frankie Hejduk. O'Rourke moved from center back to the right side and rookie Andy Iro took his spot alongside Marshall.

The Galaxy had a major revision to its first XI as well when goalkeeper Josh Saunders made his MLS debut as Josh Wicks was sent to the bench after making four starts for the injured Steve Cronin. Saunders has been on the roster of the Galaxy and San Jose Earthquakes several times since 2003 without an appearance and spent this season with Miami FC of the United Soccer Leagues First Division, where he led the league with 13 shutouts.

Schelotto nearly had a storybook return when given his first free kick in the eighth minute. The ball was placed to the right, 19 yards off goal. His low strike was deflected into the air by Donovan to Saunders.

In the 17th minute Schelotto was in position for another restart from almost the same spot but this time defender Gino Padula sent a line drive toward the back post but midfielder Eddie Gaven could not get on the end of it and the ball went past out of bounds.

The Galaxy showed its offensive prowess, too, when former Crew forward Edson Buddle broke free and forced goalkeeper William Hesmer to his knees to make a save in the 32nd minute.

Beckham, making his first Columbus appearance, will miss the next match because of yellow card accumulation after a cross-body tackle of midfielder Robbie Rogers in the 32nd minute.

Rogers was a target several times and also drew a yellow card on Peter Vagenas three minutes earlier for a reckless tackle. Crew midfielder Brian Carroll was booked in the ninth minute for a hard foul on midfielder Eddie Lewis and Galaxy reserve forward Bryan Jordan was carded after taking down Moreno in the 83rd.

Crew coach Sigi Schmid, a possible coach of the year selection for guiding the team to its first playoff berth since 2004, watched the match from a suite after receiving a red card near the end of last week's match at New England. Assistant Robert Warzycha took over.

Late penalty kick hurts Earthquakes

FRISCO, Texas -- For more than 30 minutes, the San Jose Earthquakes looked poised to leave Pizza Hut Park with a win against FC Dallas. But a late penalty kick converted by Kenny Cooper canceled out Ryan Johnson's 58th-minute goal and left the teams with a 1-1 draw on MLS Primetime Thursday.

The penalty was awarded after FC Dallas rookie midfielder Eric Avila sent a cross in from the right flank. His ball struck San Jose defender Francisco Lima in the midsection and then looked to carom off his arm. Referee Abbey Okulaja took notice and quickly awarded the penalty kick, which Cooper stepped up and converted in the 89th minute.

However, that wasn't the only controversial call. In the 71st minute, FCD center back Duilio Davino was caught flat-footed as a ball was chipped over his head. San Jose's Scott Sealy appeared to be heading clean through on goal, but Davino threw his arms above his head and knocked down the ball just outside the area. Much to San Jose's consternation, Okulaja gave Davino only a yellow card.

"In general, I think we did a good job of possessing, counterattacking and created some great chances," San Jose head coach Frank Yallop said. "But the handball when Scott is going to go in, (he will) probably get a shot off or maybe score. That makes it 2-0 and it doesn't get the right call. It hurt tonight."

Johnson, who had put the Earthquakes with his fifth goal of the season mere seconds after coming on as a substitute, felt the penalty kick call was a tight decision.

"It was close," he said. "I give the referee a little bit of credit with it being close. I'm going to say it was 100 percent here or 100 percent there. It was a difficult call to make at the 87th minute. Yeah it's the home team that you're reffing but you should be neutral. A call at that time should be 100 percent. If he wasn't 100 percent on that, he shouldn't have called it. That's just the way it is. Hopefully this doesn't determine our season and hopefully, we can bounce back and use this as a little bit of fuel. Hopefully we can use this."

The San Jose midfielder said his goal was probably the quickest he had ever scored, just after coming on for Ronnie O'Brien. Jason Hernandez sent a long ball that Scott Sealy tried to flick and missed, putting Davino out of position as the ball skipped past.

"When Jay (Hernandez) got his foot to it, it was a solid ball," Johnson said. "So, the ball got split between the two defenders, I knew I had a chance. I saw the guys didn't anticipate it too well. They didn't think I was going to run onto it. It was just anticipation in my part and me taking my one opportunity and putting it away.

