COLUMBUS, Ohio - Thanks to its 1-0 victory over the Los Angeles Galaxy last Saturday (Oct. 4) - in front of a black-clad, standing-room-only crowd of 22,685 that included Gov. Ted Strickland at Crew Stadium - the Crew heads into its match at rival Chicago this Sunday, Oct. 12, as the newly-crowned 2008 regular-season Eastern Conference Champion. The Crew (16-6-5, 53 pts.) heads into Sunday's match needing just three points in its last three matches to secure the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield, while Chicago (12-9-6, 42 pts.) enters the match needing a win or tie against the Crew to become the fourth team (CLB, HOU, N.E.) to secure a berth in the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Sunday's match which kicks off at 3 p.m. and will be televised live locally on ONN, with Dwight Burgess and Dante Washington calling all the action. The match will also air live nationally on TeleFutura as its weekly Sunday MLS match. The game can be heard in English on The Brew @ 105.7 (PLEASE NOTE CHANGE) and on-line at theCrew.com and MLSNet.com, with Neil Sika behind the microphone, as well as in Spanish on La Que Buena 1550-AM, with Eduardo Carvacho on the call.
Chicago enters Sunday's match after drawing with Kansas City, 1-1, last Sunday (Oct. 5) thanks to a penalty kick goal by Cuauhtemoc Blanco in first half stoppage time. The Fire is now 2-2-1 in its last five games, and needs a win or draw with the Black & Gold on Sunday to secure its spot in the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs. Chicago is led by Mexican icon Blanco, who has six goals and eight assists on the season, and former Crew forward and U.S. international Brian McBride, who rejoined MLS earlier this season after four-and-a-half successful seasons with Fulham FC of the English Premier League. McBride was originally selected by the Crew with the first overall pick of Major League Soccer in its inaugural draft in 1996. He went on to play eight seasons in the Black & Gold, finishing his Crew career with 62 goals and 45 assists in 161 league games and his total of 62 goals is still tied with Jeff Cunningham for the Columbus franchise record. McBride was selected to eight MLS All-Star games, with seven appearances, in his time in Columbus, and he was also selected to the MLS All-Time Best XI in 2005 as part of the league's 10th anniversary. Sunday will be the first time in McBride's career that he has suited up against his former squad in an MLS match.
The Crew enters Sunday's match on the heels of its victory over L.A., behind a goal by Alejandro Moreno in the closing minutes for the first half. The win moved the Crew's unbeaten streak to eight games, and Moreno's goal was his ninth of the season, setting a new career season-high. As a result of its victory, the Crew moved one step closer to the 2008 Supporters' Shield. Houston is the only club that still has a chance to catch the Crew for the award, as the Dynamo need to win each of their four remaining games, while the Crew would have to fail to secure three total points in last three remaining matches for the two-time defending champions to unseat the Black & Gold.
With 16 victories, MLS Coach of the Year candidate Sigi Schmid has now tied his career high for regular-season wins in a season, established by his 2002 L.A. Galaxy squad that went on to win MLS Cup. Schmid will return to the fold for the Crew this weekend after serving a one-game suspension last Saturday (Oct. 4). Columbus will be without defender Frankie Hejduk (USA) and forward Alejandro Moreno (Venezuela) on Sunday, who are both away on international duty.
Sunday's match will be the second and final between the Eastern Conference rivals in the 2008 regular season. In the first meeting, a 2-2 draw at Crew Stadium July 5, Ohio native Chris Rolfe put the Fire up early with a goal in the 8th minute, then assisted on Calen Carr's tally in the 25th minute. Nigerian Olympian Emmanuel Ekpo cut the deficit in half for the Crew before the halftime whistle, and the Crew got a goal in dying moments of the match from rookie forward Steven Lenhart to salvage the draw at home. The clubs will square off in a MLS Reserve Division match immediately following the league match.
COLUMBUS CREW at Chicago Fire
Sunday, Oct. 12 - 3 p.m. (ET) at Toyota Park
National Television: Telefutura; Local Television: ONN
Crew Radio: The Brew @ 105.7 (English); La Que Buena 1550-AM (Spanish)
Crew Webcasts: TheCrew.com; MLSNet.com (English)
PLAYOFF TICKETS NOW ON SALE
Two-game Crew playoff ticket strips are currently available at the Crew Stadium Box Office and all central Ohio Ticketmaster retail locations, via Ticketmaster phone at 614-431-3600 and on-line at TheCrew.com and Ticketmaster.com. Each strip includes both of the Crew's potential playoff games - the one guaranteed game in the first round and the Eastern Conference Final, which it would host if it advances out of the first round. Prices range from $34-$70 for adults and $26-$50 for students. Crew Soccer Nation members previously received an exclusive presale offer to secure their season seats. Playoff pairings, dates and times have not been determined yet, as only three of the eight playoff spots have been clinched to date.
CARROLL ONE OF ONLY FOUR FIELD PLAYERS IN MLS TO PLAY EVERY MINUTE THIS SEASON
Midfield stalwart Brian Carroll has played every minute of every match for the Black & Gold in the 2008 MLS regular season, making him one of only four field players in the league to accomplish that feat this season. Carroll, who has one goal and two assists to date, is joined on the exclusive list by Nat Borchers of Real Salt Lake, Jimmy Conrad of Kansas City and Jay Heaps of New England.
