DC United defeated the Charleston Battery 2-1 in the US Open Cup final on Wednesday night to claim their second Open Cup crown.

The match between two of the more tradional sides in the American game got off to a fast start with DC scoring quickly and Charleston wasting no time in finding an equalizer.

It was the introduction of Fred late in the first half that would change the game. Just after half time the substitute found his way through the Charleston defense to put DC ahead, a lead they would not relenquish despite spirited play from the South Carolina side.

The match was not without controversy however as Charleston had a stoppage time equalizer disallowed for offside, replays disagreed with the decision.

Elsewhere the Puerto Rico Islanders scored twice at the death to get by Costa Rica's Alajuelense. The Costa Ricans went ahead early but the Islanders kept their cool in order to find the two goals they needed to qualify for the group stage. The result gives the USL, two, as many teams in the Champions League as MLS. Marathon of Honduras and Cruz Azul of Mexico also advanced.

The final two preliminary matches take place tonight as Jalapa look to defend their slim lead over San Francisco in Panama, and Pumas take on Harbour View in a one-legged affair followed the cancelation of the first leg due to Hurricane Gustav.

"It's our pre-season" was the excuse uttered by Major League Soccer apologists to explain the league's ineptitude in the old CONCACAF Champions Cup that often ran between February and May. "It'd be a different story if it was in our mid-season" they said.

They were wrong.

Very wrong. MLS heaped shame upon American soccer on Tuesday by failing to beat teams from Panama and Trinidad & Tobago when Tauro eased by Chivas USA and Joe Public laid an impressive beating on the kings of choke, the New England Revolution. But what happened Tuesday night in Foxborough was not a choke-job, it was a full scale massacre. The Revs were humbled 4-0 by Joe Public, 6-1 on aggregate, Gregory Richardson hit a hat-trick for Mike McComie's charges.

Joe Public finished the 2007 TT Pro League season in third place, good enough to qualify for the CFU Club Championship, a regional competiton that determines the Caribbean's three representatives in the CONCACAF feature. This year hasn't gone quite as swimmingly for the Eastern Lions as the Macoya-based side currently find themselves sixth.

Many will point to New England's injuries and claim that as the reason for New England's loss, but what injuries can't account for is a lack of heart, a lack of desire from eleven men who are paid to play a game that billions of us play for free everyday. This type of flat, lifeless performance from professionals is simply inexcusable.

Chivas USA did manage to save a bit of face for the league, while they were beaten by Panama's Tauro, they did fight. Tauro do seem a respectable side, they finished second in Panama's ANAPROF to San Francisco who face an uphill battle to join them in the group stages as they currently trail Guatemala's Jalapa 1-0 on aggregate.

The happiest man in America tonight is United Soccer Leagues President Francisco Marcos. Marcos was sure to be watching as the USL's Montreal Impact managed a 0-0 draw away to Real Esteli in Nicaragua which after their 1-0 win at Stade Saputo assured the USL a presence in the group stage. 

Tomorrow should prove to be an interesting day at MLS HQ in New York City, and Thursday could prove even more interesting if the Puerto Rico Islanders can manage to get by Costa Rican giants Alajuelense tomorrow. But the big match will be at RFK Stadium in Washington as DC United face the Charleston Battery in the US Open Cup. DC are the darlings of MLS, and Charleston are one of the USL's most respected, and most senior clubs. Yes, tomorrow will be interesting.

The first of the two ties takes place at 7:30PM EDT in Washington, DC's Robert F. Kennedy Stadium between DC United (USA) and Pachuca (Mexico). Luis Montes struck twice in the 2nd half of the 1st leg to give Pachuca a 2-0 lead.

The other tie is tightly balanced at 0-0 and will be played at Estadio Ricardo Saprissa at 10:10pm EDT, located in San Jose, Costa Rica's San Juan de Tibás neighborhood between Deportivo Sapissa (CRC) and the Houston Dynamo (USA). As I previously wrote, Houston had chance to win the 1st leg but failed to score and made it hard on themselves. Houston is a very talented team, talented enough to win in Costa Rica, but it's a very tall task. Saprissa, three times winners of the Champions Cup, are well seasoned in continental play and their fans make the Estadio Ricardo Saprissa a hard place to play. This should be a fabulous match.

Seattle's MLS team will be called the Sounders, keeping alive almost 35 years of history. 35 years may not seem like much history to people outside of North America, but in the fragile world of soccer on this continent it's an eternity.

Among the honors won by the Sounders are two divisional titles in the old North American Soccer League, four USL First Division championships (including the most recent), and two trips to the US Open Cup semi-finals (including last season's run which included a 5-1 drubbing of the Colorado Rapids).

The Sounders name won 82% of the total vote as a write-in choice, it was not among the three original choices on offer and a write-in option was only added following the outrage of longtime Sounders fans and many across the country. The original three choices were "Seattle FC", "Seattle Alliance", and "Seattle Republic". Of the three only "Seattle FC" is tolerable, I heard someone describe "Seattle Alliance" as "something that sounds like an HMO", and "Seattle Republic" sounds like a newspaper. In the end the people had their say and justice won out.

Houston Dynamo 0 - 0 Deportivo Saprissa

Houston could have won, should have won, and blew it. Despite having one of North America's biggest teams on the ropes for large periods of the second half Houston simply couldn't find a way to put the ball in the net. Houston dominated the possession after El Monstruo Morado began to develop heavy legs. On at least two occasions US international Brian Ching was the guilty party, missing a sitter in the first half and sending his free header high in the dying minutes.

Saprissa owe their lifeline to Costa Rican international goalkeeper Navas who produced some good saves when called upon, particularly in the first half from Dwayne de Rosario's header.

Houston will have their work cut out for them next week as they travel to the Estadio Ricardo Saprissa in San Jose. This is not the Meadowlands. The 25,000-seat stadium is famous for it's hostile atmosphere and will be unlike anything Houston has seen in the United States or even during last year's trip to Estadio Hidalgo to take on Pachuca.