Fourth time the charm for Noonan?

COLUMBUS -- The third time was not a charm for Pat Noonan, so he's hoping for a better result with a different team.

Noonan came oh-so close in the past three MLS Cups but New England suffered one-goal losses (one in overtime, another on penalty kicks) each time.

He's back for a fourth straight try but this time it's with Columbus as the Crew makes their first MLS Cup Final appearance.

"I've been there but it never gets old. I still haven't won one. Hopefully, this will be the year and I'll finally get the first one," he said.

Noonan's rights were dealt to the Crew in August after leaving the Revolution in January to play in Norway. After a short and largely unsuccessful stint there he decided to return to MLS but not for New England.

The Crew were happy to get the veteran forward who had 37 goals and 29 assists in 119 matches for the Revolution.

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• Fourth time the charm for Noonan?
• Red Bulls utilize second chance
SIGHTS & SOUNDS

Red Bulls conf. call preview

Crew conf. call preview

It took awhile for Noonan to get back into playing shape but over a three-game stretch in September he had assists against his former club and New York and a tying goal at Toronto FC.

He had six starts among 10 appearances but enters Sunday's MLS Cup 2008 in Carson, Calif., against the New York Red Bulls in an unaccustomed role.

Noonan started all three MLS Cups for the Revolution but has not been off the bench in the Crew's three playoff games.

"Pat's been great," coach Sigi Schmid said. "For a player like himself, I know there's a certain level of frustration because he hasn't gotten on the field yet.

"His attitude at practice has been super. His attitude in the locker room and around the guys has been great. That experience he brings, having been there, the calm, the knowledge of knowing what's going on is something that other guys can learn from and bank on."

Noonan acknowledges that watching instead of playing has not been easy but the overriding factor for him is he has another crack at a championship.

"Obviously, I'd love to be out there in the starting lineup. That's not the way it is right now. I'm going to be supporting the guys who are out there like they would for me," he said. "They've done a great job getting us to this point and so have the reserves who've come in when needed. It's a team effort. Hopefully, I'll get a chance late in the game if need be. If not, I hope it will be a victory for the Crew at the end of the day."

Schmid has the same wish. "You never know," he said, "he might be the guy who comes off the bench in the final game and makes the difference."

As for being a good luck charm that brought some of the Revolution's success to Columbus, Noonan will have none of that.

"I don't know. Good luck is when you win it but it's nice to get there. We're not done yet," he said.

What he has learned from three previous Cup matches that he can forward to his new teammates?

"Losing stinks," said Noonan. "The first go-around is probably the hardest but when you get there again you're happy to be there but you want it more. Until you finally win one, you haven't finished it. For a lot of guys -- other than a few -- we haven't won one. It would be nice to win it not only for ourselves but for the organization."

Many of the Crew players are relying on Noonan and past MLS Cup winners midfielder Brian Carroll, defender Ezra Hendrickson and forward Alejandro Moreno for guidance.

"I'll be talking to those guys throughout the week just to get their thoughts and some of their input," midfielder Eddie Gaven said.

Noonan said the routine will be different because the team is traveling Wednesday rather than the day before a match. When the team practices Thursday it will discover there's more media and scrutiny.

"Once the whistle blows you forget about it. It's a regular game with a little more importance," he said. "You have a little more anxiety getting there and then you're happy you're there but then you need to go out and perform the same way that got you there.

"Some guys have been there before. For some of the new guys they can learn from some of the others that have been there. Or, do what they need to do personally to get ready for the game."

The players are pulling for Noonan to claim a championship. Moreno and Hendrickson were teammates on the Schmid-coached 2002 Los Angeles Galaxy when it won the MLS Cup and Hendrickson and Carroll were on the 2004 D.C. United title winners. Moreno won a second title with Houston in 2006.

"Pat and I have known each other for a long time just playing through the league," Hendrickson said. "We talked about it. Maybe this time will be the charm for him -- I get my third, he gets his first and we all go home happy."

