Road trips hadn’t been very kind to the Houston Dynamo this season as the team entered Saturday’s match at Vancouver in search of its first road victory over five months into the 2011 campaign. For the league-worst Vancouver Whitecaps, victories were difficult to come by period as the squad had mustered only three thus far in its inaugural MLS season. So when the road-wounded met the battle-broken in cross-conference play, one dog had to have its day.
Much to the delight of the 20,226 fans packed into Empire Field some 2,500 miles removed from the triple-digit heat, the Whitecaps emerged as the Wonder Dogs with a late goal that lifted the team to a 1-0 victory. Shea Salinas chose the perfect time to don the hero’s cape by tucking his 86th minute shot into the bottom right corner and past the reach of Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall to secure three points for the thirsty expansion franchise.
While Salinas, a Texas native, may have driven the dagger into the Dynamo’s hopes of a somewhat easy victory to help boost the team into serious first-place contention in the Eastern Conference, it was Houston’s own defensive miscues and sloppy attack that proved to be the true thorn in the team’s side. The Dynamo maintained 57% of the possession and released 16 shots toward the Vancouver goal, but it was to no avail. Six saves from Whitecaps goalkeeper Joe Cannon and Adam Moffat’s 11th minute blast from 30-yards deep that ricocheted off the crossbar would leave the Dynamo staring at a big golden goose egg on the Empire Field scoreboard when the match went into the books.
It wasn’t the first time Houston laid an egg on the road, but with Philadelphia, New York, and DC right on the squad’s heel in the Eastern Conference standings, the Dynamo better hope its remaining four road trips this season will ink plenty of Men in Orange on the goal scorers’ pad. Houston has visited 13 stadiums in the 2011 MLS regular season and been shut out on six of those occasions. Clutch leader Brad Davis attempted to eliminate this notorious outcome with a shot from outside in the 23rd minute, but Cannon did well to track the deflection. Even Brian Ching’s magic well seemed to have run dry as Cannon saved his 72nd minute effort before Ching sent a close-range header wide left on the following play.
Perhaps the Dynamo knew it wasn’t its day when referee Niko Bratsis pointed to the penalty spot in the 48th minute after Cannon fouled Houston striker Carlo Costly. Bratsis then consulted with his assistant referee before reversing his decision and awarding Vancouver a free kick for Costly’s foul prior to the penalty incident.
In one regard, the Dynamo was disappointed not to have done some damage to the second worst defense in the league in terms of goals allowed. Ironically, however, Houston was fortunate that it was also up against a Vancouver opponent ranked second worst in the league in terms of goals scored. It sure seemed as if the visitors were in a generous mood in the early going when Hall misplayed a Davide Chiumiento free kick in the ninth minute that nearly furnished the Whitecaps with a quick lead. Bobby Boswell did little to revitalize Hall’s confidence just one minute later when he delivered an awkward bouncing back pass to his goalkeeper. Hall’s panicked close-range clearance rocketed against Gershon Koffie’s head, and Houston supporters breathed a deep sigh of relief as the ball parted paths from harm’s way. Hall would recover for four saves on the night, including a stellar stop diving to his left to thwart Mustapha Jarju’s free kick header.
Nevertheless, gone was the overall aura of greatness that had built up around a Dynamo team that was riding a five-game unbeaten streak and sporting a 4-1-5 record in its last 10 games before heading into Saturday’s match against Vancouver. In its place was a cloud of uncertainty that sat overhead a slapdash defense and unconvincing attack. That cloud will continue to hover over the Dynamo as the team takes a MLS break next weekend to host Mexican side Monterrey.
On Sept. 10, Houston will return to MLS action to take on Sporting KC at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park. Not only are Houston and Kansas City locked in a tight points battle in the Eastern Conference, but Sporting KC has been a nearly invincible host (6-1-4) since it began defending its new turf upon the stadium’s completion this past June. The Dynamo will have to make the northerly trek without the assistance of Boswell, whose 89th minute caution against Vancouver earned him a one-game suspension for yellow card accumulation.
