1997 Columbus Crew season

Columbus Crew

1997 season
Investor-operators	Lamar Hunt Clark Hunt Dan Hunt Lamar Hunt Jr. Sharron Hunt Munson Ron Pizzuti and a group of local investors
Head Coach	Tom Fitzgerald
Stadium	Ohio Stadium
Major League Soccer	Conference: 3rd Overall: 6th
MLS Cup Playoffs	Conference Finals
Top goalscorer	League: Pete Marino (8) All: Pete Marino (8)
Highest home attendance	22,259 (9/28 v. TB)
Lowest home attendance	9,506 (10/15 v. DC)
Average home league attendance	14,625 (58.2%)
Biggest win	CLB 4–0 KC (9/14)
Biggest defeat	DAL 3–0 CLB (7/13)
Home colors Away colors
←  1996 1998  →

The 1997 Columbus Crew season was the club's second season of existence and their second consecutive season in Major League Soccer, the top flight of soccer in the United States. The first match of the season was on March 29 against Colorado Rapids. It was the second season under head coach Tom Fitzgerald who was made permanent manager in the offseason. ^[1]

Roster

As of October 9, 1997 ^[2]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   USA Brad Friedel 2 DF   TRI Ancil Elcock 3 DF   USA Mike Clark 4 DF   USA Janusz Michallik 5 DF   USA Thomas Dooley 6 MF   USA Todd Yeagley 7 MF   USA Jorge Salcedo 8 MF   USA A. J. Wood 9 FW   USA Billy Thompson 10 MF   USA Brian Maisonneuve 11 DF   USA Mike Lapper

No. Pos. Nation Player 12 FW   USA Pete Marino 13 MF   USA Jason Farrell 15 MF   RSA Doctor Khumalo 16 MF   USA Rob Smith 18 GK   USA David Winner 19 MF   POL Robert Warzycha 20 FW   USA Brian McBride 22 FW   ARG Marcelo Carrera (captain) 24 DF   ARG Sergio Miguez 25 DF   USA Ubusuku Abukusumo 26 GK   USA Dusty Hudock (on loan Seattle Sounders)

Technical Staff

Position	Staff
General Manager	Jamey Rootes
Head Coach	Tom Fitzgerald
Assistant Coach	John Ellinger
Assistant Coach	Oscar Pisano until September 30 [3]
Assistant Coach	Greg Andrulis [4]
Head Trainer	Amy Baer

Source: ^[5]

Non-competitive

Preseason

Preason for the Columbus Crew began on February 15 at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. The Crew then trained in Pensacola, FL from February 20 through March March 5. They then trained in Orlando, FL from March 5 through March 12. ^[6]

The Columbus Crew brought some non-roster invitees to camp. For the leg in Pensacola, FL they brought two Brazilian players. For the leg in Orlando, FL they brought former Crew goalkeeper Bo Oshoniyi, three players from Argentina, two players from Trinidad & Tobago and former Kansas City Wizards goalkeeper Garth Lagerway. ^[7]

Columbus Crew v Viborg FF

February 21 Friendly	Columbus Crew	0-3	Viborg FF	Pensacola, FL
8:00 PM EST		[8]	Sommer ,	Stadium: Pensacola Soccer Complex

Columbus Crew v New England Revolution

February 28 Friendly	Columbus Crew	2-0	New England Revolution	Pensacola, FL
7:00 PM EST	Pete Marino 27' (pen.), 50'	Report		Stadium: Pensacola Soccer Complex Attendance: 350

Columbus Crew v Dallas Burn

March 1 Friendly	Columbus Crew	1-4	Dallas Burn	Pensacola, FL
8:00 PM EST	Deneault 70'	[9]	Hattrup Eck Jones Suarez	Stadium: Pensacola Soccer Complex

UCF Knights v Columbus Crew

March 6 Friendly

UCF Knights

v

Columbus Crew

Columbus Crew v Tampa Bay Mutiny

March 7 Friendly	Columbus Crew	1-1	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Tampa, FL
7:30 PM EST	McBride 36' (pen.)	Report	Lassiter 3'	Stadium: Pepin-Rood Stadium

Columbus Crew v Tampa Bay Mutiny

March 9 Friendly	Columbus Crew	2-1	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Clearwater, FL
3:00 PM EST	Maisonneuve 15', 22'	Report	Ferruzzi 70'	Stadium: Eddie C. Moore Complex

Richmond Kickers v Columbus Crew

March 15 Friendly	Richmond Kickers	3-1	Columbus Crew	Richmond, VA
2:00 PM EST		Report	Todd Yeagley	Stadium: City Stadium

