Team is off to second best start as it looks for its first win in Cascadia

Have you had enough of the NATO nonsense yet? Good thing there’s a Fire game to give respite to the protestors and the watch party is far north of the hubbub. If you can’t make it out, be sure to catch the game LIVE on Galavision (channel listing by provider) or ESPN Deportes Radio (97.5 FM) beginning at 6:00 p.m. CT

Now, Five Things (plus a bonus) which you should know heading into tonight’s match in Portland…

1)      FIRE O-FER IN CASCADIA…Thought I might as well get this one out of the way early – the Fire have failed to win a match in Cascadia, going 0-4-1 in five away matches vs. the likes of Portland, Vancouver and Seattle since the latter entered the league in 2009. The single point was actually earned in the team’s first ever match in the Pacific northwest, a 0-0 draw at Seattle on July 25, 2009.

With this being the team’s only regular season trip to Cascadia in 2012, Frank Klopas’ side will look to make amends on their first visit to Portland last season, a 4-2 drubbing in the rainy opening of JELD-Wen Field on April 14.

2)      TIMBERS HAVING TROUBLE SCORING…The Fire face a Timbers side who’s attack has been sort of anemic of late. Having gone 1-2-2 in the team’s last five, Portland has failed to score a goal on their own in their last 427 minutes of play, with the last goal coming from Scottish striker Kris Boyd in the 23^rd minute of a 3-1 loss to LA on April 14 (hey that date rings familiar!)

Portland did win a game in that span, seeing Sporting KC’s Chance Myers tally a 41^st minute own goal in a 1-0 home win on April 21.

3)      OFF TO A GOOD START… Through the first nine games of the 2012 campaign, the Fire have gotten off to their best start over the past three seasons, going 4-2-3 to earn 15 points.

Where does that start rank?

A: It’s actually tied with the 2003 (4-2-3) and 2009 (3-0-6) seasons for the club’s second best start in terms of points earned through the first nine matches. A win on Sunday night would push this year’s team to within one point of the club’s best start through 10 matches, coming when Denis Hamlett led the team to a 6-3-1 record (19 pts) to start the 2008 MLS campaign.

4)      COMING FROM BEHIND… Perhaps most impressive about the team’s early record this season is the fact that they’ve come from behind to earn points in five of the seven matches they’ve been at a deficit. More than that, Klopas’ side has earned three come-from-behind victories in those five games with two of them coming on the road (4/21 3-2 win @ TFC, 5/4 2-1 win @ CHV).

While this is the earliest three comeback victories have been earned in club history, the mark isn’t the record. Instead, the 2000 team recorded five come-back victories en route to finishing tied on 57 points with that year’s Supporters Shield winners Kansas City.

The point mark of 57 is the most earned by the club in one season…Still 42 points to go…

5)      SPEAKING OF 42… That is exactly the number of consecutive appearances Dominic Oduro has made since joining the Fire via trade from Houston on March 23 of last season. The Ghanaian has appeared in EVERY ONE of the team’s 42 regular season matches in that time. This opportunistic 81st minute game winner in last week’s comeback victory over Sporting KC pushed the resurgent Oduro into the Top 15 on the club’s all-time MLS goal scoring list, now into a tie for 14th with Cuauhtemoc Blanco.

BONUS: Former Fire forward Calen Carr sort of did his old team a favor, taking a blow to the head from Timbers Gambian defender Futty Danso in the 82^nd minute of Portland’s 0-0 draw at Houston on Tuesday. As a result, the MLS Disciplinary Committee fine and suspended the Timbers defender for tonight’s contest.

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH FRANK YALLOP

On game:

“The first 30-35 minutes, we were excellent and could have been 3-nil up. Their ‘keeper was excellent and kept them in it. When you don’t put those chances away, you are kicking yourself a bit and they were able to get themselves back in the game. They had a great finish on their goal and came out with some confidence in the second half. I am proud that we didn’t stop fighting and earned at least a point out of the match.”

On Alan Gordon:

“Alan has been terrific for us this year. He is everything you want in a player, a great person and a hard-worker who wants to do well for his team. He is a great teammate. We have relied on him the past two games and he has had two outstanding finishes the past two matches that have gotten us some important points. I am very happy for him right now.”

