Union

A post on the Union’s website before Sunday’s game said the team was focused on finishing their chances. The Union did just that, topping New England 3–0 with goals from Carlos Ruiz, Carlos Valdes and Sheanon Williams.

Match reports from the PSP, the Brotherly Game, ASN Philly, and Philly Union Talk.

Not only did the Union defense contribute two goals, they also prevented New England from recording a single shot on goal. “When we dedicate ourselves to put forth everything we have and play good football, we can achieve important things,” said Valdes after the match. “We can surprise and give the spectacles that the fans enjoy with good football. I think that for us, that’s the most important thing that we can take home, aside from the three points.”

Ruiz said, “Playing away is always difficult. You don’t easily find the rhythm of the game, but it was good for us, we played our game, we had the possession. We didn’t run up and down like in other games. We were smart in our running, and had the possession.”

Williams, who grew up in Boston, said of scoring his first MLS goal in front of his family, “It was definitely a great experience for me.”

Peter Nowak said, “I have two wins this week, my first being against the Sons of Ben and this win tonight; of course, that brings a lot of confidence, especially for the coaching staff.”

Sunday’s win over the Revolution puts the Union back on top of the Eastern Conference. The Union are 5–0–2 against conference rivals. They are unbeaten in their last five games, the longest streak in the club’s short history. The third road win of the season is also a club record. It was Faryd Mondragon’s seventh clean sheet of the season and his second in a row. The victory equaled last season’s total of eight wins and 31 points. This season, when the Union have scored first, they are 7–0–2.

Philly Union Talk says “Eff Benny Feilhaber.”

Revolution manager Steve Nicol said of his team’s performance, “It was like watching a bunch of schoolboys.”

Revolution midfielder Chris Tierney said, “There’s no two ways about it: we sucked.”

SBI says of the Union’s 3–0 win, “What set the teams apart wasn’t so much the Union’s quality as it was the Revolution’s ineptitude.”

New England supporters groups, who occupy a section of Gillette Stadium referred to as the Fort, sat in silence for the first 15 minutes of Sunday’s game before staging a walkout in the 16th minute to protest the New England management’s handling of stadium security.

Noting that media reports on the Trinidad and Tobago U-23 Olympic qualifying squad list his affiliation as the Philadelphia Union, the Brotherly Game wonders if American-born Trinidad and Tobago forward Phillip Borde is “with the Union in some capacity.”

Union City Blue questions the confidentiality of the recent Season Ticket Holder survey.

Everton has landed. The academy team, who will face the Union academy squad before Wednesday night’s friendly, topped the Red Bulls’ academy team 3–1 at Episcopal Academy on Sunday.

Students from the Cortiva Institute, a massage therapy school, are now providing their skills to the Union.

Women’s World Cup

Question: Why wasn’t Amy Rodriguez brought on as a late substitute?

I can barely bring myself to write about the final–suffice it to say I am gutted. For some local reaction, there’s this piece and another that includes comments from friends and family of Delran’s Carli Llloyd.

Here’s a positive take on the loss from SI and from the LA Times.

The final set a new record on Twitter, eclipsing the death of Osama Bin Laden and the 2010 Super Bowl.

Here’s hoping the interest shown in the Women’s World Cup can boost a struggling WPS.

Independence

After defeating Atlanta 1–0 on Saturday for their sixth straight win, the Independence caught an early flight back to Philly to watch the Women’s World Cup final. Like Val Henderson said, “The U.S. will definitely be kicking themselves for not closing out the game.”

Local

Seventeen local youth soccer players enjoyed a send off over the weekend from Starfinder before flying to Gothenburg, Sweden to participate in the Gothia Cup, the world’s largest youth soccer tournament.

MLS

Sunday’s win over New England puts the Union back in sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference with 31 points. New York, who played to a 0–0 draw with Chivas USA on Saturday, has 29 points, having played two more games than the Union. Columbus, who played to a 0–0 draw with San Jose, is in third with 28 points. Houston remains in fourth and Kansas City in fifth after their 1–1 draw. DC United drew 0–0 with Dallas while Chicago lost 1–0 to Portland. Toronto had the weekend off.

The Vancouver v Real Salt Lake game was postponed over the weekend. The official announcement from the league said that the field was unplayable. Many disagree, saying that the temporary grass pitch, installed for today’s friendly against Manchester City, was laid improperly and officials were concerned that a league game would damage it.

Montreal Impact, joining MLS next season, will not be playing its opening games at Saputo Stadium, its home field. Delays in expanding the stadium mean that it won’t be ready until the summer of 2012. The team will play its first home games at Olympic Stadium.

Elsewhere

A day after Uruguay knocked host country Argentina out of the Copa America, Paraguay defeated defending champions Brazil. Uruguay now faces Peru in the semifinals while Paraguay will face Venezuela. Jonathan Wilson adds his perspective on events at the Copa America.

North Korean officials say that five players who tested positive at the Women’s World Cup for steroid use had taken a traditional musk deer gland medicine after a lightning strike.

Sepp Blatter has been voted biggest celebrity villain of the past ten years.