Earthquakes find late season groove

By Jackson Morgus

The San Jose Earthquakes of Major League Soccer wrapped up their 2009 home schedule at Buck Shaw Stadium Oct. 7 with a 2-1 defeat to FC Dallas. The loss ended a season-high four game unbeaten streak.

This was the second season that the Earthquakes spent in Buck Shaw Stadium, where they amassed a 5-4-3 record this year, compared to 7-13-8 overall (the team also went 1-1-1 in home games played in Oakland and San Francisco).

"In general you play with more energy at home, and I think it's to do with the fans. We're no different," said Head Coach Frank Yallop.

He credited some of this energy to the atmosphere brought on campus at Santa Clara.

"I think that in college sports (students) really support their teams, and I think we get good support from the university, from the college ranks."

The Earthquakes plan to create an even bigger home field advantage with their plans for a new stadium in San Jose, which were announced last month.

The team will play their final two games of the year in the Greater Los Angeles Area on Saturday, October 17 versus Chivas USA and October 24 versus the Los Angeles Galaxy.

San Jose will be looking to finish strong in Southern California and climb out of the basement of the Western Conference. The team started the season slowly, losing six consecutive matches early on.

However, with several roster changes and a more cohesive unit, the Quakes have been one of the biggest surprises in the MLS down the stretch, going 4-3-4 in their last 11 matches.

One of the bright spots for the Quakes was goaltender Joe Cannon, who has been playing in a familiar environment. Before his MLS career, Cannon was a standout as the goalkeeper for Santa Clara University.

Cannon, a two-time MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, started 27 games for the Earthquakes, recording a record of only 6-13-8 but posting a 1.67 goals against average in his second year with the team since returning from the Galaxy.

Cannon also reached a number of milestones for the Earthquakes this season. He became the franchise's all-time leader in minutes played and games started. His 68 career shutouts ranks third in MLS history.

Two other former Broncos took the field for the Earthquakes this season. Jamil Roberts was a member of the Earthquakes, although he did not play in any games this season. Defender Ryan Cochrane played in five games for the Earthquakes this season before being traded to the Houston Dynamo in August.

Other than Cannon, standouts for the Earthquakes included leading scorer Ryan Johnson, a Jamaican forward playing in his second season for San Jose. Johnson leads the team in goals, with 10, which is double that of the second leading scorer, Arturo Alvarez. Defender Chris Leitch was the leading set-up man for the Earthquakes, registering five assists.

Overall, it wasn't the season that the Earthquakes perhaps had hoped for, but Yallop sees reason for optimism.

"We feel good that we can go anywhere now and play well and win," said Yallop following team preparation for their weekend match.

As far as finishing strong, the Earthquakes are far from defeated. They have played their best soccer of the season in the last few weeks, gaining momentum that they hope to carry into their final two Southern California swings.

"We've played hard, we've played tough, we've got results, and I think that's the same with these next two games. We want to win them both," said Yallop.

Sports reporter Gabe Taylor contributed to this article. Contact Jackson Morgus at jmorgus@scu.edu or (408) 554-1918.