Revolution Player of the Month, April 2014: Andy Dorman

The New England Revolution rebounded from their poor start to the season by going 2-1-1 in April. The month didn't begin favorably for the Revs as they were downed 2-0 by DC United. The defense would tighten things up, however, and only allowed one goal over the next three fixtures. Perhaps more impressive was the outpouring of goals. A 1-1 road tie against the Chicago Fire was sandwiched by 2-0 home victories over the Houston Dynamo and Sporting KC.

There were plenty of players that helped contribute to the Revolution's insurrection, but no one was more critical than Andy Dorman. As the starting defensive midfielder, Dorman shielded the backline while also helping to keep possession with his accurate passing. Largely an afterthought in 2013, Dorman has become a central cog for the Revs, even donning the captain's armband while Jose Goncalves recovers from injury.

Corey:  Dorman spent all of April starting as the lone defensive-midfielder, and the results couldn't have been better. The Revs went 2-1-1 and Dorman put in top-shelf performances across the board. By the end of the month, Dorman became the team's interim captain with Goncalves suffering an injury against the Houston Dynamo. His work rate and vision gave the Revs new life and his shielding of the backline helped the Revs' defensive form tremendously.

Nick: After a quiet season debut, Dorman has taken off as the Revs' true holding midfielder. He sees the field as well as anyone in navy and red, and takes up a massive amount of space in the middle of the park. His consistency and leadership make him a reliable captain and trustworthy starter, now and into the foreseeable future.

Jake: One of the reasons the Revs have been so stout defensively has been the acting captain. He reads the game so well and stops so many attacks in the center of the pitch, often dropping back to cover the defensive line. His passing has also been really, really good, even if I wish he got forward more often with a few more of his trademark late runs into the box.

Andy's Line: 4 appearances, 4 starts, 349 minutes played, 12 points in TBM PotM Voting

Honorable Mention

Andrew Farrell, 7 points: Farrell may have gotten out-muscled by Quincy Amarikwa leading to a Chicago Fire goal, but he was otherwise a steady force across the backline for the Revs in the month of April. Against Houston he put in a stellar performance at right back and then was forced to shift to center back, where he stayed ever since, mid-game when Goncalves went out with an injury. Farrell is on the up-and-up in MLS lately and his launchpad was a very impressive April. - Corey

Lee Nguyen, 3 points: Could we give him back-to-back POTM awards? Of course we could, especially since everyone has suddenly noticed Nguyen is good at soccer, a fact seemingly only known to New Englanders and possibly a few bitter Vancouver Whitecaps fans. He's the driving force of the midfield on offense and at times defense. He's always on the move looking to either get the ball back, or get it upfield to the attackers. - Jake

The Player of the Month is compiled by members of The Bent Musket's staff. Each writer selects his top three Revolution players for the month, who are assigned point values - three points for the #1, two for the #2, and one for the #3. Then, points are totaled and the player who received the most points in the voting is named Player of the Month. Honorable mentions go to the next two players in the voting.