Historical Moments:
1996: On April 13th, the Revolution played the first match in team history and dropped
a 3-2 decision to the Tampa Bay Mutiny in Tampa. Two weeks later, the Revs were
welcomed to New England and won their first game in Foxboro with a 2-1 shootout
win over DC United. The Revolution's stars included Alexi Lalas, Mike Burns,
Welton and leading scorer, Joe-Max Moore. Despite a solid season, the Revolution
would miss out on the playoffs with a record of 15-17, becoming the first Eastern
Conference team to not qualify for the postseason. Frank Stapleton would resign
as coach after just one season.
1997: To replace Stapleton, the Revs turned to Thomas Rongen to help guide them into the
postseason. A major acquisition for the Revolution during Rongen's tenure was
Italian World Cup star goalkeeper Walter Zenga. His performances were a big help
to the Revolution as they once again finished the year with a record of 15-17,
qualifying for the playoffs on the last week with a last-minute win over the
Dallas Burn. Their playoff run was very brief, however, as they were swept by
eventual champion DC United.
1998: Coming off their first playoff appearance, the Revs acquired Raul Diaz Arce and their
fans hoped it would help catapult the team to the next level. But the Revolution
would suffer through a tough season and finish in the MLS cellar with a
record of 11-21. In the middle of the season, Thomas Rongen walked out as coach,
and goalkeeper Walter Zenga became the first player/coach in MLS history.
1999: Under Walter Zenga, the Revs would fare no better and, although in the playoff hunt
until the final weekend, struggle mightily with a record of 12-20. Zenga would
be relieved of his coaching and playing duties and former Liverpool star Steve
Nicol replaced him for the final two games. To make matters worse, the Revs
star Joe-Max Moore was allocated to Everton in England.
2000: In February, the Revolution hired former US player and Uruguayan native Fernando
Clavijo to guide the team. At the start, the Revs would play well and even lead
the Eastern Conference briefly before faltering during the summer. But the team
would pick it up again near the end and finish with their first .500 record of
13-13-6. In the playoffs as the 7th seed, the Revs would win their first ever
playoff game before falling to the Chicago Fire in three games, 6 points to 3.
2001: Expectations were high in New England for the Revolution after their first playoff
win. But the Revs started out horribly, losing their first six matches and never
really recovered, finishing with an embarrassing record of 7-14-6 in their
final season at Foxboro Stadium.
2002: In January, the Revolution added key players from the dispersal draft, including
goalkeeper Adin Brown and the team had even higher expectations than the year before.
Even the addition of rookie Taylor Twellman seemed to give the Revs a big
boost. The team would suffer their traditional out-of-the-gate slump. On May
11, the Revolution played their first game at CMGI Field, which was later renamed
Gillette Stadium, blanking the Dallas Burn 2-0 on two Twellman goals. The team
would go through a tough summer and seemed to be well on their way to another
disappointing season. But during a mid-August game at Chicago, the Revolution
trailed 1-0 and came back to win 2-1 on a last-minute goal by Daouda Kante. That
seemed to turn the Revs' season upside-down as they would not lose a game the
rest of the way, finishing with a record of 12-14-2 and winning the Eastern Conference
regular season championship. In the playoffs as the 2nd seed, the Revs
would snatch their first-ever playoff series win from the Chicago Fire in three
games 6 points to 3. In the next round, the Columbus Crew would give the Revs
a bit of a challenge in the third game before the team wearing red, white and
blue would prevail, winning the series 5 points to 2 and qualify for their first
ever MLS Cup.
2002 MLS Cup: As if their hot streak wasn't enough, the Revolution were to play their first MLS
Cup at home in Gillette Stadium in front of a record-shattering 61,316 fans. The
match featured the Revs, the newcomers, against the Los Angeles Galaxy, who
had been this far three times before, losing each one. The game would be lackluster,
as the Revs would not manage a shot on goal until the final minute of regulation,
whereas the Galaxy had five shots on goal until then. For the second straight
year, MLS Cup would be decided in overtime as regulation ended scoreless.
The Galaxy had the best of the scoring chances, and again, the Revolution were
dormant. But as the game reached a second overtime, an MLS Cup first, substitute
Winston Griffiths came extremely close to winning the trophy for the Revs
as his shot from outside the box bounced off two Galaxy defenders and then hit
the crossbar. A minute after that, the Galaxy counterattacked, and a one-timer
by LA's Carlos Ruiz snuck by Revs 'keeper Adin Brown to give the Galaxy their first
championship and send the huge hometown crowd home heartbroken.
2003: The sting of the MLS Cup loss would make the Revolution determined to make another
run for the championship. In the offseason, the Revs brought back Joe-Max Moore
and experts started to rely on the Revs. Things looked good for them as they
sat in second place in the East at the end of June. But they would suffer a downfall
as they would not win a game in July and won their first game in the summer
in the last weekend of August. From the last week of September on, the Revs
would put together a similar run from the previous year, winning five straight
to end the season and finish above .500 for the first time ever at 12-9-9. In
the playoffs, the Revolution would outscore the MetroStars in the aggregate goal
series 3-1. In the conference final, it would be the same, sad ending for the
Revs as they fell 1-0 to the Chicago Fire on a 111th minute goal by Chris Armas.