"It was probably on my first touch too," he continued. "It was probably a little bit of luck but if I get a chance, I always try to put it away. I know that in a game, you only get one chance, maybe two and if you don't put them away, it could be a different result. We could have lost today."

Signed just before the start of the season, Johnson spent much of the early part of the season as a striker, though midfield is his preferred position.

"Ryan's done a terrific job for us this year, whether it's starting a game or coming off the bench," Yallop said. "One of the roles he's been asked to do is he always uses his back. He's a big strong kid and he loves to play. He wants to get on the field and play. He's like a caged animal really. He's ready to go every time I put him on and it showed tonight. It was a great finish to come off the bench with his first touch. I was pretty happy with his performance."

Despite only leaving Frisco with one point, Yallop still saw plenty of positives in his side's performance.

"I thought we possessed the ball well," he said. "In the first half, I didn't quite feel the urgency was there. We were fighting for our lives but I didn't get that feeling and I told them. We can talk about tactics and all the stuff we're going to talk about, but if you don't apply yourself, you're not going to win the match. I thought they did well in the second half."

The single point still leaves San Jose at least four points out of the last playoff spot with four games to play, though all the teams at the top of the conference still have yet to play this weekend. For Johnson, he and his teammates admit that the thought of a tie never entered their minds.

"I thought we could have held onto it once I saw the time going down after the 80th minute," he said. "I thought we would hold on. That's the way it is sometimes. Next time when we do have the lead, we can't think we're going to get the win in the 85th minute. We've got to definitely lock it down in the back and just stay tough."

TFC keep playoff hopes alive with win over NY

E. RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Toronto FC kept its slim playoff hopes alive Saturday night, earning three valuable points with a vital 3-1 road victory against Eastern Conference rival New York Red Bulls at Giants Stadium.

TFC striker Chad Barrett scored on either side of halftime, netting the game-winner in the 65th minute. Substitute Abdus Ibrahim, 17, put the game away when he headed home Johann Smith's cross three minutes before the final whistle. Dane Richards got New York's lone goal in the 49th minute.

The win is essentially worth six points for the visitors, since New York is one of the teams TFC is chasing for a postseason berth. Another is D.C. United, which lost to Chivas USA on Saturday, keeping TFC in the thick of the hunt with three regular season matches remaining.

Given the tilt's importance, both teams came out cautiously during the opening stages.

Neither side managed a shot on goal through the first 20 minutes. Then New York created a pair of quality chances, forcing Toronto 'keeper Greg Sutton into two diving saves. The first was on a close-range shot from Juan Pablo Angel, the second on a Mike Magee volley.

Toronto FC, however, struck first. In the 25th minute, Reds striker Chad Barrett took advantage of Gabriel Cichero's latest blunder, running past the Red Bulls defender and pouncing on his weak, headed pass-back attempt before lofting the ball over the head of 'keeper Jon Conway, who was stranded hopelessly off his line, and into the unattended net. The home team was none too happy about falling behind. In the 34th minute, tempers boiled over and a scrum broke out after Juan Pablo Angel caught former Red Bulls midfielder Amado Guevara in the back of the leg near midfield. When the dust settled, Angel, teammate Jorge Rojas and TFC defender Kevin Harmse had been booked by referee Ramon Hernandez.

New York midfielder Seth Stammler had an opportunity to even the score on the stroke of halftime. But his eight-yard shot off Richards' pass was well saved by Sutton and TFC went to the locker room with a 1-0 lead.

New York pulled level just four minutes after the second half began. Angel headed on Kevin Goldthwaite's throw-in on the left side and Richards cleverly allowed the ball to go over his head and into space so he could run onto it. With TFC's back line retreating, Richards darted into the area and fired a low shot past Sutton to even things up.

Moments later, Richards nearly put his team ahead when he chased down a defense-splitting through-ball, but Sutton saw the danger early and got there first to clear the ball away.

In the 65th minute, Toronto went ahead for good. After successfully defending a New York free kick, Marvell Wynne sprung a lightning-fast, odd-man counter-attack when he picked up a loose ball deep in his own half and raced 60 yards into the Red Bulls box.

With Wynne approaching, Conway had to come out to play the shot. But at the last possible second, Wynne served a perfect square pass across the face of goal for Barrett to steer into the gaping goal from the doorstep.

