Dynamo Tops Revolution To Win Second Straight Cup

WASHINGTON — Long after the final whistle, the great orange party carried on.

Chants of "Thank you, Dynamo!" thundered from hundreds of fans wearing orange shirts, orange hair, and even orange hard hats as they made the stands bounce at RFK Stadium.

On the field in the middle of the celebration, with grass stains on his orange socks, stood Houston Dynamo defender Eddie Robinson. He clutched the MLS Cup trophy and soaked in the fact that he now will own four championship rings.

"This is ridiculous, man," Robinson said. "I don't know what to say. To be so fortunate is unbelievable."

Meanwhile, the downtrodden New England Revolution players were already in the locker room dealing with the burden of knowing they have become the Buffalo Bills of MLS.

"How cruel can it be?" midfielder Steve Ralston said. "We're all devastated right now. There's not much to say. We're all feeling the same thing."

Make it two in a row for the Dynamo, the first MLS team to repeat in a decade. Houston rallied from a nervous and sloppy start to beat the Revolution 2–1 yesterday in the MLS Cup, a rematch of last year's final. A savvy tactical move by coach Dominic Kinnear led to two second-half goals, making Houston the first back-to-back champions since D.C. United won the league's first two titles in 1996 and 1997.

"This one is more special," said midfielder Dwayne De Rosario, who assisted on the tying goal, scored the winning goal and was named the game's MVP, "because we're the second team now to go back-to-back."

The Dynamo have won the championship both years of their existence in Houston, but look further and it's easy to call them a dynasty. Much of the team won the Cup as the San Jose Earthquakes in 2001 and 2003 before that club was disbanded and reborn last year in Texas, where standing-room-only crowds of orange have cheered the players on. "I just hope that when I step on the field," Robinson said, pointing his finger at the fans who were still singing and bouncing, "that I can show the passion that those guys show."

After setting up Joseph Ngwenya's scrappy goal in the 61st minute, De Rosario settled the game with a powerful 12-yard header off Brad Davis' cross in the 74th. De Rosario became the first player to score the winning goal in two MLS Cups — he did it in 2001 — and he's also the first two-time MVP. "He has a flair for the dramatic," Kinnear said.

Actually, Kinnear was stunned that De Rosario scored with a header instead of wheeling around to try to kick the ball. De Rosario agreed.

"As Dom says, I don't score with my head," De Rosario said. "In this situation, it's more instinct than it is anything else."