Revs fail to turn tide, but look good in draw

by Adam Vaccaro

Surely the New England Revolution are frustrated with what is now a 7 game winless streak, but the club spoke positively having looked strong earning a point in a 0-0 tie tonight against the San Jose Earthquakes.

“We’re going in the right direction, and we’ll put a couple in next time,” said Cory Gibbs moments after the game ended.

Indeed, the Revolution controlled much of the game’s pace and, for the second straight league game, looked much improved in two of the season’s early areas of issue.  Playing in a 4-5-1 formation, team possession and midfield play proved to be strengths rather than weaknesses against San Jose.  These combined with the season-long strengths of goaltending and defensive play made for an entertaining tilt, even without a goal.

“First and foremost, it was solid.  We were happy with the clean sheet,” said coach Steve Nicol. “We were disciplined and I think we defended pretty well.”

Central to the Revs’ goal prevention was another very strong effort from goalie Preston Burpo.  Burpo made a series of saves in the middle of the second half that kept the club alive.  His save shoulder save on a breakaway attempt from Bobby Burling perhaps best represented the keeper’s effort in what was a hectic few minutes.

Burpo’s play came as no surprise to his teammates.

“Burpo was great,” Chris Tierney, who started at a central midfield spot, said.  “He’s been great all year, he’s kept us in games, so I expect nothing less from him at this point.”

“Preston came up big,” Gibbs added.

The draw, which brought the club’s league record to 2-5-2, came as a result of the club’s inability to finish.  Zak Boggs, Kheli Dube, Marko Perovic, and Sainey Nyassi all played fairly well on the attack, making space for themselves, involving the central midfielders and defenders, and setting up several opportunities.  There were only a few of true scoring opportunities, though, and the club was unable to convert on any of them.

“Just that quality was missing in the final shot,” Nicol said.

“It’s something we’ll have to work on as a team,” said Gibbs.

New England’s best opportunity for a goal came from an unlikely suspect when Joseph Niouky sent a low rocket to San Jose keeper Joe Cannon‘s right that bounced hard off the post.  The enigmatic midfielder beat Cannon but his aim was off by just an inch.  Otherwise, the Revs saw little in the way of near-goal experiences.

The match marked the club’s sixth of May.  Its result, then, may be even more impressive when considering that even Nicol acknowledges that fatigue has likely become a factor for the club.

“To be playing all the games that we have and keep going and keep a clean sheet is obviously good,” the coach said.

The result was a solid one for New England.  To walk away with only one point is not ideal, but to look strong in as many facets of the game as they did is encouraging for a club that is still missing its captain and franchise player, Shalrie Joseph, as well as Taylor Twellman and Matt Reis.  In fact, that they were able to reach a draw with a strong San Jose club (4-2-1) despite missing their top players inspires Tierney with confidence in his club.

“We’ve just got to work on Taylor and Shalrie and a couple of the guys that really make us tick,” he said.  “When they come back, I think you’ll see a good squad.”

Revolution fans will hope so, but they’ll also likely agree; for two league matches in a row the squad they’ve seen has at least been a competent one, which is more than they could have said two weeks ago.