Despite trailing 1-0 to the New England Revolution at the half, the Houston Dynamo are playing with plenty of positives. Houston conceded an early lead when a bit of defensive miscommunication led to former Dynamo defender Ryan Cochrane scoring into Houston's empty net.
In spite of giving up the lead early, the Dynamo quickly rebounded and found themselves in scoring positions. If not for a spectacular individual performance from Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis, the Dynamo would be leading the game with at least a one goal advantage. Forward Cam Weaver used his towering presence on the field to nod in a few headers, but saw his efforts cleared off the line, parried over the bar, or held strong by Reis. Geoff Cameron also challenged Reis, firing in a shot from distance, getting a header on target, and nearly scoring Houston's first goal, only to be stopped by a poor first touch.
Due to fixture congestion, tonight's game is Houston's second in seven days, Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear was forced to make changes to his starting line-up. Colin Clark, who had been starting on the right side of the midfield, was benched in favor of Jamaican international Je-Vaughn Watson. The defense also saw some changes with Jermaine Taylor moved to left back and Bobby Boswell holding his spot in the center of the back line. Honduran forward Carlos Costly was also rested on the bench with Cam Weaver starting alongside Brian Ching.
Houston's play throughout the half was much improved over the play fans saw a month ago and the coaching staff should be happy with the way the team has moved the ball and created scoring chances. Unless the Revolution make some major changes, either tactically or with their personnel, Houston should be able to find an equalizer and, hopefully, the all important winner.
Expect to see Carlos Costly and Colin Clark early in the second half.