CARSON, Calif. -- Sean Franklin could only shrug his shoulders after a night he might want to forget.
The Los Angeles Galaxy defender walked off The Home Depot Center pitch after being shown a red card in the 79th minute of the Pan-Pacific Championship final Saturday in front of 9,160 in attendance.
It was a sour moment knowing he had to leave the game after contributing to a Suwon Samsung Bluewings win in penalty kicks against the Galaxy after a 1-1 draw in regulation.
"It's just frustrating," Franklin said. "I don't think I played that well tonight. I contributed a little bit but I think I could have done better than that."
What Franklin did was head in an own goal in the 39th minute to give the Bluewings a 1-0 lead.
Franklin said he was trying to clear a deep pass into the penalty area by Suwong captain Kim Dae-Eui intended for midfielder Choi Sung-Hyeon.
Instead, Franklin got a piece of the floating pass with the top of his head, sending it over Galaxy goalkeeper Josh Saunders into his own net. Saunders was standing about 15-yards away from his goal when the ball sailed over him.
After the play, Franklin stared into the distance, standing with his hands at his waist.
Teammate and rookie Omar Gonzalez walked over to Franklin and rubbed his head, trying to comfort the Galaxy's No. 1 pick in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft.
"I just said to him to keep his head up," Gonzalez said. "It was a pretty bad play but we just have to go from here and not look back."
Franklin didn't look back, walking off the field after being shown a straight red card. Franklin was booked with a yellow earlier in the match. Referee Paul Ward didn't show a second yellow for Franklin's second foul, this time on Suwong defender Jorge Alves.
"That's how calls go," Franklin said. "The own goal is just unfortunate, I'm just glad my teammates battled back late and forced a last play."
Ironically, it was a foul by Alves on Galaxy forward Edson Battle in the penalty area in the 88th minute that sent the game into a decisive penalty shootout.
That gave the Galaxy new life, but missed penalty shots by Buddle and Kyle Patterson ultimately lost the shootout for Bruce Arena's team.
Despite the loss, the match against the Bluewings and the preseason tournament gave Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena a glimpse of what his young players can do heading into the upcoming 2009 MLS season.
"I was pleased that this team showed a lot of character coming back," Arena said. "I was impressed. Let's face it. We played a Suwong team that's more experienced. I thought our young guys did a great job."
Arena was particularly impressed with his young defense, despite some mistakes.
Franklin echoed Arena's thoughts.
"I think the backline is doing fine," Franklin said. "We have a lot to improve on but we're looking at all the positives. We'll just get better as the season gets going."
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