Western Conference Semifinal 1 - Seattle Sounders Football Club

Winner	Score	Game Coverage
Whitecaps FC	W, 3-2	Game Coverage
Chivas USA	W, 2-0	Game Coverage
Rowdies	L, 1-0	Game Coverage
Galaxy	L, 0-4	Game Coverage
FC Dallas	W, 4-2	Game Coverage

Game Location

Winner

Score

Game Coverage

Whitecaps FC

W, 3-2

Game Coverage

Chivas USA

W, 2-0

Game Coverage

Rowdies

L, 1-0

Game Coverage

Galaxy

L, 0-4

Game Coverage

FC Dallas

W, 4-2

Game Coverage

Men of the Match

Sounders And Dynamo Fight To 0-0 Draw

By MATT GASCHK
Sounders FC Insider

Seattle - If the first three matches between the Sounders FC and Houston Dynamo were any indication, nothing less than a physical battle could have been expected Saturday night when the budding rivals met in the first leg of the MSL Cup Western Conference semifinals at Qwest Field.

There was a physical confrontation between one of Seattle’s smallest players and Houston’s largest and one Sounder was left battered and bloody in the center circle.

And that was all in the first 30 minutes.

In the end, the battle ended in a scoreless stalemate as the teams head to Houston for the return leg Sunday November 8.

“We see a lot of each other so there gets to be some chippy and intense battles,” Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid said. “They’ve been the dominant team in the Western Conference and we’re the new kids on the block. We’re trying to have people take notice of us. They don’t want to give away any of their prestige and we’re trying to take it, so that makes it a good rivalry.”

In an up-and-down start, Seattle had likely their best opportunity in the 14th minute when Freddie Ljungberg swung one of his nine corner kicks into the box, finding Patrick Ianni on the far side of the box. Ianni headed the ball past Houston goalkeeper Pat Onstad, but defender Brian Mullan got to the line to knock the ball out before it crossed the line.

Seattle stayed on the attack two minutes later, playing a ball into the box, but Onstad knocked it away for a corner kick. Onstad then charged out of the goal mouth and collided with Fredy Montero after play went dead, drawing yellow cards on both players.

“It was a bowling ball and a bowling pin,” a bewildered Schmid said. “The bowling ball got a yellow and the bowling pin got a yellow for getting knocked over. I couldn’t quite understand that.”

That physicality continued in the 27th minute when Nate Jaqua tried to get his head on a ball in midfield only to take Ricardo Clark’s boot to the head, leaving a small gash above his left eye. He left the field to get a bandage, but it bled through later in the match and he had to have his head wrapped in larger bandage.

But that was not unexpected in what has been a hard fought series between the two sides this season.

“They’ve been good in the playoffs because they’re physical and everyone battles and I think we did that as well,” Jaqua said. “It’s something we’re going to have to do when we’re down there. That’s what the playoffs are all about.”

Ianni, who came to Seattle from Houston in a pre-season trade, looked to be an unexpected game-changer as the match progressed.

A last-minute replacement for starter Tyrone Marshall after Marshall suffered a mild ligament strain in his right knee in training Wednesday, Ianni found himself on the receiving end of service from Ljungberg throughout the match.

In the 43rd minute he connected on a header that again eluded Onstad, but this one found the crossbar and the match remained scoreless.

“We had quite a bit of room on set pieces,” Ianni said. “It was just good balls by Freddie and good movement in front of me. We got good service into the box all night. The last touch to the finish was just a little off.”

As the second half started, the tenor of the game stayed rigorous. Jaqua missed on a 53rd minute header off of a corner kick and re-opened the wound above his eye, prompting a return to the field a couple of minutes later with a full wrap on his head, becoming a symbol of the combative nature of the series.

“I think we were aware of it and I think we stood up to it. I think there were times that we put together good soccer and created some good chances,” Schmid said. “As long as we get those same opportunities there, it won’t matter if the game is physical or not. We’ll be ok.”

Sounders goalkeeper Kasey Keller finished with four saves on nine Houston shots while Onstad had two on 14 Seattle shots. And with a discrepancy of 18 Houston fouls to six for Seattle, the teams still were even with three yellow card cautions each.