"Hopefully, we can get him one," said Carroll. "That's the goal but then again we're not really thinking about that. We're thinking about enjoying the journey, practicing hard and going in and performing well in the game on Sunday." Noonan knows nothing comes easy when a title is at stake.

"We have a tough task ahead of us. New York is playing well but so are we. We want to get on them early and hopefully keep the game in our favor," he continued. "They're on a roll. They beat us two out of three. It's going to be a tough matchup. You've got to forget about those past games. It's one game for the MLS Cup."

Maybe this time Noonan will be drinking champagne instead of tasting the bitterness of defeat.

Red Bulls making good on second chance

Before he danced on a dais at Rio Tinto Stadium, Dane Richards was celebrating in his New Jersey apartment after watching the Columbus Crew defeat D.C. United 1-0 on the final day of the regular season.

"I remember watching the D.C.-Columbus game and I was so nervous because D.C. hit the post," the Jamaican midfielder said. "When Columbus scored I was rejoicing like we won the MLS Cup."

That victory not only ended United's season, but it breathed new life into the Red Bulls, which three days earlier were trounced 5-2 by the Chicago Fire in their final regular-season game.

"It was just a second chance and we all realized it was one," Dave van den Bergh said. "We took it and took full advantage of it and for a lot of these guys this is the first final that they're in. It's just a great atmosphere in the locker room and around the team. We just figured it takes 11 guys working very hard to get a result. That's what we do."

The Red Bulls might have been the final team to make the MLS Cup Playoffs, but they are one of two still standing heading into Sunday's MLS Cup 2008.

NEWSNov. 18 headlines
• Lewis: Red Bulls like superheroes
• Fourth time the charm for Noonan?
• Red Bulls utilize second chance
SIGHTS & SOUNDS

Red Bulls conf. call preview

Crew conf. call preview

"We didn't have the right momentum going into the playoffs from the 5-2 loss, but you know you just have to get there and put everyone together and point the ship in the right direction," Kevin Goldthwaite said. "We've done that and we've done it well."

Goldthwaite said Red Bulls coach Juan Carlos Osorio deserves the credit for the stunning about-face.

Osorio expressed his disappointment with the result to the team, made drastic changes to his lineup. He benched prized South American signings Jorge Rojas, Gabriel Cichero and Juan Pietravallo and started two midfielders with little playoff experience in Luke Sassano and Sinisa Ubiparipovic and a veteran up front in John Wolyniec who hadn't scored a goal during the regular season.

"A lot of teams talk about momentum and playing well going into the playoffs, but sometimes learning a good lesson is a good opportunity to improve your team," said Wolyniec, who has one goal and set up two others in the playoffs. "We got shellacked but we learned our lesson from that."

By backing into the playoffs and with the two-time defending MLS Cup champion Houston Dynamo their foe in the Western Conference Semifinal Series, the Red Bulls had no pressure. After all, few outside of their locker room gave New York a chance, especially after a 1-1 draw in the opening leg at Giants Stadium.

But the Red Bulls stunned Major League Soccer with a 3-0 victory at Robertson Stadium and followed that with a 1-0 win against Real Salt Lake in the Western Conference Championship on Saturday.

The team that was third worst in the league with 48 goals against during the regular season and had just one victory away from Giants Stadium has conceded just one in the playoffs and has posted back-to-back road shutouts.

"It's a fresh start, mentally as well as on a piece of paper," goalkeeper Danny Cepero said. "Everybody is equal in the playoffs, in this league any team, as I think we showed, can beat any other team on any given night. I think it was just that mental freshness, I guess you can call it, that allowed us to make a run here."

And now the Red Bulls are in their first-ever MLS Cup Final and, after 12 years of playoff futility, have an opportunity to win the first major trophy in club history. That seemed doubtful three weeks ago.

