New York Red Bulls/Metrostars

Notable upsets in the Third Round of the US Open Cup

May 22, 2014 by Josh Hakala

The Michigan Bucks upset the Chicago Fire of MLS in 2012 Third Round. Photo: Kelly Haapala

MORE: Things you should know about the Third Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

2006 – Dallas Roma FC (USASA) 0:0 Chivas USA (MLS)
(Dallas advances 4-2 in PKs)

For all of you who ever wanted the #16 seed to win in the NCAA basketball tournament, we hope you are soccer fans.

Dallas Roma FC, from the North Texas Premier Soccer Association, made history defeating Chivas USA of Major League Soccer on penalties, after playing to a 0-0 draw after extra time. Not only did they defeat their second straight professional opponent in the US Open Cup, they became the first USASA club to eliminate a team from Major League Soccer in the US Open Cup. Chivas was dealt a major blow when their leading scorer, Ante Razov, was sent off in the 57th minute for a reckless foul on Roma defender Todd Paulette. Soon after, Chivas head coach Bob Bradley sent in more of his regular starters, Jason Hernandez, Tim Regan and Juan Francisco Palencia.

The Roma defense, named TheCup.us Players of the Round for their win vs. Miami FC, held firm yet again against the Chivas attack, holding the scoreless draw through 120 minutes, at times keeping all 11 players in their own end in extra time.

Roma had a few chances in the second half as well, most notably Dominic Schell hitting the crossbar after Mark Rowland’s shot was knocked away by Chivas goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

Chivas took the first spot kick in the penalty session, and Juan Francisco Palencia saw his attempt saved by Jessie Llamas. Roma’s Matt Clark and Mark Rowland converted the next kicks, as Sacha Kljestan for Chivas. Fortunes turned Roma’s way when Llamas came through again and saved Jesse Marsch’s kick, and Brad Flanagan scored for Roma to make it 3-1. After Claudio Suarez made it 3-2, Dominic Schell stepped up and put Roma in the history books. Previously, the closest a USASA side has come to defeating an MLS club was in 2000, when Florida’s Uruguay SC fell to the Tampa Bay Mutiny 1-0 in extra time.

1997 – Chicago Stingers (D3 Pro) 2:1 Colorado Rapids (MLS)
1997 – San Francisco Bay Seals (D3 Pro) 2:1 Kansas City Wizards (MLS)

The Modern Era of the Open Cup was still young, and Rochester caused a stir in ’96 with their amazing run to the final.

The San Francisco Bay Seals and Chicago Stingers were determined to top that, and top it they did.

Each team made their way to the third round, no small feat in itself. Both clubs defeated A-League sides in the second round, and now stepped up to face the daunting challenge of Major League Soccer. The Seals were first, taking on the Kansas City Wizards on July 24.

As if being the underdog wasn’t motivation enough, Seals forward Marquis White had something to prove of his own. White was dropped in 1996 by the New England Revolution, and he was eager to prove that he could play at the highest level. White didn’t waste any time, scoring in the very first minute of the game, taking a pass from Chris Davini and racing past the Wizards defenders and goalkeeper Chris Snitko for the goal. On the other end, the Seals defense kept the Kansas City forwards stifled and frustrated, but the Wizards eventually equalized in the 39th minute with a Frank Klopas goal.

Marquis White then stepped up a second time, taking another Davini pass home for the game-winning goal in the 55th minute, setting off celebrations at Negoesco Fiield once the final whistle blew. “I knew I could play, and this proves it” said an ecstatic White after the game. The Seals, as a team, also proved they could play, defeating the San Jose Clash in the quarterfinals to move on to the semifinals, eventually losing a close game to DC United 2-1.

Six days later, the Chicago Stingers took their turn at giant killing, knocking off the Colorado Rapids 2-1 in front of 4,730 fans at Chicago’s Forest View Park. Misfortune started early for Colorado, as the Rapids goalkeeper Paul Grafer was sent off after 17 minutes. The Stingers then took control, as Matt Hamnett and Chris Jahr scores goals before and after halftime to take a lead they would never surrender. Chris Henderson pulled one back for Colorado, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the upstart Stingers. Chicago were eventually overwhelmed by the Dallas Burn in the next round, 4-1, but the Seals and Stingers proved that the Open Cup would never be an easy walk for any MLS team.

2012 – Cal FC (USASA – 4th Div.) 1:0 (AET) Portland Timbers (MLS)

2012 – Michigan Bucks (PDL – 4th Div.) 3:2 (AET) Chicago Fire (MLS)

The Third Round of the 2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup was one of the craziest rounds in tournament history. 16 Major League Soccer teams joined the competition and only eight of them survived to play in Round 4. The two biggest stunners came from the Michigan Bucks (PDL) and newcomers Cal FC (USASA).

14 of the 16 games were played on Tuesday, May 29 and among those were the Michigan Bucks hosting four-time champion Chicago Fire indoors at the Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac, Mich. It was just the 4th US Open Cup game ever played indoors and the Bucks upset the Fire 3-2 in extra time.

The Bucks struck first just nine minutes into the match when Tommy Catalano received a pass from star veteran Kenny Uzoigwe to put the home team up 1-0. The Fire would equalize on a goal from Corben Bone in the 28th minute and take the lead in the 58th minute thanks to Frederico Puppo and it looked like the MLS team was going to take control, as they so often do in these underdog scenarios, but today wasn’t their day as a cross from Crnkic found the head of Nate Boyden in the box to tie the match at 2-2. The match would go into extra time and after play resumed, the Bucks wasted no time in putting the pressure on the Fire. What proved to be the eventual game-winning goal came just three minutes in when Crnkic ripped a shot toward the net. The goalkeeper got a hand on it but it wasn’t enough to keep it out as the Bucks would go on to win 3-2 to become the first amateur club in the Modern Era to defeat two MLS teams (They upset the New England Revolution back in 2000).[+]FULL MATCH RECAP

After seven MLS teams were eliminated on Tuesday, what could possibly be in store for the following day? It would turn out to be arguably the biggest upset of the Modern Era (1995-present).

