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Houston Dynamo FC

Houston Dynamo Game Notes - July 7 at Sporting Kansas City

July 6, 2012 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Houston Dynamo FC News Release


Sporting Kansas City vs. Houston Dynamo

Saturday, 7 July 2012 - 7 p.m. CT

MLS regular season - Game #18 - Road Game #11

LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, Kansas City, KS

Broadcast Information

TV: Fox Sports Houston, Multimedios 43

Radio: SportsTalk 790 AM (English), La Ranchera 850 AM (Spanish)

Dynamo vs. Sporting KC - 2011 Eastern Conference final rematch

The Houston Dynamo (6-5-6; 24 points) travel to Kansas City for a meeting with Sporting Kansas City (10-5-2; 32 points) on Saturday at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park. It is the first regular season meeting between the clubs since the 2011 Eastern Conference final, a 2-0 Dynamo win at the same venue on Nov. 6. It's another key game for both teams, with the Dynamo (fifth place) trailing Sporting KC (second place) by eight points in the Eastern Conference standings. The Dynamo drew 0-0 with the Chicago Fire on Tuesday to remain unbeaten at BBVA Compass Stadium (4-0-3). Sporting KC captured a 3-1 win at Montreal on Wednesday. Saturday marks the first of three meetings between Houston and Sporting KC over the final 17 regular season games of the season. The Dynamo host Sporting KC just 11 days from Saturday, on July 18 in Houston. The Dynamo will return to Kansas on Sept. 14 for the third meeting of the campaign.

Houston vs. Kansas City

The Dynamo are 5-3-4 all-time in regular season games with Sporting Kansas City. The clubs drew 1-1 in the first meeting of 2011, July 16 at Robertson Stadium. Brad Davis delivered a 1-0 lead in the third minute with a free kick goal from 22 yards. The Dynamo were reduced to nine men when Colin Clark and Brian Ching received red cards before Aurelien Collin stole a point for SKC with an equalizer in the 90th minute. Sporting KC won 3-0 on Sept. 10 at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, with two goals from Teal Bunbury and C.J. Sapong chipping in a third. The last two goals for Sporting KC came after Carlo Costly was ejected in the 64th minute. In the Eastern Conference final, the Dynamo earned a 2-0 road win to reach their third MLS Cup in six years. Brad Davis left with a quad injury in the 39th minute, but the Dynamo received goals from Andre Hainault and Costly for the victory.

DYNAMO PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP (4-3-3, Right-Left)

Tally Hall;

Andre Hainault, Bobby Boswell, Jermaine Taylor, Corey Ashe;

Luiz Camargo, Adam Moffat, Brad Davis;

Boniek Garcia, Will Bruin, Macoumba Kandji

Dynamo Notes

Dynamo complete "first half": The Dynamo played their 17th regular season game on Tuesday to complete the "first half" of the 34-game MLS regular season schedule. The Dynamo are 6-5-6 (24 points) and have scored 22 goals while allowing 24 goals. At the same point in 2011, through 17 games, the Dynamo were 4-6-7 (19 points) and had scored 21 goals while allowing 22. The Dynamo went 8-3-6 (24 GF, 19 GA) in the second half to finish 2011 with a 12-9-13 mark (45 GF, 41 GA) and 49 points to finish in second place in the East. The Dynamo are on pace for 48 points but the Eastern Conference appears stronger in 2012, with Sporting Kansas City on pace for 64 points, New York and D.C United on pace for 62 points and Chicago on pace for 56 points. Comparatively, Sporting Kansas City led the conference with 51 points in 2011. Nine of Houston's first 17 games were at home in 2011, while seven of the first 17 games have been at home in 2012.

Homeward Bound: After Saturday's game at Sporting Kansas City, the Dynamo will play 10 of their final 16 regular season games at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston. The Dynamo are 4-0-3 at home this year and have not lost a home game in over a year, with their last home defeat on June 18, 2011, a 2-0 loss to the Columbus Crew. The Dynamo are unbeaten in 16 consecutive home games (playoffs included), spanning the final nine games at Robertson Stadium and the first seven games at BBVA Compass Stadium.

Bruin in elite sophomore company: Forward Will Bruin is in elite company for second-year players in MLS. Bruin is third in scoring for players who debuted in MLS in 2011, with 14 goals in 42 games. Toronto FC's Danny Koevermans leads second-years players with 17 goals while Vancouver's Camilo is second with 15 goals.

