Brek Shea and Jackson Gonçalves continued their rampant form on Saturday night, as each scored second half goals to help FC Dallas defeat the Columbus Crew 2-0 to take home the 2011 Pioneer Cup.
Shea scored his eighth goal of the season in the 58th minute and Jackson added his tally in the 76th. The Crew, who went down to 10 men when defender Andy Iro received a second caution in the 82nd minute, were unable to get their own offense going.
With the win, FC Dallas extracted revenge upon their foes from the Eastern Conference after falling 2-0 in Columbus in early April.
The game between soccer legend Lamar Hunt’s two teams was physical from the opening whistle, as referee Jorge Gonzalez issued four yellow cards in the game’s first 30 minutes and six cautions in total, including the two to Iro.
The Crew opened up strong, with big forward Tom Heinemann skying an attempt from the top of the box six minutes into the match. Ten minutes, a defensive slip from FCD's Ugo Ihemelu allowed the Crew's Andrés Mendoza to enter the box with control of the ball. After sidestepping a slide tackle from Zach Loyd, the Peruvian striker poked a shot towards goal, but it was blocked by an on-rushing Kevin Hartman.
Slowly but surely, Dallas' speed on the flank began proving too much for Columbus, as Shea and Jackson kept the visitors on their heels for the full 90 minutes.
Shea issued his first warning in the 56th minute, but curled a shot just high and wide of Will Hesmer's goal. However, the winger finally broke through for his side two minutes later, as Hesmer spilled a Marvin Chávez shot from close range that Shea forward to clean up.
The tally was Shea's fourth in his last four games and eighth of the season, tying him for the league lead.
But the 21-year-old didn't stop there. He nearly increased FCD's lead in the 61st and 62nd minutes, first driving a shot wide of the net and then just barely unable to get at the end of a Jackson cross before the Crew's Sebastián Mirano slid to clear it away.
Fourteen minutes later, Jackson took matters into his own hands to gives Dallas a well-deserved second goal. The 23-year-old Brazilian worked more of his summer magic, running towards the middle of the Crew box and chipping Hesmer to put aside any chance of a Crew comeback.
For Jackson, it also marked his fourth goal in his last four games since returning from his June wedding in Brazil and being shifted into the flank midfield position.
With the win, FC Dallas are unbeaten in 12 of their last 13 games and sit only one point behind the LA Galaxy in the Western Conference standings. They next travel on Saturday to face Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium.
The Crew, meanwhile, kept their third place spot in the Eastern Conference ahead of fourth-place Houston Dynamo’s Sunday evening game. They'll take to the road once more, as they travel to Vancouver, where they will play a Wednesday night game against the Canadian side.
Scoring:
DAL -- Brek Shea 8 (unassisted) 58
DAL -- Jackson 3 (Andrew Jacobson 5) 76
Misconduct:
CLB -- William Hesmer (caution; Handball) 7
CLB -- Emmanuel Ekpo (caution; Tactical Foul) 20
DAL -- Jackson (caution; Reckless Foul) 24
DAL -- Ugo Ihemelu (caution; Tactical Foul) 29
CLB -- Andy Iro (caution; Tactical Foul) 57
CLB -- Andy Iro (caution; Tactical Foul) 82
CLB -- Andy Iro (ejection; Second Caution) 82
Lineups:
Columbus Crew -- William Hesmer, Sebastian Miranda, Chad
Marshall, Andy Iro, Josh Gardner (Robbie Rogers 60), Eddie Gaven, Rich
Balchan (Danny O'Rourke 69), Emmanuel Ekpo, Bernardo Anor, Tommy
Heinemann (Jeff Cunningham 65), Andres Mendoza.
Substitutes Not Used: Julius James, Justin Meram, Dejan Rusmir, Andy Gruenebaum.
FC Dallas -- Kevin Hartman, Zach Loyd (Andrew Wiedeman
89), George John, Ugo Ihemelu, Jair Benitez, Jackson, Eric Alexander
(Ricardo Villar 60), Daniel Hernandez, Andrew Jacobson, Brek Shea,
Marvin Chavez (Milton Rodriguez 83).
Substitutes Not Used: Bruno Guarda, Ruben Luna, Bobby Warshaw, Chris Seitz.
Referee: Jorge Gonzalez
Referee's Assistants: Bill Dittmar; Paul Scott
4th Official: Mark Declouet
Attendance: 20,704
Weather: Clear and 97 degrees