Columbus Crew v Kansas City Wizards

March 18Dayton Cup	Columbus Crew	0-1	Kansas City Wizards	Washington Township, OH
7:00 PM EST		Report	Johnston 89'	Stadium: Centerville Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,000

Kansas City Wizards v Columbus Crew

March 22 Friendly	Kansas City Wizards	2-2 (2-3 SO)	Columbus Crew	St. Louis, MO
3:00 PM EST	Wright 10' Udeh 56'	Report	Warzycha 26' Marino 74' (pen.)	Stadium: Anheuser-Busch Sports and Conference Centre Attendance: 4,000
	Shootout
	Chung Preki Tinsley McKeon Klopas Dancy Udeh Saunders Sebwe		Marino McBride Salcedo Warzycha Clark Yeagley Deneault Khumalo Elcock

Midseason

Ohio State Buckeyes v Columbus Crew

April 9 Friendly	Ohio State Buckeyes	0-4	Columbus Crew	Columbus, OH
		Report	Rudman , McBride Smith	Stadium: Ohio State University

Columbus Crew v Leeds United A.F.C.

May 14 Friendly	Columbus Crew	2-1	Leeds United A.F.C.	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Rudman  34' Warzycha 37' Carrera 44'	Report	Molenaar  35' Lilley  61' Dorigo  63' Wetherall 89'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 10,610 Referee: Esse Baharmast

Columbus Crew v U.S. U-23 National Team

June 27 Friendly	Columbus Crew	2-3	U.S. U-23 National Team	Solon, OH
8:00 PM EDT		[10]		Stadium: Stewart Field

Milwaukee Rampage v Columbus Crew

July 6 Friendly	Milwaukee Rampage	2-4	Columbus Crew	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
	Sweeney 47' Roy 70'	Report	Bliss 29' Salcedo 52' Dooley 55' Yeagley 79'	Stadium: Uihlein Soccer Park Attendance: 5,123 Referee: Ted Covaciu

Competitive

Overview

Competition	First match	Last match	Starting round	Final position	Record
					Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Major League Soccer	March 29, 1997	September 28, 1997	Matchday 1	6th	32	12	17	3	42	41	+1	037.50
MLS Cup Playoffs	October 2, 1997	October 15, 1997	Conference Semifinals	Conference Finals	4	2	0	2	6	5	+1	050.00
Total					36	14	17	5	48	46	+2	038.89

Source: Competitions

MLS

Main article: 1997 Major League Soccer season

Standings

Eastern Conference

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	SOW	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	D.C. United	32	17	4	11	70	53	+17	55	MLS Cup Playoffs
2	Tampa Bay Mutiny	32	14	3	15	55	60	−5	45
3	Columbus Crew	32	12	3	17	42	41	+1	39
4	New England Revolution	32	11	4	17	40	53	−13	37
5	NY/NJ MetroStars	32	11	2	19	43	53	−10	35

Source: MLS

Overall table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	SOW	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
4	Los Angeles Galaxy	32	14	2	16	55	44	+11	44
5	Dallas Burn	32	13	3	16	55	49	+6	42
6	Columbus Crew	32	12	3	17	42	41	+1	39
7	Colorado Rapids	32	12	2	18	50	59	−9	38	CONCACAF Champions' Cup
8	New England Revolution	32	11	4	17	40	53	−13	37

Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	Pts	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD
32	39	12	17	3	42	41	+1	8	5	3	25	15	+10	4	12	0	17	26	−9

Source: MLS standings
Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32
Stadium	H	A	H	H	A	A	A	H	A	A	A	H	A	H	H	H	H	H	A	H	A	A	A	H	H	H	A	A	H	A	A	H
Result	SW	L	W	SW	L	W	W	W	L	L	L	L	L	L	W	L	L	W	L	L	L	W	L	W	W	W	L	L	W	L	W	SW

Source: schedule
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; L = Loss; SW = Shootout Win

Match results

Columbus Crew v Colorado Rapids

March 291	Columbus Crew	1-1 (3-2 SO)	Colorado Rapids	Columbus, OH
8:00 PM EST	McBride  77' Marino 79'	Report	Trittschuh 39'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 14,485 Referee: Brian Hall Assistant referees: Michael Kennedy Chip Reed Fourth official: Roberto Van de Wyngard
	Shootout
	Marino Carrera Maisonneuve Warzycha McBride Clark		Paz Henderson Bravo Vermes Wegerle Bartlett

