First win since May ends losing skid at 16
It started with energy, continued with jubilation and ended with a feeling the Dynamo have been seeking for nearly four months.
Relief.
The Dynamo announced their intent with a goal in the first minute and never relented Saturday night en route to a 3-0 derby win over visiting Austin FC at BBVA Stadium that was highlighted by two goals from team-leading scorer Fafa Picault.
As the first triumph since May 22, it snapped a franchise-record 16-game winless streak and lifted the Dynamo (4-10-10, 22 points) out of a last-place in the Western Conference standings — a spot they shared with Austin (5-15-4, 19 points) when Saturday’s game kicked off.
“I would have to say it’s a little bit of relief more than anything else because we can’t look past this game,” Dynamo coach Tab Ramos said. “Today was the game. We knew it was more than three points because it’s a rivalry game. We knew it would be more special for our fans.
“And like I’ve said before, I’m really happy for the players because we work all week, (watch) video all week, and they continue to believe. With all the work they’ve done, we deserve to finally put it all together in one game.”
The Dynamo wasted no time going in front. In fact, only two players in the history of the club have scored faster in a league game than Griffin Dorsey on Saturday.
Making his first start of the season, Designated Player Darwin Quintero shot from inside the penalty area and forced a diving save by Austin goalkeeper Brad Stuver. The ball rebounded outside of the right post, where Dorsey was all alone to hammer it home 48 seconds after the opening whistle.
The Dynamo kept up the pressure, but it was a long ball served over the top by centerback Teenage Hadebe that led to the second goal in the 24th minute.
Austin defender Julio Cascante brought down Hadebe’s pass and tried to pass it wide, but his touch was soft. Picault was sprinting toward the play and intercepted the pass in a spot that allowed him to hit a low shot as he slid inside the penalty area.
Picault’s seventh goal of the season gave the Dynamo a 2-0 halftime lead, but they were far from cruise control. Several times during the winless streak they let leads slip away, and had they conceded one goal to Austin in the second half there would have been plenty of doubt creeping into the players’ minds.
Ramos said that was the message in the locker room at halftime.
“We said we’ve seen this movie before,” Ramos said. “We’ve got to change the ending to the movie. I think the players are focused, and today as soon as I felt like the team started to lose a little bit of an edge we went right to substitutes. We didn’t want to let them get back in the game.”
Midfielders Darwin Ceren and Memo Rodriguez subbed on in the 58th minute, and six minutes later the Dynamo put the game away with Picault’s eighth goal of the season.
It came after Houston caught a rare lucky break, too.
Austin’s Cecilio Dominguez hit a volley on target from close range, and goalkeeper Michael Nelson reacted in time to get his face in front of the shot. The ball rebounded softly off the right post and back into the penalty area.
The Dynamo cleared it and got it to Picault on the left side of the attacking half. He dribbled all the way into the penalty area, cut back to create space and finessed a gently curling shot into the net at the far post.
“They had a dangerous opportunity that could have cut it to 2-1 and we came down to the opposite end and made it 3-0,” Ramos said. “In theory, that puts the game away.”