The New England Revolution limped their way into the MLS Playoffs this past Saturday night with yet another late season loss, this time the two red card variety (though from this biased fan's vantage point in the stadium, both cards appeared to be yellow, not red). The 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Columbus Crew meant nothing to New England in the standings, and would not have unless they had won by 12, but even then that would only have determined home field order in the upcoming semifinals.
As to said semifinals, the Revolution are probably just delaying the inevitable failure by making this round. They face the Chicago Fire, a team that has owned, pwned, and uber pwned them this year. Led by Mexican douchetard Cuauhtemoc Blanco, as well as Americans Chris Rolfe and former US international Brian McBride, the Fire have a strong squad up front. And while the Revs' one remaining strength may be their back line, the loss of captain Steve Ralston in the midfield may have finally crippled New England's offensive efforts for good.
The Revs have proven over the last few years that anything can happen in the playoffs, however, so they shouldn't be counted out until the final whistle sounds. They host the first leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium, and with some luck it will be more than the curtain call on the MLS careers of Taylor Twellman, Michael Parkhurst, and perhaps even Shalrie Joseph. This may or may not be the last year of a strong period for this club, and the best we may be able to hope for is that they go down swinging.
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