FRISCO, Texas -- Houston Dynamo will be without a familiar face in the MLS Cup Final against the New England Revolution -- midfielder Ricardo Clark. The third-year player will miss Sunday's title game because of yellow-card accumulation, but he isn't sulking about it.
"This is my first MLS Cup," Clark said after Dynamo's final workout before the Cup on Saturday at Pizza Hut Park. "It's a little disappointing because I'm not playing but I've accepted that already. I just have to move on because that's how it is supposed to be. We have a lot of depth on our team. Our team is going to step up and hopefully rise to the occasion. We're just looking to be successful tomorrow."
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Clark has been a solid defensive presence in the Houston midfield all season. He had two goals and three assists for Dynamo while starting a career-high 31 games. Acquired by the San Jose Earthquakes from the MetroStars just before the start of the 2005 season, Clark moved to the Bayou City with the team before the start of the year and said the strong chemistry within the team has allowed it to overcome any distractions and reach the MLS title game.
"Everybody on the team gets along," he said. "I feel that there is great team chemistry in the locker room and that carries over to the field. Everybody is working hard for each other. We wouldn't have gotten to this point if that wasn't the case. Hopefully, it will all come together [Sunday] and we'll be successful."
During the regular season, D.C. United and FC Dallas were the top two teams in MLS. But in the playoffs, things have taken a somewhat different turn as the two teams who finished directly behind those clubs in the standings, New England and Houston respectively, are in the final instead of either of the two favorites.
To Clark, that sums up playoff soccer.
"When it comes down to the playoffs, it's a whole different ballgame," he said. "It's mainly about who steps up that day. Thankfully, we came out and did the thing in the playoffs. Hopefully we can do it one more time."
Kinnear has several possibilities as far as replacing Clark in the midfield. The leading candidate is Adrian Serioux, who started all three postseason games in central defense, but could move into Clark's holding role with Eddie Robinson and Ryan Cochrane filling the two center back spots.
Another is Chris Wondolowski, who had one goal in six games, four of them starts this year. The second-year midfielder led the MLS reserve division in scoring this season with 10 goals. And a third possibility is Stuart Holden. The rookie played in 13 games for Dynamo this season and made three starts.
Whomever Kinnear chooses to replace Clark in the starting 11, he knows they will have big shoes to fill. But Kinnear has proven all year that he has a knack for plugging the right people into his lineup at the right time and could do so again on Sunday.
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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