The small but diehard legion of D.C. United fans attending Wednesday’s Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final began the night by unfurling a massive set of banners that together depicted a castle, and behind which a sign that said, “Fortress RFK.”
If fortresses protect only the most prized possessions, then it is trophies that sit behind those walls for D.C. United, Major League Soccer’s winningest team. And after a nearly four-year dry spell in elimination tournaments, United finally added one more piece of hardware to its bulging collection with a 2-1 victory over the minor-league Charleston Battery in front of 8,212.
“It’s my first time as a captain to win a trophy,” said United forward Jaime Moreno. “The first one is always special and a great feeling to do in front of our fans. Even though it was a midweek game, the crowd was magnificent.”
The title was the 12th in United’s 13-year existence, its first tournament championship since the 2004 MLS Cup and its second U.S. Open Cup. D.C. last won the 94-year-old tournament in 1996.
United also claimed a $100,000 winner’s prize and a berth in the 2009-10 CONCACAF Champions League.
Luciano Emilio needed less than five minutes to put the home team ahead, 1-0, cleaning up a loose ball after Moreno’s nifty back heel put Santino Quaranta through on goal. But Emilio also re-aggravated a groin injury on the play and limped off the field immediately.
The Battery, carrying the hopes of the United Soccer League first division and boasting two wins over MLS clubs en route to the final, then equalized six minutes later. Charleston’s Chris Williams beat United defender Marc Burch down the right side then laid the ball off to teammate Ian Fuller, who slammed the ball home.
“I think I speculated a little and besides that, there was a defender that was standing before me so my reaction was kind of late,” said United goalkeeper Louis Crayton.
Former United player Lazo Alavanja kept the pressure on, hitting the post in the 20th minute and leading the Battery with four shots.
Fred, who had missed United’s last two matches with a hamstring injury, eluded an offside trap to run onto a pass from Clyde Simms and restore his team’s advantage in the 50th minute, his near post finish beating Battery keeper Dusty Hudock.
“I was so happy when [Fred] scored,” said Burch. “I was like, there’s no way I’m going to mess up the rest of the game.”
United head coach Tom Soehn allowed himself only the trophy ceremony to enjoy his first title as a head coach. D.C. departs for the West Coast on Thursday afternoon to face San Jose in league play on Saturday.
“Getting a taste of running around with a trophy in front of our fans, who deserve it more than anybody, is a great feeling,” said Soehn. “You remember that stuff. There’s a lot of things you forget in the game, but situations like that the most you remember. You want to taste that again. I hope they got a great taste of it. But there’s other things on the horizon that we still have to accomplish.”
United notes
Luciano Emilio ruled himself out of United’s match this weekend and was not listed in United’s travel party to San Jose. Gonzalo Peralta (hamstring), Zach Wells (toe), Jeff Carroll (foot) and Ben Olsen (ankle) were also omitted. Joe Vide, who left the game late in the first half with a hamstring injury, was on the travel list.
Jaime Moreno travels today to Ecuador, where he will meet up with the Bolivian national team ahead of a World Cup qualifying match this weekend.
Forward Thabiso “Boyzzz” Khumalo said he was in the process of finalizing a deal to join United for the remainder of the season. Khumalo, a 27-year-old South African, had six goals and three assists this summer for USL-2’s Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
