DC United MLS champions 96,97,99,04

[pirate]

Dc United 3 Kansas City 2 Attendance 25,797 Congratulations to Dc United.::talksocc

[Frank Cunha]

Originally posted by BethlehemFC
Who's back Frank? DC United?

Eskandarian had a great final.

both:happy1:

[supermeb]

YAY FOR DC UNITED!! ::talksocc

interesting game to watch. well done well done ::leedswac

[Frank Cunha]

Adu made history again, the youngest player to play in a final

http://www.washtimes.com/sports/2004...5218-6575r.htm

[Frank Cunha]

http://www.washtimes.com/sports/2004...5216-1277r.htm

DC United title

[revolutionfan]

Originally posted by Frank Cunha
Adu was last year first pick, with the help of the MLS in other cases he would be a flip of a coin for his services, so DC United championship in my opinion got a little help by the league.:happy1:

Huh? I'm a bit confused here. Yes MLS did force Dallas to trade their #1 pick to DC for an allocation (and their first round draft pick?), but do you really think Adu made that much of a difference? Would D.C. not have been better off in the short term with a player like Dempsey and an allocation? Also the superdraft order is decided by how the team did the previous year.

[Frank Cunha]

Originally posted by revolutionfan
Huh? I'm a bit confused here. Yes MLS did force Dallas to trade their #1 pick to DC for an allocation (and their first round draft pick?), but do you really think Adu made that much of a difference? Would D.C. not have been better off in the short term with a player like Dempsey and an allocation? Also the superdraft order is decided by how the team did the previous year.

didn't hurt to have some help from the referee's
the second goal by Eskandirian should been called back, everybody saw the goal was scored with the hand except the referee

[revolutionfan]

Originally posted by Frank Cunha
didn't hurt to have some help from the referee's
the second goal by Eskandirian should been called back, everybody saw the goal was scored with the hand except the referee

That's true, but the referee also was not going to call the pk and red card at first until he talked to his linesmen and he did correct that call, so he obviously was not trying to help D.C. I think the linesman is more to blame for not seeing the handball on Esky's second goal.

[Frank Cunha]

its not only on the final, do you remember the first goal at Giants stadium against the Metrostars, the guy was offside by a mile

again I'm not taking anything from the championship but DC United been the favorite team of the MLS league, Chivas not going to put up with a lot of this crap

[revolutionfan]

Originally posted by Frank Cunha
its not only on the final, do you remember the first goal at Giants stadium against the Metrostars, the guy was offside by a mile

again I'm not taking anything from the championship but DC United been the favorite team of the MLS league, Chivas not going to put up with a lot of this crap

I don't know about that. The ref's in MLS are awful, I agree, but I don't think they are bias (unless maybe against the Metrostars). I do remember that awful offsides, but I also remember Cobi Jones awful handball to deny the Metrostars s goal in the regular season that went uncalled. Many bad penalty calls have gone against the Revs as well.

[Frank Cunha]

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/sports/ar...14180909990002

[Frank Cunha]

D.C. United Edges Kansas City to Win MLS Cup
Eskandarian's Two Goals Lead D.C. to Its Fourth Title
By KEN PETERS, AP Sports

CARSON, Calif. (Nov. 14) -- D.C. United won an unprecedented fourth MLS Cup on Sunday, beating Kansas City 3-2 in the final.



AP
Alecko Eskandarian heads D.C. United's MLS Cup victory effort with two goals in the first half.


United spotted the Wizards an early goal, then scored three times in a seven-minute span of the first half to move in front for good.

Alecko Eskandarian scored in the 19th minute to level the score at 1-1, then added another goal four minutes later.

"What a great year we had," said Eskandarian, the first pick in the 2003 MLS draft. "We had a meeting last night and Earnie Stewart said that this group of guys will be on the field together for the last time. It was a great finish."

United built a two-goal lead on an own-goal when a pass by Stewart deflected off Kansas City Wizards' defender Alex Zotinca and into the net in the 26th.

Kansas City, the 2000 MLS Cup champion, pulled within 3-2 on Josh Wolff's penalty kick in the 58th. The Wizards were awarded the kick when United's Dema Kovalenko, protecting the goal line, used his hand to knock a shot by Davy Arnaud over the bar.

Kovalenko was ejected, the first player sent off in the nine-year history of the MLS Cup.



Despite being down a man, United held off the Wizards the rest of the way.

Freddy Adu, United's 15-year-old phenom, came on as a substitute in the 65th minute to a roar from the crowd of 25,797. He made a run down a wing late in the game, but goalkeeper Bo Oshoniyi was able to pick up the ball before Adu could get off a shot.

Adu became the youngest member of a pro championship team in the United States in modern sports history.

"Even if I wasn't going to get out there, I was going to cheer my heart out on the bench," Adu said. "It's awesome."

It was United's fifth appearance in Major League Soccer's championship game, but the first since a 2-0 victory over Los Angeles in 1999. The only loss in those five trips was a 2-0 defeat by Chicago in 1998. Peter Nowak, United's rookie coach, assisted on both the Fire's goals and was the MVP of that title game six years ago.

After Jose Burciaga's curling 35-meter (yard) shot seemed to catch United's defense napping and gave the Wizards the lead in the sixth minute, Eskandarian got United rolling.





"Even after their first goal, I never had any doubt we were going to win this game," Nowak said.

His first goal was a workmanlike individual effort. His second came after a Kansas City clearing pass bounced off his arm and toward the Wizards' goal.

Eskandarian, with the Wizards' Diego Gutierrez tight on him at the top of the box, controlled a pass from Brian Carroll, fought his way around Gutierrez and boomed the ball into the right upper corner of the net to draw United even.

He made it 2-1 four minutes later when he came flying in -- arm up -- to deflect the ball as Jimmy Conrad tried to kick it downfield. As the ball rolled toward the goal, Eskandarian chased it down and then shot to the left as Oshoniyi went left.

The apparent handball went unnoticed by referee Michael Kennedy.

"I didn't even know where the ball hit me," Eskandarian said. "It was just what you learn in youth soccer; you keep going until you hear a whistle."

The own-goal came when Stewart's hard cross bounced off Zotinca, who was rushing back toward the goal, and the ball sailed past Oshoniyi.

The Wizards beat Chicago -- when Nowak was still playing - 1-0 in 2000.

"When you raise a trophy as a player or a coach, it's a satisfying feeling," Nowak said. "They (the players) make me look like a genius, all their hard work. I put them through hell, really worked them, but now they get to enjoy it."


11/14/04 19:44 EST

[Frank Cunha]

1. WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

"If they had been shot down this year they would have said that's Hudson's
team. The fact that they won, I take a lot of pleasure and joy that so many
of those players were our players and had real imprint on the championship
team."
-- Former D.C. United coach Ray Hudson (2002-03), who received many calls
from the team after it won MLS Cup 2004. (Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)

[Lemmy]

I was so happy with this game. About time DC has a winning team. All the other local professional teams suck ass.

[Frank Cunha]

about time?

did you watch the first goal at Giants stadium against the Metrostars?

we already had 9 seasons of nothing