CHESTER, Pa– The Philadelphia Union secured their fourth victory in five games on Saturday night by way of a 1-0 result over the New England Revolution.
The winning goal was scored on what many described as a weird play, as Cory Burke found the back of the net while play stopped as the offside flag went up.
Video review ruled Burke’s goal to be good, and the tally turned out to be the difference as the Union moved seven points clear of the red line in the Eastern Conference.
Here are the three things we learned from the Union’s third triumph of the season over the Revs.
1. Burke’s Hustle Pays Off
If you’ve watched Burke play for even a few seconds this season, his work ethic sticks out right away.
The relentless forward was rewarded for his hard effort in the 53rd minute, when he broke the Revs offside trap and beat Matt Turner one-on-one while play elsewhere stopped as the assistant referee on the right side waved the flag for offside.
Burke wasn’t only surging toward goal with the motivation to score for his team, as he wanted to find the back of the net to honor the late mother of one of his former teammates at Rivoli United in Jamaica.
“I wanted to score for my friend (Kenny Lee)’s mom, who I used to play with at Rivoli, and she passed away,” Burke said. “I wanted to score this goal to show the love and that’s all that was going through my mind at the moment.”
Burke’s effort was not shocking to anyone in a Union shirt, as they expected the Jamaican forward to take advantage of his opportunity.
“He’s a guy, he’s always trying to score goals,” Union midfielder Haris Medunjanin said. “I always try to tell him, be hungry, just be quiet and work and the goals will come. He is an amazing guy, he wants to learn and he’s coming every training 100, 150 percent to train and trying to score. You see every game this year he’s started, we’ve won and he’s scored. It’s a big goal for him and a big goal for us, and it’s a boost for the upcoming games.”
All seven of Burke’s goals have come in starts, and with two crucial games ahead next week against D.C. United and Orlando City, he’ll be counted on once again to strike the back of the net.
2. Blake Helps Preserve Clean Sheet
Andre Blake hasn’t had to save the Union’s bacon in every game this season with a dazzling performance in net.
Part of that is because of the improved defense in front of him led by Auston Trusty that has stopped the ball from reaching Blake on countless occasions.
When he was called upon in the second half on Saturday night, the 27-year-old came up with a few massive saves to preserve the clean sheet and victory.
“These are moments that can define seasons, shape seasons, we need to use this momentum as we continue this season,” Union manager Jim Curtin said. “Our staff has done a great job with Andre, they put a lot of work in and they don’t get a lot of recognition that they deserve. It’s good to step back in this whirlwind of a season and give recognition to people doing great things.”
Blake made four saves to move his season total up to 95, which is four away from tying his career high. The Jamaican international also set a career high with 11 wins on Saturday, and the result also marked his seventh clean sheet of the campaign.
3. Defense Continues To Roll Along
The center back pairing of Auston Trusty and Jack Elliott continues to produce impressive results, with Saturday’s clean sheet being the second straight home shutout against a team in contention for a playoff berth.
No one will admit Saturday was the best performance put in by the center backs, but they were able to absorb the pressure the Revs threw at them on the counter in the first half and hold the visitors off during a second-half surge.
“I think Auston had a tough game but he learned from it and fought through it,” Curtin said. “In the past we have had a let down, but I’ve noticed know when we get a lead we’ve been hanging onto them. I think it shows some growth from the organization.”
Although there were a few dangerous moments, the center backs and Blake communicated well to clear the ball out of the back while playing in tight spaces.
By getting back to .500 with the shutout, the Union moved their goal differential down to -4, which is one worse than the Revs and Toronto FC in the race for the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.