Cal FC, led by their manager former US international Eric Wynalda, traveled from Southern California up to Portland, Ore. and upset the Portland Timbers 1-0 in extra time. After 90 minutes of scoreless soccer, Artur Aghasyan streaked down the middle of the field, easily beating a lopsided offside trap, collected a well placed through ball and calmly chipped goalkeeper Troy Perkins. It was the only goal they would need to become the first USASA team to defeat a Major League Soccer team (Dallas Roma FC in 2006 eliminated Chivas USA in a penalty kick shootout). A USASA team defeating a MLS team was rare enough, but there had only been four previous USASA teams that had advanced far enough to even play against the top division. In those four games, none of the USASA teams even scored a goal. They were also just the fifth amateur team to eliminate a MLS sidse, and the 12th USASA team to eliminate a pro team of any kind. [+]FULL MATCH RECAP

2013 US Open Cup Fourth Round: New England Revolution roll past New York 4-2 at Harvard

June 13, 2013 by Brian O'Connell

For the second straight tournament game, Kelyn Rowe scored twice to send the New England Revolution to a 4-2 Fourth Round US Open Cup win over the New York Red Bulls at Harvard University on Wednesday. The Revolution advance to the Quarterfinals, traveling to face a DC United on Wednesday, June 26.

After scoring two goals in the May 28 Third Round 5-1 road win against Rochester, Rowe wasted no time putting his name on the scoresheet when he found paydirt in the fourth minute, then added another in the 37th minute. Fabian Espindola brought one back for the Red Bulls in the 30th minute, but Dimitry Imbongo netted what proved to be the game-winner in the 51st minute. Jonny Steele made it close when he scored in the 61st minute before Chris Tierney capped the scoring in the 87th minute.

“When he shoots in on goal, it’s usually going in,” Revolution head coach Jay Heaps said about Rowe after the game. “He’s got one of the best shots I’ve seen, right or left foot. He was fired up for tonight. Right from the open, his touch was on. His movement was good. His pressure was good. He had a nice night.”

The sophomore midfielder looked dangerous early, and from the attacking midfielder’s role, steered the offense right from the opening whistle. And it wasn’t long before he resumed his goalscoring exploits inside of four minutes when he grabbed a pass from Gabe Latigue and fired a shot that found the back of the net.

“I thought I’d catch (Ryan Meara) near post,” Rowe said. ”Last year, I caught him far post. I thought he’d think I was going there again. I got a lucky bounce over him so that was nice.”

New England tilted the pitch in their favor through the first 25 minutes before New York started to put pressure on the hosts.

At the half hour mark, Espindola, who menaced the likes of Tyler Polak and Kalifa Cisse in the early going, broke through when he ran toward a long ball that Matt Reis tried to poke away in front of the area. But Espindola beat him to it, pushed it toward the open net, and slit it through to level it.

Seven minutes later, Rowe responded when he grabbed a ball from outside the 18 and fired another long-range effort that beat Meara to put the Revolution back on top.

“I think Gabe Latigue made a run inside and pulled the defender out,” Rowe said. “And I thought, again, ‘I mean, I made the run, may as well shoot it’ and it ended up going far post.”

Rowe’s goal gave his club the edge going into the interval, but the Revolution widened the gap in the opening minutes of the second half.

This time, though, it was Imbongo who put his name on the scoresheet when he chased down a long ball and with only Meara to beat, slipped his shot into the net in the 51st minute.

The Red Bulls didn’t back down near the hour mark when Eric Alexander pushed it deep down the right flank and crossed it far post, where Steele nodded it into the net to cut the lead back down to one.

Although both attacks lost their polish and physical play became the rule after the hour, Tierney put the game out of reach for the Red Bulls when he made a run down the left and tapped through a dangerous far post cross from Ryan Guy in the 87th minute.

In the waning moments, Brandon Barklage picked up a second yellow and red card ejection to leave the Red Bulls a man down before the final whistle.

“We had a lot of guys that were ready to go,” Heaps said. ”You could tell that we started really well. I thought it probably should have been a little bit better. We probably could have been up 2-0 when (Espindola) scored. Unfortunately, it was a battle the rest of the way. We created a lot of chances and scored some goals.”

Fourth Round :: New York Red Bulls 2 :: 4 New England Revolution

June 12 – Soldiers Field Soccer Stadium – Harvard University Stadium, Boston MA

Scoring Summary:

NE: Kelyn Rowe (Gabe Latigue) 4

NY: Fabian Espindola 30

NE: Kelyn Rowe 37

NE: Dimitry Imbongo (Darrius Barnes) 51

NY: Jonny Steele (Eric Alexander) 61

NE: Chris Tierney (Ryan Guy) 87

Cautions:

NY: Brandon Barklage 10, Fabian Espindola 24, Dax McCarty 45, Markus Holgersson 55, Brandon Barklage 91

NE: Kalifa Cisse 76, Darrius Barnes 78

Ejections:

NY: Brandon Barklage (second yellow) 91

Lineups:

New York: Ryan Meara; Heath Pearce, Brandon Barklage (ejection 91), Markus Holgersson, Kosuke Kimura (Andre Akpan 83); Eric Alexander, Juninho, Lloyd Sam (Peguy Luyindula 45), Dax McCarty, Jonny Steele; Fabian Espindola

New England: Matt Reis; AJ Soares, Darrius Barnes, Tyler Polak, Kalifa Cisse; Gabe Latigue, Kelyn Rowe (Scott Caldwell 58), Andy Dorman, Ryan Guy; Chad Barrett (Juan Agudelo 83), Dimitry Imbongo Boele (Chris Tierney 69)

#USOC100

2013 US Open Cup Third Round: New York Red Bulls pull away from Reading United 2-0 in second half

May 30, 2013 by Romulo Vieira

Hoping to change their US Open Cup performances of past, the New York Red Bulls picked up only their fourth win since reaching the 2003 tournament final as they avoided embarrassment by eliminating the PDL Reading United AC 2-0 on a pair of second half goals Wednesday night in the Third Round. Lloyd Sam was involved in both strikes with a goal and assist.

