Road-wary team seeking revenge for late collapse

Tampa Bay, which wasted a 2-0 lead in the final 32 minutes May 20, revisits the scene of the crime.

By RODNEY PAGE

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 9, 2000

If ever there was a time the Mutiny felt jinxed, it was May 20 at Giants Stadium.

Tampa Bay looked like a lock to end its four-game road losing streak and extend its winning streak to three.

The Mutiny played a near flawless first half against New York/New Jersey and led 2-0 at halftime. Mamadou Diallo scored both goals, and if several other near misses had been converted, the lead could have been larger.

Then came the collapse.

First came a goal in the 58th minute by Adolfo Valencia that cut the lead to 2-1. The Mutiny held on for 30 minutes, like a boxer in the late rounds taking punch after punch but refusing to fall.

But with two minutes left in regulation, Valencia scored again. The Mutiny was left hoping for an overtime win, or a tie to salvage at least one point.

It got neither.

Petter Villegas scored 45 seconds into overtime and the collapse was complete. Three unanswered goals and plenty of unanswered questions.

"We played the best 45 minutes of soccer that I've ever seen us play, and perhaps the best 45 minutes I've seen from anyone in MLS this year," coach Tim Hankinson said. "Then our demons came to haunt us in the second half. Going back to New York, we have a lot to prove to ourselves."

Tampa Bay will try to forget its lowest point of the season when it meets the MetroStars tonight. New York/New Jersey has won three straight since its come-from-behind win over the Mutiny.

The Mutiny ended its road woes last week with a 3-2 win over Dallas. But the players say they won't forget about the last time they visited East Rutherford, N.J.

"There were a couple of tense situations in the locker room (after the game) between players," goalkeeper Scott Garlick said. "We were all very disappointed. Not only were we up 2-0, but it could've been 5 or 6 to zero. I don't think it was them coming back from a 2-0 deficit, it's just that we dominated the game so much that the game should've been over."

The MetroStars clearly have become a better team since beating the Mutiny. New York/New Jersey, which has been one of the losingest teams in Major League Soccer since 1996, was 3-6 before that game.

But the MetroStars acquired forward Clint Mathis in the dispersal draft, which occurred when Los Angeles was allocated Mexican star Luis Hernandez and had to release Mathis. They also traded midfielder Brian Kelly to L.A. for midfielder Roy Myers.

They have not lost since obtaining both players, including impressive wins over Chicago, first in the Central, and Los Angeles, second in the West.

The New York/New Jersey game also was the last time Raul Diaz Arce suited up for the Mutiny, although he didn't play. Diallo is entrenched as the starting forward and has scored two goals in four of his past five games.

Diallo said scoring two goals against the Metro-Stars last time did little to ease the frustration of losing.

"I'll never forget the day we played in New York and scored two goals in the first half," Diallo said. "I was most happy with myself and with the way the team played. But in the second half, we did not play well, and I was upset about that. I want to go back to New York and show everybody that we can play better. What I did the last time, I want to do again."

Garlick said the team probably will not discuss what happened three short weeks ago.

"That's soccer," Garlick said. "We could lead 2-0 at halftime this time and lose. If you think about it like that then you start to get tight. It creates a negative atmosphere. We know we can score goals. We know if we all stick together, we can win."

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.

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