MLS Roundup: Jermaine Jones debuts in New England romp, Portland wins in Vancouver
New England 3 – Toronto FC 0
New England welcomed Jermaine Jones to MLS with a rampant victory over insipid TFC at BMO Field. Lee Nguyen replicated his slicing winner from last week’s 1-0 triumph over Chivas USA to open the scoring after just two minutes. Kelyn Rowe doubled the advantage with a rasping drive from distance in the 21st minute. Teal Bunbury secured the points with his strike just before the hour. Jones then made his MLS debut in the 65th minute and played out the rest of the match as the Revs coasted to victory.
Seattle 1 – Colorado 0
Clint Dempsey volleyed home a superb winner seven minutes after halftime to give Sounders FC all three points at CenturyLink Field. Dempsey wriggled free from his marker on a corner kick and turned home with his shin to separate the sides. Colorado received a fine performance from goalkeeper Joe Nasco on his MLS debut, but the Rapids could not avoid tying a club record with their sixth straight defeat.
Vancouver 0 – Portland 3
Portland jumped into the Western Conference playoff places with a comprehensive triumph at B.C. Place. Alvas Powell stopped to head home Diego Valeri’s cross to break the deadlock six minutes after halftime. Second-half substitute Maximiliano Urruti thrashed home the second with a clever turn and an angled finish in the 75th minute. Rodney Wallace completed the victory four minutes later to lift the Timbers over the Whitecaps in the table.
Chicago 1 – FC Dallas 0
The home side climbed within four points of the final playoff berth and ended FCD’s unbeaten run at 10 games with a narrow win at Toyota Park. Robert Earnshaw continued his torrid start in a Fire uniform with his second goal in as many games to decide the proceedings seven minutes from time. Earnshaw timed his jump perfectly and then turned Jeff Larentowicz’s cross inside the far post to lift his side to victory.
San Jose 1 – Real Salt Lake 1
Both teams settled for a share of the spoils in this tight affair at Buck Shaw Stadium. Chris Wondolowski pounced on a poor RSL throw and prompted Sam Cronin’s slotted finish after just 14 minutes. RSL responded through a Javier Morales penalty kick nine minutes before halftime after a suspect penalty awarded against Jordan Stewart. The second-half attempts to produce a winner ultimately went for naught as the match ended all square.
Montréal 2 – Columbus 0
Ignacio Piatti continued his impressive start with the Impact by scoring both goals at Stade Saputo. Piatti opened his MLS account five minutes before halftime with a slicing run and a sumptuous finish inside the far post. The former San Lorenzo star retained his composure deep in second half stoppage time to angle his near-post drive past Steve Clark and send the Crew spiraling to defeat.
Sporting Kansas City 1 – Houston 3
Houston claimed its second road win of the season with a stunning triumph at Sporting Park on Friday. Both teams persevered through a first-half weather delay, but the Dynamo sustained its bright start to take the lead through Will Bruin 10 minutes before the break. Dom Dwyer equalized nine minutes after the interval to restore parity, but David Horst and Ricardo Clark struck just after the hour to secure all three points for the Dynamo.