In the first few minutes of the game Reading United showed signs that they were not just coming to Red Bull Arena for the experience. They showed to be aggressive off the ball when trying to retrieve possession. The Red Bulls, with experienced players like Juninho and Peguy Luyindula, quickly took control of the game by keeping most of the possession. The Red Bulls kept Reading goalkeeper John McCarthey and his defense on their feet with a number of shots.

Quick one two passes between Juninho, Luyindula and Amando Moreno allowed the Red Bulls to penetrate Reading’s defense, but thanks to quick thinking by Reading’s defense, they were able to keep a clean sheet in the first half.

New York’s best chance came in the 15th minute when McCarthy came up with two huge back-to-back saves after stopping shots from Connor Lade and Amando Moreno in the box. While the Red Bulls did dominate possession, Reading also had a few good chances to score goals. Their quick forwards always posed a threat when they came close to Ryan Meara’s goal, however, most of their shots went wide without Meara needing to come up with a save.

In the second half Red Bulls coach Mike Petke decided to take out Juninho and Luyindula for Dax McCarty and Fabian Espindola, a move that would prove crucial in the outcome of the game. The second half played out the same way as the first with the Red Bulls dominating possession, but not with as many opportunities as in the first 45 minutes.

Even though the Red Bulls did not have as many shots in the second half, they opened the scoring in the 61st after a sequence of quick one-two passes between McCarty, Sam and Espindola. McCarty started the sequence with Sam, which gave McCarty room to send the ball to Espindola in the box for an easy tap-in to put the Red Bulls ahead 1-0.

Just six minutes later the Red Bulls put the game away with Sam scoring the second goal of the game. Another quick one-two pass between Sam and Espindola gave Sam enough room in the box to fire the ball past John McCarthy.

After the second goal the Red Bulls took control of the game. Reading’s best chance came in the 69th minute when Damian Lowe almost put his name on the score sheet with a header coming from a corner kick that was saved by Meara’s thigh. After that small scare the Red Bulls maintained control and sealed their spot in the fourth round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

With this win the Red Bulls will play their I-95 rivals New England Revolution in the fourth round away from home. The victory against Reading moved Red Bulls’ undefeated streak to eight games in all competitions.

Scoring Summary

NY: Fabian Espindola (Dax McCarty, Lloyd Sam) 61’

NY: Lloyd Sam (Fabian Espindola) 67’

Disciplinary Summary:

NY: Markus Holgersson (caution) 90’

REA: Ben Sweat (caution) 94’+

Lineups

New York Red Bulls – Ryan Meara, Brandon Barklage, Markus Holgersson, Heath Pearce, Roy Miller, Lloyd Sam (Eric Alexander 84’), Juninho (Dax McCarty 46’), Michael Bustamante, Connor Lade, Peguy Luyindula (Fabian Espindola 46’), Amando Moreno

Substitutes Not Used: Santiago Castano, Kosuke Kimura, Jonny Steele, Andre Akpan

Reading United AC – John McCarthy, Damian Lowe, Ben Sweat, Jimmy Ockford, Wes Charpie (Dante Marini 73’), Steve Neumann, Jonny Doezel, Keegan Rosenberry (Fatai Alashe 60’), Kadeem Dacrees, Mario Pinto (Darius Madison 60’), Larry Ndjock

Substitutes Not Used: Alex Bono, Shane Campbell, Manolo Sanchez, Melvin Snoh

Referee: Mark Gorak  Referee’s Assistants: TJ Zablocki, Danny Thornberry  4th Referee: Ryan Dos Reis

Attendance: 3,867

Things you should know about the Semifinals of the US Open Cup

July 3, 2012 by Josh Hakala

The New York Red Bulls take on FC Cincinnati in the US Open Cup Semifinals at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, OH on Tuesday August 15, 2017. Photo: Ryan Meyer | New York Red Bulls

Since 1996, only 14 non-MLS teams have advanced to the Semifinals.

2022 – Sacramento Republic FC (USL Championship)*
2017 – FC Cincinnati (USL)
2011 – Richmond Kickers (USL Pro – 3rd Division)
2009 – Rochester Rhinos (USL First Division)
2008 – Charleston Battery (USL First Division)*, Seattle Sounders (USL First Division)
2007 – Carolina RailHawks (USL First Division), Seattle Sounders (USL First Division)
2005 – Minnesota Thunder (USL First Division)
2004 – Charleston Battery (A-League)
1999 – Charleston Battery (A-League), Rochester Raging Rhinos (A-League)*
1997 – San Francisco Bay Seals (USISL Division 3 Pro League)
1996 – Rochester Raging Rhinos (A-League)*

* Advanced to the Final

Since 1996, only seven teams have advanced to the Semifinals after beginning play in the First Round. The Richmond Kickers (2011), Rochester Rhinos (2009), Charleston Battery (2008), Carolina RailHawks (2007), San Francisco Bay Seals (1997) and the Seattle Sounders who did it twice in 2007 and 2008. San Francisco and Richmond are the only Third Division pro clubs to advance to the final four during that span.

When the Sacramento Republic eliminated Sporting Kansas City in penalty kicks in the 2022 Semifinals, they became just the fourth lower division club in the Modern Era (1995-present) to advance to the Final. They joined the Charleston Battery who eliminated the Seattle Sounders in the 2008 Semifinals, and the Rochester Raging Rhinos in 1996 and 1999. The Rhinos were the only non-MLS team (since 1996) to win the title when they defeated the Colorado Rapids 2-0 in 1999.