East Coast Bias: The Dynamo are currently in a stretch of 14 consecutive games against Eastern Conference teams. Houston has ten games remaining on the Eastern stretch and is 2-3-5 overall vs. the Eastern Conference. The next time the Dynamo face a team from the Western Conference is Sept. 6, when they host Real Salt Lake.

Dynamo newcomer Boniek Garca makes impressive debut: Honduran midfielder Boniek Garca made his debut in the Dynamo starting lineup on June 30 against Philadelphia and made immediate contributions. Garca began the sequence and earned an assist on Brad Davis' opening goal and was a part of the buildup before Brian Ching earned a penalty kick in the second half. Garca played 90 minutes in his MLS debut. The 27-year-old Designated Player played for Honduran powerhouse C.D. Olimpia since 2007 after his first tenure with the club from 2003-06. With Garca, Olimpia captured the 2011-12 Honduran League Apertura and Clausura championships. The midfielder debuted for the Honduras national team in 2005 and has 69 appearances for his country, including five appearances in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup. The Dynamo will face Olimpia in CONCACAF Champions League group play on Aug. 30 in Honduras and Oct. 23 in Houston.

Ching ties Preki on MLS all-time goal list: Dynamo forward Brian Ching scored his 79th career MLS regular season goal with his game-winning penalty on June 30 vs. Philadelphia. Ching tied Preki, the Serbian-born U.S. international who tallied 79 goals for Kansas City and Miami from 1996-2005. With Ching's next goal, he will tie Josh Wolff (still active with D.C. United) and Brian McBride for 12th on the all-time scoring list.

Ching passes Ralston on game-winning goals list: Ching's goal on June 30 also marked his 20th career MLS regular season game-winning goal. The game-winner moved Ching past Dynamo assistant coach Steve Ralston, New York forward Kenny Cooper and Roy Lassiter for 12th on the all-time chart.

Davis passes De Ro for second on Dynamo scoring list: Brad Davis' goal in the first half on June 30 was his 25th regular season goal with the Dynamo. He moved past Dwayne De Rosario into second on the franchise list.

Bruin bags ninth goal: Dynamo forward Will Bruin scored his ninth goal of the season with a first-half equalizer on June 23 at Montreal. The second-year forward is tied for third in the MLS Golden Boot race with Thierry Henry, Chris Pontius and Danny Koevermans. The four players trail Chris Wondolowski (14 goals) and Kenny Cooper (11).

Bruin in historic Dynamo territory: Bruin's 9 goals are the most for a Dynamo player since Brian Ching set a franchise record with 13 goals in 2008. Bruin reached 9 goals in the fastest number of games (15) in team history. Ching reached 9 goals in Houston's 16th game in 2006, but Ching missed six of those games due to U.S. men's national team duties for the 2006 World Cup. Ching scored his ninth goal of 2006 in his tenth game of the season. Bruin's 9 goals in 2012 have come in a 12-game stretch (April 15 at Chicago to present). The next two best goal-scoring stretches in Dynamo history are Ching in 2008, when he scored 9 goals in his first 18 games played (the 9 goals came in a 12-game stretch) and Dwayne De Rosario, who scored 9 goals in a 21-game span in 2006.

Three in a row for Bruin: Will Bruin scored in three consecutive games (6/16, 6/20, 6/23) for the second time this season (4/15, 4/21, 4/28), with four goals in each three-game scoring streak. He is the first Dynamo player with a pair of three-game scoring streaks in the same season, and just the second player to record two streaks overall (Ching). His current streak marks the sixth time a Dynamo player has scored in three consecutive games (Bruin 2012 (twice); Ching 2006, 2008; Joseph Ngwenya 2007; Stuart Holden 2009). No Dynamo player has ever scored in four consecutive games.

More Bruin: Bruin has 14 regular season goals in his two-year career. With his next goal, he will tie Stuart Holden for fourth on the franchise list. Bruin has already surpassed his 2011 total for shots on goal, with 24 this year after posting 23 shots on goal in 2011.

