Earthquakes feeling the pain

Goalkeeper Bingham leaves loss to Columbus with back injury

The Earthquakes were shut out for the second consecutive match in a 2-0 loss in Columbus on Saturday, but that was not the worst part of the night.

Already trailing 1-0 after a goal from Ethan Finlay, San Jose’s All-Star goalkeeper David Bingham grabbed for his back in pain after blocking a shot in the 37th minute and was down for about three minutes as he was tended to by the medical staff.

Bingham remained in the game, but after a leaping save in the 44th minute he came crashing down on the field in pain and immediately signaled to the coaches that he could no longer continue. Friendly: Pachuca at Earthquakes, 7:30 p.m.

Having played in every minute of every game this season, Bingham was replaced by rookie Andrew Tarbell. The official diagnosis was back spasms for Bingham, and it is unclear how long he will be out.

Former Quakes forward Adam Jahn immediately tested Tarbell less than a minute after he entered the match with a shot that required a brilliant save from the rookie to keep the ball from going in.

“You never want to see a teammate go down with an injury so that is hard to deal with,” said Tarbell. “Having to make a save right away got me into the game also, so that was good for me.”

After losing their goalkeeper and getting dominated in the first half, the Quakes could not have been happier to hear the whistle blow for halftime.

Crew SC outshot San Jose 13-3 in the first half. Five of those shots came from Jahn, who seemed intent on scoring a goal against his former team.

“We just didn’t play well and then to have to make two subs at goalkeeper and a center defender didn’t make it easier for us,” coach Dominic Kinnear said. “It was a tough night for us.”

The injury bug bit the Quakes again in the second half when Victor Bernardez, perhaps the team’s strongest defensive player, was subbed out for Marvell Wynne in the 58th minute after what looked to be a groin injury.

Wynne later tackled Justin Meram inside the penalty area, and Meram cashed in on the penalty kick in the 83rd minute to put the final nail in the coffin.

The offensive struggles followed the Quakes on the road, as they tallied only seven shots throughout with just two on goal.

Play of the game

A breakdown in the Earthquake’s defensive coverage led to a 2-on-1 situation for Meram and Finlay against Bingham.

Meram crossed the ball to Finlay, who found the back of the net for an easy goal in the 32nd minute.

Turning point

With the Quakes hanging on for a chance to tie the game, Wynne tackled Meram inside the penalty box which resulted in a penalty kick.

Meram scored on the kick in the 83rd minute and essentially put the game out of reach for San Jose.

Star of the game

Justin Meram: The midfielder was involved in both goals for Columbus.

He set up Ethan Finlay for Crew SC’s first goal and later drew a penalty and scored the second goal for the team.