In 2008, the Charleston Battery and the Seattle Sounders ended in a 1-1 draw, and then went to penalties where the Battery moved on 4-3. It was the first time a Semifinal game went to penalties during the Modern Era and the first time two non-MLS teams met in the final four.

The Chicago Fire entered Major League Soccer as an expansion team in 1998, and won the US Open Cup (and MLS Cup) in their inaugural season. In total, they have advanced to the Semifinals 13 times, which is more than any team in the history of the tournament (1913-present).

After Major League Soccer debuted in 1996 (1996 doesn’t make sense to include, since every Semifinalist was in their inaugural season that year), only four teams have advanced to the Semifinals in their inaugural season. The Fire (1998), Houston Dynamo (2006 – although they were essentially the San Jose Earthquakes, but they were still technically a “new franchise”), Carolina RailHawks (2007). The Seattle Sounders were a new MLS franchise in 2009, but the club had existed in the USL for several years prior to joining MLS.

In 2010, the Seattle Sounders became the first MLS expansion team to win a Semifinal match in each of their first two seasons as a franchise. They also won a Semifinal match in their third year (2011), and their fourth year (2012).

The Houston Dynamo celebrate after defeated LAFC in a PK shootout in the 2018 US Open Cup Semifinals. Photo: Houston Dynamo — The Houston Dynamo celebrate after defeating LAFC in a PK shootout in the 2018 US Open Cup Semifinals. Photo: Houston Dynamo

The 2007 US Open Cup marked the first time that both Semifinal matches went to extra time. The New England Revolution edged the Carolina RailHawks 2-1, followed by FC Dallas eliminating the Seattle Sounders (USL-1) by the same scoreline. Since then, this has only happened one other time: 2017 US Open Cup when Sporting Kansas City needed penalty kicks to take out the San Jose Earthquakes and then the New York Red Bulls came back to beat FC Cincinnati, 3-2 in extra time. It happened again in 2017 when Sporting Kansas City eliminated the San Jose Earthquakes in penalty kicks while the New York Red Bulls edged USL side FC Cincinnati 3-2 in extra time.

Semifinal appearances by MLS teams:

Chicago Fire – 13 (6-7-0 record)
DC United – 9 (5-4-0)
FC Dallas – 9 (4-4-1, 0-1 PKs)
LA Galaxy – 7 (4-3-0)
New York Red Bulls – 6 (2-4-0)
Sporting Kansas City – 6 (3-1-2, 1-1 PKs)
Seattle Sounders – 5 (5-0-0)
Columbus Crew – 4 (3-1-0)
New England Revolution – 4 (3-1-0)
Philadelphia Union – 4 (2-1-1, 1-0 PKs)
Houston Dynamo – 4 (1-2-1, 1-0 PKs)
Real Salt Lake – 3 (1-2-0)
Chivas USA – 2 (0-2-0)
Colorado Rapids – 2 (1-1-0)
Orlando City SC – 2 (1-1-0)
Portland Timbers – 2 (0-2-0)
San Jose Earthquakes – 2 (0-1-1, 0-1 PKs)
Atlanta United FC – 1 (1-0-0)
FC Cincinnati – 1 (0-0-1, 0-1 PKs)
Inter Miami CF – 1 (0-0-1, 1-0 PKs)
Los Angeles FC – 1 (0-0-1, 0-1 PKs)
Miami Fusion – 1 (1-0-0)
Minnesota United FC – 1 (1-0-0)
Tampa Bay Mutiny – 0

Note: The New York Red Bulls (Metrostars) have the most semifinal appearances (six) without an Open Cup championship.

Semifinal appearances by non-MLS teams:

Charleston Battery – 3 (0-2-1, 1-0 PKs)
Rochester Rhinos – 3 (2-1-0)
Seattle Sounders – 2 (0-1-1, 0-1 PKs)
Carolina RailHawks – 1 (0-1-0)
FC Cincinnati – 1 (0-1-0)
Minnesota Thunder – 1 (0-1-0)
Richmond Kickers – 1 (0-1-0)
Sacramento Republic FC – 1 (0-0-1, 1-0 PKs)
San Francisco Bay Seals – 1 (0-1-0)

Most consecutive Semifinal appearances (all-time):

Ukrainian Nationals (Philadelphia) – 8 (1959-66) — champions: 1960, 1961, 1963, 1966
Seattle Sounders (USL/MLS) – 6 (2007-2012) — champions: 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
Stix, Baer & Fuller (St. Louis) – 6 (1932-37) — champions: 1933, 1934, 1935
Bethlehem Steel (Bethlehem, Pa.) – 5 (1915-19) — champions: 1915, 1916, 1918, 1919
Chicago Fire – 4 (2003-06) — champions: 2003, 2006
Chicago Fire – 4 (2013-16) — champions: None
Los Angeles Galaxy – 4 (2000-03) — champions: 2001
Philadelphia Nationals (1949-52) — champions: None
DC United – 3 (2008-2010) — champions: 2008
Pawtucket Rangers – 3 (1933-35) — champions: 1941
Dallas Burn (FC Dallas) – 3 (1996-98) — champions: 1997
Maccabee AC (Los Angeles) – 3 (1980-82) — champions: 1973, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1981
NY Greek Americans (New York City) – 3 (1967-69) — champions: 1967-69
Brooklyn Hispano (Brooklyn, NY) – 3 (1943-45) — champions: 1943, 1944
Croatian SC (Chicago) – 3 (1979-81) — champions: None
Ponta Delgada (Mass.) – 3 (1946-48) — champions: 1947
Fall River Rovers (Mass.) – 3 (1916-18) — champions: 1917
Scullin Steel (St. Louis) – 3 (1921-23) — champions: 1922

The most popular Semifinal matchup in the Modern Era has been the Chicago Fire against the Los Angeles Galaxy who have played each other three times.

