2006 Houston Dynamo season

Houston Dynamo

2006 season
Chairman	Philip Anschutz
Manager	Dominic Kinnear
Major League Soccer	2nd, West (11-8-13)
MLS Cup	W Conference Semifinal W Western Conference W MLS Cup 2006
U.S. Open Cup	Semifinals
Carolina Challenge Cup	Winners
Top goalscorer	Brian Ching (11) Dwayne De Rosario (11)
Home colours Away colours

The 2006 Houston Dynamo season was the inaugural season of the club.

The team was created on December 15, 2005 when the San Jose Earthquakes were relocated, due to owner AEG's failure to secure a soccer-specific stadium. Even though all of San Jose's players and coaches moved to Houston, the team's name, logo, history and statistics were not transferred and remained inactive in San Jose thus making the Dynamo a new team, similar to the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL.

First season

Houston Dynamo vs Colorado Rapids on April 2, 2006

The Dynamo played their first game on April 2, 2006. Amidst a crowd of 25,462 people in Robertson Stadium, the Dynamo beat the Colorado Rapids 5–2. Brian Ching led the charge for the Dynamo with four goals, all of which were set up with assists from teammate Dwayne De Rosario. In stoppage time, Alejandro Moreno scored MLS' Goal of the Week with a game-clinching bicycle kick. On May 6, 2006, the Houston Dynamo won their first intrastate rivalry game against FC Dallas, 4–3 at Robertson Stadium.

The Dynamo finished their first season in Houston with an 11-8-13 record, good for second place in the Western Conference. They lost the first game of the two-legged conference semifinal to C.D. Chivas USA, 2-1, on October 22 in Los Angeles. Chivas goalkeeper Brad Guzan stopped De Rosario on a penalty kick that could have tied the match.

In the second leg on October 29, Houston defeated Chivas USA 2-0 at Robertson Stadium, advancing in dramatic fashion. After a red card to Chivas' Juan Francisco Palencia, Houston's Brad Davis converted a second-half penalty kick to tie the aggregate score. With the match in second-half stoppage time, Brian Ching headed in the winning goal from close range to delight the crowd of more than 17,000.

On November 5, 2006, the Dynamo defeated the Colorado Rapids 3-1 in the Western Conference final to earn a spot in its first MLS Cup. Scottish forward Paul Dalglish scored twice in front of an MLS Cup Playoffs-high crowd of 23,107.

Paul Dalglish holds the trophy after the MLS Cup victory

On November 12, 2006, the Dynamo defeated the New England Revolution 4-3 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie to win the 2006 MLS Cup held at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. The game was scoreless until the second session of extra time, when New England's Taylor Twellman scored. Only one minute and six seconds later, Brian Ching headed in the tying goal for Houston, and the championship was, for the first time in MLS history, decided by a shootout. Substitutes Kelly Gray and Stuart Holden made Houston's first two penalty kicks, and standouts Dwayne De Rosario and Brian Ching made the last two. Ching's gave Houston a 4-3 lead, and goalkeeper Pat Onstad stopped New England's Jay Heaps on the final attempt to secure the win.

With the win, the Dynamo advanced to the 2007 CONCACAF Champions' Cup.

2006 SuperDraft

Round/Pick	Player	Position	College
1/8	Patrick Ianni	Defense	UCLA
3/32	Andre Schmid	Forward	St. John's
4/98	Mike Chabala	Midfielder	Washington

2006 Dynamo Squad

This is the final roster for the Houston Dynamo at the end of the 2006 Season. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	USA	Zach Wells
2	DF	USA	Eddie Robinson
3	DF	USA	Kevin Goldthwaite
4	DF	USA	Chris Aloisi
5	DF	USA	Ryan Cochrane
6	DF	USA	Kelly Gray
7	MF	USA	Chris Wondolowski
8	FW	SCO	Paul Dalglish
9	MF	USA	Brian Mullan
11	MF	USA	Brad Davis
12	FW	USA	Julian Nash
13	MF	USA	Ricardo Clark
14	MF	CAN	Dwayne De Rosario

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
15	FW	VEN	Alejandro Moreno
16	DF	USA	Craig Waibel
17	MF	USA	Mike Chabala
18	GK	CAN	Pat Onstad
19	DF	USA	Patrick Ianni
21	MF	USA	Aaron Lanes
22	MF	USA	Stuart Holden
23	MF	RSA	Mpho Moloi
24	DF	USA	Wade Barrett (captain)
25	FW	USA	Brian Ching
26	FW	USA	Marcus Storey
30	GK	USA	Martin Hutton
51	MF	CAN	Adrian Serioux

Uniforms

Home

Home Alternate

Away

Away Alternate

Type	Shirt	Shorts	Socks	First appearance / Info
Home	Orange	White	Orange
Home Alt.	Orange	Black	Orange	MLS, April 22 against Salt Lake City
Away	White	Orange	White
Away Alt.	White	Black	White	MLS, June 24 against Los Angeles

