Harrison, NJ (SportsNetwork.com) - Red Bull New York will be hoping to build upon its first-ever playoff win at Red Bull Arena when the club hosts D.C. United in the first leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday.
New York rallied from a second-half deficit to get a 2-1 win over Sporting Kansas City in Thursday's Eastern Conference play-in game, thanks in large part to a brace form Bradley Wright-Phillips in the final 13 minutes of the match.
The victory displayed some great resiliency from the Red Bulls, something head coach Mike Petke commended in his post-match press conference.
"The guys showed resiliency, guts, which is perhaps something I'm more proud of than any goals and tactics," said Petke. "Kansas City is a great team, they really are...They threw me for a loop, coming in and sitting the way they did, but it was effective.
"They did a great job with it. We really couldn't break them down the deeper they were. They're a quality side, they got a goal, and the guts that we showed I'm very proud of."
The also may have extended the career of striker Thierry Henry, who has been the subject of retirement talk for the better part of the season. But the Frenchman laid out his desire to see the Red Bulls continue their season beyond their meeting with D.C. in the semifinals.
"We haven't done anything. Still a long way to go," said Henry. "It's not because you beat Kansas City that you've done anything. That doesn't give you nothing. We didn't get anything at the end of the game - just the right to advance and make sure we can play D.C. That's all."
New York will come up against a D.C. side that finished the regular season as the top seed in the Eastern Conference.
United closed out its regular season campaign with a 1-1 draw against the Montreal Impact, putting out a performance that left a lot to be desired for head coach Ben Olsen.
"Overall it wasn't the sharpest night for us but I'm happy we battled back to get a draw on the road," Olsen said after the match. "I think you set yourself up to succeed in the playoffs and that goal woke us up a little bit. Once the goal hit, we started to bring the full hunger that's necessary to win games in this league. In the second half we played some good stuff and were a little bit unlucky not to get that win. It gave us the right momentum to start the playoffs and we're looking forward to next weekend."
The regular season meetings between the two clubs this year has resulted in home wins each time.
D.C. claimed a 1-0 victory at RFK Stadium on April 12 as well as a 2-0 win on Aug. 31, but New York answered with a 1-0 result at Red Bull Arena on Sept. 10.
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