"After that game against Chicago it seemed very unlikely," Mike Magee said. "The feeling right now is, I seriously can't even explain it. I didn't even play the last two games and I don't even care. This is absolutely incredible, the best moment of my six years here."

Real won't sit back with chance to advance

SANDY, Utah -- When it comes to producing good results in dramatic fashion, Real Salt Lake have cornered the market in the past couple of weeks.

Yura Movsisyan has become the team's last-minute man with his 90th-minute goals that boosted RSL into the MLS Cup Playoffs over Colorado and gave the team a 1-0 victory in the first leg of its playoff series with Chivas USA last weekend.

As good as dramatic wins feel, Movsisyan and RSL hope to not have to wait around so long for good things to happen in the second leg of their Western Conference Semifinal Series against Chivas USA on Saturday.

"Like I said to the guys, maybe we should just start playing the last five minutes of every game and then the next 85," Movsisyan said. "We just seem to get it done."

Getting a last-second goal for a second consecutive week helped RSL get one important thing done. Real protected Rio Tinto Stadium and seized an advantage that will help greatly at The Home Depot Center.

Because the two-game series is decided on aggregate goals, RSL can settle for a draw and still punch a ticket to the Western Conference Championship next week.

One reason why RSL find themselves in such a good position is that they were able to flip the switch and turn a round of bad soccer against the Rapids into a solid 90 minutes against the Red-and-White.

Real outshot Chivas USA by an astounding margin, allowed no corner kicks and controlled possession and tempo for a sizeable chunk of the match.

"For me, that was one of the best soccer games we've played all year, and it's interesting that it comes on the heels of one of the worst soccer games we played all year," said Real coach Jason Kreis. "But that goes to show you that our team can absolutely play the game and they are fun to watch."

Team captain Kyle Beckerman thinks RSL can get the result they need if the team just approaches the second leg of the series with a calm demeanor.

"We learned we needed to relax a bit more," Beckerman said. "We needed to kill the game (at Colorado) and that's what we're going to try and do (at Chivas). Let's get on the ball and try to go after it and get the second [goal], but let's concentrate on playing good soccer and being relaxed."

For Chivas, the way things are playing out is producing flashbacks to a year ago. The Red-and-White were eliminated from the playoffs a year ago after losing the first leg of their semifinal series with Kansas City 1-0, then following up with a scoreless draw on the second leg at home.

Don't expect RSL to sit back and coast to a series win. Real want to leave nothing to doubt and plan on putting together an attack similar to what Chivas experienced at Rio Tinto Stadium.

"If we were up 2-0 or 3-0, we could certainly talk about changing (our strategy)," Kreis said. "But I do think this team has shown time and time and time again that we're a better team when we are aggressive."

One thing that should play into RSL's favor once again is the hobbled state of Chivas' roster. Seven players are either sidelined or considered questionable for Saturday's match.

Another factor that should not be discounted is the success that RSL has already had at The Home Depot Center this season. One of their two road victories in the regular season came against Chivas in a 1-0 result on June 14, the club's first win ever on the road against their expansion brethren.

Repeating such a feat won't be hard, according to Movsisyan, because the team has expunged its road woes for good.

"In the beginning we kind of had a hard time playing away, but we've improved week in and week out, and we can do it anywhere -- home or away -- as long as we play good soccer," Movsisyan said.

Dynamo not resting on laurels

HOUSTON -- The Houston Dynamo are unbelievably good when the level of competition is at its highest. There really isn't another way of describing the team that is three wins away from a third consecutive MLS title.

Sunday, in front of what surely will be another frenzied crowd at Robertson Stadium, the Dynamo will try to shut down the New York Red Bulls in a place where they have never lost a playoff match.

All year long the Orange have talked about their home-field advantage and what it means playing in front of an loyal throng that has been spoiled by one success story after another.

Now it's win or go home, and the Dynamo's all-time home scoring advantage of 11-2 in the MLS Cup Playoffs means nothing. Ask either team in front of an audience, and they will tell you that it doesn't matter.