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES FORWARD ALAN GORDON

On equalizing goal:

“That was all Chris (Wondolowski). He brought it down and laid off a great ball for me. I didn’t do well putting it away on the initial shot, but luckily I got to the rebound and was able to finish. Once I saw I had a chance to follow up my shot, I knew I had to have it.”

On Quakes unbeaten streak at Buck Shaw Stadium:

“This team has a ‘never say die’ attitude as is, but when you have the fans behind you it makes the difference in most of these matches. Tonight, we had plenty of opportunities, and missed a penalty kick, but we kept fighting and ended up with a hard-earned point. It’s important to get these points at home if you want to be a true playoff threat.”

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES DEFENDER JASON HERNANDEZ

On match:

“We find a way to make it interesting. Unfortunately, the goals haven’t been coming for us the last couple of matches, but this team knows how to scratch and claw for every point and you saw that tonight. We stayed confident and positive throughout and we are finding ways to win. The heart and character of this team has shown in the early part of this season.”

On Alan Gordon:

“He has been a great player in this league for years, so to see him come back after all he has been through is special. Credit to him and all the hard work he put it in after the surgery in the off-season. It’s paying off – he’s been a terror for opposing defenses all season. He is looking really sharp right now around the goal and we hope he continues with that form because we are going to need him to contribute as we enter the middle of our schedule.”

COLUMBUS CREW HEAD COACH ROBERT WARZYCHA

General comments on the match:

“If you told me after 30 minutes, that it would be 1-1 at the end of the game, I would not have believed you, because (San Jose) played pretty well in the beginning. They pushed us pretty much all the way in the back and they had a number of chances to score a goal. (Goalkeeper) Andy (Gruenebaum) was unbelievable. He saved the penalty (kick), obviously, and had a phenomenal game.

“The game cooled off a little bit (after the penalty kick). We started to posses the ball more and (find scoring) opportunities. The first half probably ended up even, and we scored a good goal heading into the locker room (at halftime). That was a nice piece of work by (Justin) Meram. The second half, I thought we controlled the tempo. There were long balls and crosses that we were able to defend. Then we pushed for a goal, and they scored in the end.”

On San Jose’s high tempo in the first half:

“We wanted to do the same. We came here not just to defend. We came here to play. We wanted to try to put pressure on and win the ball high on the field, but they were good. Their movement off the ball and spacing was pretty good and they dribble well. Sometimes, you get pushed inside the box, and you have to be comfortable defending. If you’re comfortable defending, the other team is not going to score. You can’t be afraid because you’re defending.”

COLUMBUS CREW GOALKEEPER ANDY GRUENEBAUM

On his penalty kick save:

“We watched a lot of video on (San Jose’s) goals, and I happened to notice that Wondo’s (Chris Wondolowski) a pretty good player, and that he goes that way (to his right) at least once, and hits it hard. So I just dove and made myself big. I noticed that it was going back to my (left), I started to over-dive it, but I just stacked the pads (and made the stop).”

On the first-half offensive flurry by San Jose that he turned away:

“We came out just a little sluggish. You could tell after their flurry, we settled down and actually created some good chances on our own. We had some good defensive plays to keep us (in the game). That’s your job as a goalkeeper sometimes, is to make a few saves and keep (your team) in the game if you can. J (Justin Meram) got one (a goal), at the end there (of the first half). Unfortunately, we were unable to hold on (for the victory.)”

COLUMBUS CREW FORWARD JUSTIN MERAM

On his goal:

“I got the ball, I picked my head up, and he (the defender) was backing up. I just kind of saw the back of the goal. I think that was my first finesse shot (in a while). Honestly, I saw the opening, I hit it and it went it.”

On goals in back-to-back games for Columbus:

“In college, I scored a lot of goals. As a rookie last year, I didn’t get much of a chance. Finally when I got the monkey off my back (last week), now I go out and play. I feel comfortable. I got that natural instinct back, which is good. As a goal-scorer, there’s always those droughts and moments where you’re either hot or you’re not. I’m going to keep riding this as long as I can.”