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MLS Cup 2002 Notes

October 16, 2002 - Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release


PROVIDENCE, RI (Wednesday, October 16, 2002) - The following is the latest compilation news and notes from the two camps of the MLS Cup finalists - the New England Revolution and Los Angeles Galaxy - as they prepare for the championship match on Sunday, October 20 (1:30 p.m. ET live on ABC Sports).

FROM THE REVOLUTION CAMP:

NICOL IS GOLDEN: After beginning the season as an assistant coach and starting his second tenure in New England going 5-10-0 in his first 15 matches, Revolution interim coach Steve Nicol was anything but the logical choice for MLS Coach of the Year halfway through August. However, after finishing the regular season on a 5-0-1 tear, winning the side's first Eastern Conference title and leading his team to its first MLS Cup final appearance, few could argue with the naming of the well-liked Scotsman as the winner of the 2002 award. Nicol, 41, is the second coach to win the award as an in-season replacement. The first? His counterpart in Sunday's final, Sigi Schmid, in 1999.

"TWELLMAN WATCH" CONTINUES: The Revolution had their first practice of the week indoors today at Wrentham State School as rain washed out their scheduled outdoor session, meaning the "Twellman Watch" continued in dry conditions. The 22-year-old St. Louis native participated in the morning session, although all of his time was spent working individually with the Revs' training staff in an effort to recuperate his sprained right MCL, which he suffered during New England's 1-0 win at Columbus last Wednesday. He will be attempting to squeeze what normally is 14 days of recovery time into eight. Twellman, the 2002 Budweiser Scoring Champion and the youngest American ever to net 20 or more goals in a single season, is listed by team officials as day-to-day and hopes the knee will be in good enough shape to allow him to join the team for full training on Friday. Twellman's injury is the only one of concern for New England leading up to Sunday's contest.

TICKETS FOR CUP GOING FAST: Although Los Angeles is the higher seed and the official home team on Sunday, New England will have their usual faithful on hand, accompanied by many more at "The Razor." According to preliminary numbers, ticket sales are in the neighborhood of 40,000. The lower bowl is completely sold out and tickets to the second tier are going fast. The previous attendance high this season at Gillette Stadium was 36,778 for the Revolution vs. Fire and U.S.A. vs. Netherlands doubleheader on May 19. The record soccer crowd for the old Foxboro Stadium was 57,407 which attended an April 20, 1997 doubleheader featuring the USA vs. Mexico and New England vs. Tampa Bay. There is now a real chance that the playoff attendance record of 57,431 set at MLS Cup '97 (October 26, 1997) may be shattered this Sunday

Those fans looking for lodging in or near Foxboro on this busy weekend might have some luck, as the Revolution are not planning to stay at the official team hotel during the week, looking instead to prepare for the match as a regular home contest. One can't blame the Revolution for sticking to their usual routine, as it has resulted in a 4-0-3 record in their last seven home matches.

CALL IT A COMEBACK: New England hasn't fared well coming from behind in 2002, going just 1-11-0 when giving up the first goal. However, only one other team has ever come back from as far back in the standings as the Revs did this year to capture a conference or division title. On August 21 the last-place Revs were a mere afterthought for the postseason after falling 12 points behind conference co-leaders Chicago and Columbus. But when the Revs came back to tie Columbus for first-place and win the crown via the head-to-head tiebreak, they equaled the 1999 Los Angeles Galaxy's mark for the largest deficit overcome to win a title. The Galaxy came close to besting their mark this season, as Los Angeles stormed back from an 11-point hole to overtake the San Jose Earthquakes and win the Western Conference (Courtesy: Elias Sports Bureau).

FROM THE GALAXY CAMP:

ALREADY FEELING LIKE FOXBORO: Southern Californians will rarely welcome dreary weather, but a cool and overcast day in Los Angeles this afternoon suited the Galaxy just fine during their last training session before departing for the East Coast. The Galaxy trained at McAllister Field on the campus of the University of Southern California for over an hour under cloudy skies and unseasonably cool temperatures in the low 60s - the same weather forecasters are predicting for part of MLS Cup 2002 weekend.