That is the right thing to say with so much at stake, but the numbers don't lie.

"I think when the playoffs start everything gets thrown out the window because anything can happen," said Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear. "Attention to detail, minor errors, things like that always tend to get magnified. Records mean nothing."

In 2006, the Dynamo dropped their opener at Chivas USA before winning two in a row at home to reach the MLS Cup Final, as Houston dismantled Chivas in the second leg and then Colorado to reach its first championship game against New England.

At Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, the Dynamo fell behind only to tie the match and win the MLS title on penalty kicks.

Last year was eerily similar. The Orange dropped their playoff-opening match at Dallas before rallying for a 4-1 win at home in the second leg. Then, a week later the Dynamo dropped the Kansas City Wizards 2-0 in front of a record crowd at Robertson Stadium to earn a rematch against the Revs.

Now, for the first time in team history, the Dynamo do not trail entering the second leg of a playoff series. Last week, they earned a draw in the first leg when Kei Kamara poked a shot into the net in the 85th minute.

Even though they are heavily favored to beat a New York team that won just a single match away from home in 2008, they are not relying on numbers to get them to the Western Conference Championship.

"We weren't enthralled with our performance, but now it's not about the performance, it's about the result," said Houston defender Bobby Boswell. "And now, coming home, where we have played really good all year, I think we have put ourselves in a great position. We realize the importance of that, and hopefully we can get the job done."

Stuart Holden assisted on Kamara's goal and is part of what is arguably the deepest bench any MLS team has employed in a long time. The Orange have rallied to tie or win games in the latter stages at least a half-dozen times this year, and Holden said that is just part of the team's mental makeup.

The modus operandi, he said, is never say die.

"The team mentality is that we are never out of a game," added Holden. "We know we're never out of it, and even when we are down two-nil or something like that, we just keep battling to get a goal."

As for taking New York lightly, a team that was outscored 28-12 away from Giants Stadium this year, Holden just shrugged off the suggestion that his team wouldn't be prepared for what is sure to be a desperate visitor.

"Anything can happen in the playoffs, and we have seen it before," Holden added. "We know the numbers, we know the stats and we know there are a lot of people that are going to count us as a favorite entering the match this weekend. But we always know that they have some weapons and that on any given day they can beat us. We're not going to take them lightly, and we are going to come out Sunday and take it to them from the get-go."

Kinnear pushed his team with several long practices this week. He knows his squad has allowed just two goals in four home playoff matches while scoring 11. Kinnear, like the team he leads, is level-headed and calm as his team prepares for the latest installment of the biggest game in team history.

He knows that no MLS team has ever won three consecutive titles. Even before the team caught fire after sputtering out of the game, Kinnear wanted no part of any championship talk.

Kinnear only brings that up when he is discussing team goals and where the squad would like to be when if they are rewarded with the chance to play at The Home Depot Center on Nov. 23.

Sunday, the Dynamo have their best positioning ever after one playoff match. Instead of trailing in their first home match to start the playoffs, the team has a clean slate and a full bill of health.

But to Kinnear, none of that matters.

"We got the draw in New York, but now we have to come back here and win," said Kinnear. "We still have to win."

Win and move on for Crew vs. Wizards

COLUMBUS -- A successful 30-game regular season and one leg of the MLS Cup Playoffs comes down to this Saturday night in Crew Stadium: One-and-done.

After 90 minutes and possibly extra time and penalty kicks, either the Supporters' Shield-winning Crew or the No. 4 seed Kansas City Wizards will advance to face Chicago in the Eastern Conference Championship on Nov. 13.

The aggregate series is tied 1-1 following last Saturday's game at Kansas City. In theory, the teams should have an equal chance but the Crew hope their trump card will be their gold- and black-clad fans.

Columbus is 7-0-2 at home since a June 7 loss to San Jose and has won six in a row there after tying the Wizards 3-3 on July 17.

