Revolution 1, DC United 2 - Rolfe's Second Half Braces Completes Comeback Win For DC

The Revolution have gotten into a habit of scoring first, which is not a bad habit to have. Giving up those leads and drawing or losing games however is absolutely the worst habit to have.

Chris Rolfe scored twice in the second half, including the go-ahead penalty kick in the 81st as D.C. United completed a comeback win in a pivotal top of the East clash against the New England Revolution.

Charlie Davies put the Revs out in front by bundling home the opener past DC keeper Bill Hamid in the 10th minute though he refused to celebrate against his old team. Teal Bunbury won a aerial ball and eventually flicked on a ball to Lee Nguyen in space who centered the ball for Davies and though the finish was awkward it was enough to beat Hamid.

Though Hamid was in top form on this day, commanding his area with strength while claiming cross and shutting down the Revs the rest of the way. He made an excellent stop on Chris Tierney after Nguyen played him through later in the first half. Nguyen would give the Revs their best chance in the second half when he blazed a shot over the bar and despite a few late scrambles after they were down the Revs struggled to close out the match yet again.

DC United were the stronger team long before they equalized in the second half through Rolfe. Needing to change his side, Jay Heaps opted to bring off London Woodberry and Andy Dorman, both players on yellow card accumulation watch, for Kevin Alston and Steve Neumann respectively.

The two substitutes would unfortunately affect the game negatively as Alston was unable to head away a dangerous cross in the 70th minute, as his leaping miss allowed Rolfe to volley home the equalizer at close range. Ten minutes later, disaster struck again as Neumann chopped down DC's Miguel Aguilar in the top corner of the penalty area. With Aguilar and the ball moving away from goal, it was a needless challenge from Neumann and referee Ismail Elfath didn't hesitate to point to spot despite the play occurring near the edge of the area.

Chris Rolfe would step up to take the penalty and with Bobby Shuttleworth diving the wrong way, Rolfe's strong shot found the back of the net and would prove to be the winner.

With the Revs eliminated from the Open Cup midweek, the focus of their campaign shifted to the MLS regular season but this loss will sting. A win would have put them one point behind DC with a game in hand. Now the Revs face a long struggle back to the top of the East, seven points back and teams like Toronto and Montreal with many games in hand lurking in the standings.

The Revolution's next game will be a midweek affair at the Columbus Crew on June 24th followed by a home match against the Vancouver Whitecaps on June 27th.