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2. MLS CONFIDENTIAL: Rev imports won't be missed;
By Ridge Mahoney, Senior Editor
Two Revs have left MLS and they won't be missed. Steve Howey, a 33-year-old
Englishman, may or may not have had enough left in the tank to produce, but
injuries kept us from ever finding out. Richie Baker, 24, had nothing but
good things to say about his performance and mostly bad things to say about
his lack of playing time.
Coach Steve Nicol took some drastic steps to give Baker time, including
moving Steve Ralston to right back when injuries decimated the back line,
and Baker did contribute six assists in just 1,052 minutes. At times, he
played as well as that other Irish right-sided midfielder -- Ronnie O'Brien
of Dallas -- but without that same commitment.
The Revs rolled to the conference final and came agonizingly close to MLS
Cup without Baker. When his former club, Shelbourne Rovers, came calling he
bolted. We wish him luck, and he might even tangle again with former Rev
Paul Keegan, whose winning goal for Longford Town with two minutes left in
the Irish Cup final Oct. 24 sparked a run of articles and interviews that
only recently began to subside.
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