FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Revolution had lost two MLS Cup Finals to Houston. Losing the SuperLiga final at Gillette Stadium just wasn't an option.
Revs midfielder Jeff Larentowicz said that a change in mentality, plus the home support, pushed his team over the top after its penalty kick victory against the Dynamo after the teams battled to a 2-2 draw over 120 minutes.
"I think we had our eye on the prize so to speak," Larentowicz said. "I think that we have been down before and we've been up in finals, and I think this is the first year that we decided that we really wanted to win it."
The Revolution needed all of that desire and hunger on a night where they just couldn't seem to seize the upper hand.
"We shouldn't be surprised," New England head coach Steve Nicol said. "Our boys pride themselves on their commitment and passion to the game and each other and that was really what got it through. They backed each other up tonight and run the extra mile for each other and that what got us the result at the end of the day. I can't say enough about the quality and the character of the players."
A first half that Nicol felt might have been the best all season was marred by multiple Houston chances and one large mistake from defender Amaechi Igwe to give Nate Jaqua the opportunity to fire past Matt Reis to give the Dynamo an early lead.
Steve Ralston replied before halftime with a sublime volley from a Mauricio Castro cross to send the Revs into the break on level terms.
It stayed that way all the way through into extra time. Houston once again gained the upper hand through Kei Kamara's header before yet another Shalrie Joseph header sent the match through to penalty kicks.
Once there, the lottery ensued. Each team missed twice to send the match into sudden death. Once Corey Ashe hit the crossbar, the Revolution bench streamed on to the field in exultation, a means of letting off the steam from what was a fantastic display of what MLS soccer can be.
"I think the whole game was intense; the pace was unbelievable," Larentowicz said. "I've been watching MLS for 10 years, and I think that was one of the best games I have ever seen. Being in the back I can say I watched it because I wasn't in the thick of it. But the pace was good and Houston is a great team and they kept coming at us. It took eight penalty shots to finally settle it, so I think that says a lot about both teams."
In both MLS Cup Finals, the Revolution took a lead, only to be pulled back by the Dynamo on both occasions. To win SuperLiga, they had to come back -- not once, but twice from a goal down, then again during the shootout.
"The penalties were just the usual -- gut-wrenching -- but again we went behind," Nicol said. "We've got behind three times tonight and we managed to drag ourselves back up and eventually win the tie."
Revolution defender Chris Albright hadn't experienced this championship rivalry with these sorts of stakes. He said he felt the pressure before he converted his penalty kick and then remarked how his team just came up lucky to emerge with its first victory against the Dynamo with a championship on the line.
"Tonight can see that both teams played their hearts out and played as hard as we possibly could," Albright said. "Penalties can always go either way and we were the lucky ones."
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