Colorado Rapids v Columbus Crew

April 52	Colorado Rapids	2-0	Columbus Crew	Denver, CO
4:00 PM EDT	Wegerle 24' (pen.) Trittschuh  58' Harris 59' Paz  77'	Report	Brian McBride  88'	Stadium: Mile High Stadium Attendance: 15,325 Referee: Joshua Patlak Assistant referees: Frank Gorog Reggie Rutty Fourth official: Scott McCaslin

Columbus Crew v Dallas Burn

April 133	Columbus Crew	2-1	Dallas Burn	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	McBride 6', 75' (pen.)	Report	Rodríguez 53' Santel  55' Soehn  62'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 10,662 Referee: Kevin Terry Assistant referees: Roberto Van de Wyngard Richard Eddy Fourth official: Patrick Ruetschle

Columbus Crew v San Jose Clash

April 194	Columbus Crew	1-1 (2-1 SO)	San Jose Clash	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Marino 2' Khumalo  52'	Report	Baicher 50' Urbányi  61'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 18,358 Referee: Ali Saheli Assistant referees: Paul Scott Brian Darling Fourth official: Hugh Cullin
	Shootout
	Marino Warzycha Maisonneuve Clark Yeagley		Medved Lewis Cerritos Lozzano Iroha

NY/NJ MetroStars v Columbus Crew

April 265	NY/NJ MetroStars	2-1	Columbus Crew	East Rutherford, NJ
7:00 PM EDT	Wood 6' Guido  13' Sorber 17'	Report	McBride 5' Rudman  80' Jachym  85'	Stadium: Giants Stadium Attendance: 18,107 Referee: Raul Dominguez Assistant referees: Alex Prus John Konstantinidis Fourth official: Noel Kenny

San Jose Clash v Columbus Crew

May 36	San Jose Clash	1-3	Columbus Crew	San Jose, CA
10:30 PM EDT	Martin  27' Doyle  40' Medved 73'	Report	Bliss  23', 35' Khumalo 56' McBride 71' Salcedo  75'	Stadium: Spartan Stadium Attendance: 14,295 Referee: Esse Baharmast Assistant referees: Reggie Rutty Alex Del Angel Fourth official: David Bragg

New England Revolution v Columbus Crew

May 97	New England Revolution	0-2	Columbus Crew	Foxborough, MA
7:30 PM EDT	Moore  68'	Report	Carrera 6' McBride  59' Salcedo 68'	Stadium: Foxboro Stadium Attendance: 13,168 Referee: John Weselak Assistant referees: Alex Prus Mark Oliver Fourth official: Erich Simmons

Columbus Crew v NY/NJ MetroStars

May 118	Columbus Crew	3-0	NY/NJ MetroStars	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	Friedel  22' Khumalo 29' Carrera 49' Maisonneuve 87' (pen.)	Report	Savarese  7' Zaun  22' Meola  22' Guido  56'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 14,701 Referee: Ted Covaciu Assistant referees: Michael Kennedy Jamil Hamdan Fourth official: Hugh Cullin

Colorado Rapids v Columbus Crew

May 179	Colorado Rapids	1-1 (2-1 SO)	Columbus Crew	Denver, CO
9:00 PM EDT	Trittschuh  5' Bartlett 88'	Report	Maisonneuve  5' Warzycha  37' Marino 74'	Stadium: Mile High Stadium Attendance: 10,054 Referee: Noel Kenny Assistant referees: Steve Olson Rudy Bettman Fourth official: Jose Corro
	Shootout
	Patiño Henderson Harris Bravo Bartlett		Marino Carrera Salcedo Clark Yeagley

Kansas City Wizards v Columbus Crew

May 2210	Kansas City Wizards	3-1	Columbus Crew	Kansas City, MO
8:30 PM EDT	Klopas  8' McKeon 22', 27' Chung 75'	Report	Yeagley 85'	Stadium: Arrowhead Stadium Attendance: 8,151 Referee: Rich Grady Assistant referees: Richard Huber Thomas Smith Fourth official: Jorge Riopedre

Los Angeles Galaxy v Columbus Crew

May 2511	Los Angeles Galaxy	1-0	Columbus Crew	Pasadena, CA
10:30 PM EDT	Calichman  75' Jones 81'	Report		Stadium: Rose Bowl Attendance: 13,186 Referee: Arturo Angeles Assistant referees: Michael Kennedy Bryan Elliott Fourth official: Theodore Bennett

Columbus Crew v D.C. United

May 2912	Columbus Crew	2-3	D.C. United	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Farrell 6' Marino 75'	Report	Harkes 9' Moreno 17' (pen.) Maessner 81'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 12,299 Referee: John Weselak Assistant referees: Alex Prus Tarek Khan Fourth official: Douglas Palomaki