Toronto FC added an insurance goal in the 86th minute as Ibrahim beat Cichero to a cross by Johann Smith and headed the ball past Conway at the far post. It was the third straight game the Red Bulls have conceded three goals or more.

TFC now has 31 points from 27 games. The Reds' next match is against FC Dallas in Frisco, Texas next Saturday. The Red Bulls remain on 35 points, with their hold on a wild card spot in real doubt. They face a huge game against another team tied with 35 points, Real Salt Lake, next Thursday as the Utah club opens its new stadium.

United edged by Cruz Azul in CONCACAF play

WASHINGTON -- A green-looking D.C. United side valiantly resisted Mexican power Cruz Azul in their CONCACAF Champions League Group A match at RFK Stadium on Wednesday night, but a toothless United attack allowed the visitors to ride a fluky goal from Pablo Zeballos to a 1-0 win.

A first-half sub in place of Marcelo Carrusca, Zeballos found himself in the right place at the right time in the 56th minute when he unwittingly deflected Cesar Villaluz's mishit shot past D.C. goalkeeper Zach Wells, obscuring an underwhelming performance from Cruz Azul and keeping los Cementeros on pace with group rivals CD Marathon and Deportivo Saprissa.

True to expectations, D.C. coach Tom Soehn rested several everyday starters with an eye towards Saturday's league match against Chivas USA, as Fred, Ivan Guerrero, Bryan Namoff, Clyde Simms, Gonzalo Martinez and Louis Crayton were left out in favor of the likes of Rod Dyachenko, Craig Thompson, Quavas Kirk, Joe Vide, Zach Wells and Greg Janicki, making his United debut alongside Marc Burch in the heart of the D.C. defense.

Eight-time Mexican champions Cruz Azul also fielded a relatively young side as Carlos Bonet and Mexican international Gerrado Torrado were left at home and Bonet's fellow Paraguayan World Cup veteran Cristian Riveros started the evening on the bench.

Less than five minutes into his first-ever senior team appearance, Janicki found himself at the end of a gilt-edged scoring chance when he roamed forward for a Jaime Moreno corner kick. The on-loan center back did well to meet the Bolivian's delivery at the near post, but thumped his header well wide with the goal gaping.

Moreno tried to cap a promising passing sequence with a chip over Cruz Azul netminder Alfonso Blanco from just outside the penalty box, but his bid floated just high, skimming into the top of the net.

To the dismay of their expatriate fans in attendance, the Mexicans started the match slowly and a few whistles floated down from the stands when defender Gabino Velasco skied his shot miles over the target after a half-cleared corner kick.

The Cementmen gradually warmed to the task and soon began to string together more possession, forcing nimble defensive interventions from Devon McTavish and Mike Zaher. But the visitors were hit by the early loss of Marcelo Carrusca, who left the field on a medical gurney with what looked like a painful shoulder injury as Paraguayan Pablos Zeballos entered in his stead.

The Mexicans were clearly aware of Moreno's menace, as the D.C. captain was routinely thronged by white jerseys whenever he dropped deep to link play. But his ability to hold the ball under pressure set up Kirk for a clear scoring chance in the 24th minute as his angled pass helped the rangy winger beat the Cruz Azul offside trap and race in on goal. But with Dyachenko waving at the far post, Kirk tried to beat Blanco to the near side and the 21-year-old 'keeper saved comfortably.

Two minutes later the crowd roared when Kirk centered for Francis Doe to flick a close-range finish past Blanco, but the Liberian has strayed offside and his effort was waved off.

As a steady rain picked up, Janicki was required to use his substantial height to head clear on several of Cruz Azul's threatening ventures into the United box in the dying moments of the first half, and Dyachenko tracked back to make a goal-saving clearance of Cesar Villaluz's teasing cross with seconds left. But the undermanned hosts were surely gratified to reach the halfway mark with matters still locked at 0-0.

Cruz Azul continued to probe the Black-and-Red back line after the break, but created little in the way of clear-cut chances -- then stumbled into a scarcely deserved lead on a supremely lucky chain of events in the 56th minute. Burch looped a clearing header out of his own box, then fell as he blocked a goalbound shot, handing Cesar Villaluz a clear look at Wells' goal from 18 yards out.