"This is our reward for having a good season. We get to come home and do it in front of our fans. Now is why the home-field advantage matters," goalkeeper William Hesmer said. "We've been talking since February about making our home a fortress. Our fans have rallied behind that and we've rallied behind or fans."

The Crew made it a point to improve on their five home wins last season and as this season progressed so did their confidence -- witness their 11-2-2 record.

"As we gained momentum at the start of the season we really started to believe nobody is going to come in here and beat us and we took a lot of pride in that," forward Alejandro Moreno said.

K.C. thought it had the edge in the first game because it was unbeaten in 10 home games. While the game ended in a tie to extend the streak, the Wizards let the lead slip away in stoppage time when rookie Steven Lenhart scored.

History suggests the lower seed has almost an equal chance of advancing despite playing the deciding match on the road. Of the past 13 first-round series, since 2005, the team playing the first game at home has won six.

"It's what we worked for the whole year," Moreno said. "Once it became apparent we were going to be in the playoffs the second goal was home-field advantage. Our intention is to take advantage of it to get through to the next round."

The Crew were happy to get out of Kansas City with a point. They didn't play particularly well on the narrow field and exhibited some nerves in their first postseason clash since 2004.

"I was excited. I'm sure the guys were as well," Crew coach Sigi Schmid said. "There was a little nervousness and tentativeness that entered into it for both teams. To get that first game under our belts and not have given ourselves a more difficult situation coming into Game 2 was very important. We're relaxed but eager to get work on Saturday.

"There's more excitement going into this game because it's one-and-out. The first game you know you have a second game so it's a little bit different."

Veteran defender Ezra Hendrickson thinks the young players on the Crew will be appreciably better.

"You saw it the last game. We came out a little tight. A lot of players had never been in a playoff game before," he said. "It's a whole new season. You try to tell the younger players that nothing is going to be come easy. Every game is going to be a fight.

"It's going to take a whole team effort. There haven't been any blowouts. That's the way it's going to be because everybody is fighting for their life."

The question for the Crew is how to approach the match. As the home team and favorite, is the pressure there to dictate the pace?

"We want to do it because we feel that's what's best for us," Moreno said. "If we're carrying the rhythm of the game and we're carrying what we think is going to be good opportunities on goal and we're able to convert those opportunities it becomes a non-issue.

"Now, if the game gets dictated to us and we're not able to get into the rhythm we want to then obviously we're going to find ourselves in a real tough game and a bit of struggle."

Schmid was asked to address three scenarios with the match at the 75th minute:

If it's tied, "a lot depends on how the game's going. If we're tied but creating chances you probably let guys go out there," he said. "If it's the 75th minute and were tied and they're all over us and we're not creating chances maybe we've got to get some other bodies out there to help turn the thing.

"It's something that I always have an idea in my mind going into game as to what are the possible subs used if these scenarios happen but then you have to see which scenario is out in the game."

If the Crew lead by one: "Have they decided to go with three forwards? Have they tried to push and bring (Ivan) Trujillo in and just have a big body? Do we come and bring in an (Andy) Iro just to clear headers off the line? Are we, again, controlling the tempo of the game and stay where we are at? Do we bring in, maybe, a more defensive player for one of our wide guys or one of our forwards?

"That's going to be dictated by how the game is going but certainly if we're up 1-0 with 15 minutes to go they're going to have to push and we're going to get opportunities to counter so you want guys on the field who can put away a counterattack and ice the game."

And if the Crew trail by one? "If we're down a goal with 15 to go you've got to get the equalizer or you're season is over," Schmid said. "You've got to make the right decisions whether that's coming with a second striker or going into a more of a 3-4-3 or going into a 3-5-2. The game, again, will dictate that, then we'll decide which way to go."

Cepero comes long way in short time

Four months ago, as he was riding a bus from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, Danny Cepero didn't think he'd be where he is now. Heck, four weeks ago, he didn't think he'd be the starting goalkeeper for the New York Red Bulls, helping lead the club to its first appearance in the MLS Cup Final.