GAVEN, MORENO AND NOONAN TYPICALLY EXCEL IN MONTH OF OCTOBER
Forwards Alejandro Moreno and Pat Noonan and midfielder Eddie Gaven have displayed a tendency to excel in the month of October during their careers, as each player ranks in the top 10 among active players in goals scored, while Moreno and Gaven rank in the top five in assists during the month of October in their careers (regular season games). All three players have five career goals during October, good for eighth among all active players, while Gaven and Moreno have each tallied five assists in the month which ties them for third place.
SCHMID, NOONAN AMONG SEVERAL CREW CONNECTIONS UP FOR NCAA MEN'S 50TH ANNIVERSARY TEAM
Coach of the Year candidate Sigi Schmid and forward Pat Noonan have each been elected to the ballot for the NCAA Division I Men's 50th Anniversary Team, and they are joined on the ballot by former Crew players Brad Friedel, John Harkes and Brian Maisonneuve. Voting for the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer 50th Anniversary team began Wednesday, Oct. 1, and will run until Noon on Wednesday, Oct. 15. Members selected to the anniversary team will be honored at the 2008 NCAA Men's College Cup in Frisco, Texas at Pizza Hut Park on Dec. 12-14. Fans can head to http://www.ncaa.com/polls/ncaasoccerpoll.php to register their selections for the 50th Anniversary Team.
CREW EXTENDS CLUB RECORD FOR MOST POINTS IN A SEASON
Thanks to its win over Los Angeles last Saturday (Oct. 4), the Crew now has 53 points, extending the club record for points in a season, which it originally broke after its victory over New England on Sept. 27, surpassing the 2004 Supporters' Shield-winning squad that earned 49 points. The 2008 squad has also now earned the second-most wins in club history, and trails only the 1999 Crew squad (19 wins, with six coming via shootout) for most wins in club history. It also extended the club record for wins in the post-shootout-era, which it set on Sept. 18 against New York. In addition, MLS Coach of the Year candidate Sigi Schmid has also tied his career-high of 16 wins in a season, established by his 2002 MLS Cup-champion Galaxy squad.
CREW UNBEATEN WHEN PADULA MANS LEFT SIDE OF BACKLINE
Veteran Argentine defender Gino Padula signed with the Crew on March 24 after previous successful stints in Argentina, Spain and England. Padula made his Crew debut in a win at home on April 12 vs. Chivas USA and started two more games, both Crew wins, for the Black & Gold before going down with hamstring and knee injuries that sidelined him for several months. Since Padula returned to the starting lineup on Aug. 16 the Crew has compiled an unbeaten record of76-0-1, bringing the Crew's record when Padula is in the lineup to an impressive 10-0-1 this season.
HESMER RECORDS NINTH SHUTOUT OF SEASON
Goalkeeper William Hesmer earned his second consecutive shutout and ninth of the season in the Crew's 1-0 win over the Galaxy last Saturday (Oct. 4), extending his career season-high and moving him into a second place tie for most shutouts in MLS in 2008. Thanks to the Crew's stellar defensive play of late, Hesmer has moved up the league's goals-against-average rankings, as he currently sits in third place with a 1.15 GAA. He also now holds a 73.2 save percentage, good for third place among MLS goalkeepers.
CREW PLAYERS AMONG LEAGUE STATISTICAL LEADERS
Several Crew players are among MLS' statistical leaders as the 2008 regular season schedule comes down the home stretch. Midfielder Guillermo Barros Schelotto is enjoying an MVP-type season, as he currently leads the league in both assists and corner kicks by a wide margin. Schelotto currently has 18 assists on the season, distancing himself from his closest competitor (Javier Morales, RSL - 12), while also totaling 116 corner kicks in 2008. Schelotto is also tied for first place in MLS in game-winning assists with five this season. Forward Alejandro Moreno finds himself tied for eighth place in MLS in goals scored, with nine, and midfielder Robbie Rogers ranks among the league's best in several categories, as he is currently tied for second place in shots (69) and is sixth in shots on goal (32). Rogers is also tied for third in MLS in multi-goal games, with two, and is tied for second in game-winning goals with three game-winners this season
CREW FEATURES THREE OF THE LEAGUE'S FOUR MOST-FOULED PLAYERS
The Crew's roster features three of the four most-fouled players in Major League Soccer - Robbie Rogers currently ranks first in the league with 69 fouls suffered this season, while Alejandro Moreno sits in third place with 65 and Guillermo Barros Schelotto is fourth with 56.
PIERRE-LOUIS EARNS CALL-UP FOR HAITIAN NATIONAL TEAM
Rookie forward Ricardo Pierre-Louis has earned yet another call-up to the Haitian National Team for its Oct. 11 World Cup Qualifier vs. El Salvador. Pierre-Louis, 23, has six goals in his previous appearances for the Haitian National Team and has also made contributions at the Under-23, Under-20 and Under-17 levels. Pierre-Louis is in his first season with the Crew after being drafted in the second round (No. 22 overall) of the 2008 MLS SuperDraft out of Lee University (Tenn.). In his four year career at Lee, he scored 101 goals, with 33 assists, in 63 career games. Pierre-Louis, who speaks five languages, was named the NAIA Player of the Year and the Region XIII Player of the Year in 2007. He was also named to the NAIA All-American First Team in three consecutive seasons (2005-07).
CREW PLAYERS TO PARTICIPATE IN HABITAT FOR HUMANITY BUILDING PROJECT
A group of Crew players will be partnering with Habitat for Humanity to assist in interior finishing at 549 S. Oakley Ave. on Columbus' west side this afternoon (Oct. 8) from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. More volunteer opportunities with Habitat for Humanity can be regularly found at www.columbus.volunteerhub.com.
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