FC Dallas doomed by Revs rally

FCD squander halftime lead in loss at New England

David Ferreira (right) and FC Dallas fell to 0-3-0 with their loss in New England. (Rogash/Getty)

Kenny Cooper gave FCD the lead in the 38th minute as the Hoops edged the opening stanza. But Sainey Nyassi fired home in the 56th minute after collecting a long diagonal pass from Shalrie Joseph before Kheli Dube drew a penalty kick that Steve Ralston fired home in the 80th minute to give the Revs all three points.

FC Dallas has now lost all three matches on the season, extending their club-record losing streak to open a season.

Injuries forced FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman into several defensive changes. Steve Purdy missed out on the trip with a right hamstring injury, while Daniel Torres failed a late fitness test on the same injury. Rookie defender George John made his first career MLS start at center back alongside veteran Drew Moor. Michael Dello-Russo also came into the side and made his third career start at right back.

Revs boss Steve Nicol made one change to the side that drew 1-1 in New York last weekend. Kevin Alston missed out after tweaking his right hamstring in training on Friday. Chris Albright recovered from a right ankle sprain in time to take Alston's place at right back. Brad Knighton started his second consecutive match in between the sticks, but regular No. 1 Matt Reis took a place on the bench despite a right knee injury.

New England started the better of the two sides with Wells Thompson blazing over the bar and Sainey Nyassi dragging wide inside the first 10 minutes.

FCD looked content to sit back and soak up pressure before counterattacking. David Ferreira was at the heart of most of the attacking play. but it was Cooper who made the first foray on goal. Knighton comfortably corralled Cooper's header.

Albright flicked on Darrius Barnes' long throw and forced a tidy save out of Burse as the Revs tried to translate their territorial advantage into a lead.

Instead, the Revs were fortunate not to be down a goal after 31 minutes. Barnes and Nyassi failed to clear after collecting the remnants of a cleared corner just inside their own half. Ferreira collected the ball and played Dave van den Bergh down the left. The Dutch winger crossed to the far post and Cooper headed directly at Knighton with the goal gaping.

Cooper made amends seven minutes later after some suspect Revolution defending. Dello-Russo overlapped down the right wing and overcooked a cross to the far post. No one tracked van den Bergh at the far post. He collected and fed for an unmarked Cooper to turn home from close range.

With one goal now in the bag, FCD sought to double its advantage before the break through the active van den Bergh. Knighton had to be on the top of his game to deny the Dutchman twice before the halftime whistle blew.

Nicol switched his tactical gambit at halftime by inserting Ralston for Chris Tierney and switching to a 3-5-2 formation. The jolt worked as the Revs perked up considerably to start the second stanza.

Ralston and Dube connected on a one-two exchange, but Dube's return pass was cleared away by the recovering FCD defense as the visitors staggered on to the back foot.

The pressure paid off in the 56th minute through a fine piece of solo play from Nyassi. Joseph hit a long diagonal pass to set Nyassi free. The Gambian midfielder then skinned John and rifled home with his left foot to draw the scores level.

Dube should have done better soon afterwards as Joseph and Ralston combined well to create a chance for the Zimbabwean inside the penalty spot. However, Dube's tame volley was hit directly at Burse.

FCD weathered the storm without giving up that second goal. Gradually, they pressed forward as van den Bergh and Ferreira continued to exploit the space alloted to them by the Revolution defense.

But it was the Revs who would have the last laugh as John tugged on Dube's jersey and referee Silviu Petrescu pointed to the spot. Ralston stepped up and calmly slotted home the resulting penalty to give the Revs all three points.

Kyle McCarthy is a contributor to MLSnet.com.

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