29 May 2011 - It Really Shouldn't Be That Difficult

On 29 May 2011, DC United beat Portland 2-3, but not without a little penalty kick controversy.

Portland, in their first MLS season, were hosting DC at Jeld-Wen Field. In the 64th minute, with DC leading 0-1, the referee awarded a penalty kick to Portland after defender Dejan Jaković dragged Portland striker Kenny Cooper down in the box. Goalkeeper Bill Hamid guessed correctly and blocked the shot, but was flagged for coming off his line too early.

Cooper took the re-kick with Hamid blocking the shot again, but the keeper was once more flagged for coming off his line. Replays confirmed the linesman's call on both shots, though the second one was slightly more subjective, as Hamid's movement was relatively minor. For the third attempt, Portland replaced Cooper with Jack Jewsbury, who buried the kick to level the score.

The ordeal turned out to be a minor footnote as DC won 2-3 after Chris Pontius converted a penalty kick of their own and Josh Wolff added a late cushion.

25 October 2000 - Donovan's Dynamic Debut

On 25 October 2000, Landon Donovan earned his first senior cap and scored in a 2-0 win over Mexico.

The eighteen-year old midfielder had already established himself as a rising star with the junior squads, including a performance at the 1999 U17 World Cup that ended with him being named the tournament's best player.

He was one of seven players given their international debut under manager Bruce Arena for the friendly against Mexico, played at Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles. The others were Chris Klein, Kerry Zavagnin, Peter Vagenas, Bobby Convey, Sasha Victorine, and Joe Franchino.

Donovan didn't start, but came on in the 32nd minute after an injury to Chris Henderson, then scored in the 50th minute to put the United States up 1-0. Just under thirty minutes later, he provided an assist, sending in a cross from the left flank that was driven home by Josh Wolff, to set the final score at the now-familiar 2-0.

Since then, Donovan has gone on to become the team's all-time leading scorer with 57 goals and is the second-ranked appearances leader with 154, just ten behind retired midfielder Cobi Jones.

17 September 2005 - Never Too Old To Lend A Hand (Or Foot)

On 17 September 2005, Preki simultaneously became MLS's oldest assist provider and Kansas City's all-time assist leader when he helped them earn a 2-2 draw with Los Angeles.

The 42-year old striker was in his ninth season with Kansas City. He first joined them in 1996, then left in 2001 for a season with Miami before returning to the Wizards in 2002. During his time there, he won the MLS Cup in 2000 and the US Open Cup in 2003, and was twice named the league's MVP, in 1997 and 2003. To date, he remains the only player to win that award more than once.

In 2005, however, the team was struggling and by September looked unlikely to make the MLS playoffs. The Galaxy were still hopeful of reaching the postseason and took a substantial step toward that goal by going up 0-2 against Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium with goals from Chris Albright (26') and Hercules Gomez (36').

The margin held until the 81st minute, when Davy Arnaud headed home from a corner kick. Five minutes later, Preki provided his record-setting assist to Josh Wolff, who equalized with another header. Preki's precise age was 42 years and 85 days, which remains an MLS record. It was also his 98th career assist for Kansas City, a club record.

Unfortunately for Kansas City, the draw did not help them reach the playoffs. Los Angeles did make it, though, and went on to win the MLS Cup over New England, 1-0.

29 May 2011 - It Really Shouldn't Be That Difficult

On 29 May 2011, DC United beat Portland 2-3, but not without a little penalty kick controversy.

Portland, in their first MLS season, were hosting DC at Jeld-Wen Field. In the 64th minute, with DC leading 0-1, the referee awarded a penalty kick to Portland after defender Dejan Jaković dragged Portland striker Kenny Cooper down in the box. Goalkeeper Bill Hamid guessed correctly and blocked the shot, but was flagged for coming off his line too early.

Cooper took the re-kick with Hamid blocking the shot again, but the keeper was once more flagged for coming off his line. Replays confirmed the linesman's call on both shots, though the second one was slightly more subjective, as Hamid's movement was relatively minor. For the third attempt, Portland replaced Cooper with Jack Jewsbury, who buried the kick to level the score.

The ordeal turned out to be a minor footnote as DC won 2-3 after Chris Pontius converted a penalty kick of their own and Josh Wolff added a late cushion.