Possession: The Dynamo have won the possession battle in 14 of 17 games on the season. Houston had 61% possession vs. Chicago on Tuesday, 55% vs. Philadelphia, lost the possession battle, 53-47%, at Montreal, had 63% possession vs. Toronto, 54% against FC Dallas, 54% at Vancouver, 60% vs. LA, 62% at New England, 60% vs. Portland, 56% vs. D.C., 53% at New York, 54% at D.C., a 49-51% disadvantage at Columbus, 55% at Chicago, 56% at Seattle, a disadvantage (48-52%) at San Jose, and 53% at Chivas USA.

Dynamo productive in final 15 minutes: Ching's goal in the 83rd minute on June 30 was Houston's sixth goal in the final 15 minutes of games this year. The Dynamo are in fourth in the league in goals scored in the final 15 minutes (San Jose leads with 13). Last year, Houston scored 14 goals in the final 15 minutes of games, the second most in MLS (Seattle).

Dynamo are defensive in final 15 minutes: While the Dynamo have scored six goals in the final 15 minutes of games this year, they have allowed just one goal in the final quarter hour (June 10, at Vancouver). Houston and Chicago (1 goal each) are tied for the fewest goals allowed in the final 15 minutes of games.

Ching ties Mullan for second on assists chart: With his assist on June 23 at Montreal, Brian Ching reached 19 regular season assists with the Dynamo to move into a tie for second with Brian Mullan on the franchise list.

Champions League schedule announced: The Dynamo learned its schedule in Group 3 of the 2012-2013 CONCACAF Champions League on June 22. Houston will open group play with two road games - Aug. 22 at C.D. FAS of El Salvador and Aug. 30 at C.D. Olimpia of Honduras. The Dynamo will host FAS on Sept. 20 and Olimpia on Oct. 23 at BBVA Compass Stadium. The group winner will advance to the quarterfinals, set for March 2013. The Dynamo qualified for the tournament by advancing to the 2011 MLS Cup Final. This is the fifth appearance for the Dynamo in the regional championship, including semifinal runs in the 2007 and 2008 Champions Cup tournaments. It is the first appearance for the Dynamo in Champions League since they advanced to the quarterfinals in 2008-2009.

Boswell is Mr. Reliable: Dynamo defender Bobby Boswell has played full time in 27 consecutive MLS matches (playoffs included) dating to Sept. 14, 2011 at Columbus. The center back is the only Dynamo field player to play every minute of every MLS game in 2012. Boswell has now started 128 regular season games with the Dynamo and is now third on the franchise list.

Corey Ashe made has 185th appearances for the Dynamo in all competitions on Tuesday vs. Chicago to pass Brian Mullan for second on the franchise list for appearances in all competitions.

Cameron passes Barrett on games list; will reach 100 with next start: With Geoff Cameron's start on June 30, he reached 99 MLS regular season starts, passing Dynamo assistant coach Wade Barrett for sixth on the Dynamo all-time list.

Hall sets goalkeeper consecutive starts record: Tally Hall set a franchise record for consecutive starts by a goalkeeper with his 47th consecutive starts against FC Dallas on June 16. He broke the record of 46 games set by Pat Onstad from Sept. 13, 2008 - May 13, 2010. Hall started all 34 games in 2011 and the first 17 games in 2012, pushing the active record to 51 games. Hall has the second longest active streak MLS goalkeepers, behind Matt Pickens of Colorado (60 starts).

Wonderful vs. West: With the 2-1 win over FC Dallas on June 16, the Dynamo improved to 4-2-1 on the season against the heralded Western Conference. Houston has wins against FC Dallas, LA Galaxy, San Jose and Chivas USA.

Ching third on Dynamo games played list: Ching started on June 16 vs. FC Dallas for his 137th MLS regular season game with the Dynamo. He passed Brian Mullan and Pat Onstad for third on Houston's all-time regular season games list.

Second Half Savants: Houston's 0-0 draw with the Fire on Tuesday improved its record to 6-1-5 when tied or leading at the break. The Dynamo are 3-1-5 in games in which they were tied at halftime and 3-0 when leading at halftime. Houston is 0-4-1 when trailing at the interval after its comeback draw with Toronto on June 20.

