KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Two points out of third place in the Eastern Conference and within striking distance of seven teams in the overall MLS table, the Kansas City Wizards can look forward to the second half of the MLS season. Thursday night's 2-1 win against the visiting New York Red Bulls was a needed win.
"Tonight was a must-win," head coach Curt Onalfo admitted after the result. "Getting three points is huge."
Although not a tour de force, the win, highlighted by a 2-0 lead after 47 minutes, was a clear improvement over last week's last-minute capitulation to FC Dallas for a 1-1 draw and miles better than their 3-0 home loss to Columbus nearly a month ago.
"We've been playing well ever since the Columbus game," said team captain Jimmy Conrad. "It was a nice, rude awakening for us to say, 'What kind of season do we really want to have? Do we want to let it pass us by? Or do we really want to make something of it?'"
It was Conrad's well-taken header that set the tone early. Off a well-placed corner from Claudio Lopez, the now five-time MLS All-Star sent the ball past Red Bulls goalkeeper Jon Conway and into the middle of the net for his fourth goal of the season.
"When [the cross] first came, I thought, 'This one might be over my head,'" said Conrad. The same could be same for the Wizards recently. In the last 2-1/2 months, the Wizards have suffered through a seven-game winless streak (six of those on the road) and a recent run of five games in 13 days. Yet they have persevered.
"We don't make excuses, but I'll tell you what: Any other team put in the situation we've been put in, I don't think they'd come out with the same results we've gotten," said Onalfo. "So I feel proud of the group, and I feel like we're a little bit hardened."
The second goal -- the one that wouldn't come last week in Dallas -- was a relief.
Midfielder Kurt Morsink threaded a pass behind and through the New York defense and found a streaking Davy Arnaud. The midfielder hit the ball first time with the outside of his right boot to beat Conway and put his side up a rare two goals.
"[Red Bulls midfielder Dave] van den Bergh was pretty tight to me, so there was a little space behind," said Arnaud. "Morsink played a great ball with a good weight to it. When you get that two-goal cushion, it definitely helps out."
Although "extremely pleased" to gain the three points and particularly happy with the play of Arnaud and goalkeeper Kevin Hartman, Onalfo lamented the Wizards easing up after establishing the two-goal lead.
"Still, there are times in the game where we are a little too naïve and we give them too much territory and allow them to at least get back into it," he said. "We fell asleep, and we got punished. When you fall asleep, Angel is going to punish you."
Angel's third goal of the season made the last 19 minutes harrowing for the Wizards.
"We haven't had a two-goal lead for a while, so it's kind of a shock to our system," quipped Conrad.
But thanks to Hartman's play, the Wizards are now undefeated in their last three games and are ready to move on to the second half of the season.
"It's been an uphill battle, and we're at .500 halfway through the season," said Onalfo. "We need to continue to move up. We need to be positioned well by the last 10 games of the season so we can make a run for sure to make the playoffs and try to get home-field advantage."
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