D.C. goes from winless to brink of quarterfinals

October 20, 2009

A year ago, D.C. United managed just one point in the CONCACAF Champions League group stage. Now it’s is on the verge of advancing to the knockout stage.

But to do so, it likely will need accomplish what no other Major League Soccer team has been able to – win in Mexico.

Tied with Marathon with nine points heading into the final round of the Group Stage, D.C. United heads to Estadio Nemesio Diez to face Group B leader Toluca on Tuesday. Los Diablos need a mere draw to become the fourth Mexican squad to advance to the quarterfinals.

D.C. could go through as long as it can equal whatever result Marathon gets against San Juan Jabloteh in Trinidad & Tobago.

D.C. United enters the pivotal match coming off a 1-0 win against the league-leading Columbus Crew Saturday at RFK Stadium, a result that kept D.C.’s playoff hopes alive. A few days being acquired on loan from the Portland Timbers of the United Soccer Leagues First Division, goalkeeper Steve Cronin made six saves to earn the shutout.

Luciano Emilio scored the game’s lone goal in the 10th minute for D.C., which is in a four-way tie for the eighth and final MLS Cup playoff berth.

“Steve did a great job. It’s always difficult coming into a new environment,” D.C. United coach Tom Soehn said. “Early in the week I recall him asking, ‘who’s he?’ and ‘who’s he?’ And you wouldn’t have guessed that today, because he really solidified things, made great decisions. He looks like he’s been with us all year.”

Toluca, comfortably atop Group 1 of the Mexican Apertura, played Tigres to a 1-1 draw on Saturday at home. Hector Mancilla put Toluca in front with a 66th-minute penalty kick, but Francisco Fonseca equalized with two minutes remaining.

“The team remains strong and is always looking to play good football and score goals,” Toluca coach Jose Manuel de la Torre said. “It was not easy against a team like Tigres, which also came to do their job.”

Marathon’s task is seemingly easier as it heads to Port-of-Spain on Thursday to face a Jabloteh side that is winless in the group stage. Marathon has enjoyed recent success in the Honduran Apertura, beating Real Juventud 3-2 on October 4 and winning 3-0 at home against Victoria three days later.

Jabloteh enter the match coming off a wild 5-4 win against Defence Force in the TT Pro League’s Big Six at Larry Gomes Stadium on Thursday.

Noel Williams, who opened his team’s scoring with a 14th-minute penalty kick, scored three more times in the last half hour – twice in the last five minutes, as Jabloteh rallied from a 4-2 deficit.

The top two teams from Group B will advance to the quarterfinals. The knockout stage draw will take place on November 17 at CONCACAF’s headquarters in New York.

By Dylan Butler

Tags: champions league group, columbus crew, concacaf champions league, d c united, D.C., Dylan Butler, francisco fonseca, group stage, hector mancilla, jose manuel, knockout stage, Larry Gomes, lone goal, Major League Soccer, manuel de la torre, mexican apertura, Mexico, mls cup, Nemesio Diez, New York, Noel Williams, playoff berth, port of spain, Portland, portland timbers, rfk stadium, san juan, san juan jabloteh, score goals, Stage, steve cronin, Tobago, Tom Soehn, Trinidad, united soccer leagues, Victoria

D.C. moves closer to CCL quarters with 5-1 win

October 1, 2009

Christian Gomez and Boyzzz Khumalo scored two goals apiece and D.C. United moved one step closer to advancing to the CONCACAF Champions League knockout stage with a 5-1 victory over San Juan Jabloteh at RFK Stadium on Wednesday night.

D.C., which scored three goals in the first half, moved three points in front of C.D. Marathon, which was to host Group B leader Toluca on Thursday in San Pedro Sula. D.C. United would book its place in the quarterfinals with a Marathon loss.

If not, the Major League Soccer club would have until the final matchday when they would head to Toluca on October 20, while Marathon plays at Jabloteh two days later.

D.C. took the lead in the 13th minute when Gomez collected Rodney Wallace’s cross that deflected off San Juan Jabloteh defender Joel Russell and tapped it past goalkeeper Cleon John.

Gomez was again played in behind the Jabloteh defense, but his attempt from 10 meters was saved by John, who dived to his left in the 19th minute.

United doubled its lead on the half hour mark when Fred took a pass from Chris Pontius, took two touches and the Brazilian slotted the ball inside the far post from the left edge of the six-yard box.

Six minutes later, Pontius flicked a header wide of the net from the penalty spot as D.C. United, which also defeated San Juan Jabloteh 1-0 at Hasley Crawford Stadium on September 15, continued to put the pressure on. Pontius had another chance in the 39th minute, forcing John to make another diving stop.

