Emmanuel Ekpo's Crew in US Cup Final
Ekpo's Crew in US Cup Final
Posted: 2010-09-02 07:44
Emmanuel Ekpo's Columbus Crew came from behind to claw a gutsy 2-1 semifinal win over struggling DC United to reach the US Open Cup Final.
The Nigerian midfielder, nursing a groin injury, did not travel with the team, as they claimed their second victory of the season over long time rivals DC United.
The Crew went behind on 13 minutes, giving up a penalty which Pablo Hernandez converted, and took until late into the game to find the game-tying goal, albeit with a little help from their opponents.
Andy Iro's shot went in off defender Marc Burch for an own-goal in the 89th minute, and Steven Lenhart won Columbus a penalty of their own in extra time, allowing Guillermo Barros Schelotto to convert.
The Crew will meet Seattle Sounders in the Final, after they triumphed 3-1 against Chivas USA.
The Lamar Hunt US Open Cup is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer and is recognized as the federation’s National Championship. The tournament has crowned a champion for 96 consecutive years dating back to 1914.
It is the oldest annual team tournament in US sports history and among the oldest soccer tournaments of its type in the world. In 1999, the competition was renamed to honor long-time soccer pioneer and Crew Founder Lamar Hunt.
The Columbus Crew were winners in 2002.
Comment on this article:
TERMS OF USE: The comments posted below do not reflect the views of KickOff.com. Users are reminded that no misuse of this comment facility will be tolerated. Any abusive, racist or inflammatory comments will be deleted and the user banned. Please report abusive posts to editor@kickoff.com