ROAD TO "THE DOUBLE" BEGINS TOMORROW: The Galaxy will finish travel preparations this evening and fly out of LAX tomorrow morning to Providence, RI, where the side will be headquartered until Monday morning. The Galaxy will not go directly to the Ocean State, however, and their stopover will be in one of the most potentially unwelcome places for an MLS side - Chicago's O'Hare Airport. Barn Burners, stay home... no flight information will be given for an impromptu "send-off rally." Foxboro will be stop one for Los Angeles during a nine-day journey which will see the club try to capture its first-ever domestic cup "double" - the Galaxy will challenge Columbus on Thursday, November 24 at Crew Stadium in the championship match of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

ONLY ONE GIMPY GALAXY PLAYER: The Galaxy will enter Sunday's contest in good health in regards to their regular starters, with only midfielder Peter Vagenas nursing an injury. Vagenas' strained right hamstring has kept the UCLA product from starting five of the Galaxy's last six contests, but the 24-year-old did enter L.A.'s last contest, a 1-0 victory at Colorado last Wednesday, as a substitute in the 63rd minute. Vagenas is listed as probable for Sunday and will almost assuredly play some minutes, but whether that will be as a starter or a reserve remains to be seen.

ROOT, ROOT, ROOT FOR THE HOME TEAM?: It might feel like home for the Revolution on Sunday, but the Galaxy will look like the home side in MLS Cup 2002. Los Angeles will don their home teal-and-gold kits in the championship battle, forcing New England to wear its road whites. The Revs wore white jerseys at Gillette Stadium in honor of Independence Day, capturing a 4-1 win over the Columbus Crew. In another move of gamesmanship, the Galaxy also exercised their right to use the home bench for Sunday's contest. However, the Galaxy did not take full advantage of the "home-field" advantage - the Galaxy decided not to kick the Revs out of the home locker room at "The Razor."

OTHER NOTES:

DIRECT LINE TO THE COMMISSIONER: Getting in touch with MLS Commissioner Don Garber this week might not be as difficult as you think. Garber will continue the build-up to MLS Cup 2002 by participating in an online chat session on ESPN.com Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m. ET. Revolution goalkeeper Adin Brown will participate in another MLS Cup chat on Friday beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET.

STEVE NICOL'S NEW ENGLAND ROOTS: Revolution interim head coach Steve Nicol, named MLS Coach of the Year Wednesday, has close ties with the New England soccer community, having worked his way through the coaching ranks beginning with the Boston Bulldogs in the D3 Pro League. The former Liverpool great (1981-1995) and Scotland international closed out his playing days with Sheffield Wednesday and Doncaster Rovers in England and moved to America in 1999 to become a player/coach with the Bulldogs. Nicol still maintains a role with Bulldogs owners Mass Pro Soccer (MPS) as the Technical Director to the Senior teams and the MPS Youth Development Academy. In 1999 Nicol replaced Italian legend Walter Zenga and served as interim head coach of the Revolution, winning the final two games to close out the season. After leading the Bulldogs to the D3 Northeast Conference championship and a National Final Four appearance as D3 Coach of the Year in 2001, Nicol re-joined the Revolution as an assistant to former Head Coach Fernando Clavijo in January of this year. The Scotsman, who made his first professional appearance at 18, took over the reigns of the team on May 23. Nicol resides in Hopkinton with his wife, Eleanor, and two children Michael and Katy. He calls the Boston Red Sox his favorite sports team outside of soccer.