2000: Chicago Fire 2:1 (ASDET) Los Angeles Galaxy (at Los Angeles)
2001: Los Angeles Galaxy 1:0 (ASDET) Chicago Fire (at Los Angeles)
2003: Chicago Fire 3:2 Los Angeles Galaxy (at Chicago)

The highest attendance for a Semifinal match in the Modern Era was 16,117 set by Sporting Kansas City when they defeated Real Salt Lake 3-1 at Sporting Park in Kansas City on Aug. 12, 2015. Two years later, USL side FC Cincinnati more than doubled that record with an announced crowd of 33,250. At the time, according to TheCup.us records, this was the second-highest attendance ever recorded for a US Open Cup match.

The highest average attendance between two Semifinal matches came in 2013 when Real Salt Lake hosted the Portland Timbers and the Chicago Fire hosted DC United. The average was 12,889. Real Salt Lake drew a then-record 14,742 and Chicago had an announced crowd of 11,036. However, in 2017, FC Cincinnati’s record crowd of 33,250 pushed the average attendance to nearly double the previous record: 24,722.

The following states have never had a team advance to the Semifinals:
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
Delaware
Hawaii
Idaho
Iowa
Kentucky
Maine
Mississippi
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
North Dakota
Oklahoma
South Dakota
Tennessee
Vermont
West Virginia
Wyoming

The longest current Semifinal drought is from the state of Rhode Island, who hasn’t had a time reach the Semifinals since 1942 when the Pawtucket Rangers reached the final four for the ninth and final time.

Report: New York Red Bulls fined $500 for Tyler Ruthven miscue

June 2, 2012 by Eric Anderson

UPDATE: TheCup.us has been informed that the Inside Minnesota Soccer story written by Brian Quarstad was in error. The Harrisburg City Islanders DID NOT report the suspension violation in the following story to US Soccer. HCI General Manager John Gregg stated, “We read the story this morning and found out the information the same as everyone else. We made NO protest towards the player’s eligibility or status in the game, we were not even contacted about the story. We are very excited to be playing the Red Bull as it is a great opportunity for our team, fans, and business.” || TheCup.us Editorial Management

Tyler Ruthven didn’t play in the New York Red Bulls’ 3-0 victory over USL Pro side Charleston Battery in a third-round match of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday night.

But the defender was on the bench for the match, even though he was listed as suspended for the game in the U.S. Open Cup Handbook.

The Red Bulls were fined $500 by U.S. Soccer for the violation, IMSoccer News reported Saturday. U.S. Soccer Federation spokesman Neil Buethe told IMSoccer News that the fact Ruthven didn’t play in the match was a factor in the decision by the U.S. Open Cup Adjudication and Discipline Panel. (Read the full IMSoccer News report)

Ruthven instead will serve his one-game suspension next Tuesday, sitting out the Red Bulls’ fourth-round game against the Harrisburg City Islanders in Harrisburg, Pa.

Coincidentally, he was playing for Harrisburg when he received a red card in the 75th minute for a reckless foul during the City Islanders’ 2-0 loss to D.C. United in a quarterfinal match on July 21, 2010. That meant he would be suspended for his next U.S. Open Cup match.

Ruthven-proof — Tyler Ruthven did not play, but was on the bench for the Red Bulls against the Charleston Battery.

Ruthven played for the Atlanta Silverbacks of the North American Soccer League in 2011 and NASL clubs weren’t allowed to participate in the tournament, meaning Tuesday’s match was his first possible Open Cup game since the ejection in 2010.

IMSoccer News reported that it was the City Islanders who filed a complaint with the USSF concerning Ruthven’s eligibility.

Buethe told IMSoccerNews that several other players who played in this season’s tournament were mistakenly listed as suspended in the 2012 U.S. Open Cup Handbook, including Ramiro Corrales (San Jose Earthquakes), Danny Earls (Rochester Rhinos), Felix Alfonso Motagalvan (Fort Lauderdale Strikers) and Wells Thompson (Colorado Rapids).

Governing bodies that sponsor qualifying tournaments for the Open Cup have differing rules than the USSF. For example, New York Greek American Atlas was disqualified from the 2010 Eastern New York tournament for having a professional player listed on its game-day roster, despite the fact that the player in question was playing in Romania at the time.

2012 U.S. Open Cup Third Round: New York Red Bulls silence Charleston Battery, 3-0

May 30, 2012 by J.T. Alwin

John Wilson fights for position against Jan Gunnar Solli and Kenny Cooper. Photo: Charleston Battery

The New York Red Bulls, who are notorious for throwing their second team into the Open Cup and losing early, decided to take a different approach into their game against the Charleston Battery. This approach would serve them well, as for once they avoided being upset by a lower division side, winning 3-0 and advancing to the fourth round.

It was a welcome offensive outburst for the Red Bulls who scored three goals in an Open Cup game for the first time in a decade

The Battery challenged early, however New York keeper Ryan Meara met the early challenges, and Red Bull quickly started pressing themselves. Mehdi Ballouchy helped the team strike paydirt first, as he found forward Kenny Cooper in the box. Cooper then unleashed a ground shot into the corner with his left foot. The teams spent most of the half’s remainder going up and down the field, yet unable to capitalize. This changed at 41 minutes in, and it was once again the visitors able to break through. Ballouchy once again started the play, as his corner found Dax McCarty in the corner of the penalty area. McCarty then led on for Heath Pearce, who sent it past Charleston keeper Brock Duckworth to double the lead by halftime.

Sallieu Bundu tried to rally Charleston multiple times to get them back in it, yet Meara proved to be up to the task every time. Connor Lade finally put the game away for the Red Bulls with 20 minutes left, as Solli got him the ball, and Lade launched a top-corner shot from 27 yards out.

New York had initially planned on hosting New England, as the Revolution had built up a 3-0 lead with ten minutes left in extra time. However, the Harrisburg City Islanders of USL Pro would not be denied, tied the game, and emerged victorious in a penalty shootout. This means Harrisburg will host NY in Hersheypark Stadium (Hershey, PA) at 7:30 PM Eastern Time next Tuesday.

