MLS Houston Dynamo FC

Dynamo look to keep the unbeaten streak alive

Published on May 20, 2009 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Houston Dynamo FC News Release


Brad Davis only played in San Jose for one year, but on behalf of his teammates, he was a little offended. He hopes 15,000 more Houstonians have their back on Saturday night when the Houston Dynamo host the Earthquakes at Robertson Stadium. "Obviously, we used to be there, and we used to be that team," Davis said. "Whenever we head out there, for some reason, their fans tend to shred us down after all the success that not just me, but a lot of these guys, had before I went to San Jose and the year I was there. It's a little bit funny in that aspect, but whenever they come here, they have to deal with our fans and our city." The Dynamo-Earthquakes rivalry sprang up quickly last year mostly due to Earthquakes fans' verbal jabs and negative cheers aimed at some of the 11 former San Jose players on the Houston roster. The issue showed most prominently last September, when Brian Ching scored a tying goal at Buck Shaw Stadium and pointed to the championship star above the Dynamo crest on his jersey, reminding the San Jose fans that current Dynamo players are responsible for the two championship stars on Earthquakes jerseys.

"There were some fans disrespecting [head coach] Dom [Kinnear] and our team, and I just wanted to remind them that we're the ones who put the two stars on their team's jersey, and we're the ones who won four championships, and they should show some respect," Ching said at the time. By now, that issue is mostly in the past, and the animosity between the teams stems from their connections, which include former Dynamo players Kelly Gray and Ryan Cochrane, aggressive on-field playing styles, and some physical clashes. Both teams play with big, physical forwards - Ching and Kei Kamara for Houston, Ryan Johnson and Cam Weaver for San Jose - and are known for hard-nosed defending, so collisions and fouls are inevitable.

"There have been some very intense games," Kinnear said. "Competition always serves as the main provider. There have been good games between us, and I don't expect anything different. ... I expect it to be another physical, hard-fought game."

In the teams' earlier meeting, a 3-2 San Jose win on March 28, the Earthquakes found success with long balls to Johnson (6-foot-1) and Weaver (6-foot-4), something Davis said the Dynamo can limit with effective pressure.

"We want to pressure them a bit higher so they don't have time in the back to set that stuff up," Davis said. "We'll play tight on those guys and try to push up and put pressure on them so they can't set that long ball up in the back."

San Jose is 0-5-2 in all competitions since beating the Dynamo, but Kinnear said the Earthquakes are not a team to be taken lightly.

"If you step on the field and expect anything different [than their best], you're in for a surprise," Kinnear said. "In San Jose, you have Ryan Johnson and Cam Weaver, and Darren Huckerby, Arturo Alvarez, and Bobby Convey. There are a lot of good guys there, and they may not be going well, but you have to expect them to come out and play well; you have to prepare for that."

The Dynamo are prepared for anything, and they hope their fans, with a little help from the weather, are prepared to give the Earthquakes 90 minutes of pressure.

"We really let one slip in New York, we feel," Davis said. "We'll probably have a little bit of heat this weekend, so coming from San Jose and playing on a bigger field, we hope they'll struggle a bit in the second half. We look at this as a definite must-win game this weekend."

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Major League Soccer Stories from May 20, 2009


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