NICOL LOOKING TO LOSE INTERIM STATUS: Revolution interim head coach Steve Nicol, MLS' 2002 Coach of the Year, has been in this situation before. In 1999 he was brought on as the interim head coach to take over for Walter Zenga at the end of the season. The fact that he won those final two games of the season did not help him to retain the post as ex-U.S. National Team player Fernando Clavijo was given the nod at the start of 2000. On May 23, Nicol became the interim head coach, replacing Clavijo, who led the team to a 2-4-1 start to the 2002 campaign. The former Revs assistant guided the team to a 10-10-1 record to close out 2002, including a 5-0-1 run down the stretch. Nicol is the only coach in Revolution history to post an all-time winning record with the club (12-10-1 in regular season play), and if he returns in 2003 he will need 11 wins to equal the most wins ever by a New England head coach (23 by Thomas Rongen between 1996-'97). Sigi Schmid had also come on in the middle of the season in 1999 after the team started 3-3 under Octavio Zambrano and like Nicol in 2002, Schmid still took his team to MLS Cup and won Coach of the Year honors in 1999.

FOR HEAPS, WINNING MLS CUP WITH REVS IS CHILDHOOD DREAM: New England's 26-year-old right back, Jay Heaps, is a product of the area's rich soccer tradition, got the chance to move back home when the Revolution acquired him from the Miami Fusion in a June 20, 2001 trade. Although born in Nashua, New Hampshire, Heaps' family moved to Longmeadow, Massachusetts (a little more than one hour away from Foxboro) where he became a budding soccer star. He lettered four years in both soccer and basketball at Longmeadow High School and earned numerous accolades including: Parade All-America, NSCAA All-America, Gatorade State Player of the Year, three-time All-New England and two-time Western Massachusetts MVP. Heaps, who scored a school-record 96 goals during his prep career, was also a two-time All-Western Massachusetts basketball player as a point guard and those skills were put to good use when he enrolled at Duke University. Not only was he a star soccer player and a 1998 Missouri Athletic Club collegiate player of the year winner, but he was also a walk-on for the legendary basketball team. He joined MLS in 1999, earning Rookie of the Year honors with the Miami Fusion.

REVOLUTION LOOKING TO MAKE NEW ENGLAND SOCCER HISTORY: Does the "curse of the Bambino" extend to soccer? The Boston area has been the home for the Rovers in the United Soccer Association in 1967, three teams in the NASL (the Beacons-1968, the Minutemen - 1974-'76 and the Tea Men - 1978-'80) and the Revolution for the entire history of MLS (1996 to present). None of those major soccer league teams ever won a title over a 14-season span. In fact, the last title won by a Boston soccer team in any national pro league was an odd share of the 1975 ASL championship. The Boston Astros split the title with the New York Apollo, when nine overtimes failed to break their tie! The Astros weren't even technically a Boston team by that point, having moved to Worcester during the season. And if all that isn't bizarre enough, the commissioner who made the decision not to replay the championship game and to split the ASL title was NBA Hall of Famer Bob Cousy! (Courtesy: Elias Sports Bureau). Massachusetts, however, has seen its teams capture Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup titles dating back to 1917. The Fall River Rovers (1917), Fall River F.C. (1924, 1927, 1930, 1931), Shawsheen F.C. (Andover, Mass. in 1925), New Bedford F.C. (1932) and Ponta Delgada S.C. (Fall River, Mass. in 1947) have all claimed the U.S. Open Cup since the tournament kicked off in 1914.

"CHAQUI" SEEKING CHANCE AT REDEMPTION: The reigning Budweiser Scoring Champion and Honda MVP entering the 2002 season, Alex Pineda Chacon, was probably hoping for much better than nine starts and two goals when he joined New England in the offseason. After scoring in the season opener and starting the first six games of the campaign under former head coach Fernando Clavijo, the veteran Pineda Chacon would not figure prominently in the plans of Clavijo's replacement, Steve Nicol. However, the Honduran legend, who scored 19 goals in 2001 and led the Miami Fusion to the Supporter's Shield, handled matters like the consummate professional he is known to be. A former law school student in Honduras who is usually the sharpest mind and quickest thinker on the soccer field, Pineda Chacon has expressed his unhappiness at times but has accepted his role and never done anything to disrupt team chemistry. If Taylor Twellman is not able to start in the championship game or if the Revolution find themselves in a hole, Pineda Chacon may get the opportunity to redeem himself in a season which took an unexpected turn.

