OurSports Central (press release), WI
Earthquakes Lose to Real Salt Lake 3-2 Saturday Night
09/28/08 – Major League Soccer (MLS) San Jose Earthquakes
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SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Major League Soccer’s Western Conference is
getting crazier by the day, and the San Jose Earthquakes and Real Salt
Lake did their best to add to the insanity on Saturday night, with
Real claiming a priceless 3-2 victory in an action-packed affair at
Buck Shaw Stadium. Real’s Yura Movsisyan and the Quakes’ Darren
Huckerby traded goals in each half, but it was RSL midfielder Javier
Morales who had the last word, scoring on a curling free kick in the
59th minute to put the visitors ahead to stay.
The result saw Real earn only their second road win of the season
while dealing a crippling blow to the Quakes’ playoff hopes. The
result also ended San Jose’s unbeaten streak at nine games.
Real got off to a dream start in the third minute, when Morales picked
out Movsisyan with a ball over the top, and after faking Nick Garcia
to the ground, the Armenian coolly slotted home past Quakes’ keeper
Joe Cannon for a 1-0 lead.
The Quakes spent the next 20 minutes jawing with RSL players as well
referee Paul Ward over what the home side perceived was some overly
physical play. Real were also having success from the run of play, as
they looked dangerous whenever they isolated the speedy Movsisyan
against Garcia or Eric Denton.
But San Jose got back in the game in the 23rd minute, when a long pass
from Ryan Cochrane sprung Huckerby in the clear, and he responded with
a composed finish of his own to level matters.
The Quakes thought they had pulled ahead 10 minutes later. Ned
Grabavoy was hauled down by Real defender Jamison Olave just outside
the box, with the Colombian getting a yellow card for his
troubles. Scott Sealy then fired home a rebound from Ronnie O’Brien’s
free kick, but was adjudged to have been offside.
Tempers were frayed further just five minutes later when Real defender
Nat Borchers was booked for hauling down Arturo Alvarez from behind.
After being on the back foot for most of the half, Real nearly pulled
ahead in the 43rd minute. Another long ball over the top saw Movsisyan
break the offside trap. Cannon saved the RSL forward’s initial effort,
and Cochrane then cleared Movsisyan’s rebound attempt off the line.
The Quakes came even closer to going ahead three minutes into
first-half stoppage time, when Cochrane nodded Huckerby’s corner kick
off the crossbar.
San Jose picked up where they left off to start the second
half. Huckerby began the sequence with a run down the left wing, and
when the ball fell to Alvarez, he responded with a cheeky backheel to
Huckerby that saw the Englishman rifle home from 20 yards.
The lead last all of two minutes however, as yet another long ball
over the top to Movsisyan sprung him on another breakaway, and he
lofted his shot over the advancing Cannon, making the score 2-2.
Morales then notched the game-winner in the 59th minute by bending a
25-yard free kick past Cannon and into the upper right hand corner.
In a bid to get back into the match, Quakes’ manager Frank Yallop
brought on Ryan Johnson and Shea Salinas for Grabavoy and
O’Brien. Real head coach Jason Kreis responded by replacing Clint
Mathis with Robbie Findley, and it was the latter move that paid near
immediate dividends, as Findley’s bullet header from a Morales cross
forced a sharp save from Cannon in the 72nd minute.
San Jose nearly equalized in the 78th minute when Huckerby’s corner
kick found Jason Hernandez at the far post, but RSL ‘keeper Nick
Rimando was able to parry his header wide.
That was as close as the Quakes would get, and it was Real who walked
off the field with their playoff hopes enhanced.