D.C. capitalized on a Jabloteh defensive blunder to take a 3-0 lead two minutes from halftime as Clyde Simms slid a wonderful ball to Gomez, who cut back on Russell and passed to the back post where a wide open Khumalo easily tapped home.
D.C. United goalkeeper Milos Kocic wasn’t tested often, but he came up big when he did, especially when he denied Jerrel Britto in the 52nd minute.

Gomez put any hopes of a Jabloteh comeback to rest when the Argentine took a pass from Wallace and powered a shot from 16 meters that went off John’s hands and into the net for his fourth goal of the CONCACAF Champions League in the 68th minute.
Khumalo nearly added a second, but he bounced Tiyiselani Shipalane’s cross wide of the net in the 77th minute.

Jabloteh ruined Kocic’s clean sheet bid seven minutes from full time when Hector Sam raced into the box and slipped a perfect ball to Britto, who slammed the ball into the back of the net from the edge of the six-yard box to cut his team’s deficit to 4-1.

It was just the second goal for the winless Trinidadians in group play. The other was a penalty kick by Noel Williams against Marathon on August 26.

Khumalo put the finishing touches on the romp, taking Fred’s spinning lay-off and scoring clinically from the top of the arc in second-half stoppage time for his second of the game.

WASHINGTON

Tags: Argentine, britto, C.D. Marathon, chris pontius, Christian Gomez, clyde simms, concacaf champions league, Crawford Stadium, d c united, D.C., far post, Fred, hasley crawford, Hector Sam, jerrel, Joel Russell, John, khumalo, knockout stage, left edge, Major League Soccer, matchday, Milos Kocic, Noel Williams, rfk stadium, Rodney Wallace, san juan, san juan jabloteh, san pedro sula, six minutes, soccer club, Toluca, Washington

D.C. United ends skid with 1-0 victory over Jabloteh

September 16, 2009

Christian Gomez’s first-half penalty kick lifted D.C. United to a 1-0 victory against San Juan Jabloteh in a CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage match at Hasley Crawford Stadium in Trinidad Tuesday night.

It was D.C. United’s first-ever CONCACAF Champions League group stage victory and one that keeps the Major League Soccer team alive in the competition. Winless Jabloteh is all but eliminated from advancing out of Group B.

Gomez stepped to the spot after referee Trevor Taylor ruled Noel Williams handled a cross in the box when he slid and tackled the ball away from Luciano Emilio. After a slight hesitation, Gomez beat Jabloteh goalkeeper Cleon John low and to the right of the keeper to give D.C. United a 1-0 lead in the 14 minutes.

Williams attempted to atone for his mistake, but his shot from distance sailed wide to D.C. United goalkeeper Milos Kocic’s right in the 21st minute.

Four minutes later, Kocic came up big, making three saves at the near post, twice denying Lester Peltier. Moments later, Ataulla Guerra’s attempt from 16 meters skipped wide of the far post for the hosts.

Off a D.C. United giveaway in the midfield, San Juan Jabloteh’s Jason Marcano lobbed the ball at the open net after Kocic came off his line, but Julius James tracked back and cleared the ball off the line in the 42nd minute.

Peltier was played behind the D.C. defense on the hour mark, but his left-footed shot from the top of the 18-yard box sailed over the crossbar.

Emilio nearly added to United’s lead, hitting a low, hard shot from distance in the 64th minute that eluded a diving John but was just wide of the far post.

Twice midway through the second half, Jabloteh had open headers in the box, but Devon Jamerson and Jerrel Britto both missed the target with their attempts five minutes apart.

With a quarter hour remaining, Jabloteh was given a chance to equalize when Taylor apparently ruled Kocic violated the six-second rule, but Williams badly mis-hit his attempt from the top of the 18-yard box.

One minute later, Devon McTavish played a great ball inside the area that Gomez latched onto, but John bobbled the shot before it was cleared away for the game’s first corner kick.

In the 83rd minute, Gomez played the ball over the top to Danny Szetela, who was unable to get off a shot.
Peltier had Jabloteh’s final chance to equalize in the 87th minute when he took James’ bad touch and raced inside the box. But James recovered nicely and blocked the attempt with a sliding tackle.

Both teams resume group play next week, with D.C. United hosting co-leader Marathon at RFK Stadium on Thursday, while Jabloteh will head to Mexico to take on Toluca the day before.