AMERICAN WORLD CUP HEROES CROSS PATHS AT GILLETTE STADIUM: Four U.S. World Cup players will face off for MLS Cup 2002 on Sunday, October 20. Cobi Jones (L.A.), Alexi Lalas (L.A.), Juergen Sommer (N.E.) and Carlos Llamosa (N.E.) were teammates on the U.S. National Team which battled the MLS All-Stars at the 2002 All-Star Game at RFK Stadium on August 3. Jones ('94, '98, '02), Lalas ('94, '98), Sommer ('94, '98) and Llamosa ('02) are all U.S. World Cup players with Jones, Lalas and Sommer being part of the U.S. squad which hosted the tournament in 1994. Current Los Angeles Galaxy Head Coach Sigi Schmid was an assistant under then Head Coach Bora Milutinovic for the '94 tournament. Former Revolution Head Coach Fernando Clavijo was also a member of the 1994 World Cup team which was eliminated in the second round against Brazil. Ralph Perez, Galaxy assistant coach, is the only member of either team to be involved in the U.S. effort at the 1990 World Cup when he served as an assistant to head coach Bob Gansler, current Kansas City Wizards head coach.

COLLEGE CONNECTIONS: When the Revolution and Galaxy take the field at Gillette Stadium, a few college programs will be better represented than most. Tyrone Marshall (L.A.), Daouda Kante (N.E.) and Steve Ralston (N.E.) all attended Florida International University and are expected to be direct opponents on the field with Marshall serving as the Galaxy's left back with Ralston attacking down the right wing. Kante is the latest of the three to graduate from the Miami-based school. Ralston, who still holds the record of all-time assists (33), was a 1995 graduate. Marshall joined the Golden Panthers for the 1996-'97 season. Revolution forward Wolde Harris saw his kid brother, Simba, play one year for the gold and blue.

Craig Waibel (L.A.) and Joey Franchino (N.E.) both are hard-nosed defenders with common roots at the University of Washington. The Revolution will field three players with connections to the University of Maryland: Taylor Twellman, Leo Cullen, Nick Downing. If Twellman plays, he will be going up against former Terrapin teammate Danny Califf, who was also his teammate on the 1999 Under-20 U.S. National Team which played at the Youth World Championship. Twellman, Califf and the rest of the Under-20s were coached by Galaxy Head Coach Sigi Schmid in a tournament in which the U.S. beat both England and Cameroon.

Wolde Harris (N.E.) and reserve Ian Fuller (N.E.) are two former Clemson University strikers, Chris Albright (L.A.) and Marshall Leonard (N.E.) attended the University of Virginia, Alejandro Moreno (L.A.) and Rusty Pierce (N.E.) honed their skills at UNC-Greensboro, while Brian Mullan (L.A.) and Brian Kamler (N.E.) were members of the Creighton Blue Jay soccer program. The largest representation of any collegiate program is that of UCLA: six Galaxy players were Bruins at some point in their soccer careers including Head Coach Sigi Schmid, who coached at UCLA for 19 years (1980-1999).

THE REVOLUTION'S ST. LOUIS CONNECTION: The soccer tradition of St. Louis will be on display at MLS Cup 2002 as the Revolution field three natives of the city who are all starters: Brian Kamler, Steve Ralston and Taylor Twellman. The trio has made a lasting contribution to squad with Twellman leading the League in scoring (23g, 6a = 52pts), Ralston leading the League in assists (19) and coming in second behind Twellman on the team in points scored (5g, 19a = 29pts), while Kamler ranked fourth on the team in regular season scoring (2g, 5a = 9pts).

