San Jose Earthquakes 4-0 Seattle Sounders FC

- Match Report (below)      - Post-game video interviews       - Seattle fans arriving at Buck Shaw (Video)

Hernandez with the Heritage Cup - Photo: Nap - TheProjectFC

A lucky own goal in the second minute and a generous red card to ex-Earthquake James Riley after 30 minutes helped the Quakes confirm their better form and win the Heritage Cup.

The confidence the team has acquired by signing Ramon Sanchez and Andre Luiz was obvious today and it made a huge difference. They still have the option to send long balls to Ryan Johnson when necessary, but they now also can keep the ball on the ground, pass it in the middle with confidence.

And confidence helps luck turning your way. It allows players to be aggressive without losing control, to defend efficiently, without panicking.

It was far from being perfect and today's scenario will not repeat every week but at least, the Quakes are back to a decent level and, playing this way, are able to compete with any MLS team.

The Quakes unexpectedly won the Heritage Cup after a convincing victory against one of the best teams in the league. Circumstances, so often against San Jose this season, favored them this time.

Everything started after less than 2 minutes, when Ryan johnson receiving the ball from Cornell Glen on the left side of the box, crossed it back to Glen with his left foot. Trying to intercept the pass Osvaldo Alonso deflected it...in his own goal (1-0, 2')

Very quickly, the Sounders seemed disorganized by this early goal and, taking advantage of it, the Quakes dominated the first 30 minutes, winning possession and creating a few good chances.

Two events, though, could have changed the run of the game. After 9 minutes, Andre Luiz who associated to Ramon Sanchez had already had time to show what he could bring to the Quakes' midfield in terms of stability, fell on his arm and left the field thinking he could not come back. He finally returned a few minutes later. "I jumped with Seattle's guy and when I fell, he fell on my arm." he said after the game. "The minutes that followed were difficult but I really wanted to continue playing."

Joe Cannon had an alert in te 25^th minute - Photos: Nap - TheProjectFC

The second event occurred in the 25^th minute. Joe Cannon, alone with the ball 15 yards from his goal and with more tie than needed to clear it, waited for Sebastien Letoux to come pressure him and tried to dribble Seattle's striker. Cannon walked on the ball and almost gave it to Letoux before being saved by the referee awarding him a generous free kick for an hypotetical Letoux' foul. (the first foul was probably committed by Cannon and it could as well have been a penalty for Seattle)

 
Riley tackles Convey and receives a red card - Photos: Nap - TheProjectFC

8 minutes later, the referee was going to help the local team again. For an angry but missed tackle on Bobby Convey (he didn't touch the player), Mr. Ward showed James Riley the red card. A yellow would probably have been more appropriate. Maybe he took this decision because he saw Riley, a few second earlier, pushing Cornell Glen in the back when the ball was out of reach for both players, but, more likely, he thought Riley hardly hit Convey's ankle, which was not the case.

After being unlucky with injuries and referees' calls most of the time so far this season, the Quakes were not going question the call and were happy with it. Actually, Freddy Montero's elbow in Darren huckerby's face 2 minutes later would have deserved a red card more than Riley's tackle.

It probably ruined Seattle's chances to win the game and helped the Quakes to win the game with a large score, giving them the Heritage Cup, but it also shows that when you play with confidence, when you hold the ball well and dominate your opponent, playing most of the time in their own half and even in their own 30 yards, you are more likely to get decisive calls in your favor.

Cornell Glen scored the second goal and created many chances - Photo: Nap - TheProjectFC

Seattle must be credited with a good start of the second half. Apparently better organized after the break, they managed to give the Quakes' defense a hard time. But, with only 10 players, it quickly became to difficult for the and Cornell Glen, after a good pass by Salinas from the right wing managed to eliminate Seattle's defender and shoot from outside the box. His left foot shot next to Kasey Keller's right post ended up in the back of the net (2-0, 54')

The game was over. Darren Huckerby (78') and Chris Wondolowski after a beautiful move and a great pass by Shea Salinas (84') finished the job and the Quakes could enjoy the three points while their captain, Jason Hernandez, was receiving the Heritage Cup from Seattle and San Jose's supporters' representants.

The trophy rewards the better team amongst all MLS teams named after their NASL predecessors. Until the Portland Timbers (2010) and the Vancouver Whitecaps (2011) join MLS, only Seattle and San Jose qualify for the competition.

On Saturday, the San Jose Earthquakes have earned 3 points and a trophy and, more importantly, hope to finish the season on a good note and build a strong team for next year.