New York Red Bulls 3:0 Charleston Battery
Blackbaud Stadium – Charleston, SC

SCORING
NY- Kenny Cooper (Mehdi Ballouchy) 14’
NY- Heath Pearce (Dax McCarty) 41’
NY- Connor Lade (Jan Gunnar Solli) 70’

LINEUPS:
NY- Ryan Meara (GK); Brandon Barklage (Jonathan Borrajo 77’), Markus Holgersson, Wilman Conde, Heath Pearce, Jan Gunnar Solli (Victor Palsson 74’), Dax McCarty (Ryan Maduro 88’), Mehdi Ballouchy, Connor Lade, Jhonny Arteaga, Kenny Cooper
Charleston- Brock Duckworth (GK); John Wilson, Colin Falvey, Taylor Mueller (Dane Kelly 67’), Kyle Hoffer, Amadou Sanyang, Tony Donatelli (Ryan Richter 71’), Jose Cuevas, Nicki Paterson (Zach Prince 81’), Navion Boyd, Sallieu Bundu

BOOKINGS
CHS- Amadou Sanyang 65′ (caution)

STATS:
Shots: NY- 13; CHS- 11
Saves: NY- 5; CHS- 5
Fouls: NY- 10; CHS- 12
Corners: NY- 3; CHS- 4
Offsides: NY- 0; CHS- 2

2011 US Open Cup Quarterfinal Recap: Historic pair of nights as Richmond, Seattle post wins

August 20, 2011 by Gerald Barnhart

The first of two nights in the 2011 US Open Cup Quarterfinals was a night in which we saw three different kinds of coach reactions of note. The final match Wednesday evening was yet another Sounders-fest as the two-time defending champions cruised to another win.

First there was the complete disregard for the event with the Red Bulls sending one first team player, 13 reserves and second-level assistant coach to Chicago. Not surprisingly, it was an easy victory for the Fire, who took the match seriously.

Then there were a pair of coaches who were vocal in the lead up that they wanted to win and perhaps even more vocal in defeat. Reports indicate both Real Salt Lake and Sporting Kansas City coaches reprimanded their star-laden squads after lackluster performances in losses. RSL fell yet again in Dallas after winning at home against the same team over the weekend. Kansas City suffered its first-ever loss in the new stadium, which ended a 12-game unbeaten streak in all competitions.

And finally, there was the genius of Richmond Kickers manager Leigh Cowlishaw. A stunning starting lineup for the last remaining lower division side saw the two stars David Bulow and Matthew Delicate start on the bench. The surprising tactic, though mostly out of need to rest the pair, proved brilliant for a club that saw a stormy night of action for the second time in five nights.

Perhaps prepared by the lengthy two-hour lightning delay the Kickers waited out Friday evening in league play, the side made a couple switches when play resumed after a similar break of approximately 80 minutes Tuesday at the 65th minute mark and caught the hosts asleep. Two second half goals led to a historic result that included a laundry list of achievements at the team and individual player levels.

In the Semifinals, set for August 30, the Richmond Kickers will be traveling to face the Chicago Fire while the Seattle Sounders play host to FC Dallas.

Richmond Kickers 2:0 Sporting Kansas City

The Kickers became the first lower division club to record back-to-back road wins against MLS clubs in the tournament and David Bulow’s penalty made him the all-time leading scorer in the Professional Era, passing Jaime Moreno and Johnny Menyongar. TheCup.us Match MVP: Ronnie Pascale

New York Red Bulls 0:4 Chicago Fire

Dominic Oduro wasted no time with the opening goal after seven minutes. The Fire ran away with it early in the second half as well with Orr Barouch scoring twice. TheCup.us Match MVP: Orr Barouch

Real Salt Lake 0:2 FC Dallas

Trends won out as first-time Quarterfinalists RSL remained winless at Pizza Hut Park, falling to all-time leading Quarterfinalist (12 appearances) FC Dallas. TheCup.us Match MVP: Jackson

Los Angeles Galaxy 1:3 Seattle Sounders

A year later it was Nate Jaqua again in the spotlight as Seattle downed the visiting Galaxy in the Quarterfinals for the second consecutive year. Jaqua notched a goal and an assist in the first 25 minutes as Seattle advanced to a Professional Era record fifth consecutive Semifinal appearance via the USL and MLS clubs. TheCup.us Match MVP: Nate Jaqua

2011 Quarterfinal Scoreboard [+]
2011 Quarterfinal Lineups [+]
2011 US Open Cup Bracket [+]
2011 US Open Cup Participant Map [+]
2011 US Open Cup Goalscoring Leaders [+]

2011 US Open Cup Quarterfinals: Chicago Fire turn out the lights on no-show Red Bulls (Video)

July 13, 2011 by Tavio Palazzolo

Severe storms in the Chicagoland area knocked out power to over 800,000 households, as well as Toyota Park, on Monday. Because of the lingering issues at the stadium, the Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls agreed to move up their Quarterfinal match to a 5 PM local start in order to get it in before dark. The Fire then proceeded to knock the daylights out of the Red Bulls, winning 4-0 to earn a spot in the Semifinals. It is their eighth all-time (tied for most), but the first since capturing the 2006 championship.

web-NY-CHI-Oduro-071211 — Dominic Oduro scored opener in 7th minute Photo: Chicago Fire

Dominic Oduro and Yamith Cuesta scored the first two and Orr Barouch added a pair to give the hosts the easy victory on the night against a defenseless Red Bulls squad.