2004: Once again, the Revolution would struggle at the beginning of the season. Things
would go from bad to worse for the Revs when 'keeper Adin Brown went down with
an injury and Matt Reis took his place. Brown was not the only player bitten by
the injury bug, as between May and July, the Revolution would lose over 200 man
games to injury, including Taylor Twellman. Reis filled in well and earned the
starting nod for the season. As September rolled around, the Revs would go through
a roller-coaster ride. Needing a win in the last game at home against the
Chicago Fire, the Revs were able to get the job done, winning 2-1 and clinch the
final playoff spot with a record of 8-13-9, which would normally put a team
in the basement. The Revs were not given much of a chance against the best team
in the league, the Columbus Crew. The Revolution would shut the Crew out in the
first game 1-0 and stun the Crew in the next game with a tie, 1-1, thanks to
Matt Reis stopping two penalty kicks. In the conference final for the 3rd year
in a row, the Revs and DC United would battle back and forth before overtime was
needed with the two teams square at 3-3. Two overtime periods went by without
a score. In the penalty kick shootout, the Revs would wind up one game shy of
MLS Cup again as they were outshot in the session 4-3.
2005: Right from the start, the Revolution made it crystal clear they would not be the
same team that would start a season slow and finish strong. After battling back
from a 2-0 deficit to tie the Earthquakes in San Jose on opening night, the Revs
went on a tear, winning games with late goals and the goalkeeping of Matt Reis.
Reis would hold a shutout streak for over a month. The trio of Taylor Twellman,
Pat Noonan and Clint Dempsey added to the Revs' potency. By the end of the
season, the Revs would clinch the top seed, finishing with a solid record of 17-7-8,
and their 59 points set an Eastern Conference record. Against the MetroStars
in the first round of the playoffs, the Revs lost the first game 1-0, and
when it was 2-0 on aggregate in the second game, their season appeared to be over.
But with the game being played in a snowfall, the Revolution would show their
resiliency as they had all season, scoring three unanswered goals to advance
the conference final for the fourth year in a row. At home against the Chicago
Fire, Clint Dempsey scored an early goal, and the Revs sat back. A late spurt
by the Fire in the last 10 minutes had them hanging on for dear life to their lead.
It looked for a moment like the Fire would get to them after Gonzalo Segares
put the ball in the back of the net in stoppage time, but the offside flag was
up and the Revs breathed a sigh of relief, proceeding to run the clock out to
advance to their second MLS Cup in four years.
2005 MLS Cup: At brand-spanking new Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, the Revs had retaliation on
their minds against the Los Angeles Galaxy, the team that beat them for the Cup
three years earlier. Just like that game, this one would be lackluster. The
Revs would only get two shots on goal in regulation and the Galaxy's defense stiffened.
In overtime, it would be played the same way until the last minute of
the first OT period when LA's "other" Guatemalan, Guillermo "Pando" Ramirez, who
had scored only one goal the entire regular season, scored off a rebound. The
strain of a long, heroic season took its toll on the Revs as they were unable
to equalize. In almost a total carbon copy of the 2002 MLS Cup, LA hung on to win
the trophy and keep the bitter taste of a championship loss to the Galaxy in
the Revs' mouth.
2006: Some acts are hard to follow, and the Revolution showed that this was the case with
them. Unable to match their hot start to the previous year, the Revs limped
out of the gate while also dealing with injuries. Just when hope for a successful
season seemed lost, the team went on a tear, finishing the regular year with
a 5-0-1 stretch to finish with a second-place record of 12-8-12. After allowing
the Chicago Fire to score first in their playoff series, the team fought back
to tie the series t6he next week. In the penalty shootout, the Revs would outlast
Chicago, 4-2, advancing to a fifth straight conference championship game. Against
DC United at Washington, Taylor Twellman scored a goal early and the team's
defense did what they had to do, shutting out United and setting up a New England-Houston
MLS Cup.
2006 MLS Cup: For a second year in a row, the Revs traveled to Pizza Hut Park for their third MLS
Cup in five seasons. Their opponents this time were the Houston Dynamo and the
Revolution were confident about coming out on top this time. Although the Revolution
had better scoring chances, the Revs and their opponent again played a
scoreless regulation. Many objective soccer viewers sighed as if to say "We've
been here before." After no one scored in the first OT period, Taylor Twellman
took a shot past Pat Onstad that rolled into the corner of the net, sending the
New England supporters into a frenzy. With seven minutes to play, the Revs finally
seemed to have a championship. But then, they would commit the Cardinal Sin:
they took a mental break as Brian Ching immediately scored the equalizer for
Houston. After the rest of overtime went scoreless, the first penalty shootout
in MLS Cup history would commence. After going back and forth, Pat Noonan's shot
missed and in the sudden death portion, Jay Heaps' shot was saved, winning
the title for the Dynamo and leaving the Revs feeling disconsolate again following
another awfully long, draining championship game. Following the ridiculously
difficult defeat, Clint Dempsey was transferred to Fulham in a move that was
not surprising, but nevertheless rubbed salt in the wound.
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