Season schedule and standings

Regular season

Date	Opponent	Result	Game site	Attendance
April 2, 2006	Colorado Rapids	W, 5-2	Robertson Stadium	25,462
April 8, 2006	Kansas City Wizards	L, 2-1	Robertson Stadium	20,342
April 15, 2006	@ D.C. United	L, 2-0	RFK Stadium	15,015
April 22, 2006	Real Salt Lake	W, 2-1	Robertson Stadium	16,904
April 29, 2006	@ Colorado Rapids	W, 1-0	INVESCO Field	7,225
May 6, 2006	FC Dallas	W, 4-3	Robertson Stadium	21,448
May 13, 2006	@ FC Dallas	T, 1-1	Pizza Hut Park	12,756
May 20, 2006	Chicago Fire	L, 1-0	Robertson Stadium
May 27, 2006	@ New England Revolution	T, 1-1	Gillette Stadium	10,882
June 3, 2006	Los Angeles Galaxy	W, 2-1	Robertson Stadium	14,215
June 10, 2006	@ New York Red Bulls	T, 1-1	Giants Stadium	9,617
June 17, 2006	Real Salt Lake	W, 2-1	Robertson Stadium	13,824
June 24, 2006	@ Los Angeles Galaxy	T, 0-0	Home Depot Center	17,485
June 28, 2006	@ Chivas USA	T, 1-1	Home Depot Center	9,689
July 4, 2006	Columbus Crew	T, 1-1	Robertson Stadium	8,497
July 8, 2006	Chivas USA	W, 3-1	Robertson Stadium	11,735
July 15, 2006	@ Kansas City Wizards	W, 3-2	Arrowhead Stadium	8,196
July 22, 2006	New England Revolution	T, 1-1	Robertson Stadium	10,210
July 26, 2006	@ Colorado Rapids	L, 1-0	INVESCO Field	4,220
July 29, 2006	New York Red Bulls	W, 2-1	Robertson Stadium	10,334
August 9, 2006	Los Angeles Galaxy	L, 1-0	Reliant Stadium	70,550
August 12, 2006	FC Dallas	W, 1-0	Robertson Stadium	10,964
August 19, 2006	@ Real Salt Lake	L, 3-1	Rice-Eccles Stadium	14,091
August 26, 2006	@ Chivas USA	L, 3-2	Home Depot Center	13,665
August 30, 2006	@ Chicago Fire	T, 2-2	Toyota Park	7,858
September 2, 2006	@ FC Dallas	L, 1-0	Pizza Hut Park	14,316
September 10, 2006	@ Los Angeles Galaxy	W, 2-1	Home Depot Center	20,145
September 17, 2006	Chivas USA	T, 0-0	Robertson Stadium	15,510
September 23, 2006	@ Columbus Crew	T, 1-1	Columbus Crew Stadium	11,878
September 30, 2006	D.C. United	W, 1-0	Robertson Stadium	20,029
October 7, 2006	@ Real Salt Lake	T, 1-1	Rice-Eccles Stadium	22,515
October 14, 2006	Colorado Rapids	T, 3-3	Robertson Stadium	17,191

Standings

Conference

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	FC Dallas	32	16	12	4	48	44	+4	52	MLS Cup Playoffs
2	Houston Dynamo	32	11	8	13	44	40	+4	46
3	Chivas USA	32	10	9	13	45	42	+3	43
4	Colorado Rapids	32	11	13	8	36	49	−13	41
5	Los Angeles Galaxy	32	11	15	6	37	37	0	39
6	Real Salt Lake	32	10	13	9	45	49	−4	39

Source: MLS

Overall

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	D.C. United (S)	32	15	7	10	52	38	+14	55	CONCACAF Champions' Cup
2	FC Dallas	32	16	12	4	48	44	+4	52	North American SuperLiga
3	New England Revolution	32	12	8	12	39	35	+4	48
4	Chicago Fire	32	13	11	8	43	41	+2	47
5	Houston Dynamo (C)	32	11	8	13	44	40	+4	46	CONCACAF Champions' Cup
6	Chivas USA	32	10	9	13	45	42	+3	43
7	Colorado Rapids	32	11	13	8	36	49	−13	41
8	New York Red Bulls	32	9	11	12	41	41	0	39
9	Los Angeles Galaxy	32	11	15	6	37	37	0	39	North American SuperLiga
10	Real Salt Lake	32	10	13	9	45	49	−4	39
11	Kansas City Wizards	32	10	14	8	43	45	−2	38
12	Columbus Crew	32	8	15	9	30	42	−12	33

Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (S) Supporters' Shield

Postseason

Date	Opponent	Result	Game site	Attendance
Conference Semifinals
October 22, 2006	@ Chivas USA	L, 2-1	Home Depot Center	15,110
October 29, 2006	Chivas USA	W, 2-0	Robertson Stadium	17,440
Western Conference Final
November 5, 2006	Colorado Rapids	W, 3-1	Robertson Stadium	23,107
MLS Cup 2006
November 12, 2006	New England Revolution	W, 1-1(4-3 in PKs)	Pizza Hut Park	22,427

MLS Playoffs 2006

Conference Semifinals

October 22, 2006

Houston Dynamo	1–2	C.D. Chivas USA
Ching 75'		Razov 45' Palencia 68'

Home Depot Center: 15,110

October 29, 2006

C.D. Chivas USA	0–2	Houston Dynamo
		Davis 64' Ching 93+'

Robertson Stadium: 17,440

Houston advance 3-2 on aggregate.

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Conference Finals

November 5, 2006

Colorado Rapids	1–3	Houston Dynamo
Kirovski 4'		Dalglish 10' Dalglish 21' Mullan 71'

Robertson Stadium: 23,107

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MLS Cup 2006

November 12, 2006

Houston Dynamo	1–1 (AET) (4-3 PSO)	New England Revolution
Ching 114'		Twellman 113'
Penalties
Gray scored Holden scored De Rosario scored Davis saved Ching scored	4–3	Joseph scored Reis scored Noonan missed Twellman scored Heaps saved

Pizza Hut Park: 22,427