Houston has plenty of guys worth protecting here. (Getty Images)
Today we move another day closer to the 2009 expansion draft. Now we turn our focus to the
Houston Dynamo.
The Dynamo are a tough team to figure out due to the number of quality players that are both
young and old.
Protected Available Exempt Corey Ashe Wade Barrett Danny Cruz Bobby Boswell Mike Chabala Geoff
Cameron Ryan Cochrane Brian Ching Tyler Deric Ricardo Clark Tally Hall Brad Davis John Michael
Hayden Andrew Hainault Richard Mulrooney Stuart Holden Dominic Oduro Luis Angel Landin Pat Onstad
Brian Mullan Abe Thompson Eddie Robinson Erik Ustruck Craig Waibel Cam Weaver
Either way they stand to lose a good player this year.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
The Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo have combined for four MLS Cup titles this decade, and
one of them will move a step closer to trying to claim Team of the Decade honors when they meet in
Friday's Western Conference Final (11pm, ESPN2).
This match promises to be a dogfight. The season series between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the
Houston Dynamo featured exactly one goal and a lot of physical defending. If that sounds a lot like
what Chivas and the Galaxy went through for the bulk of their five games this season, its not
coincidence.
The regular season is over and the playoffs are the order of the day in Major League Soccer.
Surprise qualifiers Real Salt Lake made themselves known in the first leg of their tie with
Supporters Shield winners Columbus Crew, while all four conference semi-finals were even matches
with little to separate the sides.
The Western Conference Finals was a long, hard slog between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the
Houston Dynamo. With an 8:30 starting time to accommodate ESPN2's college football schedule, two
blackouts that interrupted play in each half, and a half hour of overtime, the Galaxy did not
trudge off the pitch with their Western Conference trophy until almost midnight.
Pat Onstad deserves a medal. Keeping two own goals out. The second one was a sequence of goal
line saves in the 42nd minute as Freddie Ljungberg's free kick was helped along by Ricardo Clark
with Onstad backpedaling to parry it out before it crossed the goal line and then falling down to
bat the ball away from Fredy Montero's opportunistic foot.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
The Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo have combined for four MLS Cup titles this decade, and
one of them will move a step closer to trying to claim Team of the Decade honors when they meet in
Friday's Western Conference Final (11pm, ESPN2).