Tampa Bay Mutiny v Columbus Crew

June 713	Tampa Bay Mutiny	3-1	Columbus Crew	Tampa, FL
7:30 PM EDT	Galderisi 17' Prampin 56' Wise  81', 86'	Report	Yeagley  43'  71' Carrera 52' Warzycha  88'	Stadium: Houlihan's Stadium Attendance: 10,152 Referee: Ali Saheli Assistant referees: Paul Scott Robbie Mann Fourth official: Roger Itaya

Columbus Crew v Colorado Rapids

June 1514	Columbus Crew	0-2	Colorado Rapids	Columbus, OH
5:00 PM EDT	Maisonneuve  59'	Report	Henderson  37' Bravo 41' Trittschuh  83' Wegerle  85', 89'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 12,694 Referee: Tim Weyland Assistant referees: Craig Lowry Kermit Quisenberry Fourth official: Patrick Ruetschle

NY/NJ MetroStars v Columbus Crew

June 2115	NY/NJ MetroStars	2-1	Columbus Crew	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Warzycha  67' Dooley 71' McBride 86' (pen.)	Report	de Ávila  41' Sorber 62'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 17, 190 Referee: John Weselak Assistant referees: Robert Sheker Brian Darling Fourth official: Mikael Lundqvist

Columbus Crew v Kansas City Wizards

July 416	Columbus Crew	1-2	Kansas City Wizards	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Smith  36' Marino 75' Friedel  89'	Report	Takawira 37', 70' Pittman  38' Gough  75' Johnston  82' Ammann  87'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 16,713 Referee: Kevin Terry Assistant referees: Roberto Van de Wyngard Jamil Hamdan (AR2)

Columbus Crew v Dallas Burn

July 1317	Columbus Crew	1-2	Dallas Burn	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	McBride 17'	Report	Dodd  8' Eck  18'  71' Webber 20' Flores 45'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 12,329 Referee: Robert Sheker Assistant referees: Paul Tamberino Tarek Khan Fourth official: Mikael Lundqvist

Columbus Crew v New England Revolution

July 2018	Columbus Crew	1-0	New England Revolution	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	Warzycha 55'	Report	Baba  73' Squadrone  84'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 14,248 Referee: Raul Dominguez Assistant referees: Richard Eddy Kermit Quisenberry Fourth official: Patrick Ruetschle

D.C. United v Columbus Crew

July 2519	D.C. United	1-1 (3-1 SO)	Columbus Crew	Washington, D.C.
7:30 PM EDT	Williams  18' Etcheverry 89'	Report	Marino 76' Clark  78'	Stadium: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Attendance: 18,140 Referee: Ali Saheli Assistant referees: Edwin Resendes Lorenzo Sanz Fourth official: Steve Taylor
	Shootout
	Wegerle Kelderman Etcheverry		Marino Maisonneuve Yeagley Clark

Columbus Crew v Tampa Bay Mutiny

July 2720	Columbus Crew	0-0 (1-3 SO)	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	Lapper  44'	Report	Hejduk  57'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 12,340 Referee: Tim Weyland Assistant referees: John Weselak Brian Darling (AR2)
	Shootout
	Marino Elcock Clark Wood		Vargas Vásquez Ralston Yallop Lassiter

D.C. United v Columbus Crew

July 3021	D.C. United	4-2	Columbus Crew	Washington, D.C.
7:30 PM EDT	Arce 39' (pen.), 90' Moreno 43', 62' (pen.),  85'	Report	Wood 4' Miguez  45' Clark  58' Marino 73'	Stadium: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Attendance: 11,504 Referee: Rich Grady Assistant referees: Chip Reed Thomas Perry Fourth official: Daniel Stead
Note: Originally scheduled for June 28.

Los Angeles Galaxy v Columbus Crew

August 222	Los Angeles Galaxy	1-2	Columbus Crew	Pasadena, CA
10:30 PM EDT	Hurtado 4' Caligiuri  30' Fraser  68' Pena  81'	Report	Lapper 71',  85' Thompson 90'	Stadium: Rose Bowl Attendance: 24,344 Referee: Tim Weyland Assistant referees: Tom Bobadilla Frank Gorog Fourth official: Theodore Bennett

San Jose Clash v Columbus Crew

August 923	San Jose Clash	1-1 (4-3 SO)	Columbus Crew	San Jose, CA
10:30 PM EDT	Lozzano 70' Draguicevich  72'	Report	Salcedo  15' Marino  20' Dooley 45' Clark  57'	Stadium: Spartan Stadium Attendance: 11,799 Referee: Noel Kenny Assistant referees: Chris Nuezil Alex Del Angel Fourth official: Cory Dean
	Shootout
	Baicher Lewis Kinnear Lozzano Medved Urbányi		Marino Salcedo Thompson Dooley Elcock Farrell

