MLS Columbus Crew SC

First-place Crew hosts N.E. Saturday in key Eastern clash

Published on September 3, 2008 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Columbus Crew SC News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - After its second come-from-behind victory over FC Dallas in three weeks last Saturday (Aug. 30) in Frisco, Texas, the first-place Crew returns home this week to take on the New England Revolution this Saturday (Sept. 6) at Crew Stadium. The match features a Crew squad (12-6-4, 40 pts.) that is currently riding a three-game winning streak which has moved it into first-place overall in MLS, while New England (11-6-5, 38 pts.) visits Columbus sitting in second place overall in the League, just two points behind the Black & Gold. Columbus is now just one win away from matching its post-shootout era (since 2000) record for wins in a season set in 2001.

Saturday's match kicks off at 7:30 p.m. and will be televised live nationally on HDNet, as well as on the DirectKick package, and will air locally on ONN, with Dwight Burgess and Bill McDermott calling all the action, with Katie Witham providing sideline coverage. The game can also be heard in English on News/Talk 610 WTVN with Neil Sika and Dante Washington behind the microphone and on-line at theCrew.com and MLSNet.com, as well as in Spanish on La Que Buena 1550-AM with Eduardo Carvacho and Benny Pietrangelo on the call.

New England enters this weekend's showdown after drawing with the Los Angeles Galaxy, 2-2, last Saturday (Aug. 30) at home. In the match, Taylor Twellman gave the Revs a first-half lead, but goals in the 33rd and 55th minutes by Landon Donovan pushed L.A. in front, 2-1. Shalrie Joseph then scored the game-tying goal in the 71st minute to earn New England a point. As a result, New England is now unbeaten in its last three league matches with a record of 1-0-2, thanks to a win over D.C. (8/20) and a draw with Toronto (8/23). The Revs travel to Columbus led by the trio of Adam Cristman (6 goals), Steve Ralston (6) and Taylor Twellman (5), with Ralston also leading the squad in assists with five on the season. In addition to MLS action, New England also recently wrapped up its participation in the 2008 CONCACAF Champions League play against Joe Public FC. Joe Public downed the Revs last night (Aug. 2), 4-0, in the return leg of the Champions League opening round match-up at Gillette Stadium. With its previous 2-1 victory over New England at home, the club from Trinidad & Tobago advanced in the competition by an aggregate score of 6-1.

The Crew enters Saturday's match after claiming sole possession of first place last Saturday (Aug. 30) with the win at Dallas. The Black & Gold now has 40 points in 22 matches this season and has surpassed its final point total (37) for the entire 2007 season. Last Saturday's match was nearly identical to the match played between the Crew and FC Dallas just two weeks prior at Crew Stadium, which resulted in a 2-1 comeback victory for Columbus. Much like that Aug. 16 match, the Hoops took a first half lead thanks to a goal by former Crew forward Jeff Cunningham, but once again, Crew playmaker Guillermo Barros Schelotto led the Black & Gold on a furious comeback as he assisted on Alejandro Moreno's goal in the 37th minute and Eddie Gaven's game-winning tally in the 40th minute to give Columbus three points on the road. The Crew will be without the services on Saturday of Frankie Hejduk (U.S.A.), Alejandro Moreno (Venezuela), Duncan Oughton (New Zealand) and Ricardo Pierre-Louis (Haiti), who will all miss the match vs. New England due to call-ups for World Cup Qualifying with their respective national teams. Defender Danny O'Rourke, however, returns from a one-game suspension for caution accumulation.

COLUMBUS CREW vs. New England Revolution

Saturday, Sept. 6 - 7:30 p.m. (ET) at Crew Stadium

National Television: HDNet; Local Television: ONN

Crew Radio: News/Talk 610 WTVN (English); La Que Buena 1550-AM (Spanish)

Crew Webcasts: TheCrew.com and MLSNet.com (English)

CREW'S OFFICIAL BLOG, THE BLACK & GOLD STANDARD, UNVEILED

The Crew has unveiled its new official blog, The Black & Gold Standard, located at www.BlackandGoldStandard.com. It will feature timely news and fun, interesting tidbits, photos, video and links to other compelling content from around the web. "The Black & Gold Standard gives us an exciting, new platform to provide our fans 'real time' information, among many other things," said Crew President & General Manager Mark McCullers. "We envision an entertaining, multi-purpose outlet that will quickly become another go-to destination for the 'official word' on America's Hardest Working Team, supplementing TheCrew.com."

GAVEN NOTCHES FIRST GOAL OF SEASON, MORENO TIES CAREER HIGH

Midfielder Eddie Gaven scored his first goal of the 2008 season, the game-winner, in the Crew's 2-1 victory over FC Dallas last Saturday (Aug. 30). The goal was the 26th of Gaven's career and 10th as a member of the Crew. Forward Alejandro Moreno also scored a milestone goal in the Crew's victory last Saturday, as his 37th-minute marker gave him eight on the season, tying a career high set with the San Jose Earthquakes in 2005.

