New England Revolution Take 2-1 Advantage Over New York Red Bulls

From the New England Revolution

Jermaine Jones scored the first goal of his MLS postseason career as the New England Revolution earned a 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls in the first leg of the Eastern Conference Championship at Red Bull Arena. Jones and Teal Bunbury each finished with a goal and an assist as the Revolution claimed their third straight postseason win to take a one-goal advantage into the second leg of the series at Gillette Stadium on Saturday, November 29.

New England took the lead in the 17th minute when Bunbury received a pass from Jones out wide, cut inside on to his left foot and curled a shot inside the far post, past Luis Robles to give the Revs a 1-0 advantage. The goal was Bunbury’s second in as many games while Jones, who was credited with the lone assist on the tally, now has two assists in the playoffs.

The lead would last just 10 minutes before the Red Bulls would equalize. The leading scorer in the MLS regular season and the postseason, Wright-Phillips headed into an empty net after Peguy Luyindula’s initial shot was saved by Bobby Shuttleworth, only to then see his second attempt hit the crossbar before falling to Wright-Phillips, who nodded it in.

The Red Bulls threatened early in the second half, with both Lloyd Sam and Bradley Wright-Phillips going close. The match also became a more physical affair as the second half went on with referee Allen Chapman issuing 10 yellow cards, including six after the halftime break.

With the game looking like it was headed for a 1-1 draw, the Revolution eventually broke the deadlock in the 85thminute through Jermaine Jones. MLS MVP finalist Lee Nguyen slipped Bunbury in on the right side of the penalty area and Bunbury hit a low, hard cross across the face of goal for Jones who tapped the ball into the net for the game-winning goal and the Revs’ first-ever win at Red Bull Arena.

New England will host the second leg of the Eastern Conference Championship on Saturday, November 29 at Gillette Stadium. The game will be televised nationally by NBC Sports Network while 98.5 The Sports Hub (English) and WMVX 1570 AM (Portuguese) will have the call on the radio. Kickoff for that game is set for 3 p.m. ET.

Photo Credit: New England Revolution