Avery John’s 18-month soccer whirlwind will culminate in a championship match.
John will make his 14th start of the season at left back when the Revolution face the Houston Dynamo for the MLS Cup on Sunday afternoon (3:30) at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. The Revolution lost, 1-0, in overtime to the Los Angeles Galaxy in last year’s championship clash.
John missed seven weeks of the MLS season to compete for Trinidad and Tobago at the 2006 World Cup in Germany. The defender started two World Cup games, against Sweden and England. He rejoined the T&T national team, known as the Soca Warriors, for games against Japan and St. Vincent and the Grenadines later in the season.
Left out of the Revs lineup early in the season, John took over the starting job in September, just in time for the stretch run, and he was instrumental in the Revolution’s playoff victories over the Chicago Fire and D.C. United.
John can’t think of a better way to close out the season than a victory over Houston.
“I look back at the last 18 months and it’s been the best time in my soccer career,” said John, 31, after a strenuous workout in the rain yesterday on the lower practice field at Gillette Stadium.
“It started with just qualifying for the World Cup and all the preparation for the World Cup. It’s been a very good year and a very blessed year, and it’s been one exciting thing after another the whole year. Sunday, when we go out and win the MLS Cup, that’s just going to be the icing on the cake for a great year.”
The Revolution caught fire, and eventually caught the Fire, once John returned to the lineup in September. The Revolution closed out the season 5-0-2 and John played in all but one of those matches. John played 90 minutes in the Revolution’s 1-0 victory over the Columbus Crew in the regular-season finale to bypass the Fire for second place in the East and gain home-field advantage in the first round.
In the 10 regular-season games John started, the Revolution went 7-0-3. Dating back to last year, the Revs are 10-0-3 in his last 13 regular-season starts.
“It feels like more than (13 games), but I think it shows you how much he’s settled in since he’s come back to the team,” said Nicol. “He’s just quiet and effective.”
The Revolution established themselves as the best defensive unit in the league, allowing just 1.09 goals a game. John was there to put the exclamation mark on the run. The Revs surrendered only six goals in the last 10 games (0.58 GAA), a stretch that included four of goalkeeper Matt Reis’ 10 shutouts.
The Revolution feature John on the left flank, Michael Parkhurst in the middle and Jay Heaps on the right. While John was taking on the world, Heaps and Parkhurst combined for 61 MLS starts. John and Heaps are aggressive risk-takers on the wings, while Parkhurst maintains a calm demeanor in between.
“Everybody works very hard, and if you go in and mess up, somebody is there to help, and we still have Matty,” said John. “Myself and Jaybird, we are compatible in the sense that we are very combative and attack everything.
“Then you have Parkhurst behind us, who is very calm and reads the game very well. He’s a peacemaker who keeps everything in balance, because you don’t want a sweeper who is hard-nosed like myself and Jaybird.”