Cameron, Hainault, Taylor, Watson return from national duty: Three members of Houston's heralded backline and regular starting midfielder Je-Vaughn Watson returned from national duty for the June 16 match against FC Dallas after missing the June 10 game at Vancouver. Geoff Cameron played the second half off USA's 1-1 draw at Guatemala on June 12. The center back also played 90 minutes in a friendly vs. Scotland on May 26. Andre Hainault was called in by Canada and played 90 minutes in a friendly vs. the U.S. and 90 minutes in both of Canada's Olympic qualifiers against Cuba and Honduras to reach 28 caps. Watson started three matches for Jamaica, including a 2-1 win over Guatemala and a 0-0 draw vs. Antigua & Barbuda in a pair of qualifying matches. Taylor did not appear in any of the three games for Jamaica.

Clark hits 125 MLS games: Dynamo midfielder Colin Clark played in his 125th career regular season game on June 23.

75 assists for Davis: Dynamo midfielder Brad Davis recorded his 75th assist for the Dynamo in all competitions with his corner kick that Andre Hainault headed in for the winning goal vs. the Galaxy on May 26. Davis is Houston's all-time assist leader.

First Comeback Win: The Dynamo recorded a 2-1 win on May 26 over the LA Galaxy for their first come-from-behind win of the season. Prior to the Galaxy game, the Dynamo were 0-3-1 on the season when allowing the first goal of the game.

Daytime Dominance: Houston's 3-1 loss at Vancouver on June 10 was its first loss in a day game this season, with its record dropping to 4-1. The Dynamo have daytime wins over Chivas USA, San Jose, D.C. United and the Galaxy. The Dynamo are 2-4-5 at night, but eight of the 11 night games have been on the road. Houston has two more day games this season (July 28 at Toronto FC and Sept. 29 at Philadelphia).

Cameron's streak ends: Geoff Cameron missed the May 26 game with the Galaxy while playing for the U.S. in its 5-1 win over Scotland. It was the first MLS game that Cameron missed since May 4, 2011 vs. Colorado. Prior to May 26, Cameron had started and played full time in 40 consecutive matches (playoffs included), the longest streak among Houston field players in team history. Cameron played 3,576 consecutive minutes in MLS play (playoffs included) before his latest absence. In a similar feat, Brad Davis' streak of 45 consecutive starts was broken at Chicago on April 15 due to a calf strain.

BBVA Compass Stadium opener: The Dynamo opened the 13th soccer-specific stadium in Major League Soccer on May 12. On a gorgeous, 82-degree day in front of a sell-out crowd of 22,039, the Dynamo honored past legends, including Wade Barrett, Pat Onstad, Eddie Robinson and Craig Waibel in a pregame ceremony that included the unveiling of 2006 and 2007 MLS Cup championship banners. Brad Davis provided a signature opening moment, delivering a beautiful, curling 30-yard strike for the game-winning goal in the 67th minute.

Clutch: Luiz Camargo's 87th-minute equalizer at New England on May 19 was Houston's third late goal on the road this season. Brian Ching's equalizer in the 81st minute at Columbus on April 21 and Hainault's game-winner two minutes into stoppage time at Chivas USA on March 11 were also reminiscent of 2011 for the Dynamo. Last year, Houston scored 14 goals in the final 15 minutes of games, the second most in MLS (Seattle).

Six years after the club's first match on April 2, 2006, only two players remain on the Dynamo roster: Brian Ching and Brad Davis. Defender Eddie Robinson retired in January and joined the front office as an assistant coach with the team's Youth Academy and as a color analyst on TV broadcasts.

UP NEXT: three home games in seven days

The Dynamo open a key three-game homestand with two games against teams they are trailing in the standings. The three games are Sunday, July 15 vs. D.C. United, Wednesday, July 18 vs. Sporting KC and vs. Montreal Impact on Saturday, July 21.

Injury Report Presented by The Methodist Center for Sports Medicine (As of Tuesday, July 3)

HOUSTON DYNAMO

DOUBTFUL: DF Alex Dixon (concussion); MF Calen Carr (L hamstring strain); MF Je-Vaughn Watson (L adductor strain);

QUESTIONABLE: DF Geoff Cameron (L hamstring strain)

SPORTING KANSAS CITY

OUT: DF Cyprian Hedrick (L fibula fracture); GK Jon Kempin (R ankle fracture); DF Lawrence Olum (L groin strain);

DOUBTFUL: MF Michael Thomas (R ankle sprain);

PROBABLE: FW Bobby Convey (L calf strain)

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