In an action reminiscent of how most MLS coaches used to treat the US Open Cup, New York had purposely handicapped themselves before even leaving home. Only fourteen players made the trip to Illinois, and neither head coach Hans Backe nor assistant coach Jan Halvor Halvorsen followed them. Individual development coach (and recently retired Red Bull) Mike Petke became interim coach for the match, as he was the only coach on staff at the game. The players that were sent were a mere shell of the Red Bulls roster that many know. Not only did you not see stars like Thierry Henry, Rafa Marquez, or Tim Ream; you didn’t even see less familiar role players like Joel Lindpere, Teemu Tainio, or Carlos Mendes. In fact, only one player, Mehdi Ballouchy, at the match had seen the field more than 10 times this year. The other nine field players had only seen 11 previous starts all year – total (all belonging to Stephen Keel and Austin Da Luz).

On the other hand, the Fire were not out to play games. They had most of their starters play on short rest in Rochester in the last round, and meant business again in this contest. The only usual starter not on the field at kickoff was Diego Chaves. Turns out, they didn’t need him.

Chicago got started early, when in the 7th minute Dominic Oduro slotted home a goal past New York keeper Bouna Coundoul off a play from Cristian Nazarit to give the Fire a 1-0 lead. That goal would give Oduro a tally in his third straight US Open Cup.

web-NY-CHI-Barouch-071211 — Orr Barouch tallied twice in second half Photo: Chicago Fire

The Fire would have many more chances in the first half, including a few shots just sailing over the crossbar. Despite the clear advantage, Chicago were unable to add to their lead and would enter the break holding a slim 1-0 edge.

The second half, however, was a different story as the Fire broke loose. It started in the 48th minute when a Daniel Paladini short corner kick led to a cross over to the far post. The cross was received by Yamith Cuesta, who headed it home past Coundoul to give Chicago a 2-0 lead.

Just a few minutes later, that lead would stretch to three. A pass from Gonzalo Segares into the box found the feet of Oduro, whose deflected shot ended up with Orr Barouch, who slotted it home to put the Fire up 3-0. Barouch would find one more goal for himself and his club in the 69th minute as he scored off a through ball from substitute Diego Chaves.

The Chicago Fire advance to the Semifinals of the 2011 US Open Cup, where they will take on the history-making Richmond Kickers of USL Pro. The Kickers have already defeated two MLS sides on the road (Columbus Crew, Sporting Kansas City), and will play this one away from home as well. The match will take place at Toyota Park on Tuesday, August 30 at 8:30 PM ET.

TheCup.us Match MVP: Orr Barouch

Scoring Summary:

CHI – Dominic Oduro (Cristian Nazarit) 7
CHI – Yamith Cuesta (Daniel Paladini) 48
CHI – Orr Barouch 51
CHI – Orr Barouch (Diego Chaves) 69

Misconduct Summary:
CHI – Orr Barouch (caution) 60
NY – Matt Kassel (caution) 85
NY – John Rooney (caution) 87

Lineups:

New York Red Bulls – Bouna Coundoul, Chris Albright (Marcos Paullo 60), Stephen Keel, Tyler Lassiter, Mychel Jones, Austin Da Luz, Matt Kassel, John Rooney, Theodore Schneider (Sacir Hot 72), Mehdi Ballouchy, Corey Hertzog
Substitutes not used: Alex Horwath

Chicago Fire – Sean Johnson, Jalil Anibaba, Josip Mikulic, Yamith Cuesta, Gonzalo Segares, Patrick Nyarko (Baggio Husidic 66), Logan Pause, Daniel Paladini, Marco Pappa (Diego Chaves 66), Cristian Nazarit (Orr Barouch 46), Dominic Oduro
Substitutes not used: Jon Conway, Pari Pantazopolous, Dasan Robinson, Mike Videira

Referee: Hilario Grajeda
Referee’s Assistants: Eric Boria, Anthony Vasoli
4th Official: Abbey Okulaja

2011 US Open Cup Quarterfinals: New York Red Bulls at Chicago Fire Preview

July 11, 2011 by Gerald Barnhart

UPDATE: Due to power outages at Toyota Park, tonight’s Quarterfinal match vs. New York Red Bulls has been moved to a 6 p.m. ET kickoff (5 p.m. local time). Tickets and parking for the match are free and the broadcast is still on. TheCup.us Live Blog will now start at 5:30 p.m. ET.

QUARTERFINAL ROUND

New York Red Bulls at Chicago Fire
Toyota Park – Bridgeview, Ill.
July 12 – 6 p.m. ET
Broadcast: Chicago-Fire.com (Video)

New York Red Bulls

Third Round: FC New York (USL Pro) 1:2 New York Red Bulls (MLS)
Scoreless through the first half of the local derby, the Red Bulls found themselves surprisingly trailing at the 56th minute mark. Two minutes later Juan Agudelo found Corey Hertzog to quickly level terms. Defender Tim Ream would set up John Rooney for the winner in the 65th minute. Recap [+]

How They Qualified: Automatic entrant from top six MLS finish in 2010.

This Month in MLS: The month started off well for New York, posting a 2-2 draw in California July 2 against San Jose on a pair of Joel Lindpere strikes. They then dominated Toronto FC in a stunning 5-0 thumping July 6. Jan Gunnar Solli set up Thierry Henry and Luke Rodgers in the first half with Joel Lindpere advancing the lead to three in the second half before setting up a pair of Juan Agudelo strikes to complete the contest. On Saturday though, it was all about the recent trade as former Red Bull Dwayne De Rosario burning New York just after the hour mark to give DC the 1-0 road win.
Last Five: L-W-D-D-L | Season record: 6-4-10 (1-2-7 Away), tied for first place in Eastern Conference, tied for fifth overall.