SCHELOTTO CONTINUES TORRID STREAK, SETS NEW CLUB SINGLE-SEASON ASSIST RECORD

Playmaker Guillermo Barros Schelotto continues to make his bid for MLS MVP as he added to two more assists in the Crew's 2-1 victory over FC Dallas last Saturday (Aug. 30). With 16 assists on the season, Schelotto now holds the Crew's single-season assist record, eclipsing the previous mark of 15 set by John Wilmar Perez in 2001. Schelotto's total of 16 assists to date is also the most notched by an MLS player in a single season since Preki tallied 17 assists with Kansas City in 2003. Schelotto leads MLS in assists this season by a wide margin, as his next closest competitor, Javier Morales of Salt Lake, currently has 10 helpers on the campaign. The Crew is now riding a three-game winning streak heading into its crucial match-up with N.E. this Saturday (Sept. 6) and much of that success has come from the feet of Schelotto, who has had a hand in each of the seven goals scored by the Crew in during the streak (1 goal, 6 assists). He has also won MLS Player of the Week honors for Week 22 after his goal, and two assist performance against Real Salt Lake on Aug. 23.

EKPO RETURNS TO CREW AFTER SUCCESSFUL OLYMPIC CAMPAIGN

Crew midfielder Emmanuel Ekpo returned to Columbus Wednesday afternoon (Sept. 3) after participating in Olympic celebrations in his native Nigeria. He will be eligible for selection in Saturday's (Sept. 6) match vs. New England. Ekpo and his Nigerian squad earned the silver medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics soccer competition after falling to Argentina, 1-0, on Aug. 23 in the gold medal final. Argentina managed a narrow win over Nigeria in an exciting contest from the Bird's Nest national stadium in Beijing. A lone goal from Angel Di Maria early in the second half saw the Argentines take home their second straight Men's Olympic Football gold, while Nigeria was forced to settle for consolation silver. Ekpo came on for Nigeria in the 70th minute, and brought an immediate spark to the attack but it was not enough to draw his side even in the final 20 minutes. Ekpo and Nigeria finished the Olympic soccer tournament with a notable record of 4-1-1, with its lone loss coming to Argentina.

CREW PLAYERS AMONG LEAGUE STATISTICAL LEADERS

Several Crew players find themselves among the league statistical leaders after the 2-1 victory over FC Dallas last Saturday (Aug. 30). Midfielder Guillermo Barros Schelotto is enjoying an MVP-type season, as he currently leads the league in assists and corner kicks by a wide margin. Thanks to two more helpers in last Saturday's win, Schelotto now has 16 assists on the season, distancing himself from his closest competitor (Javier Morales, RSL - 10), while also adding four corner kicks to bring his total to 105 for the season. Schelotto also leads MLS in game-winning assists with five this season. Forward Alejandro Moreno finds himself tied for seventh in MLS in goals scored, with eight, and despite being away on U.S. Olympic duty for several weeks, midfielder Robbie Rogers still ranks among the league's best in several categories, as he is currently ranked fourth in shots (55) and is tied for sixth in shots on goal (27). Rogers is also tied for third in MLS in multi-goal games, with two on the 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 - Alejandro Moreno currently sits second with 56, while Guillermo Barros Schelotto currently sits third with 53 fouls suffered. U.S. Olympian Robbie Rogers currently sits fourth in the fouls suffered rankings with 49 this season.

CREW SOCCER FOUNDATION, SAKS FIFTH AVENUE TEAM UP FOR 'AN EVENING OF SOCCER & SPIRTIS' THURSDAY

The Crew's charitable arm, The Crew Soccer Foundation, will host "An Evening of Soccer & Spirits," a scotch and wine tasting event this Thursday, Sept. 4, in the Men's Department of the Saks Fifth Avenue location at Polaris Fashion Mall (1350 Polaris Parkway, Columbus, OH 43240). Columbus Crew players and staff will be in attendance at the fine scotch and wine tasting, many of whom will be displaying the latest in fashion apparel from Saks Fifth Avenue. The tasting will take place from 6-8:30 p.m. and will also include hors d'oeuvres. Tickets are still available for $35 a person, with all proceeds supporting Crew Soccer Foundation programming for central Ohio youth and families. For more information, please contact Robin Ungerleider at (614) 447-4175 or rungerleider@thecrew.com.

SOCCER AID VI AUCTIONS CONTINUE AT TheCrew.com, CrewSoccerFoundation.org

On-line auctions for "Soccer Aid VI," a unique, fund-raising program of the Crew Soccer Foundation, continue at "MLS Auctions." The exciting program capitalizes on soccer fans' passion for the sport to raise money for charity through the non-profit arm of Major League Soccer's Columbus Crew, including its primary beneficiary, the Mid-Ohio Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). Through its first four years, Soccer Aid has raised more than $30,000 for JDRF. In addition to the jersey, winning bidders will have the opportunity to experience the thrill of match day at one-of-a-kind Columbus Crew Stadium, with two tickets to the Crew's game vs. the New York Red Bulls on Sept. 18, on-field recognition and the opportunity to play a 30-minute scrimmage prior to the Sept. 18 game. All jerseys are official, yellow long-sleeve locker-room issue and many of them are game-worn. The current group includes Guillermo Barros Schelotto and William Hesmer, among others. "MLS Auctions" can be accessed through CrewSoccerFoundation.org and TheCrew.com.

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Major League Soccer Stories from September 3, 2008


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