PORT-of-SPAIN

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Tags: concacaf champions league, Crawford Stadium, crossbar, d c united, D.C., Devon, Emilio, far post, group stage, Jason Marcano, jerrel, lester peltier, luciano emilio, Major League Soccer, marcano, Mexico, Milos Kocic, Noel Williams, penalty kick, san juan, soccer team, Spain, target, trevor taylor, Trinidad Tuesday

Cristante Saves Toluca

August 21, 2009

Goalkeeper Hernan Cristante was the star of the evening and Toluca won at Trinidad & Tobago’s San Juan Jabloteh, 1-0, in a Group B game in the CONCACAF Champions League Thursday night at Manny Ramjohn Stadium.

Paul Nava scored the 9th minute winner, bundling in the rebound after his straight-on header was saved by goalkeeper Cleon John. The goal was set-up by some neat work on the right-wing by Carlos Esquivel, who delivered an accurate cross that enabled the 18-year-old Nava to head toward the goal.

Toluca, which has three wins from four games in the Mexican Apertura, seemed content to control possession rather than expand its attack. That tactic, however, made the visitors somewhat complacent and allowed Jabloteh a series of scoring opportunities.

In the 19th minute, a well-taken attempt by Ataulla Guerra from long-range forced Cristante into an outstanding save.

Ten minutes later, Jabloteh’s Noel Williams made an enterprising run into Toluca territory and found an unmarked Karlon Murray, whose shot from the right was superbly saved by Cristante.

Seven minutes into the second half, Lester Peltier should have given the home side an equalizer, but the ubiquitous 40-year-old Argentine goalkeeper was there once again to make a point-blank stop.

The game became more physical as the half wore on with Jabloteh’s Travis Mulraine and Toluca’s Zinha each being issued cautions by Costa Rican referee Walter Quesada.

Toluca returns to Champions League action next Wednesday, when it visits the USA’s D.C. United at RFK Stadium. San Juan Jabloteh faces the unenviable task of traveling to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, to face Marathon.

MARABELLA

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Tags: Carlos Esquivel, cleon, d c united, D.C., equalizer, esquivel, four games, Goalkeeper, hernan cristante, John, lester peltier, Manny Ramjohn, marabella, mexican apertura, minute winner, nava, Noel Williams, Paul Nava, rfk stadium, san juan jabloteh, san pedro sula, san pedro sula honduras, stop the game, Tobago, Trinidad, Walter Quesada, zinha

Oliver scores two, Jabloteh reaches Group Stage

August 7, 2009

MARABELLA, Trinidad – Marvin Oliver scored a pair of second-half goals and San Juan Jabloteh beat San Francisco FC of Panama 3-0 on Thursday to advance to the Group Stage of the CONCACAF Champions League.

Jabloteh will join Toluca of Mexico, Marathon of Honduras and D.C. United in Group B, opening at home against Toluca on August 20.

The victory gave Jabloteh a 3-2 aggregate victory and assured Trinidad & Tobago two clubs in the 16-team group phase. W Connection beat the New York Red Bulls on Wednesday to advance.

San Francisco beat Jalapa of Guatemala to advance past the Preliminary Round last year, but then went winless in its six group matches.

Oliver scored the winner in the 76th minute. Elton John’s free kick bounced in front of San Francisco keeper William Negrete, who wasn’t able to corral the rebound. Oliver put one shot that Negrete blocked, but another rebound enabled Oliver to virtually score into an open net.

San Francisco was reduced to 10 men in the 23rd minute when defender Carlos Rivera was ejected to kicking a ball into the head of Marvin Oliver.

Oliver was challenging Carlos Vilarete for the ball at midfield approaching the near touchline when both fell. The ball dribbled only meters away to Rivera, who ran at the ball and hit a left-footed clearance attempt into the side of Oliver’s face.

With the man advantage, it took Jabloteh only six minutes to capitalize. Hector Sam found space down the left side and worked his way into the penalty area before striking a falling, left-footed shot that hit the far-side netting for a 1-0 lead.

Jabloeteh’s manpower advantage was negated in the 57th when Devon Jamerson drew a second yellow card, this one a lunging tackle that caught the ankles of San Francisco’s Victor Suares.

Jabloteh tied the game on aggregate in the 61st minute when Oliver headed Noel Williams’ left-sided cross, redirecting it just inside the far post and past San Francisco keeper William Negrete.

San Francisco seemed very content to protect its two-goal advantage, really only challenging Jabloteh’s goal in the first five minutes when Rolando Algandona worked his way to the right touchline, but shot into the outside netting.

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