But the 23-year-old from Baldwin, N.Y. is taking it all in stride -- the notoriety that came with becoming the first MLS goalkeeper to score a goal, on his debut no less, making critical saves in stunning playoff wins on the road against Houston and Real Salt Lake.

"In terms of thinking I'd be thrust into playoff situations and be looking at an MLS Cup Final, absolutely not," Cepero said. "At the same time, though, it's a dream come true. I'm having fun with it. I'm on the field and having fun and enjoying the guys around me."

Cepero, who was on a season-long loan with Harrisburg of the USL Second Division, was the center of attention in a media conference call on Monday afternoon. He was asked a bevy of questions, from how he's handled the performance-enhancing drug suspension of Jon Conway, who had played every minute of every game before Cepero started against the Crew on Oct. 18, to his education and his father's Cuban heritage. Just as is the case on the field, Cepero handled it with aplomb.

"I think it's a credit to the guys as a whole, the team as a whole and coaching staff for preparing us to go into hostile environments you can literally feel that pressure coming down and you can feel the fans and everybody going against you," Cepero said. "To kind of withstand that, get through it and hold onto a lead and play 90 minutes of football, I think, is a tribute to their mental toughness and strength. It's so important at this level."

Coming off the biggest win in the history of the club, it was back to work for the Red Bulls on Monday. They were back at Montclair State University for training, back preparing for a game on the weekend.

Despite a mediocre regular season, which saw the Red Bulls give up 48 goals in 30 games, the club has made a dramatic turnaround in the postseason, giving up just one goal in three games and have back-to-back clean sheets heading into the MLS Cup.

"I think it's a tribute to the whole team the mentality we're not going to give up a goal today," Cepero said. "That's the most important thing, where if you don't give up a goal you're not going to lose. It gives us a chance to absorb some of the pressure that they're going to throw at us especially on the road."

That attitude has a lot to do with Osorio, who prides himself on having his team be responsibly defensively while picking its chances to attack -- as was the case in road playoff wins at Houston and Real Salt Lake.

"If we defend properly, we are competitive," Osorio said. "We play within the rules, we're aggressive in a controlled manner, if we play for each other, we play with each other, we compete for each other and we just keep clean sheets, we'll always have a chance to score goals, as we proved in the last games."

Osorio also defended himself against critics who claim his team plays negative soccer.

"Some people out there have said that I'm a very defensive minded coach and I take it as a compliment," Osorio said. "I think, as Danny mentioned and as I always say to the players -- if we keep it to zero, keep a clean sheet, we'll always have good chances because we also work very hard in attacking topics and in top-level football, as I keep saying to the players, you only have to win one-nil."

Osorio defended his philosophy by using Chelsea FC as an example, that the Blues might have spent millions of pounds on attacking players, but won the English Premier League crown with 18 1-0 results.

His team has done the same of late, but it has taken a while.

"I think it has taken some players longer than others to realize that that's what it takes to play professional and to get results at the professional level," Osorio said. "And I just have to be responsible enough and intelligent enough to make the decisions that we need to do at any game."

Crew look for first MLS Cup appearance

COLUMBUS -- The majority of the Columbus Crew players have only heard about past playoff failures and how close the club has came on four previous unsuccessful attempts to advance to the MLS Cup.

Midfielder Robbie Rogers was 10 in 1997 when the Crew reached the first of the three consecutive Eastern Conference finals.

"Our biggest problem was we always hit D.C. when they were in their prime," Crew assistant coach and former Columbus player Mike Lapper said. "We were probably the second-best team in the league at those times but we never were able to get past D.C. to get to the final."

Each year the Crew thought they had the makings of a championship team but from 1997-99 they were thwarted by D.C. United. The Crew also reached the league semifinals in 2002 but lost to New England in a three-game series.