Yet Villaluz scuffed his shot badly off target, only to see it pay off as the wobbling ball deflected off his unsuspecting teammate Zeballos and bounced into the goal as a wrongfooted Wells was left helpless. The visitors looked almost embarrassed at their good fortune, but relaxed noticeably with the pressure eased off their shoulders as their supporters sang and cheered.

United's youngsters continued to fight, however. Doe was working hard to find space and keep possession up top while Moreno showing little signs of his sore knee as he continued to pace his team.

Kirk soon made way for the speedy Thabiso "Boyzzz" Khumalo as Soehn looked to up the tempo, and the South African's pace and attacking intent were welcome additions for United's front line though opportunities to truly test Blanco came few and far between, though Khumalo did see an angled drive crash off the near post on one instance.

With the hosts pressing forward, Cruz Azul came close on several more occasions in the final minutes as second-half sub Miguel Sabah snapped a clear header just wide of the near post, then Burch handed Zeballos possession inside the D.C. box only to redeem himself with a goal-line clearance.

Moreno tried to create a late, late equalizer with an in-swinging free kick delivery into the Cementeros box from the left wing and Khumalo threatened on an injury-time solo run. But the United attack remained unfulfilled until Canadian referee Paul Ward blew his final whistle and Cruz Azul escaped RFK with a pedestrian victory that nonetheless keeps them in contention for advancement from CCL Group A.

Playoff fires heating up

Three bold individual performances drove a trio of mammoth road wins as Week 27 added even more accelerant to a playoff-race fire that was already blazing.

All three of the significant road triumphs carried weight -- if perhaps for different reasons.

The Colorado Rapids launched a weekend run on improbable road success by stunning New York at Giants Stadium, where manager Juan Carlos Osorio thought he had the defense properly fortified with three key midsummer additions. (The Red Bulls actually added four players in the summer transfer window; the other was an attacking player.) Still, the Rapids scored five goals for the first time since 2002 and emerged from New Jersey with a mile-marker 5-4 win and an undeniable place as one Major League Soccer's hottest teams.

Who could have forecast that from a team that was absolutely on the skids just one month ago, having lost four of five, stuck to the bottom of the league table?

And who saw the next one coming? Real Salt Lake, having struggled mightily on the road all year, with just one triumph in their first dozen tries away from Rice-Eccles, cracked the league's formerly hottest team, San Jose.

The Earthquakes made themselves into serious playoff pursuers through Darren Huckerby's indomitable attacking and by making little Buck Shaw a fiercely difficult place for the opposition to score goals. So Saturday's 3-2 win by RSL was a stunner for all kinds of reasons.

The weekend's other major road win wasn't as significant in terms of playoff implications, perhaps, but it served as a high-decibel statement -- surely heard all around MLS.

Columbus is already in the playoffs and New England can feel pretty good about its chances, too. So the meeting at rainy Gillette Stadium was never going to say much about postseason fortunes. But the Crew's 1-0 win at New England (5-0 on "aggregate," following a recent meeting of the teams at Crew Stadium) certainly provided notice that the road to MLS Cup 2008 seems to go through Ohio.

Generally speaking, big wins away from home demand big performances from at least one individual. And all three road triumphs had just that.

At Giants Stadium, Conor Casey carried his team with the league's sixth hat trick this year. Casey has struggled to stay healthy in two seasons at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, and his production shows as much. Casey came into Saturday's match with just seven goals in 34 matches since returning stateside in the spring of 2007 following a long stint in Germany.

But against the Red Bulls' suddenly teetering defense, Casey's three strikes included a late game-winner off Mehdi Ballouchy's pinpoint service.

Casey's determined individual performance might have been among the best all year in MLS. He was heavily involved in the Rapids' first goal, as his aggressive challenge on Red Bulls goalkeeper Jon Conway cleared the way for Omar Cummings' relatively easy connection into goal.

Then, Casey's first strike was equal parts skill and will, as he doggedly bounced off Red Bulls defenders to fire past Conway. Later, he helped set up a penalty kick, which he then calmly and assertively buried. Then Casey helped give the Rapids, now undefeated in four games, all three points by getting inside of defender Jeff Parke to athletically push home the late winner. In between, Casey stayed busy as a target man, winning balls with that big bald head all night to help keep the Rapids tied for third in the West, along with Real Salt Lake.

