It was a damp cool night, we were sitting down by the Casbah, small group of maybe 100 Galaxians down the other end. The wall made it hard to see Agoos lining up that free kick but from the moment it hit the back of the net, we had hope! The rest is brilliant, beautiful history.
My immediate recollection of the then just-completed game can be read here (along with the HTML indentation that worked here at the time ) as well as drewb's recollection (he sat next to me for that game). Nonetheless... fifteen years ago? And to think that I was old even then. GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
We got to the game late because two of my kids were fighting and a third refused to come because "they're two down and it's too late." Looking at Goodsport's account, we arrived just in time for the magic to happen. Was anyone there who did not feel the electricity that night? It was as if the collective will of the fans elevated the game, and once they started scoring, I knew they would win. I got religion that night, though 15 years later (!) it's wearing a little thin.
Yeah, I was alone that night in my pair of east-side center line seats. At halftime I decided to go hang out in the south end zone (where the Ultras were assembled) so that I would be close to the action when (not if) the Quakes scored to finish their come back. The air was already electric before the first half was over and I just had the sense that the south end was the place to be.
back in those days, the rivalry with LA was far more balanced with San Jose having the upper hand from '01 thru '05. definitely the best time (MLS-era, maybe all-time) to be a Quakes fan. Quakes have had some great games against LA since, most notably Stanford games, but the rivalry has mostly favored LA since they introduced DP's and changed the game.
yeah, that too. still leaves a bad taste. what a fiasco, AEG owns both teams, pilfers one teams star and then packs said team off to Houston. I still feel like that was a grave injustice that needs to be rectified. I wonder if the Quakes top brass really understand that history and how nothing short of winning a championship will really ever make that right?
I went to a game with a friend of mine and I remember telling him after the game that it was louder in Spartan Stadium that evening than it was in Suwon, Korea in 2002 WC when the US beat Portugal (I was sitting near the US Supporters' section)....
I brought a few friends to the game and I think we bought the tickets before the first away leg. Entering Spartan, I didn't know what their expectation was, knowing the team was already 2 goals behind before kick off. They probably just treated the night as a chance for a few guys to hang out. I completely lost my voice after the game. I think I was supposed to sing in the choir the other morning. Fast forward 15 years, I rarely see those guys now as everyone has kids and moved. But that night, the atmosphere, the noise, the air, the adrenaline, it is still vivid and I can still taste it. That game has become a part of me.
Same for me. That game gave me withdrawal symptoms in the offseason. Without it, I don't believe I ever gravitate to BigSoccer (my join date is February 2004), or show up for my first-ever Club Quake meeting (March 2004) and while there encounter my future law partner Colin McCarthy and enlist in his quixotic effort to save the Quakes and later to regain them (SSV).
That was the game that really got me & my friend hooked on the Quakes. As others have stated, they lost the first game 2-0 and I think LA went up 2-0 to start this game. I remember telling my friend that if it starts raining (didn't) we were out of there. But then Agoos' shot curls into the goal & the rest is history. (BTW I don't think the team has had anyone who could curl in the ball like Agoos or DeRosario.) We couldn't believe it. They had to score 5 goals to move on to the next round. The team played crazy soccer. I've never seen the fans go nuts for such an extended time (the entire second half I think). I think in those days the "golden goal" was still being used. We were so jacked at the end of the game that we decided to go to the MLS Cup that year in LA. That was the icing on the cake. I still have the DVD of the game that was sent to the STHs. The team played terrific soccer. That's why it pains us to see how awful they have played the past few yrs.
Thanks for the reminder on how far we have fallen... I have never been at sporting event with that amount of energy in the air. Amazing experience and I have a ticket from the game which all five goal scorers signed (from a Quakes auction). No, I will not sell it. Ever. Among many reasons why Spartan Stadium is scared ground for me. Add the fact that my third son who was at the game (3 years old) is now playing football for San Jose State in the stadium.
While it did rain during the first half of that day, it fortunately didn't during the game itself. It only started raining again literally as the final goal was scored, which of course was no doubt God's tears of joy. Because it had rained a lot earlier that day, the fist-banging I and others in the front row right above the LA bench engaged in on the slanted adboards over the bench overhangs after each of our goals eventually got a security guard there to tell us to stop - it turns out that our actions were releasing the trapped rain water underneath those adboards right onto the fallacy players and coaching staff. Yes it was and it became a theme during that Earthquakes playoff run. Hopefully you also went to the Western Conference Championship against the then Kansas City Wizards at Spartan Stadium in between, a game that was more evenly matched yet also went into overtime and eventually witnessed another epic Golden Goal, this the one that sent our team to play in MLS Cup 2003 a week and a day later on my 32rd birthday (I'm old ). Not to mention playing in the crappy current primary uniforms the last two years compared to in rightful blue jersey / black shorts / blue socks primary uniforms. GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
Ha! the fact that they changed the logo, the uniform and neglected to include Johnny Moore in the restart should have made it clear to you they were clueless or indifferent.
I remember seeing Jamil Walker and thinking he was a really dynamic kid with a bright future... but I think injuries did him in.
Another fact likely long-forgotten by most was that this game was not televised locally here or even nationally, but only on a Los Angeles area Spanish-language TV station... tape-delayed. Fortunately, those around the country (including the Bay Area) who subscribed to the MLS Direct Kick package were able to watch the Spanish-language broadcast. Later that week, Fox Sports World replayed the game with new English-language commentary dubbed in, though the Los Angeles based announcers couldn't pretend to display stunned surprise well enough to hide the disappointment in their voices as the broadcast was nearing its end. GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
And surprising, exciting contributions by many players such as Roner, Walker, Faria. The atmosphere was electric.
And there were no photos in the next morning's San Jose Mercury News because the paper failed to send a photographer.
Wasn't there also a lot of water on the pitch that morning that they had to pump the water out? Considering the weather leading up to the match, the field was in a great shape. And like Goodsport said, it started drizzling again once the game was won. Pretty unreal...
Going into this game, victory was far from assured (especially after the Earthquakes had already lost 2-0 in LA in Game 1 of the series). GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G