Columbus Crew v D.C. United

August 1624	Columbus Crew	2-0	D.C. United	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Elcock  18' Dooley 68' Marino 72'	Report	Llamosa  42' Harkes  90'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 15,355 Referee: Joshua Patlak Assistant referees: Laszlo Nagy Jamil Hamdan Fourth official: Douglas Palomaki

Columbus Crew v New England Revolution

August 2325	Columbus Crew	2-1	New England Revolution	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Wood 43' Elcock  79', 87'	Report	Wise  40' McKinley 75' Galderisi  78'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 15,718 Referee: Marcel Yonan Assistant referees: Greg Barkey Kermit Quisenberry (AR2)

Columbus Crew v Los Angeles Galaxy

August 3026	Columbus Crew	2-0	Los Angeles Galaxy	Columbus, OH
7:30 PM EDT	Warzycha 5', 56' Salcedo  43'	Report		Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 16,167 Referee: Kevin Terry Assistant referees: Delfrim Rainho Tarek Khan Fourth official: Hugh Cullin

Dallas Burn v Columbus Crew

September 627	Dallas Burn	3-0	Columbus Crew	Dallas, TX
8:30 PM EDT	Martinez  16' Rodríguez 66' Washington 74' Webber 76'	Report	Khumalo  41'	Stadium: Cotton Bowl Attendance: 10,383 Referee: Toru Kamikawa Assistant referees: Jorge Reyes Misail Tsapos Fourth official: Ali Saheli

New England Revolution v Columbus Crew

September 1228	New England Revolution	1-0	Columbus Crew	Foxborough, MA
7:30 PM EDT	Naveda 3',  68' Galderisi  32' Chronopoulos  44' Burns  79' Keegan  83'	Report		Stadium: Foxboro Stadium Attendance: 21,619 Referee: Ted Covaciu Assistant referees: Greg Barkey Peter Kokolski Fourth official: Thomas Supple

Columbus Crew v Kansas City Wizards

September 1429	Columbus Crew	4-0	Kansas City Wizards	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	Clark  8' Wood 32' Farrell 38' Dooley 82' Yeagley 83'	Report	Johnston  78'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 15,132 Referee: Arturo Angeles Assistant referees: Reggie Rutty Brian Darling Fourth official: Patrick Ruetschle

Tampa Bay Mutiny v Columbus Crew

September 1830	Tampa Bay Mutiny	2-1	Columbus Crew	Tampa, FL
7:30 PM EDT	Hejduk  6' Conde  14' Valderrama  39' Gilmar 41' George 89'	Report	Maisonneuve 83'	Stadium: Houlihan's Stadium Attendance: 6,984 Referee: Toru Kamikawa Assistant referees: Laszlo Nagy George Banica Fourth official: Kevin Terry

NY/NJ MetroStars v Columbus Crew

September 2531	NY/NJ MetroStars	0-1	Columbus Crew	East Rutherford, NJ
7:30 PM EDT	Yeagley  40' Clark 70' Friedel  89'	Report	Semioli  43' Branco  56'	Stadium: Giants Stadium Attendance: 15,570 Referee: Rich Grady Assistant referees: Nate Clement Matt Lawlor Fourth official: Jorge De La Bandera

Columbus Crew v Tampa Bay Mutiny

September 2832	Columbus Crew	1-1 (2-1 SO)	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Columbus, OH
3:00 PM EDT	Elcock  64'  78' Maisonneuve 82'	Report	Shannon 24' Ferruzzi  38' Budnick  82'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 22,259 Referee: Tim Weyland Assistant referees: Roger Sill Tarek Khan Fourth official: Douglas Palomaki
	Shootout
	Marino Wood Maisonneuve Salcedo		Vásquez Shannon Quill Hejduk Duhaney

MLS Cup Playoffs

Main article: 1997 MLS Cup Playoffs

Conference Semifinals

Tampa Bay Mutiny v Columbus Crew

October 5Game 1	Tampa Bay Mutiny	1-2	Columbus Crew	Tampa, Florida
3:00 PM EDT	Gilmar 35',  35'	Report	Farrell 11' Clark  57' Wood 83' Warzycha  85'	Stadium: Houlihan's Stadium Attendance: 8,272 Referee: Noel Kenny Assistant referees: Greg Barkey Chip Reed Fourth official: Alberto Giordano

Columbus Crew v Tampa Bay Mutiny

October 8Game 2	Columbus Crew	2-0	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Columbus, Ohio
7:30 PM EDT	Dooley  8' McBride 43' Warzycha 73'	Report	Gilmar  21' Vásquez  22' Kooiman  24'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 13,102 Referee: Joshua Patlak Assistant referees: Greg Barkey Chip Reed (AR2)
Note: Columbus Crew wins series 2-0, advances to Conference finals.