Open Cup History: The Red Bulls have come close early in their history, with trips to the Semifinals in 1997, 1998 and 2000, but have never won the US Open Cup. The closest they came was in 2003 when they lost to the Chicago Fire in their only trip to the championship game. Since then, it’s been a series of short runs in the tournament, with a 1-5 record the last five times they have qualified. New York did not qualify in 2007 or 2009. New York is 3-2-1 all-time in Quarterfinal matches, with Five of the Red Bulls’ six Quarterfinal matches have been against MLS clubs. This is their second match against Chicago, the other being the 2003 final loss.
PRO ERA RECORDS: 13-12-1 (1-0 in PKs) | 5-6-1 (1-0 in PKs) vs. MLS teams | 0-1-0 vs. Chicago (2003 Final)

Chicago Fire

Third Round: Chicago Fire (MLS) 1:0 Rochester Rhinos (USL Pro)
The only MLS club on the road for the Third Round, the Fire faced a tight one against giant-killer Rochester and came away with a narrow 1-0 win. Diego Chavez created the play that led to his goal, feeding Corben Bone the ball in the 37th minute. Bone drove past a defender and let loose a shot that the goalkeeper knocked away. The rebound popped up into the center of the box where Alfonso Motagalvan tried to clear on the volley only to see it skim off the side of his shin and fall to Chaves, who fired a low ball into inside the right post from 18 yards. Recap [+]

How They Qualified: Seeded fourth overall, the Fire opened the play-in tournament in the second round of the western bracket of MLS qualifying. They defeated the defending MLS Cup champion Colorado Rapids March 30 with a 2-1 victory. Gaston Puerari, who was recently sold to Atlas (Mexico), scored the opening goal moments before the break, with Andre Akpan answering back in early in the second stanza. In the haze remaining from flares set off at the hour
mark, defender Jalil Anibaba let loose a shocking 45-yard strike that surprised the keeper and proved to be the winner. Trailing San Jose by two goals in the finale for the bracket, Chicago’s Orr Barouch pulled a goal back in the 61st and Yamith Cuesta leveled terms in the 76th, sending the match to penalties, where two Earthquakes rang shots off the crossbar in a 5-4 decision to send the Fire to the Open Cup.

This Month in MLS: The Fire have struggled to find some offense in the two weeks of league play since the Third Round, playing to a 1-1 draw July 2 on the road versus Chivas USA with Dominic Oduro netting the opener. The result in their second consecutive at the Home Depot Center did not get any better against the Galaxy Saturday. Cristian Nazarit leveled the score in the 58th minute, four minutes after Landon Donovan’s opener, only to see David Beckham hit for a winner three minutes later.
Last Five: L-D-D-D-D | Season Record: 2-5-12 (1-1-6 Home), tied for seventh in Eastern Conference, tied for 14th overall.

Open Cup History: The Fire are one of the most successful Pro Era teams, winning the Cup four times (1998, 2000, 2003 against the New York MetroStars, 2006) and finishing runner-up in 2004. The team has qualified for the Open Cup every year since their founding in 1998. However, since the 2006 Cup title, the team entered this year having only won one game in the tournament since, going 1-3-1 (0-1 in PKs). The Fire are 5-1-2 all-time in Quarterfinal matches and haven’t played a Quarterfinal game at Toyota Park since 2006, when they defeated New England 2-1.
PRO ERA RECORD: 26-8-3 (2-1 in PKs) | 15-4-1 (1-0 in PKs) vs. MLS teams | 1-0-0 vs. New York (2003 Final)

Head to Head 2011
The two teams drew 1-1 in Toyota Park on June 26. Chicago will travel to Red Bull Arena on August 13.

2011 US Open Cup Semifinal Scenarios

Chicago Fire / NY Red Bulls at Sporting Kansas City
8:30 p.m. – LIVESTRONG Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan.
OR
Richmond Kickers at Chicago Fire
8:30 p.m. – Toyota Park; Bridgeview, Ill.
OR
Richmond Kickers at New York Red Bulls
8:00 p.m. – Red Bull Arena; Harrison, N.J.

2011 US Open Cup: Semifinal host scenarios unveiled

July 7, 2011 by Gerald Barnhart

The United States Soccer Federation announced the pairing and hosting scenarios for the 2011 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Semifinals Thursday, unveiling that Real Salt Lake and Sporting Kansas City would host the winners from the opposite side of their bracket with victories in the Quarterfinals.

The USSF also officially revealed a schedule change for the Quarterfinals. The contest between the Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles Galaxy was moved back one day to July 13 with the three other matches remaining on July 12.

The lone remaining lower division club Richmond Kickers learned that it will face another contest on the road should they register a second consecutive upset over an MLS team. The Kickers, currently coming off a road victory against the Columbus Crew, will travel to play either the Chicago Fire or New York Red Bulls if they defeat Kansas City.

The Kickers and the Galaxy are the only two clubs that are guaranteed to play away from home. The Galaxy will travel to play the winner of the quarterfinal between RSL and FC Dallas.

Of the six potential 2011 semifinal hosts, the Sounders will be the only club slated to utilize an alternate venue from league play. Seattle also played both semifinals in 2009 and 2010 at the Starfire Sports Complex en route to winning the championship.

Should the Red Bulls and Kickers fall Tuesday, it would mark only the third time in the Professional Era in which no club from the Eastern Time Zone advanced to the semifinals of the tournament. Dallas and the Galaxy were both members of the final four the previous two times in 2002 and 2005.

2011 Semifinal Host Scenarios – August 30

Chicago Fire / NY Red Bulls at Sporting Kansas City
8:30 pm – LIVESTRONG Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan.
OR
Richmond Kickers at Chicago Fire
8:30 pm – Toyota Park; Bridgeview, Ill.
OR
Richmond Kickers at New York Red Bulls
8:00 pm – Red Bull Arena; Harrison, N.J.
———————————————————————
Seattle Sounders / LA Galaxy at Real Salt Lake
9:00 pm – Rio Tinto Stadium; Sandy, Utah
OR
FC Dallas at Seattle Sounders
10:00 pm – Starfire Sports Stadium; Tukwila, Wash.
OR
Los Angeles Galaxy at FC Dallas
9:00 pm – Pizza Hut Park; Frisco, Texas

^All times ET. Schedule subject to change