FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Revolution (6-13-5, 23 pts.) travels to face the Columbus Crew at 7:30 p.m., on Saturday, August 25, at Columbus Crew Stadium.
The Revolution match will be televised regionally on Comcast SportsNet and will also be carried locally on the radio by 98.5 The Sports Hub.
Saturday’s match against Columbus will mark the second of three meetings between the two teams this season, with a third match scheduled for Sept. 5, at Gillette Stadium. The two teams played to a 0-0 draw on June 16, in Foxborough. On Saturday, the Crew will play their third game in seven days after hosting Toronto this Wednesday night in Columbus.
SERIES INFORMATION VS COLUMBUS CREW
Team Notes vs. Columbus Crew
- Saturday’s match is the 56th all-time regular season meeting, and the 62nd overall meeting, between the two clubs … the overall total also including five MLS Cup playoff meetings and one U.S. Open Cup contest
- Columbus leads the all-time regular-season series between the two teams, 28-16-11 … the Revs are 6-15-6 on the road at Columbus, including a 5-10-6 mark at Crew Stadium since its opening in 1999
- The two teams played to a 0-0 draw in the first meeting on June 16 at Gillette Stadium and will meet for a third time this season on Sept. 5, in Foxborough
- Columbus captured the 2011 regular-season series between the two teams after defeating New England, 3-1, on Aug. 13, in Columbus, and later shutting out the Revs, 3-0, on Oct. 15, at Gillette Stadium
- New England has won just twice in its last 13 meetings with Columbus dating back to the 2007 season … the Revs are 2-7-4 in that stretch
- The Revs’ last season-series victory over the Crew came in 2006, when the Revolution went 2-1-1 against Columbus
- Outside of MLS competition, the Revs are 3-0-3 against the Crew, including MLS Cup Playoff (2-0-3) and U.S. Open Cup (1-0-0) matches
Player Notes vs. Columbus Crew
- Benny Feilhaber is the only current Revolution player who has scored a goal against Columbus … he has scored one goal in three appearances, his lone goal coming on August 13, 2011
- Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis has started all but one of his 28 appearances against the Crew, going 7-9-10 with six shutouts and a 1.41 goals against average
- Bobby Shuttleworth has made one career appearance against Columbus, drawing the start on Oct. 15, 2011, and suffering the loss
- After Matt Reis (27 appearances) and Clyde Simms (18), no other current Revolution player has appeared in more than eight games for the club against Columbus
TEAM NOTES
Watch Party in Providence
The Revs travel to Columbus on Saturday, but fans have a chance to catch all the action in New England … beginning at 7 p.m. at Ri Ra in Providence, R.I., fans can join non-traveling Revolution players for drinks, food and fun while watching the game on Comcast SportsNet … for more information – including a list of all the Revolution partner bars – click HERE.
10 Revs Eligible for “24 under 24”
Ten Revolution players are eligible for the third-annual “24 under 24” competition, presented by MLSsoccer.com … the contest, which combines fan voting and a media panel input, ranks the top two dozen young players in the league … results will be released beginning Monday, Sept. 10 … among the list are Revolution players eligible: Blake Brettschneider (23), Diego Fagundez (17), Blair Gavin (23), Dimitry Imbongo (22), Sainey Nyassi (23), Tyler Polak (20), Alec Purdie (23), Michael Roach (23), Kelyn Rowe (20) and A.J. Soares (23) … voting information can be found HERE.
Wins Needed in Clash Against Crew
The Revs travel to Columbus on Saturday looking to snap a five-game winless streak (0-3-2) against the Crew dating back to May 8, 2010 … New England has struggled against Columbus since 2007, as the team has won just twice in its last 13 meetings with the Crew, going 2-7-4 in that stretch … the Revs’ last win against the Crew was a 2-1 victory on October 25, 2009, in Columbus.
Early Strikers in Columbus
The Revs have kept the home crowd quiet early in their last several visits to Columbus Crew Stadium … in four of the last five meetings in Columbus, the Revs have scored the first goal of the game … despite taking the early lead in their last two trips to Ohio, the Revs were unable to secure the win, falling 3-2 on Oct. 8, 2010, and 3-1 on August 13, 2011.
Tough Stretch Continues
Saturday’s loss in Chicago extended the Revs’ winless streak to seven games (0-6-1), dating back to July 14 … the streak is the team’s longest since going seven games winless from July 23 through Sept. 7, 2011 (0-2-5) … the team’s longest winless streak is nine games, set twice: May 1 through July 13, 1999 when the team went 0-9; and May 21 through July 17, 2011, when the team went 0-6-3.
Making the Most of the First 15
Fernando Cardenas’ 11th-minute equalizer on Saturday was the team’s eighth goal this season in the first 15 minutes of a match … the Revs share the league lead with New York (8) for the most goals scored in that window … with 27 goals in 24 games this season, almost 30 percent (8-of-27, 29.6 percent) of the Revs’ scoring has come in the first 15 minutes of play.
Cardenas Comes Through
Fernando Cardenas’ goal in the 11th minute on Saturday night in Chicago was his second goal of the season … he last scored on May 2, in a 2-1 win over Colorado at Gillette Stadium … in 20 appearances this season, Cardenas has two goals and two assists.
Cardenas Ends Revs’ Scoring Slump
Fernando Cardenas’ goal on Saturday snapped the Revs’ 269-minute scoreless streak … the team had not scored since Saer Sene scored in the 12th minute on July 29 at Philadelphia … the 269-minute streak was tied for the seventh-longest in team history.
Blake Back in Action
Blake Brettschneider started at forward on Saturday, earning his first start since the July 14 match against Toronto … Brettschneider’s start was his 10th of the season in his 15th appearance … the 23-year old has scored two goals and one assist.