MLS CUP GOES INTERNATIONAL: A combined 50 players and coaches between the Galaxy and Revolution will take the field on October 20 for MLS Cup 2002. In that mix of 50 persons, 14 nations including the United States will be represented, a number that is one short of the number American states represented by the group. The following are the countries in which at least one player or coach from the Revs or Galaxy was born: Jamaica (3), Colombia (2), Mexico (1), Guatemala (1), St. Vincent & The Grenadines (1), El Salvador (1), New Zealand (1), Venezuela (1), Egypt (1), Germany (1), Honduras (1), Mali (1), Palestine (1), Scotland (1). Many of these countries may get to watch their own battle for the most important soccer prize in the U.S. as ESPN International will be showing MLS Cup 2002 to the world on tape delay next Monday in Spanish, Portuguese and English.

TWO BEST SCORERS IN CONCACAF: The long-distance, goal-scoring rivalry that materialized in 2002 between strikers Taylor Twellman (22-years-old, N.E. Revolution) and Carlos Ruiz (23-years-old, L.A. Galaxy) may be just the beginning of a larger scale confrontation between the two on the international stage. "El Pescadito" is a starting forward for the Guatemalan National Team while Twellman is expected to get the opportunity to fight for a spot on what is expected to be a new-look U.S. National Team which will be looking ahead toward the 2006 World Cup. Guatemala and the United States have done battle during CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying for the 1990, 1998 and 2002 World Cup and the meetings are likely to be renewed when 2006 World Cup Qualifying kicks off in two years. Both in their early 20s, Ruiz and Twellman have staked their claim in 2002 as the best forwards in CONCACAF and will get to back it up on the MLS and international stage.

LLAMOSA AND KAMLER KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BEAT L.A. AT MLS CUP: New England starters Carlos Llamosa and Brian Kamler have more MLS Cup championship rings among them than does the entire Los Angeles Galaxy team. Llamosa played on the 1997 and 1999 MLS Cup champion D.C. United squads, defeating the Galaxy 2-0 in Foxboro in 1999. Kamler was a member of the United team that captured the first two championships in League history (1996, 1997) and although he did not see playing time in either title game, he did earn two rings, including the one in 1996 following United's 3-2 overtime win over the Galaxy.

GALAXY HAVE MORE EXPERIENCE ON BIG STAGE: A team which is entering its fourth championship game can be expected to outdo an opponent when it comes to championship experience, especially one which only won its first postseason series this year. The Los Angeles Galaxy roster carries 10 players with 17 MLS Cup appearances while the Revolution's four total MLS Cup appearances are spread between two players: former D.C. United defender Carlos Llamosa and former Colorado Rapids forward Wolde Harris. When it comes to postseason experience, all but five of the Galaxy's 21 players have tasted the MLS Cup Playoffs, for a combined total of 232 appearances (compared to Revolution's 168 appearances spread among 19 players). Four Revolution players are still without playoff experience and of the 19 players who have been to the postseason before, six got their first appearance in New England's 2002 run.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW - GILLETTE STADIUM: On May 11 the Revolution opened state-of-the-art Gillette Stadium by blanking the Dallas Burn 2-0 behind two Taylor Twellman goals. The team enjoyed a 7-7-0 record at their new abode, which was built was soccer in mind. At the old Foxboro Stadium the Revolution compiled a record of 48-40-5 over six seasons. The Galaxy were 4-3-0 during regular season play at the old facility with their last win having come on July 11, 1999 (5-2). Los Angeles also dropped two MLS Cup championship matches at the old Foxboro Stadium, both to D.C. United in 1996 and 1999. This season the Galaxy, who hold MLS' all-time best road record (51-48-8, the only team above .500), dropped a 3-2 result on May 25. The 17 road goals scored by Sigi Schmid's squad in 2002 is the fewest total in team history, fewer than the previous team low of 24 goals the club netted away from home in the 1997 campaign when the regular season schedule included four extra matches (total of 32).

WELL WORTH THE WAIT FOR IRON MAN: Revolution midfielder Steve Ralston is the League's all-time leader in games (204) and minutes played (17,960) but the October 20 championship game will represent his first appearance in a title match in his seven-year career. Jason Kreis (Dallas Burn) and Mark Chung (Colorado Rapids), who round out the top three of the all-time lists in games and minutes played, are now the longest serving players yet to see an MLS Cup final.

