Dallas earns crucial win over Galaxy

Cunningham brace helps FCD win wild game in Los Angeles

Cunningham's two goals give him sole possession of second place on the MLS all-time scoring chart with 116 career goals. He now sits just 13 behind D.C. United's Jaime Moreno. The win saw Dallas snap a three-game losing streak and keeps their hopes of finding a playoff spot alive and well.

FCD quickly announced their intentions early in Saturday night's clash, pushing forward aggressively right from the opening whistle, in need of points to stay in the playoff race.

The bulk of the team's momentum in the first 10 minutes was provided by Cunningham. The veteran striker wasted no time getting forward, finding himself on the end of a through ball from Dax McCarty in just the second minute. He easily outpaced the defense and stepped around Galaxy 'keeper Donovan Ricketts, but pushed his shot just wide of the empty net.

Cunningham continued causing problems for the home side four minutes later when he again broke free of the Los Angeles defense. His break for net was stopped only by an aggressive tackle just outside the box from Gregg Berhalter that earned the defender a yellow card.

Dave van den Bergh lined up the resulting free kick and drilled it at the Los Angeles wall, earning another free kick from the same spot when the effort bounced off David Beckham's hand. Van den Bergh made no mistake the second go around, blasting a line drive that ricocheted through the wall and into the back of the net to take Dallas ahead 1-0 in just the eighth minute.

Los Angeles finally began to find their footing as the game headed toward the quarter-hour mark. Buoyed by incisive passing from Landon Donovan and quick runs from Jovan Kirovski, the home team attacked the FCD box with pace and numbers on a few successive possessions. While the Galaxy certainly looked dangerous, plucky defending from Dallas and a bit of luck were able to keep the home side at bay.

Any momentum LA had was quickly squelched in the 25th minute when FCD doubled its lead. A long ball from Atiba Harris from the right flank soared over the top of the Galaxy defense and into the path of Cunningham, who sidestepped two defenders and flicked the ball home with the outside of his right boot into the lower right side of the net to make it 2-0.

Los Angeles immediately fired back. Taking advantage of a minor foul in the midfield, Beckham took a quick restart and found A.J. DeLaGarza on the right side of the FCD penalty area. DeLaGarza sprinted toward net and fired a shot that bounced first off goalkeeper Dario Sala, then off defender Jair Benitez, and finally into the back of the net to cut the lead in half in the 26th minute.

DeLaGarza found the back of the net for himself just before halftime. After a quick series of passes through the midfield, Jovan Kirovski found himself with the ball just beyond the edge of the box. The striker blasted a shot that Sala quickly parried away. The rebound fell to the feet of DeLaGarza, who one-touched a howitzer into the net to send the teams into the halftime break even at 2-2.

The second half of play began at a much slower pace in what was becoming a chess match in midfield. Each team enjoyed fair spells of possession, but neither was able to create a solid opportunity on goal. Beckham assumed much of the playmaking responsibilities for the Galaxy, while Cunningham remained the driving force of FCD's offense.

Dallas sprung to life at the hour mark, pushing deep into LA's end on a number of occasions. Their best effort came in the 64th minute when George John got onto the end of a van den Bergh corner kick. The defender's towering header looked destined to be FCD's third goal until an acrobatic save from Ricketts parried the shot just over the net.

FCD finally got their third in the 71st minute, again relying on the magic of Cunningham. The veteran broke free on the right side of the field and headed toward net. Twice side-stepping Berhalter, he ran along the endline and found Dax McCarty in front of net. McCarty one-touched the pass into the upper right corner of the net to take his side ahead 3-2.

The visitors doubled their lead 11 minutes later. McCarty received a cleared corner on the right side of the pitch and sent a speculative cross back into the box. Harris beat his man with a diving header that beat Ricketts at the near post to make the score 4-2. With momentum on their side, Dallas continued to attack the Los Angeles net, scoring twice more in the next four minutes. The fifth goal game in the 83rd minute when David Ferreira collected a loose ball in the midfield and headed toward net. Employing his blistering pace, he skirted around the left edge of the area and drilled a shot along the ground that beat Donovan Ricketts to his left.

Dallas' sixth came just three minutes later when Ugo Ihemelu found substitute Brek Shea at the top of the LA penalty area. Shea one-touched a square ball to Cunningham, who blasted a shot into the far corner of the net to make the score 6-2.

The six goals conceded by the Galaxy marked a club record for goals allowed in a game, surpassing the total of five goals allowed on three separate occasions, last in a 5-4 loss at New York two seasons ago.

The Galaxy earned a third goal in the 90th minute when Edson Buddle headed home a Beckham corner kick. Buddle was making his first appearance after missing six games to injury.

FCD now travels to Kansas City to battle the Wizards as they aim to keep their playoff hopes alive, playing next Saturday at CommunityAmerica Ballpark. The Galaxy remain home for their next match, when they take on Toronto FC next Saturday evening at The Home Depot Center.

Jeffrey King is a contributor to MLSnet.com.

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