Postgame Report: KC 1 - 0 Crew (How does it feel looking up at the Wizards, MLS?)

By: Michael | May 8th, 2007

In Summary:
If you can dominate a team and yet still barely escape with a win all in the same 90 minutes, it apparently looks like the Wizard’s 1-0 defeat of the Crew on Saturday afternoon. If one is looking to somehow illustrate a taciturn fracas, I would again point at Saturday’s game as the fulfillment of an oxymoron. The bottom line for me was not how the Wizards played, but rather the crew: A tough, scrambling, rough (dirty?), 90-minute attempt at securing yet another draw. The linked CBS summary chose to sum it up by saying “The Crew appeared satisfied to come away with a tie.” Coach Onalfo had different words…

Coach Onalfo had Different Words:
Rather soft-spoken earlier in the season, I find Onalfo is getting a bit of a swagger about him and coming into his own as an MLS manager. The Star quotes some pretty fiery words:

“It’s a huge win,” said Wizards coach Curt Onalfo, whose team’s defense also stretched a streak of consecutive shutout minutes to 287. “We prepared our guys. (Columbus) likes to get numbers behind the ball, they foul you, frustrate you. Give our guys credit. They didn’t get frustrated.

“It’s a great three points for our team. This is our house. I’m extremely pleased they didn’t walk out with any points, because they didn’t play like they deserved any.”

Our Shooting is still Suspect:
The Wizards somehow managed to score despite putting only 4 of their 15 shots on goal. That’s 26.7%! Imagine how that would have rolled against a team which could actually string together meaningful possessions and get a few good strikes in!

The Two Guys I Really was Happy to See:
1) Jose Burciaga, Jr.. Not only did he kick off his foundation to help urban Hispanic children, he finally got a chance to step up and put in a shot that makes everyone outside of Kansas City go “Woah! Did you guys know you have a fullback who’s pretty good at scoring?” I loved how he took control of the ball and crashed the area, determined to bring the game into his own hands and gain the 3 points the Wizards should have already clinched by then.

2) Jack Jewsbury. Not only did he save a potential embarrassment of a clearance off the goal line, he played the a very solid game throughout. I have yet to give him proper credit for switching to right back and not even skipping a beat.

Prediction Time:
My prediction: KC 2 - 1 CBS
FIFA ‘03 prediction: KC 0 - 0 CBS
Due to the Wizards winning but the entirety of the first 90′ being a 0-0 tie, I’m going to call this one a draw. You were a worthy adversary this week, FIFA ‘03, a worthy adversary indeed.

ANOTHER week to rest?:
After such a flurry of activity, it’s crazy to have two weeks in which the Wizards only play on Saturday. Our next game will be against FC Dallas, who have struggled a bit but are coming off their first off-week of rest and regrouping. It should be a hard fought battle.