If Sporting Kansas City’s 2016 campaign could be summed up in two games it would be their home matches against the Columbus Crew and Houston Dynamo.
July 3. Coming off the bench is not something Captain Matt Besler has had to do often for Sporting Kansas City often but against Columbus he was called to come off the bench. Manager Peter Vermes got his substitution right as Besler in the 91st minute got the winner.
With a late push towards in the Western Conference Sporting Kansas City had looked to wrap up three points at home against the reviled Houston Dynamo when Dom Dwyer scored the go ahead goal in the 81st. But with the dying moments of the second half stoppage time Raul Rodriguez headed home a free kick to end the match 3-3.
Such was the season of Sporting Kansas City. For as many strides as the club took towards becoming one of the top clubs in MLS there were just as many stumbles. Although Dom Dwyer had another terrific campaign and Tim Melia found his footing as their starting goalkeeper injuries and inconsistencies along the defensive line held the club back. A fourth consecutive playoff appearance put the club into the league’s second season but a quick exit dashed away any hopes for a third MLS Cup.
Before Sporting supporters begin to look towards 2017 let’s take a look back at the highs and lows of KC’s 2016 campaign thanks to photos from Graham Green and Charlotte Thomas.