For RSL, it was Yura Movsisyan who rewarded Jason Kreis' continued faith. Movsisyan's two goals in an epic performance helped Real atone for that loss at home last weekend, which suddenly looks a lot less crippling.

Movsisyan was a handful all night for San Jose's back line, one that looked a bit like the rest of the team, a step or two slow after last week's postponement gave the formerly in-form Earthquakes an unexpectedly long layoff. Movsisyan took full advantage, supplying goals from two terrific individual efforts, the first on the back side of a wonderful through ball by Javier Morales. Movsisyan came close on a couple of other occasions, too. That's premium production from a striker who might be in the starting 11 only due to Fabian Espindola's injury.

Plenty of teams could already have lost faith in Movsisyan, who had just eight goals and one lonely assist in 50 MLS appearances prior to Saturday's breakout. Scoring less than once every five matches is not what most managers seek in a game-changing forward. And that's not to mention the young striker's propensity to lower his head and stubbornly plow toward goal once the ball falls to his feet -- a tendency reflected in that flagging assist total.

The road ahead remains tough for RSL, but Movsisyan's big night will certainly help renew confidence. A couple of other individual performances must be mentioned here, too. Morales, fresh off signing a new four-year deal, was on his game, giving the San Jose midfield fits with tidy possession and clever passing. And what can you say about his superbly taken free kick game-winner?

Huckerby's night should be mentioned, as well. His goals were consummate Huckerby, well-taken efforts, both, stemming from those signature runs out of the midfield. His sizzling nine-game totals: six goals and four assists.

In New England, it was a defender making all the noise as U.S. center back Chad Marshall took command. His team is plowing ahead undeterred in the absence of league MVP candidate Guillermo Barros Schelotto; The Crew have collected seven of a possible nine points during Schelotto's injury absence, a period that includes two road matches. That's a job well done.

Marshall was a beast all night, helping to deal with Taylor Twellman and the rest of the Revolution attackers as Columbus blanked the Revs at Gillette, just the third time that's happened all year. Marshall struck powerfully with a 35th-minute header, the first time New England's zone marking off corner kicks has been dented this year.

Even when the Crew went down a man (following Frankie Hejduk's 65th-minute expulsion), Marshall and his gang had matters in hand. By game's end, Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer had needed just two saves to preserve his eighth shutout of the campaign.

TACTICAL CORNER

• Red Bulls manager Juan Carlos Osorio obviously wants his team comfortable playing two different formations. It's the Osorio way; he always arranges his team tactically to exploit the opposition weakness and to add extra protection for opponent strong suits.

For the last four weeks, Osorio has toggled weekly between a 3-5-2 and a 4-4-2. Against Colorado on Saturday, the team lined up with three in the back, with Gabriel Cichero stationed centrally between Diego Jimenez and Jeff Parke. A week before, the four-man back line had been (right to left) Parke, Cichero, Andrew Boyens and Kevin Goldthwaite.

A week before that, it was Parke, Cichero and Goldthwaite in a three-man setup. And so it has gone much of the year for Osorio's men.

• Teams on two coasts, fighting for their playoff lives, have been left with big holes to fill. Just when Alecko Eskandarian seemed to be gaining speed for Chivas USA, strike partner Ante Razov limped off the field with a calf injury.

On the other hand, Claudio Suarez, Alex Zotinca and Jesse Marsch have all returned lately to boost the Red-and-White, who are also working to get Maykel Galindo match-fit for the playoffs.

There's not nearly as much relief for Tom Soehn's D.C. United. With eight matches scheduled for a busy October, the men of RFK might be without their leading scorer. Luciano Emilio left Sunday's loss to Dallas with a hamstring injury. The side will definitely be without Jaime Moreno for the next MLS contest (at home vs. Chivas USA). Moreno received a red card late in Sunday's 3-0 loss to Dallas.

United are winless, with five losses and a tie, in all competitions since claiming the U.S. Open Cup at the beginning of the month. Soehn's side has allowed at least two goals in each of those subsequent contests.

United are 16-19-4 in all competitions this year, including MLS regular season play and matches in the U.S. Open Cup, CONCACAF Champions League, CONCACAF Champions Cup and SuperLiga.