Galaxy Pulls Schmid Out of Seat
The last few days, Sigi Schmid kept insisting his first game as Galaxy coach would be spent watching and listening, learning about his new team.
And that’s precisely what happened . . . for about 45 minutes.
But after watching the club lumber through the first half without a shot on goal, Schmid came down from his seat in the press box, delivered an impromptu chalk talk and took up position on the sideline.
That gave him an excellent view of Paul Caligiuri’s second-half goal, the only offense necessary for a 1-0 victory over the San Jose Clash before 16,700 on a chilly Saturday night at the Rose Bowl.
“It just shows you that his heart’s in the game,” Caligiuri said of Schmid’s locker-room speech. “We responded by listening and hearing his tactics.”
The Galaxy (3-3) also put an end to two dubious streaks. The team had lost three consecutive games and, in the process, gone 183 minutes without a goal.
“They came with all their hearts and they battled,” Schmid said.
If anything, the team seemed to get a lift from a tumultuous week that saw former coach Octavio Zambrano unexpectedly replaced by Schmid at midweek.
The Galaxy looked crisp in the first half as San Jose had only one notable chance, midfielder Eddie Lewis sending a long cross into the box and Raul Diaz Arce heading the ball wide.
More frequently, it was the Galaxy pressing forward. Midfielder Danny Pena collided with San Jose goalie Joe Cannon going after a corner kick. Defender Greg Vanney had two dangerous tries, one he pushed too far right and another that sailed high.
It was a sign of improvement over earlier games this season but the result was all too familiar: a scoreless tie at halftime and whistles of derision from a crowd grown weary of offensive misfires.
That was all it took to rouse Schmid from his perch high above the field. His children had been blocking the exit from their stadium suite but he somehow eluded them.
The players were glad he did. And they quickly made use of what he had to say about tactics.
“We were able to get the ball forward quickly,” goalkeeper Kevin Hartman said. “We got into some positions that were threatening, which is how we got our goal.”
The goal came in the 58th minute, beginning with a dash down the center of the field by Mauricio Cienfuegos, who spotted Caligiuri streaking along the right flank. Caligiuri finished the play by lifting the ball cleanly over Cannon.
“Our offense finally clicked tonight,” said assistant Ralph Perez, who acted as interim coach for the first half.
The Clash (4-2), which had a four-game winning streak ended, had a chance to tie when Hartman mishandled a crossing pass and Braeden Cloutier bounced a hard shot off the crossbar.
But that was as close at the Clash would come. Schmid got a victory in his first night on the job and put an end to all that talk about watching and waiting.
Now he can really get to work, right?
“Right now, I just want to enjoy this one,” he said. “Next week we can train.”
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Oscar Pareja and Jason Kreis scored first-half goals for the Dallas Burn in a 2-0 victory over the Columbus Crew before a crowd of 12,241 at Dallas. . . . Ivan McKinley scored two first-half goals as the New England Revolution edged D.C. United, 3-2, in front of 15,132 at Washington. . . . Tyrone Marshall scored in the 19th minute of the Miami Fusion’s 1-0 victory over the Kansas City Wizards before 6,759 at Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
