MLS Cup 2010: Five Things We Learned From Sunday's Title Tilt

AP Photo/Jack Dempsey

The 2010 version of the MLS Cup may not have been glamorous, but it was certainly thrilling to the end. The Colorado Rapids came from behind to beat FC Dallas in overtime 2-1, and Rapids forward Conor Casey was named the game’s MVP.

Don Garber spoke during halftime and MLS fans learned some things that the league will change next year (number of playoff teams) and will think about changing in the future (going with the official FIFA calendar). It was intriguing and will certainly be hot topics for debate.

That being said, there were also some things done on the field that are worth talking about. Here are five things we learned from the MLS Cup.

Rapids-Real Salt Lake rivalry

Don Garber and Major League soccer have been pushing rivalries. There is the Chivas USA-Galaxy “classico” in Los Angeles. In 2011 Portland and Vancouver will join Seattle to form a heated Pacific Northwest rivalry. And Garber really wants a second team in New York to battle the Red Bulls.

But what really creates a new rivalry? Winning. The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics aren’t local rivals, but they have the greatest rivalry—possibly the only one—in the NBA because year in and year out these two teams fought each other to win the championship.

The Rocky Mountain Cup, played between the Colorado Rapids and Salt Lake City, should intensify this upcoming season as the match-up now features the previous two MLS Cup champions.

RSL proved 2009’s championship wasn’t a fluke, finishing with the second most points in MLS. Colorado, who came into the playoffs as the seventh seed, will be aiming to do the same thing in 2011.

David Ferreira earned his MVP

Ferreira certainly had a phenomenal season. He had eight goals and 13 assists (second most in MLS) and played and started all 30 games of the season. He certainly played a huge role in FC Dallas’ success.

However with Chris Wondolowski’s league-leading 18 goals and 9 game-winning goals, along with San Jose’s surprising appearance in the playoffs, many thought the MVP award would go to him.

Ferreira won the award, and although he didn’t have to prove he was a worthy candidate, his showing on the league’s biggest stage, in prime time, certainly opened a few eyes. His goal was a great run and finish, a good display of the talent he has shown FC Dallas fans all season.

Defense wins championships

FC Dallas went from non-playoff team to MLS Cup finalist thanks to a huge turnaround in the play of their defense. And in the championship game, due to some unfortunate circumstances, they once again saw the flip-side of the coin, how bad breaks on defense can ruin the season.

Heath Pearce, a huge signing for the team at the end of last season, was one of the key contributors to the defensive turnaround, yet he was unable to play due to injury. His replacement, Jackson Goncalves, then was injured.

And of course, there was the game-winning goal that was ruled an own-goal, knocked into the net unluckily by George John.

Missing a key starter on defense, having his replacement get hurt and take away a substitution from the team, and an unlucky bounce off another defender, proved disastrous for Dallas.

On the other hand, Colorado saved their victory by great defensive efforts. Matt Pickens had been under the radar coming into the game due to Kevin Hartman’s stellar play, but the Colorado keeper had been solid all year, and his diving save and Drew Moor’s clearance off the line in the overtime period saved the game from going into a shootout and preserved the win.

Designated Players don’t guarantee championships

Maybe this isn’t something newly learned, and we knew it would be prior to the game, but it was reaffirmed that high-priced Designated Players don’t guarantee championship victories.

The rule, which allows a team to sign up to three players for more than the maximum contract the salary cap restrictions allow, was put in place in 2007. In MLS Cups since then, only two teams with at least one DP appeared in the final, and none have won it.

David Beckham, Juan Pablo Angel, Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Thierry Henry are all great players. However, with the way the league rewards parity—for better or worse—strong supporting casts are also needed.

Conor Casey is tough

The goals scored—one by Casey—and the game itself wasn’t pretty. But Colorado was the tougher, grittier team and they were victorious. And it’s tough to say that anyone plays with the qualities more so than MLS Cup MVP Conor Casey.

Casey doesn’t score the prettiest goals ever, but he gets the job done. In 87 league games with the Rapids, he has scored 42 times, almost a goal every other game.

Casey is strong and tough and does a good job of getting his head on the ball. He showed great awareness on his game-tying goal, sticking with the play, finding the loose ball, and knocking it into the net.

All of his success is tribute to his workman-like and professional attitude he brings to the pitch, and he and the Rapids proved to be very deserving champions.

Conor Casey and Heath Pearce: Snubbed U.S. Internationals Lead Clubs to MLS Cup

The 2010 World Cup in Africa was where every professional soccer player wanted to be this summer. Colorado Rapids’ forward Conor Casey and FC Dallas’ defender Heath Pearce had both featured prominently for the United States National Team during the four-year cycle, but both were left off the squad.

Pearce was one of the final seven players cut from the squad, while Casey didn’t even make the final 30.

