The two Gambian youngsters, Sainey Nyassi and Abdoulie Ken Mansally and their team, New England Revolution in the American MLS Soccer league, on Wednesday October 3rd, 2007 won the 2007 US Open after beating FC Dallas 3-2.

Despite watching their team winning on the bench, Sainey Nyassi and Ken Mansally were part of the jubilation as this is their first major trophy won just three months after joining the team.

Pat Noonan factored in all three goals as the New England Revolution won its first-ever cup championship with a 3-2 victory against FC Dallas at Pizza Hut Park on Wednesday night. Noonan scored the game’s first goal and assisted on Taylor Twellman’s go-ahead goal and Wells Thompson’s game-winning goal to help the Revs lift the U.S. Open Cup for the first time ever.

The victory came in New England’s second overall trip to the Open Cup final - and fifth cup final overall - having also advancing to the title match in 2001. The win was also the first championship at Pizza Hut Park, having lost both MLS Cup 2005 and MLS Cup 2006 at Pizza Hut Park.

The U.S. Open Cup is America’s oldest cup competition and is considered the U.S. Soccer Federation’s domestic championship. The tournament is open to soccer teams from all levels of soccer in the U.S. and includes qualifying rounds for amateur and lower-level professional clubs. This season, 40 teams qualified for the main bracket, with the Revs winning through all the way to the championship.

Noonan put the Revs on the board in the 21st minute; tapping in Steve Ralston’s deflected angled cross. Ralston put a long pass inside the six-yard box, but Dallas defender Adrian Serioux deflected the ball over Hoops goalkeeper Dario Sala, who was waiting to collect the ball uncontested. The re-directed ball fell to Noonan at the far post where he tapped in his shot for the early 1-0 Revolution lead.

FC Dallas leveled the score in the 30th minute when Arturo Alvarez blasted a bending 18-yard shot past Revs keeper Matt Reis. Alvarez cut inside on the left after taking the ball from David Wagenfuhr, and launched his left-footed shot that bent inside the far post and found the side netting for the tying goal.

Twellman put the Revs ahead, 2-1, just before the half, converting on the team’s corner kick from Ralston. The service from the right side met Noonan at the middle of the area where he and Carlos Ruiz collided. Noonan managed to flick the ball on to Twellman running on the far post, and the striker collected and punched the ball in past a diving Sala.

Twellman nearly put the Revs up 3-1 just after the start of the second, taking a Noonan cross-field pass and running onto goal undefended. He blasted a shot past Sala, who was off his line, but the left-footed attempt was wide right of the far post by inches.

Wells Thompson, starting on the right wing as the Revs had to juggle the lineup with defensive midfield cog Shalrie Joseph suspended for the match, gave New England a two-goal cushion in the 58th minute. Twellman and Noonan had a two-on-one breakaway on Sala, but Noonan’s pass back to Twellman went past him toward the byline. Twellman ran down the errant ball and sent a low pass into the area to Noonan. His strike partner back-heeled the ball behind him where Thompson won a footrace with Serioux and blasted a shot past Sala.

Dallas quickly cut the Revs’ lead back to one goal in the 64th minute when Abe Thompson, who had just entered the game less than one minute earlier, connected on Clarence Goodson’s headed pass back across the face of the goal. Off a broken free kick, Serioux sent a long ball from the near sideline to Goodson on the far post. Falling backward, he had enough power on his pass to find Thompson near the edge of the six-yard box where he volleyed his first touch of the game past diving Reis in traffic.

Dallas put five forwards on the field in the closing minutes in an effort to score the equalizing goal, but the Revs were able to withstand the attack as Wagenfuhr and Kenny Cooper both blasted shots high of frame.
New England, currently second in the MLS Eastern Conference and overall MLS table with a 14-6-7 records, will return to league action on Saturday, Oct. 6, when the team travels to face the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park at 8:30 p.m.