REVOLUTION LOOK TO GIVE OWNER ROBERT KRAFT RARE DOUBLE: Robert Kraft, owner of the NFL's New England Patriots and MLS' New England Revolution, has already tasted a championship win with the Patriots winning the Super Bowl in February. If the Revolution capture MLS Cup on Oct. 20, it would mark a first for a professional sports owner in America. According to preliminary research only Jerry Buss, whose L.A. Lakers have won three consecutive NBA titles and whose L.A. Sparks are two-time WNBA champions, has achieved anything similar although the championships came in the same sport. Lamar Hunt, investor-operator of both the Columbus Crew and Kansas City Wizards in MLS, won a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs (1970 - Super Bowl IV) and an MLS title with the Wizards (MLS Cup 2000), 30 years apart.

GOLDEN STATE PROVES SOCCER HOTBED: The state of California is home to one of the greatest soccer-playing populations in America and that will be manifested at MLS Cup 2002, largely due to the presence of the Los Angeles Galaxy, who have six players born in the Golden State. Of the 15 states represented at MLS Cup, New York is next in line with four natives who will be present at Gillette Stadium. The following is the state-by-state breakdown of the birthplaces of those who will be part of MLS Cup 2002: California (8), New York (4), Missouri (3), Massachusetts (2), Texas (2), Oregon (2), Michigan (2), Georgia (2), New Mexico (1), Pennsylvania (1), Ohio (1), Minnesota (1), New Hampshire (1), Kansas (1) and Washington (1).

GALAXY VS. REVOLUTION - A RE-MATCH OF 2001 U.S. OPEN CUP FINAL: The Los Angeles Galaxy and New England Revolution have a precedent in championship games, having met just last year in the 2001 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final. The Galaxy's Danny Califf scored the game-winning golden goal in overtime against the Revolution to give the Galaxy a 2-1 win and its first domestic championship. Los Angeles came away with the Football Confederation (CONCACAF) Champions Cup in January of 2001.

GALAXY ATTEMPT "DOUBLE" FOR SECOND YEAR IN A ROW: When the Galaxy leave LAX airport on Thursday, October 17 at 8:00 a.m. the team will be heading on the road for an entire week with the hope of bringing back home two championships when the squad returns on Friday, October 25. Sigi Schmid's club is looking to become the third MLS team to capture "The Double": a conquest of the two major domestic soccer championships - MLS Cup and the U.S. Open Cup. Last year the club was in a similar position, but came away with only one of the cups, losing to the San Jose Earthquakes in the MLS Cup final on Oct. 21 in Columbus, Ohio and then defeating the Revolution a week later in Fullerton, California for the team's first Open Cup. After Sunday's MLS Cup final, the team will train in Providence on Monday and then fly to Columbus on Tuesday, where the Galaxy will take on the Columbus Crew for the 2002 Open Cup title on Thursday, Oct. 26. D.C. United (1996) and the Chicago Fire (1998) are the only teams to have accomplished the feat.

FIVE COMPETITIONS, FIVE FINALS: The Galaxy have been perfect in recent years in reaching championship games. In fact, over the last two years, Los Angeles has qualified for the finals in the five competitions in which the club has participated, including two MLS Cups (2001-02), two U.S. Open Cups (2001-02), and one F.C. (CONCACAF) Champions Cup (2001). The Galaxy were not given a chance to defend their Champions Cup title in 2002, after not being invited to enter the event, which saw four other MLS clubs participate. Sunday's title game at Foxboro will be the Galaxy's second consecutive appearance, third in four seasons and record fourth trip to MLS Cup in the seven-year history of the League.