Both players took the news hard, but they worked even harder to propel their club teams to new heights. Now, four months after the tournament ended and the Americans were ousted in the Round of 16, Casey and Pearce have led their teams to the MLS Cup.

“It was tough when it all went down at the beginning of the season and it took me a while to get back to pace,” Casey recently told the media.

Pearce was not only disappointed in getting cut, but he had an issue with the way he was cut, saying in an interview with The Dallas Morning News in late-June, “… To have your hand shook and be told, at 2 o'clock in the morning, ‘We know you've been working hard, but we're releasing you,’ isn’t the easiest way to understand and embrace why you’re not going to the World Cup,.”

Both were snubbed from the team, but they let their play in MLS do the talking as to why they were deserving of spots on the roster.



Following the World Cup preliminary roster announcement, Casey has scored 10 goals in 20 games, finishing sixth in MLS with 13 goals for the season. He also added six assists.

Pearce helped transform the FC Dallas defense. In 2009 the team allowed a league-worst 47 goals, but in 2010 they surrendered only 28. Not only was Pearce an important piece to the defense, but he also finished second on the team with six assists, showcasing his abilities to defend and also get forward into the attack.

Their production exemplifies their talent, resiliency, and professionalism. It would have been easy for each to hang his head, but they took getting overlooked in stride and gave their clubs the best they had to offer.

No player from the U.S. team that plays in MLS, including defender Jonathan Bornstein and forwards Edson Buddle and Robbie Findley—Pearce and Casey’s direct competition—is playing in Sunday’s championship game.

It may not be the World Cup, but these two players can be proud of their contributions to their teams in guiding them to the MLS Cup final.

Photo Credits.
Conor Casey: AP Photo/David Zalubowski
Heath Pearce: AP Photo/Gus Ruelas

Colorado Rapids 2010 MLS Season Preview

AP Photo/David Zalubowski

The Colorado Rapids are a competitive team. However, they have epitomized the parity in MLS. They are neither an elite team atop the standings nor are they a cellar-dweller. They sit on the fringes of the playoffs each season.

Last year they were in playoff contention but lost their last two games by a total of 5-1 and missed the playoffs by tiebreaker, marking the third straight year Colorado would miss out on the postseason fun.

This season they will be out to finish the job.

The Rapids boast arguably the league’s best strike force, featuring forwards Omar Cummings and US International Conor Casey.

In 2009 Casey scored 16 goals, second most in the league, and had one assist. He does a good job of finding space and getting open and is a good player in the air. He’s also still in consideration for a spot on this summer’s World Cup squad, so he should be highly motivated.

Omar Cummings shined last year, his third in MLS. He once again set career highs in goals (eight) and assists (12)—also setting a Rapids season record and tying for the league lead— and he was named Rapids team MVP. He complements Casey well with great speed and the two form a good tandem.

After those two there isn’t too much scoring punch. The third most goals scored on the team came from midfielder Colin Clark, who put a whopping three goals in the back of the net.

The midfield is mostly a defensive unit, but they are a strong defensive group.

The group is led by captain and former US International Pablo Mastroeni, an aggressive and tough player. He will be joined this season by another strong central defensive midfielder, Jeff Larentowicz, who in five seasons with the Revolution amassed 111 league appearances entrenching himself into the starting lineup. He learned the position playing next to arguably the greatest defensive midfielder in the history of MLS in MVP-candidate Shalrie Joseph.

Clark is the midfielder that could be the extra push the offense needs in order to be a threat and take some pressure off of Cummings and Casey. His season was cut just about in half last season because of an ACL injury. If he can recover, the Rapids will count on him to have a season like the one in 2008 where he played in all but one game, scored five goals, and assisted three.

It may look like a less-than average performance, but with the duo they have at forward, and if Clark, only 25, can still improve his game, then it may be that extra push the team needs, because their defense is pretty solid.

Matt Pickens will be the man between the pipes after a good 2009 campaign. Last season he posted a 9-6-4 record with a very good 1.16 goals against average and seven shutouts in 19 games.

In front of Pickens, center back Drew Moor will be in his first full season with Colorado after he was acquired in a late-season trade with FC Dallas.

Colorado also acquired yesterday a potential big impact player on defense. The team traded midfielder Nick LaBrocca, a solid player but one that would definitely be coming off the bench because of the team’s depth at midfield, for right fullback Marvelle Wynne.

Wynne has blazing speed, which allows him to both cover for mistakes and also push forward on the flanks into the attack. He needs to be more consistent game-to-game and could improve his touch on the ball, but he is a solid defender who could also support Colorado’s offense.

Colorado is a solid club that one generally knows what to expect from them. They have some good pieces that could push them into the playoffs finally, but they also are maybe a creative midfielder away from getting in.