The return match is set for noon on Sunday, November 8 from Houston’s Robertson Stadium.

Play by Play

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Time	Event	Description
93+		The referee blows the whistle to signal the end of the first leg of the Western Conference semifinal. Sounders FC 0, Dynamo 0.
92+		Roger Levesque flicks on a header from Leo Gonzalez, but misses wide right for a goal kick.
90		Brian Mullan just ran through Freddie Ljungberg with a forearm to the face, but play resumes and Seattle earns a corner kick.
88		Cam Weaver subs on for Brian Ching.
86		A lot of back-and-forth action as both teams try to break this game open ...
82		Sebastien Le Toux subs on for Steve Zakuani.
79		Luis Angel Landin subs on for Dominic Oduro.
79		Freddie Ljungberg blows by Mike Chabala on the right side, but his cross is knocked away for a Seattle throw.
78		Nate Jaqua gets free up the middle and knocks the ball past Pat Onstad and into the net, but referee Ricardo Salazar blew the whistle early on teh play for a Houston foul on the right side.
75		Mike Chabala gets a yellow card for a hard tackle on Freddie Ljungberg against the right sideline.
74		Another header opportunity for the Sounders is knocked away for a corner. Freddie Ljungberg setn a corner kick into the box for Nate Jaqua, whose header is parried away by Pat Onstad.
72		Off of the free kick, the ball is knocked out to Osvaldo Alonso for a shot from 30 yards out on the right side, but his shot misses wide for a goal kick.
71		After a physical run of play, Brian Mullan knocks Steve Zakuani to the ground on a run to get a yellow card.
68		Brad Evans gets a yellow card for running down a Houston attack and knocking down the ball-carrier.
Attendance		Attendance is announced at 35,807 - the largest ever crowd for an MLS Conference Semifinal and No. 7 all-time for an MLS Cup playoff game.
64		A yellow card to Osvaldo Alonso for a tackle on Dominic Oduro in the midfield.
64		Roger Levesque subs on for Fredy Montero.
61		Nate Jaqua plays the ball to Fredy Montero, who makes a great turn to hold off a Houston defender, but his falling shot skips off the outside of the far post for a goal kick.
60		Brad Davis swings a right-footed shot from the top of the box and Kasey Keller makes the save.
58		Brad Davis shoots from 20 yards out on the left side, but Kasey Keller dives to his left and knocks it away for a corner kick.
56		Nate Jaqua is back on the field with a wrap around his head and a numberless jersey.
54		Brad Davis skips a ball into the box from the left side, where Kasey Keller falls on top of it to thwart the attack.
54		Nate Jaqua has to run off the field to have his bandages replaced.
52		Freddie Ljungberg sends a corner kick into the box from the right side, but Nate Jaqua's header to the far post misses wide left.
50		Osvaldo Alonso plays a ball forward from midfield for Brad Evans running up the middle, but it ends up in the hands of Pat Onstad.
47		Good improvisation by Fredy Montero to get a looping ball into the box for Brad Evans, whose header misses wide left.
46		Houston kicks off to start the second half, defending the south goal.
Halftime		Shots: Sounders FC 9, Dynamo 4. SOG: Sounders FC 2, Dynamo 2. Saves: Sounders FC 2, Dynamo 1. Fouls: Sounders FC 2, Dynamo 10. Corner kicks: Sounders FC 4, Dynamo 3. Offside: Sounders FC 0, Dynamo 1.
47+		After two minutes of stoppage time, the first half concludes with the score knotted at 0-0.
46+		Freddie Ljungberg gets run through on the left side, but Houston is awarded a throw in.
43		Pat Ianni is a beast ... Freddie Ljungberg played a free kick into the box for Ianni, whose header eludes Pat Onstad, but clangs off the crossbar and away.
		Brian Mullan blasts a ball into the box from distance on the right side, but Kasey Keller snares it out of the air.
37		Another hard foul by Houston, this time it's Dominic Oduro taking down Leo Gonzalez on the left side.
Note		Nate Jaqua has been back on the field, but does not have the cumbersome head wrap he was forced to wear when the Sounders topped Houston 2-1 in overtime in the US Open Cup semifinal.