FROM WORST TO FIRST?: Sunday's final will mark the third consecutive year that a team which failed to make the postseason in the previous year has advanced to the final. The Kansas City Wizards (2000) and San Jose Earthquakes (2001) both marched to MLS Cup championship appearances and came away with the titles after missing the playoffs in the previous season. The Revolution were close to missing a postseason berth for the fifth year in their seven-year history when they found themselves in last place in the overall League standings as late as Friday, August 23 (the regular season concluded on Sept. 22) when they stood seven points behind the MetroStars for the eighth and final postseason berth. Then the club went on a 5-0-1 tear and not only clinched a spot in the playoffs, but also came away with the organization's first Eastern Conference crown. So while the Revs did not finish bottom of their division in 2001, as the Wizards and Earthquakes had in the seasons before their championship, a win by New England on Sunday would still constitute a dramatic worst-to-first turnaround in the same season.

MLS' BEST VS. MLS' WORST: Even in the MLS Cup championship game that scenario is possible. In fact, the L.A. Galaxy - four-time MLS Cup finalists - have compiled the League's best regular season record over their seven-year history (123-75-16 for a 0.612 winning percentage). The Revolution find themselves on the bottom of the all-time standings with an 85-116-14 record (0.428 winning percentage). The 116 losses is the highest total by any team in League history (the MetroStars are a close second with 115 losses).

TRUE DEDICATION: Despite the poor all-time record compiled by New England in the seven-year history of the League, Revolution fans have never given up on their team. In fact, their all-time average regular season home attendance of 17,849 over 107 home dates is third best in MLS history (the Galaxy lead that category with an average of 20,957). With that kind of dedication and the Revs hosting the MLS Cup final, there is a real chance that the playoff attendance record of 57,431 set at MLS Cup '97 (October 26, 1997) can be shattered this Sunday. The Galaxy would be the appropriate opponent to help the 2002 event break that record since L.A. has been in 10 of the top 15 best-attended postseason games, with seven home games of their own and three MLS Cup title games.

KEVIN STOTT BECOMES FIRST TO REFEREE TWO MLS CUP FINALS: Kevin Terry, a veteran of seven MLS seasons, will be the man in the middle for MLS Cup 2002 on Sunday, October 20. The native of London, England has officiated a total of 77 MLS regular season matches since the League's Inaugural Year in 1996, including 11 games in 2002. A FIFA referee since 1997, Terry has officiated several international matches including World Cup Qualifiers, he will become the first man to referee two MLS Cup championship games when he takes the field for MLS Cup 2002 in Foxboro. The former professional player officiated the 1998 championship game between the Chicago Fire and D.C. United. Terry, who has been running a public warehousing and storage company in Carrolton, Texas for 17 years, became a professional referee in 1986 for the Major Indoor Soccer League and has since officiated professional, indoor, youth and senior amateur soccer. He still officiates professional indoor soccer today and has been a part of every competition sanctioned by the U.S. Soccer Federation.

"EL PESCADITO" RAISES THE BAR IN THE POSTSEASON: Galaxy forward Carlos Ruiz has set a new standard of playoff goal scoring with his performances in the 2002 postseason. With seven goals and two assists (total of 16 points) in the five postseason games he has appeared in, "El Pescadito" broke the record for the most goals and points ever scored in a single postseason. The Chicago Fire's Ante Razov registered 14 points on four goals and six assists after playing seven games during the 2000 playoffs, two more than the Galaxy's Guatemalan sensation. Ruiz's seven goals also set another postseason record set by surpassing the six goals netted by Raul Diaz Arce (D.C. United) and Roy Lassiter (Tampa Bay Mutiny) in 1996.

BEST GOAL SCORER IN MLS HISTORY?: There are various means to measure the production of a player: points-per-game, goals-per-game and total goals being a few. In the case of the Galaxy's Carlos Ruiz, his 31 goals in 31 games in 2002 MLS play (regular season and playoffs) are the best goal-scoring numbers in League history by a player who has played more than 30 total matches during the course of an MLS season (including postseason). Behind Ruiz in the category are the performances by Roy Lassiter (33 goals in 35 games in 1996 - 0.94 goals-per-game), Mamadou Diallo (28 goals in 30 games in 2000 - 0.93 goals-per-game), Stern John (29 goals in 32 games in 1998 - 0.90 goals-per-game) and Raul Diaz Arce (29 goals in 34 games in 1996 - 0.85 goals-per-game).

