MLS Portland Timbers

Timbers Earn Comeback Victory on the Road against San Jose; Move within One Point of Playoff Spot

October 5, 2014 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Portland Timbers News Release


SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Portland Timbers earned a 2-1, come-from-behind victory against the San Jose Earthquakes, scoring two goals in a three-minute span in the final 19 minutes to secure three important points and move within one point of fifth and final Western Conference playoff spot in front 10,525 fans at Buck Shaw Stadium on Saturday night.

Portland (10-9-12, 42pts) is just one point behind fifth-place Vancouver Whitecaps FC (43pts), who earned a 2-0 win against FC Dallas on Saturday afternoon. The Timbers keep the pressure on their Cascadia rival with just three regular-season matches remaining on the schedule, including their second match in five days against San Jose on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at Providence Park.

Having now scored 32 of their 56 goals this season in the final 30 minutes of matches, the Timbers received goals from midfielder Rodney Wallace in the 71st and 74th minutes to secure the win. The brace was the first for Wallace with the Timbers and helped Portland claim its first win in its four MLS seasons on the road against the Earthquakes.

After surrendering a goal in the 56th minute, Portland found the equalizer in the 71st minute when Wallace flicked the ball through his legs after defender Alvas Powell played a cross into the box from the right flank. Wallace made a quick turn toward the center of the box and placed the ball into the top left corner to level the match.

Three minutes later, Wallace found the net for a second time as defender Liam Ridgewell's header off a corner kick by forward GastÃ"n Fernández's deflected off Wallace into the top right corner to give Portland a 2-1 lead in the match.

San Jose (6-13-11, 29pts) took the initial lead through forward Chris Wondolowski early in the second half. Midfielder Shea Salinas sent a cross in from the left to Wondolowski at the back post and goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts dove to his left to make the initial save on his header, but Wondolowski converted the rebound in front of goal.

Ricketts made five saves in the match to secure the 70th win of his career in MLS, including a diving stop on a shot outside the box from midfielder Jean-Baptiste Pierazzi in the 76th minute and another on a point-blank header by forward Atiba Harris in the 85th minute.

Notes:

"¢ The Timbers earned their first win on the road against San Jose during their MLS era.

"¢ Saturday's match marked the 31st all-time meeting between the two teams in all competitions, across all eras. Since 1975, Portland is 15-10-6 overall against San Jose.

"¢ The Timbers and Earthquakes met for the 10th time in MLS regular-season play as Portland improved to 3-1-6.

"¢ Portland set a MLS-club single-season record in goals (56) with two goals on Saturday against San Jose. Portland is on pace to register 61 goals this season.

"¢ The Timbers rank third in MLS with 56 goals. Only two teams, the LA Galaxy (66) and Seattle (57) have scored more goals this season.

"¢ Portland has scored 32 of its 56 goals in the final 30 minutes of matches this season.

"¢ Midfielder Rodney Wallace netted his first career brace for the Timbers, becoming the ninth player during the MLS era to record a brace for the club.

"¢ The Timbers improved to 6-6-4 on the road in 2014, earning the fourth-best road winning percentage in the league and the third most wins on the road this season.

"¢ Midfielder/forward Darlington Nagbe made the 124th appearance of his Timbers MLS career, moving into a seventh place tie on the list.

"¢ Portland has tallied two goals or more in seven straight league games (eight consecutive matches in all competitions).

"¢ The Timbers are unbeaten in four consecutive matches (2-0-2) against Western Conference opponents and unbeaten in three consecutive matches (2-0-1) on the road against Western Conference teams.

"¢ Portland has scored 14 of its 25 goals on the road in the final 30 minutes of matches this season.

"¢ Defender Liam Ridgewell got his first start with the captain's armband on Saturday.

"¢ Ridgewell and forward GastÃ"n Fernández each registered their first MLS assist in the match.

"¢ Midfielder Diego Valeri was not available for the match as he served his one-game suspension due to yellow card accumulation.

Next Game Playing their second of back-to-back matches against San Jose, the Timbers return to the Rose City to play host to the Earthquakes on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at Providence Park.; kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. (Pacific). The match will be televised on ROOT Sports with a local radio broadcast on 750 The Game.

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