Tampa Bay Mutiny v Columbus Crew

October 11Game 3	Tampa Bay Mutiny	If Necessary	Columbus Crew	Tampa, Florida
7:30 PM EDT				Stadium: Houlihan's Stadium

Conference Finals

D.C. United v Columbus Crew

October 12Game 1	D.C. United	3-2	Columbus Crew	Washington, D.C.
2:00 PM EDT	Sanneh 9', 45' Díaz Arce 29'	Report	Dooley  38', 73' Clark  41' Farrell 57' Warzycha  78' Smith  87'	Stadium: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Attendance: 11,820 Referee: Kevin Terry Assistant referees: Greg Barkey Nate Clement (AR2)

Columbus Crew v D.C. United

October 15Game 2	Columbus Crew	0-1	D.C. United	Columbus, Ohio
6:30 PM EDT	Warzycha  41'	Report	Llamosa  42' Díaz Arce 47'	Stadium: Ohio Stadium Attendance: 9,506 Referee: Arturo Angeles Assistant referees: Edwin Resendes Alex Prus (AR2)
Note: D.C. United wins series 2-0, advances to MLS Cup 1997.

D.C. United v Columbus Crew

October 19Game 3	D.C. United	If Necessary	Columbus Crew	Washington, D.C.
				Stadium: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium

U.S. Open Cup

Main article: 1997 U.S. Open Cup

The Columbus Crew did not enter the U.S. Open Cup in this season.

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Under "Apps" for each section, the first number represents the number of starts, and the second number represents appearances as a substitute.

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		MLS		MLS Cup Playoffs
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	USA	Brad Friedel	33	0	29+0	0	4+0	0
2	DF	TRI	Ancil Elcock	29	1	21+5	1	3+0	0
3	DF	USA	Mike Clark	35	1	28+3	1	4+0	0
4	DF	USA	Janusz Michallik	10	0	6+4	0	0+0	0
5	DF	USA	Thomas Dooley	19	5	15+0	4	4+0	1
6	MF	USA	Todd Yeagley	31	2	22+5	2	4+0	0
7	MF	USA	Jorge Salcedo	30	1	26+2	1	0+2	0
8	MF	USA	A. J. Wood	19	4	16+0	3	1+2	1
9	FW	USA	Billy Thompson	10	1	4+2	1	3+1	0
10	MF	USA	Brian Maisonneuve	36	3	30+2	3	4+0	0
11	DF	USA	Mike Lapper	24	1	20+0	1	4+0	0
12	FW	USA	Pete Marino	32	8	7+21	8	0+4	0
13	MF	USA	Jason Farrell	22	4	10+8	2	4+0	2
15	MF	RSA	Doctor Khumalo	19	2	18+0	2	1+0	0
16	MF	USA	Rob Smith	27	0	8+17	0	0+2	0
18	GK	USA	David Winner	4	0	3+1	0	0+0	0
19	MF	POL	Robert Warzycha	35	4	31+0	3	4+0	1
20	FW	USA	Brian McBride	17	7	13+0	6	4+0	1
22	FW	ARG	Marcelo Carrera	21	3	14+6	3	0+1	0
24	DF	ARG	Sergio Miguez	17	0	16+1	0	0+0	0
25	DF	USA	Ubusuku Abukusumo	1	0	0+1	0	0+0	0
26	GK	USA	Dusty Hudock	0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
			Own Goal	0	0	-	0	-	0
Players who left Columbus during the season:
8	DF	USA	Brian Bliss	12	1	10+2	1	0+0	0
14	MF	JAM	Altimont Butler	1	0	1+0	0	0+0	0
17	DF	USA	Todd Miller	3	0	1+2	0	0+0	0
21	MF	POL	Rob Jachym	3	0	1+2	0	0+0	0
23	FW	USA	Todd Deneault	0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
25	FW	ARG	Silvio Rudman	6	0	2+4	0	0+0	0
26	GK	ENG	Aidan Heaney	0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
26	GK	USA	Eddie Carvacho	0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
26	GK	USA	David Allred	0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
26	GK	USA	Randy Dedini	0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0

