FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Joe-Max Moore never did it. Neither did Steve Ralston. Not even Taylor Twellman – the New England Revolution’s all-time leading scorer with 101 regular-season goals – was able to do what Charlie Davies did on Saturday afternoon at Crew Stadium.
Davies became the first player in Revolution history to score two goals in an MLS Cup Playoffs match, bookending New England’s offensive output in a critical 4-2 win over the Columbus Crew.
And he did it on his postseason debut.
“For me, it was just important to try and build on every performance,” Davies said postgame. “Every time I’m out there, I’m trying to get better. I’m trying to be more effective and help this team win.
“Today I think the team needed me to score and take advantage of the opportunities that I had. I was fortunate enough to do that.”
Davies’ first goal was the icebreaker and helped set the Revs on their way after a tense opening half hour, which featured several fouls on both sides and an early yellow card to Jose Goncalves.
Taking advantage of the Crew’s high defensive line, Davies curled a late run behind Tyson Wahl and latched onto Kelyn Rowe’s tempting free kick, diving to bury a free header from close range.
“We worked on it all week in training,” Davies said of the set piece which unlocked the Crew. “Columbus plays a very high line and it’s dangerous. As a striker, if you get the timing right, you’re going to be wide open. It was a perfect ball and I was able to make sure I kept my cool and placed it in the back of the net.”
Neither the Revs nor Davies were done, however. Chris Tierney buried another stunning free kick shortly after the halftime break and Lee Nguyen scored a third in the 70th minute, shortly before Davies made history with his second goal as the game ticked into the final quarter of an hour.
After receiving a ball from Scott Caldwell near midfield, Davies turned and burst toward goal, taking the spaced provided to him by a backpedaling Wahl. From 25 yards, Davies unleashed a powerful effort which Crew goalkeeper Steve Clark could only push off the inside of the post and into the net.
It was a bit of redemption for Davies, who had a similar effort – a potential equalizer in the late stages – saved by Clark in the 1-0 loss at Crew Stadium back in September.
“I never forgot the shot he saved the last time we played here,” Davies said with a smile. “I got the space and knew I could’ve taken a couple more steps, but I felt the timing was right.
“I got a great ball from Scotty, turned and saw that [Clark] was a little bit off his line. I just tried to make a good connection, see where the keeper was and put it in the corner.”
Davies’ pair of goals couldn’t have been more different in their execution – a diving header from close range and a curling 25-yard rocket – but they did share one common characteristic.
Upon burying both chances, Davies unleashed his dance moves to celebrate.
“That’s just self-expression to really live in the moment,” he said with a laugh. “That’s why we play the game. Even as a little kid, as a striker, when you score a goal, you want to enjoy it. It’s something that I’ve really taken time to enjoy every time I’m on the field. When you score a goal, you make sure you celebrate.”
Davies, who didn’t score in his final seven appearances of the regular season, could sense that a strong performance was on the horizon, but not because he’d felt good in training leading up to the match.
In fact, it was quite the opposite.
“I kind of was on Charlie this week. It wasn’t his best week of training,” said head coach Jay Heaps. “I thought it was interesting because he said that to me, that sometimes when he doesn’t train his best, he usually performs on the weekend. That’s what he did.”
