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The Monster Of MLS D.C. United brought out the worst in the L.A. Galaxy to win its third title
Its victims were complaining about bad bounces and controversial
calls, sounding a lot like any NBA foe that crossed paths with
the leprechaun that used to watch over Bill Russell's Boston
Celtics. D.C. United stands accused as a beneficiary of good
fortune, which puts the team in the company of those rare
champions who win year after year, as opposed to those teams who
make excuses for losing.
United seized its third MLS title on Sunday, which is especially
impressive considering the league is just four years old. Its
2-0 victory over the Los Angeles Galaxy in MLS Cup '99 will not
go down as an advertisement for the beauty of soccer. The match
was played on a sunny day before a crowd of 44,910 in Foxboro
Stadium, home of the New England Patriots, who had left their
footprints all over the place. "The field was horrible, as bad
as it gets," said D.C. defender Jeff Agoos. "It wasn't as much a
soccer game as it was a fight for territory."
Take United in a fight every time. D.C.'s first score came in
the 19th minute when Galaxy defender Paul Caligiuri whiffed a
clearance from the chewed-up turf in front of the goal, allowing
striker Jaime Moreno to poke in a rebound of Roy Lassiter's
shot. It scored again during injury time in the first half when
the Galaxy's Kevin Hartman--who earlier in the week had been
named Goalkeeper of the Year--scuffed a pass from the top of the
penalty area directly to forward Ben Olsen, who earned the
game's MVP award in large part for putting the ball into the
unprotected net. Both goals could be attributed to the condition
of the field, as well as to the broken collarbone suffered in
the fifth minute by L.A.'s Robin Fraser, the MLS Defender of the
Year, who was pushed down from behind by Lassiter. "It's amazing
to me that such a gifted athlete as Robin could fall on his own
with nobody around him, no foul, nothing," said L.A. coach Sigi
Schmid sarcastically of referee Tim Weyland's failure to whistle
Lassiter for a foul. "The refereeing was crap."
United took great pride in capitalizing on the misery of others.
"Over the years we've found ways to win," said Thomas Rongen,
who in his first year as D.C. coach picked up where Bruce Arena
left off. "I don't believe in luck. It seems like the good
teams, the teams that are dynasties, have that certain mental
edge, and the balls fall their way."
The week leading up to the game began with promising news for
MLS. For starters, Don Garber, who replaced Doug Logan as
commissioner in August, slashed five weeks off the abysmally
long season, which began last March. (Next year's championship
will be played in mid-October.) Better yet, he guaranteed fans
that they never would have to suffer through another shootout.
The past four years have demonstrated that the league's
contrived tie-breaking device belonged with the cuckoo clock,
Earth shoes and the Macarena in the category of things that
never should have been conceived. After 10 minutes of
sudden-death overtime, matches will be permitted to end in a
draw next season, with one point awarded to each team. (Winning
teams will receive three points, whether they win in regulation
or OT.) With the hard-core fan in mind, Garber also ruled that
official time will be kept by the referee on the field, with
injury time to be added at his discretion, and that the
scoreboard clocks will not count down but up, as they do in
soccer stadiums throughout the world.
By adopting these international conventions, Garber was
expressing faith that American soccer can prosper without so
many gimmicks. He can only hope that his changes help arrest the
steady drop in attendance, which reached a four-year low of
14,282 fans per game. The league also faces a decline in
scoring, from 3.56 goals per game last year to 2.86 this season,
though some soccer purists cite this drop-off as a sure sign
that MLS play is reaching a higher level. "As the defense in the
league improves, it forces the players to improve on offense,"
says Schmid, whose team surrendered a record-low 29 goals this
year. "They have to be more sophisticated and do more things to
break down the defense."
On Sunday, United's turned out to be the unbreakable defense. In
addition to Agoos and Eddie Pope, its greatest asset was Richie
Williams, who shut down playmaker Mauricio Cienfuegos. Wherever
he went, Williams went with him. If there's a dance to be had,
you can be sure that the United player will not miss a step.
COLOR PHOTO: WINSLOW TOWNSON When push came to shove, Pope (23) and D.C. turned out to be the defensive powerhouse.
