Jermaine Jones played 45 minutes in the Revolution’s 0-0 draw with Columbus. Photo/Kari Heistad
FOXBORO, Mass. — Jermaine Jones helped jumpstart the New England Revolution’s attack when he arrived last summer, acting as a physical, titanium-strong force in winning possession, and was a major part of turning what would have been a mediocre season into an MLS Cup run. But Jones couldn’t awaken the Revolution’s offense in his first start of 2015 on Saturday afternoon at Gillette Stadium, as New England settled for a 0-0 draw versus the Columbus Crew.
Jones’ physical side, though, came through. In a limited, 45 minutes of action—his first with the Revolution in three months since completing sports hernia surgery and rehabilitation—Jones completed 78.6 percent of his passes and collected his first yellow card.
His sliding tackle took down Columbus’ Tony Tchani in the 12th minute, forcing match referee Silviu Petrescu to brandish the card.
“That’s what happens when you talk too much,” said Jones during the post-game press conferences, with a chuckle.
Did Tchani say something in particular?
“No, just trash talking in a game,” said Jones. “I take the yellow. He’s a good guy, he’s a good player. I enjoy to play against Columbus.”
The game was especially physical beyond Jones bringing down Tchani, both teams committing 15 fouls. Jones made note of Columbus’ physical play during the playoffs last year and reminded reporters of it on Saturday.
Jose Goncalves and the Revolution back line preserved their fourth shutout. Photo/Kari Heistad
“Columbus is a team that talks a lot on the pitch,” said Jones. “For me it’s no problem, I like it and I like the battle with these guys. They have a good team, they have some good players…but I think we always show when we keep the ball on the ground and we play with them…we know that we can beat them.”
But the Revolution struggled to keep the ball down in a playing environment that featured a compact Columbus team and wind gusts of up to 25 mph. The Revolution lost the possession battle handily, 58 percent to 42 percent.
But the crowd of 13,092 was privy to Jones’ 2015 debut, as well as a top-notch defensive performance. Revolution goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth didn’t have one save to make other than corralling a late pass into the feet of Aaron Schoenfeld in the box in second half stoppage time. To boot, the Revolution extended their unbeaten run to four games (13 dating back to last season), collected their third shutout of the season, and remain unbeaten at home.
“I like that we got the shutout, but we wanted more from today,” said Revolution coach Jay Heaps. “As the game went on, we weren’t firing on all cylinders. For us, we want points at home, as much as we can.”
Not having Chris Tierney (ankle), the Revolution’s best crosser, didn’t help. Play on the flanks was rare, even though Teal Bunbury returned to the flank after suffering a shoulder sprain in week one
The Revolution had three shots on target. One was a weak header midway through the first half by Kelyn Rowe that Columbus goalkeeper Steve Clark plucked out of the air. Lee Nguyen had the remaining chances, a first half stoppage time drive from inside the box that Clark caught, then a low shot off a 25-yard freekick in the 54th minute that Clark also kept out.
Lee Nguyen’s first half bid for a goal gets stopped. Photo/Kari Heistad
“Conditions were tough, but we created some chances,” said Nguyen. “We did better in the second half, keeping possession. First half, it was difficult playing against the wind, but that’s something both sides have to do.”
Jones’ return will help the Revolution create more chances and get the ball wide, though it will take some time before he’s regained full match fitness. Heaps said Saturday that the plan before the game was for Jones to play no more than 45 minutes. But once Jones does reach full form, the expectation is that he’ll act as the same force this season as he was for last year’s cup run.
“Of course I want to play more…it was good [today], I felt good in the first half,” said Jones. “Now I hope I can play 90 minutes [next week]against Philadelphia…I know that I can play better. It was the first game in three months.”
If you want to reach Julian, email him at julianccardillo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @juliancardillo