Disciplinary record

No.	Pos.	Name	MLS		MLS Cup Playoffs		Total
1	GK	Brad Friedel	2	1	0	0	2	1
2	DF	Ancil Elcock	3	1	0	0	3	1
3	DF	Mike Clark	6	0	2	0	8	0
4	DF	Janusz Michallik	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	DF	Thomas Dooley	2	0	2	0	4	0
6	MF	Todd Yeagley	2	1	0	0	2	1
7	MF	Jorge Salcedo	3	0	0	0	3	0
8	MF	A. J. Wood	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	FW	Billy Thompson	0	0	0	0	0	0
10	MF	Brian Maisonneuve	2	0	0	0	2	0
11	DF	Mike Lapper	2	0	0	0	2	0
12	FW	Pete Marino	2	0	0	0	2	0
13	MF	Jason Farrell	0	0	0	0	0	0
15	MF	Doctor Khumalo	2	0	0	0	2	0
16	MF	Rob Smith	1	1	0	1	1	2
18	MF	David Winner	0	0	0	0	0	0
19	MF	Robert Warzycha	6	0	3	0	9	0
20	FW	Brian McBride	3	0	0	0	3	0
22	FW	Marcelo Carrera	0	0	0	0	0	0
24	DF	Sergio Miguez	1	0	0	0	0	0
25	DF	Ubusuku Abukusumo	0	0	0	0	0	0
26	GK	Dusty Hudock	0	0	0	0	0	0
Players who left Columbus during the season:
8	DF	Brian Bliss	1	0	0	0	1	0
14	MF	Altimont Butler	0	0	0	0	0	0
17	DF	Todd Miller	0	0	0	0	0	0
21	MF	Rob Jachym	1	0	0	0	1	0
23	FW	Todd Deneault	0	0	0	0	0	0
25	FW	Silvio Rudman	1	0	0	0	1	0
26	GK	Aidan Heaney	0	0	0	0	0	0
26	GK	Eddie Carvacho	0	0	0	0	0	0
26	GK	David Allred	0	0	0	0	0	0
26	GK	Randy Dedini	0	0	0	0	0	0

Source:

Clean sheets

No.	Name	MLS	MLS Cup Playoffs	Total	Games Played
1	Brad Friedel	7	1	8	33
18	David Winner	0	0	0	4
26	Dusty Hudock	0	0	0	0
Players who left Columbus during the season:
26	Aidan Heaney	0	0	0	0
26	Eddie Carvacho	0	0	0	0
26	David Allred	0	0	0	0
26	Randy Dedini	0	0	0	0

Source:

Transfers

In

Pos.	Player	Transferred from	Fee/notes	Date	Source
MF	Jorge Salcedo	Los Angeles Galaxy	Traded for the 1st overall pick in the 1997 MLS supplemental draft, which was traded from Colorado Rapids for Adrián Paz.	February 1, 1997	[11]
MF	Rob Jachym	Hartford Hawks	Drafted in round 1 of the 1997 MLS College Draft.	February 1, 1997	[12]
FW	John Smith	Rollins Tars	Drafted in round 2 of the 1997 MLS College Draft.	February 2, 1997	[13]
FW	Todd Deneault	South Florida Bulls	Drafted in round 1 of the 1997 MLS College Draft.	February 2, 1997	[13]
MF	Jason Farrell	Seattle Sounders	Drafted in round 1 of the 1997 MLS supplemental draft.	February 2, 1997	[13]
DF	Billy Clifford	South Carolina Shamrocks	Drafted in round 2 of the 1997 MLS supplemental draft.	February 2, 1997	[13]
DF	Sergio Miguez	San Martín de Tucumán	Signed via discovery.	March 26, 1997	[14]
DF	Ancil Elcock	Malta Carib Alcons	Signed via discovery.	March 31, 1997	[15]
FW	Silvio Rudman	Padova	Allocated by Major League Soccer	April 1, 1997	[16]
FW	Thomas Dooley	FC Schalke 04	Allocated by Major League Soccer	May 3, 1997	[17]
FW	Mike Lapper	Southend United F.C.	Allocated by Major League Soccer	June 3, 1997	[18]
DF	Ubusuku Abukusumo	NC State Wolfpack	Allocated by Major League Soccer as part of MLS Project-40.	June 5, 1997	[19]
MF	A. J. Wood	NY/NJ MetroStars	Traded for Brian Bliss	July 8, 1997	[20]
FW	Frank Klopas	Kansas City Wizards	Traded for Pete Marino.	November 2, 1997	[21]
GK	Mark Dougherty	Tampa Bay Mutiny	Selected in the 1997 MLS Waiver Draft.	November 17, 1997	[22]

