It is a well known fact that cup finals bring out the best of teams. You have the upsets and then you have the return bridesmaids who are never the bride. Sporting Kansas City enters their second Open Cup final against last years finalists and the teams couldn’t look more like the 2013 final as they do today.
Sporting Kansas City, like RSL in 2013, is a team that has been in this position before. Constantly in the playoffs and even gaining silverware through the years.
Philadelphia Union is having another poor season, not to the extent of 2013 DC United, but after the heartbreak of losing the final last year the squad has found themselves hosting the final for the second year running.
Sporting earned their passage to the final firstly by facing off against ST Louis FC where a bumper crowd showed up as only a game between two rival cities can bring out. That was followed up with a 6-2 win over FC Dallas, a 3-1 win over Houston Dynamo, and a 3-1 win over RSL.
The Union booked their passage by just defeating every opponent in close fashion. Every game decided by a one goal margin or via the penalties.
When Sporting hosted the final in 2012 300 some odd Seattle Sounders fans traveled from the Pacific Northwest and was the largest traveling contingent for a final.
That is to easily be broken as the ownership of Sporting Kansas City ensured that any fan who is willing to make the trip will have a ticket and an expected traveling support of 1,000 fans is to be at PPL Park.
Sporting rested nearly all of their best off of their staring 11 in preparation for this massive match and no one else will be looked for more than Dom Dwyer.
Coming on in the Sunday MLS match against Seattle as a late sub Dwyer got the equalizer to gain the point from that game. His tally so far in the cup this year stands at five goals which also included a four goal match against Dallas.
It has been a while since Sporting had their late and dramatic comeback win against the Union in April but none the less the squad is up for the challenge of bringing the cup back to Kansas City
