'Public' gives a schooling
Revolution are routed in tourney
FOXBOROUGH - Joe Public FC forward Gregory Richardson managed to do everything the Revolution couldn't last night.
Richardson scored a hat trick and set up another goal to lead Joe Public to a 4-0 victory in the preliminary-round series of the CONCACAF Champions League in front of 3,523 at Gillette Stadium. Joe Public won the series on aggregate goals (6-1) and advanced to Group C play of the tournament.
Joe Public became the first Caribbean club to knock out a US team in the history of CONCACAF club competition, and the first Caribbean team to score three goals against a US team.
They did it behind Richardson, a native of Guyana, who said the Columbus Crew were the only MLS club to express interest in his talents. That may change after his performance against the Revolution.
Richardson was out for two months with a knee injury and was playing in just his third game back last night. He proved to be the offensive fuel for Joe Public.
"I can't explain it," Richardson said. "It's one of my best performances. It's the first time I ever play MLS team and plus the high stage. I just knew they couldn't handle it. My speed alone, I would have killed them."
Joe Public wasted little time. In the 17th minute, Roen Nelson sent a pass from the halfway line to Richardson, who had a step on the Revolution's Gabriel Badilla and Amaechi Igwe.
Richardson managed to take the shot, despite a sliding Badilla to his left and a charging Igwe on his right, for a 1-0 lead.
Richardson had also kicked off the scoring six minutes into the second half in the first match (a 2-1 win for Joe Public last week).
Richardson came back in the 45th minute last night, dodging Badilla along the right side, to chip in a goal over keeper Matt Reis's head to the top left corner for a 2-0 lead.
In the opening minutes of the second half, Richardson sent a pass to Nelson, who dribbled in a goal off Reis's fingertips to the left side of the net, boosting Joe Public's lead to 3-0.
Without a senior roster forward available, the Revolution were in a challenging situation before the match even started. Injuries kept Kenny Mansally (ankle sprain), Taylor Twellman (facial lacerations), Kheli Dube (adductor strain), and Adam Cristman (toe sprain) out of the lineup. As a result, Khano Smith and Brandon Manzonelli started at forward.
The offensive opportunities were limited for the Revolution, and what chances they had, they failed to put away.
"Obviously, we didn't want to go out like that, and we didn't want to lose like that, but at the end of the day, I think it's a blessing in disguise," Smith said.
The Revolution now can focus on the MLS standings, as this was their last in-season tournament. Last month, they won the SuperLiga and advanced to the semifinals of the US Open Cup.
"You never want to get beat at home," said Reis. "Unfortunately, that happened tonight. Now the important thing is to focus on the MLS Cup."
That sentiment was echoed by Revolution coach Steve Nicol.
"The last three months, we've played every four days with a roster of 18," Nicol said. "You're traveling, that's what you get, you get a team that's getting no juice.
"So we'll maybe manage a training session or two in the next couple of weeks and get some strength back and get on with MLS."
The Columbus Crew lead the Eastern Conference with 40 points, and the Revolution are 2 points behind. On Saturday, the Revolution travel to Ohio to play the Crew. In their first meeting May 24, the Revolution walked away with a 1-0 win. 