Loan in

Pos.	Player	Parent club	Length/Notes	Beginning	End	Source
GK	Aidan Heaney	Carolina Dynamo		April 16, 1997	April 19, 1997	[23]
GK	Eddie Carvacho	Atlanta Ruckus		July 11, 1997	July 14, 1997	[24]
GK	David Allred	Raleigh Flyers		September 4, 1997	September 7, 1997	[25]
GK	Randy Dedini	Nashville Metros		September 9, 1997	September 22, 1997	[3]
GK	Dusty Hudock	Seattle Sounders		September 26, 1997	End of Season	[26]

Out

Pos.	Player	Transferred to	Fee/notes	Date	Source
FW	Adrián Paz	Colorado Rapids	Traded for the 1st overall pick in the 1997 MLS supplemental draft, which was then traded for Jorge Salcedo from Los Angeles Galaxy.	February 1, 1997	[11]
DF	Ricardo Iribarren	Club Almagro	Departed team due to visa problems.	February 4, 1997	[27]
DF	Billy Clifford	Jacksonville Cyclones	Placed on waivers.	March 7, 1997	[7]
FW	John Smith	Orlando Sundogs	Placed on waivers.	March 14, 1997	[13]
DF	Paul Caligiuri	Los Angeles Galaxy	Sued Major League Soccer over a contract clause and was re-allocated to Los Angeles Galaxy.	March 26, 1997	[28] [29]
MF	Altimont Butler	Jamaica national football team		April 14, 1997	[30]
DF	Todd Deneault		Placed on waivers.	April 22, 1997	[31]
MF	Rob Jachym	New England Revolution	Placed on waivers.	May 28, 1997	[32]
FW	Silvio Rudman	C.D. Veracruz	Placed on waivers.	May 28, 1997	[32]
MF	Brian Bliss	NY/NJ MetroStars	Traded for A. J. Wood	July 8, 1997	[20]
DF	Todd Miller	Charleston Battery	Placed on waivers.	August 12, 1997	[33]
FW	Pete Marino	Kansas City Wizards	Traded for Frank Klopas.	November 2, 1997	[21]
MF	Jason Farrell	Chicago Fire	Drafted 7th in the 1997 MLS Expansion Draft.	November 6, 1997	[34]
MF	Jorge Salcedo	Chicago Fire	Drafted 9th in the 1997 MLS Expansion Draft.	November 6, 1997	[34]
MF	A. J. Wood	Chicago Fire	Drafted 21st in the 1997 MLS Expansion Draft.	November 6, 1997	[34]
DF	Janusz Michallik	New England Revolution	Placed on waivers.	November 13, 1997	[35]
GK	Brad Friedel	Liverpool F.C.	Transfer, $1,600,000	December 19, 1997	[36]
DF	Sergio Miguez	Retired	Contract expired.	December 31, 1997	[27]
MF	Doctor Khumalo	Kaizer Chiefs	Contract expired.	December 31, 1997	[27]

Loans out

Pos.	Player	Loanee club	Length/Notes	Beginning	End	Source
MF	Rob Jachym	Milwaukee Rampage	Columbus retains right to recall		May 28, 1997
DF	Todd Miller	Charleston Battery		June 7, 1997	June 10, 1997	[37]

MLS Draft picks

Main articles: 1997 MLS College Draft and 1997 MLS Supplemental Draft

Draft picks are not automatically signed to the team roster. Only those who are signed to a contract will be listed as transfers in. The picks for the Columbus Crew are listed below:

1997 Columbus Crew College Draft Picks [38]
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1	3	Rob Jachym	MF	Hartford
2	13	John Smith	FW	Rollins
3	23	Todd Deneault	FW	South Florida

1997 Columbus Crew Supplemental Draft Picks [39]
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
2	13	Jason Farrell	MF	Seattle Pacific
3	28	Billy Clifford	DF	South Carolina

1997 Columbus Crew Waiver Draft Picks [22]
Round	Pick	Player	Position	Team
1	5	Mark Dougherty	GK	Tampa Bay Mutiny
2	10	Bill Harte	DF	Tampa Bay Mutiny

Awards

MLS Player of the Week Week Player Opponent(s) Link 7 Doctor Khumalo San Jose Clash 20 Thomas Dooley D.C. United

MLS Player of the Month Month Player Stats Link August Brad Friedel

1997 MLS All-Star Game Starters FW Robert Warzycha [40] Reserves FW Brian McBride

Postseason MLS Fair Play Team Award [41] MLS Best XI GK Brad Friedel DF Thomas Dooley MLS Goalkeeper of the Year GK Brad Friedel

Crew Team Awards Most Valuable Player – Brad Friedel [42] Defensive Player of the Year – Brad Friedel Scoring Champion – Pete Marino Man of the Year – Thomas Dooley Coach's Award – Mike Lapper

References

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