By Will Martin
Being fully aware of all the chaos, devastation, and damage being put forth on the good people of Colorado I begin by wishing those who are in the path of Mother Nature only the most minimal of losses and the ability to bounce back and go back to a normal routine once this week of havoc passes.
The start of the match between FC Dallas and the Colorado Rapids delayed 50 minutes due to a thunderstorm, making for a muddy track once play began.
Havoc is also a pretty good way to describe what remains of a season that began so promisingly for this FC Dallas squad. One week ago a three month home losing streak stopped, three points earned and the hope of cracking the top 5 in the Western Conference with a playoff spot locked in.
This has proven to be quite the challenge, equally attainable and unreachable. You might recall that in 2012 injuries decimated the team represented by Schellas Hyndman. 2013 has been more an issue of bad luck and bad bounces. Such is life in the MLS.
Saturday night FC Dallas took the lead in the 51st minute after a scoreless first half when David Ferreria would get the FCD on the board after two great passes by Fabian Castillo and Jair Benitez. A lead that one would think is insurmountable based on previous matchups with the Colorado Rapids.
Schellas Hyndman then proceeds to explain the unexplainable.
“And then for 10 minutes, everything was going wrong,” Hyndman said of the period where the Rapids scored their two goals.
“If you look at your records from the last two games we played [against Colorado], the comment that keeps coming out of Oscar Pareja is we outplayed them and should have won,” head coach Schellas Hyndman said.
Je-Vaughn was more direct and to the point.
“After they were up 2-1, we were all over them,” midfielder Je-Vaughn Watson told reporters. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get the goal to equalize the game. That’s how soccer goes sometimes.”
Indeed in the 59th minute on an already wet field from all the rains that have battered Colorado it was Vicente Sanchez who would knot things up at one apiece when netting a shot past Raul Fernandez. Six minutes later a Sanchez crossing pass intended for Gabriel Torres would instead get accidentally knocked in by Matt Hedges for a Rapids 2-1 lead. That would end up being your final score.
FC Dallas remains mired in 6th place three points back of the Portland Timbers, four back of the L.A. Galaxy. The time for playing catchup gets tougher with only six games remaining in the 2013 campaign. Next stop is going to be the New York Red Bulls on the road September 22nd before a Sunday night home game with the Columbus Crew on September 29th.
This was a matchup I enjoyed nine years ago at the Cotton Bowl that ended up a 0-0 tie while Jessica Simpson was playing at the Smirnoff Centre.
As Saturday night’s match wound down numerous shot attempts by the FCD fell short as goalie Clint Irwin successfully fended off whatever came his way. Colorado (12-8-9 45 points) now sits all alone in the 3rd spot in the West while FC Dallas (10-8-10) is still looking in at the top 5 with 40 points.
This was a game FC Dallas should have won. Instead the bounce and the delay of the game somehow tie in to that term some use for being or acting crazy. 5150. Somehow this makes sense, sadly.
This Saturday’s game with the Red Bulls will commence at 3pm CST.
Dallas Til I Die!
