“It was pretty hot out there.” These were the first words out of Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear’s mouth in his postgame press conference. On a very hot day at BBVA Compass Stadium the Dynamo were able to stay hot at home, and unbeaten, with a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Galaxy. After losing last year’s MLS Cup Final to the Galaxy the Dynamo were able to exact a small amount of revenge, although the players didn’t see it that way.
After the match Dynamo defender Bobby Boswell was asked about the revenge factor in the game. “If you had to choose which won you wanted to win or lose they would probably take the won they won. I don’t look at it like a grudge match. Today we won, we got the maximum number of points.” Boswell said. The three points were all that mattered in this match and that’s what the Dynamo got, in come from behind fashion.
Edson Buddle opened the scoring for the Galaxy just ten minutes in after another defensive lapse by the Dynamo. Buddle ran right trough the middle of the defense past Boswell and one timed Chad Barrett’s cross to give the defending champions an early lead. Houston has had defensive lapses this year but the loss of Geoff Cameron to the United States National Team proved big on this play. Boswell said after the game, “It’s hard to replace him (Cameron). I thought Jermaine (Taylor) did awesome back there.” Jermaine Taylor moved into the center of the defense in Cameron’s place and besides the gaol continued his great recent form.
After Brian Ching and Will Bruin came close with headers the Dynamo finally equalized in the 38th minute. Ching got the ball on the right side of the box and took a right footed shot from a very difficult angle. Ching’s shot hit the crossbar and came out. Galaxy midfielder Mike Magee tried to clear the ball but instead his first touch only helped the ball into the net.
The Dynamo were able to find the winner in the 57th minute off a trademark Brad Davis set piece. Davis sent in a corner from the right and defender Andre Hainault’s near post run put him in a perfect position to glance his header into the back post. The goal was Hainault’s second of the season, both being game winners.
After getting the lead the Dynamo were able to kill off the game for the final 35 minutes and get the three points. You could tell the Galaxy were gassed. Coming off a Wednesday night game and playing in the heat definitely took its toll. Davis said afterwards, “We moved the ball, made them chase the game, and closed it out. I think that shows a lot of maturity.” Boswell seemed to think that the heat was in the Galaxy players heads even before kick off. “We heard them grumbling in the warm up about how hot it was. You could see them dying.” Midfielder Adam Moffat could also see the fatigue setting in on the visitors. “The main thing was keeping the ball. They were getting tired. They weren’t really getting to close to us.” The heat at BBVA Compass Stadium will only get worse in the summer months and this could be a big advantage for the Dynamo. Visiting teams have no way to prepare and when the heat hits you, it’s hard to press on late in games.
Altogether the Dynamo played a nice complete game to get the win. With Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane both on international duty David Beckham was the focal point for the Houston defense and midifeld. Moffat said, “I thought we did a good job today when he did have the ball he wasn’t in a real threatening position.” Beckham got frustrated and begin arguing with the ref and wearing long sleeves in the heat probably wasn’t too comfortable. When a team is struggling like the Galaxy are you have to take advantage of a match with them, especially at home. The Dynamo did this and this shows the maturity and experience on the team and in the locker room.
The Dynamo now head west on interstate 10 to San Antonio to take on the San Antonio Scorpions of the NASL in a US Open Cup match on Tuesday. Look for a lot of reserves to get action in this match. They then return home to BBVA Compass Stadium on Thursay to play Valenica of Spain’s La Liga in a friendly.
(image courtesy of Getty Images)
