MLS New England Revolution

Revs score two goals in final 15 minutes to earn come-from-behind draw

Published on October 4, 2008 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
New England Revolution News Release


FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Steve Ralston and Taylor Twellman scored goals two minutes apart in the game's final minutes to erase a two-goal deficit as the New England Revolution earned a 2-2, come-from-behind draw against Real Salt Lake on Saturday night at Gillette Stadium.

A late Twellman chance nearly gave the Revolution the victory, a result - coupled with a pair of favorable results around the league - that would have secured New England a berth in the MLS Cup Playoffs. However, with the draw, the Revs will have to wait an additional week for the chance to qualify.

New England (12-8-7, 43 pts.) has three games remaining in the regular season - two against Kansas City, who is currently sixth in the Eastern Conference, and one against rival D.C. United, who is currently fifth. With the draw, Real Salt Lake (9-10-8, 35 pts.) leap-frogged rival Colorado and Dallas into third place in the Western Conference.

New England returned to its familiar 3-5-2 formation after starting in a 4-4-2 setup in the previous two matches. Michael Parkhurst centered Jay Heaps and Chris Albright on the backline, while left midfielder Khano Smith and forward Kheli Dube both returned to the starting lineup after recovering from injury.

Real Salt Lake took the lead in the 13th minute through Javier Morales, who creatively lofted a shot over Matt Reis after the Revs goalkeeper had come off of his line to clear a loose ball. The play began with a long, searching pass out of the back from RSL defender Robbie Russell. Reis came all the way outside of his box to head the ball away from immediate danger, but it fell to Morales, whose left-footed chip found a sliver of space just under the crossbar and just over the head of Parkhurst, who was on the line.

The Revolution's best chance to equalize in the first half came in the third minute of stoppage time, when Smith's cross from the left wing sailed just over the head of Twellman inside the box.

The home side turned up the pressure early in the second half with Smith and Twellman combining to go close again in the 54th minute. Smith powered his way through three defenders down the left wing before sliding a pass aimed for Twellman across the face of goal, but an RSL defender dove in at the last minute to play the ball over the end line.

Despite New England owning the majority of the possession throughout the second half, Real Salt Lake's Andy Williams struck on the counterattack in the 73rd minute to extend its advantage to 2-0. Morales chipped a pass from the center of the field into the right side of the box, where Williams lashed a right-footed dive just under the crossbar.

However, the Revs finally made their possession pay off with a pair of goals two minutes apart to tie the score at 2-2. Ralston scored the first in the 77th minute, as the 34-year-old captain notched his career-high eighth goal of the season. Smith's cross from the left was half-cleared by Salt Lake defender Nat Borchers, but Ralston corralled the loose ball and fired a shot inside the left post from just inside the box.

Just two minutes later, the Revolution broke through with the equalizer, coming from Twellman. Jeff Larentowicz played Twellman across the top of the penalty area, where the forward cut back and worked around a pair of defenders before launching a rocket inside the far post that beat Rimando.

Substitute Kenny Deucher had a chance to reclaim the lead for RSL in the 87th minute, but he pushed his shot inches wide of the far post after beating Reis. Ralston responded one minute later with a surprise shot from distance that sailed just high of goal.

Right after the start of stoppage time, Williams and Jay Heaps got tangled along the bench-side touchline and Williams pushed Heaps to the ground, earning a red card and an ejection from referee Baldomero Toledo. The Revs took advantage of the man-advantage and immediately pushed forward, but the RSL defense held tight.

However, in the final minute of injury time, Twellman had a prime chance to put the Revs ahead for good. His headed shot lobbed Rimando, but Borchers cleared the chance off the line and out of the area and away from danger. Toledo then whistled the game over as RSL brought the ball out.

The Revs will now hit the road for their next two matches, beginning with a trip to Kansas City to battle the Wizards at CommunityAmerica Ballpark on Saturday, Oct. 11, and finishing with a visit to the Nation's Capital to face D.C. United on Thursday, Oct. 16. Following the club's two-game road trip, the Revolution will return to Gillette Stadium for the regular-season finale against the Wizards on Oct. 25.

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