"Over the years, it's frustrating. You're so close to going to the finals and something came up and stood in your way and you didn't make it," said assistant coach Robert Warzycha, a midfielder for the club from 1996-2002.

The Crew will take another crack at making their first MLS Cup Final appearance Thursday when they play host to the Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference Championship.

"Old timers" such as Warzycha and Lapper tell the players to seize the moment. While it appears the Supporters' Shield winners are built for a long and prosperous run over the next few seasons, Warzycha knows there are no guarantees.

"For the many, many years I played I won only one championship," said the 16-year pro. "I played for a team in Poland that I thought would win year after year after year. It never happened again. You have to grab your chance when you have it. It's very, very close and realistic to win the championship but we have to win this game first.

"That's why we have to concentrate a lot and win this game. Look at the history. When's the last time we put ourselves in position to get to the finals?"

It was in 2002 although the Crew thought they were creating something special two years later when they won their first Supporters' Shield but lost in the opening round to New England.

"We had the second game at home but we missed two penalties," said Warzycha of the 2004 two-game series. "That was a team that could have gone a long way but we missed two penalties in one game, which is unusual."

Crew broadcaster Dante Washington had joined the team for a third time late in the 2004 season and played one regular-season game. Much to his surprise and that of the Crew faithful, coach Greg Andrulis started him in the playoff finale instead of forwards Edson Buddle or Jeff Cunningham.

"To be honest I didn't think I was going to be part of it," Washington said. "When I came back from being in the A-League, they had been on an unbelievable run and all of a sudden I'm starting a playoff game. As a player you do what you've got to do but to be quite honest I didn't think I would be starting in game. I thought I would be coming on as a sub, maybe."

He was also part of the Dallas Burn in 1997 when they lost the Western Conference finals to Colorado.

"I've been close a couple of times and it hurts not getting there (to MLS Cup)," Washington.

No one in the Crew organization could have imagined in 2004 that the Crew would not qualify for the playoffs again until this season. Instead of following the path of New England (three consecutive MLS Cup appearances from 2005-07) or Houston (titles in 2006 and '07), the Crew blew up the roster after Sigi Schmid took over in October 2005.

Only three players remain from the 2004 club.

"It's been a lot of frustrating years but we've had some good years, too," Lapper said.

The teams in the late '90's included the likes of Brian McBride, Thomas Dooley, Stern John and Jeff Cunningham -- yet they couldn't get over the D.C. hump.

"With Stern and McBride and all those guys we were thinking every year we had a chance to win it all," Warzycha said.

The Crew are in that position again but Lapper said comparisons to the past are unwarranted.

"This year is a totally different feeling. The guys are confident but not cocky. That's a big difference, obviously. Everyone is truly happy when someone else succeeds," he said. "We're not dependent on one or two people. It used to be either Stern John or Cunningham and if they didn't show up we struggled.

"Now, we're getting goals from Robbie, Alejandro (Moreno), everybody. It makes it a formidable team."

While many former players want to wallow in the "good old days", Lapper isn't one to say the Crew teams he played for are better than the current edition.

"This is the best year. The days of Dooley and Stern John and when we had it clicking, those were definitely some good teams. We had one or two stars but there was a big drop," he said. "Here, I don't see a big drop. You go through the lineup and there's good players all through the lineup doing their job and doing it well."

Washington hopes the players appreciate the opportunity before them. When they take to the field Thursday night it will mark the first time in the 13-year history of the team that the Crew will play at home with a berth in the MLS Cup at stake.

"It means everything. This city, this team deserves to be in the Cup after so many close calls and the disappointments," Washington said. "You go through the highs and lows. At some point you've got to say, 'All right. These guys deserve a chance to bring an MLS Cup to Columbus.'"

Lapper thinks the match features the league's best teams.

"Chicago is a very good team, a very good team, and they've had a great year," he said. "This should be MLS Cup. If the world was right this would be MLS Cup ... but it's not."