33		James Riley played a high ball into the box for Brad Evans charging down the middle unmarked, but it sails high and away for a goal kick.
32		Freddie Ljungberg runs the ball into the box, then pops it up to Fredy Montero up the right side, but his shot is saved by Pat Onstad at the near post.
30		James Riley crosses a ball for Fredy Montero in the box, but he is pushed away and the ball goes right to Pat Onstad.
27		Nate Jaqua was just kicked in the head by a high boot by Ricardo Clark in teh midfield, leaving Jaqua bleeding out of a cut above his left eye. Again, no card was given and Jaqua was taken to the sideline.
26		Dominic Oduro crosses a ball from the left corner to Brian Ching for a header, but Kasey Keller dove to his left to make the save.
24		Seattle defenders are all over the field. Leo Gonzalez just picked off Brian Ching clean only to have Ching throw a dirty tackle from behind. A foul was called, but no card given.
16		Oh boy ... Craziness inside the Houston box as the Sounders go after a ball played into the box. Pat Onstad knocks the ball away, then turns into Fredy Montero and shoulder-checks him to the ground. Both Onstad and Montero are issued yellow cards on the play.
14		Freddie Ljungberg swings the corner kick to the far side of the box to Patrick Ianni for a header that was saved off the line by Brian Mullan for a great save.
14		Patrick Ianni charges up the middle to knock away a Houston pass in midfield, then finds Steve Zakuani up the left side and the ball is knocked away for a corner kick.
12		Freddie Ljungberg leads Steve Zakuani up the left side, but it outpaces Zakuani over the line for a goal kick.
11		Freddie Ljungberg swings a corner kick into the box, where Nate Jaqua's header misses wide left.
09		Brad Davis gets his head on a ball from close range, but it misses wide left.
08		James Riley sends a long ball forward to Fredy Montero, who knocks the ball forward, but it lands at the feet of Pat Onstad.
07		Brad Davis sends a free kick into the box, where Kasey Keller knocks it down, then grabs the redirection out of the air. He fires a pass out to Fredy Montero on the right side, but Montero is called for a handball when the ball takes an odd bounce on him.
05		Patrick Ianni gets his head on the corner kick, but it misses high for a goal kick.
04		Steve Zakuani mades a run up the left side, outrunning two Houston players to get a shot off, but Pat Onstad parries it away for a corner kick.
03		Houston earns a corner kick and Andrew Hainault misses wide right with a header.
02		A lot of pinball action in the midfield and the ball squirts out into the Houston box, where Pat Onstad collects it.
01		Dominic Oduro got out on a run up the left side, but Jhon Kennedy Hurtado cut him off with a slide.
Kickoff		Seattle took the opening kickoff at 7:26, attacking the north goal.
Note		Patrick Ianni was a late addition to the lineup in place of Tyrone Marshall and Zach Scott was added to the bench. Marshall suffered a mild ligament strain in his right knee. His availability for the return match November 8 in Houston.
Golden Scarf		Tonight's Golden Scarf recipient was Sounders FC Technical Director Chris Henderson.
Weather		Cloudy and 50 degrees.
Referees		Referee: Ricardo Salazar. Referee's Assistants: Steven Taylor and Hector Vergara. 4th Official: Edvin Jurisevic.
Dynamo		Starters: GK Pat Onstad, RD Andrew Hainault, CD Bobby Boswell, CD Geoff Cameron, LD Mike Chabala, RM Brian Mullan, CM Ricardo Clark, CM Stuart Holden, LM Brad Davis, F Brian Ching, F Dominic Oduro. Subs: Tally Hall, Luis Angel Landin, Wade Barrett, Ryan Cochrane, Eddie Robinson, Craig Waibel, Cam Weaver.
Sounders FC		Starters: GK Kasey Keller, RD James Riley, CD Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, CD Patrick Ianni, LD Leo Gonzalez, RM Nate Jaqua, CM Osvaldo Alonso, CM Brad Evans, LM Steve Zakuani, F Fredy Montero, F Freddie Ljungberg. Subs: Terry Boss, Patrick Ianni, Stephen King, Sebastien Le Toux, Roger Levesque, Peter Vagenas, Tyson Wahl, Zach Scott.

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