THE EX-FACTOR: When the Revolution and Galaxy take the field on October 20, there will be four players who can say they once played for the opposition. New England's captain, Joe Franchino, was a member of the Galaxy from 1998 to 2000 although he did not make an appearance at MLS Cup 1999 when the team lost to D.C. United. Franchino, a Fontana, California native, was placed in a special weighted draft on May 16, 2000 after the Galaxy acquired Mexican star Luis Hernandez. The Revolution selected Franchino with the second pick after the MetroStars had taken Clint Mathis, the other player the Galaxy opted to make available for the special draft. Another former Galaxy member is Revolution central midfielder Daniel Hernandez, who was drafted by L.A. in the 1998 MLS College Draft (18th overall) and made 29 appearances before Sigi Schmid traded him away to the Tampa Bay Mutiny on August 13, 1999 for midfielder Jorge Salcedo. Schmid also made the move this year to waive midfielder Winston Griffiths, who made six appearances and scored one goal for Los Angeles before being picked up by New England on July 30. The Jamaican native, used mainly as a substitute, made eight appearances for the Revs during the regular season and another four in the postseason. Galaxy defender and U.S. soccer icon Alexi Lalas played for New England in his first two years in the League (1996-'97) and made a total of 55 appearances over the course of the two seasons. "Big Red" was shipped to the MetroStars on February 4, 1998 in the first trade involving three teams in MLS history.

BROTHERLY LOVE: During the second year of Alexi Lalas' tenure in New England, he had the opportunity of playing with younger brother Greg Lalas, also a defender (born 3-27-73). Greg is now a senior editor for Boston Magazine and is credentialed for the match at Foxboro. The Revolution selected Greg in the 1996 MLS Waiver Allocation Draft after he had played three matches for the Tampa Bay Mutiny during the Inaugural Season. Greg, who graduated from Brown University where he was team captain in '92 and '93, came off the bench in two games for the Revolution in 1997 - his final season in MLS.

REVOLUTIONARY OVERHAUL LEADS TO MLS CUP: The Revolution were tabbed as MLS Cup favorites before the season even started after they had come away with prize talents from the Allocation and Dispersal Drafts in January. Among the players to join New England's ranks were Mamadou Diallo (2000 Budweiser Scoring Champion), Alex Pineda Chacon (2001 Honda MVP and Budweiser Scoring Champion), Steve Ralston, Carlos Llamosa, Jim Rooney and Shaker Asad. However, Diallo was traded away in May and Pineda Chacon has been for the most part relegated to coming off the bench, meaning that the two biggest names of the crop would barely contribute to the effort. However, the overhaul went far deeper than the Allocation and Dispersal Drafts. Of the Revolution's 23-man roster, 14 players were acquired in 2002, only five in 2001 and just four others in 2000 (Wolde Harris, Joey Franchino, Rusty Pierce and Juergen Sommer). By comparison, Galaxy Head Coach Sigi Schmid incorporated seven new players in 2002, with the other elements of his 21-man roster coming from moves made every year since 1996 (Cienfuegos and Jones in 1996; Hendrickson and Hartman in 1997; Reis in 1998; Elliott in 1999; and four players each in 2000 and 2001).

BATTLE ROYALE: The Revolution and Galaxy captured the Eastern and Western Conference titles respectively during the regular season. The first time that conference or divisional champions faced off for the Alan I. Rothenberg Trophy was at MLS Cup 1999 when D.C. United and the L.A. Galaxy did battle at Foxboro Stadium as conference winners. In 2000, the first of two seasons with a three-division alignment, the Kansas City Wizards (West champs) and Chicago Fire (Central champs) met in the championship game at RFK Stadium, where the Wizards emerged victorious 1-0.

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