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Barrett nets Toronto FC tie with Revolution

Aug 24, 2008 - 3:05 AM TORONTO (Ticker) -- Chad Barrett scored in the 66th minute to level the contest as Toronto FC notched a 1-1 draw with the New England Revolution on Saturday.

Barrett's tally tied the contest for Toronto (7-9-5), which has scored five goals in its last nine matches. Rohan Ricketts fed a cross to the left wing to Barrett, whose kick sailed by diving goalkeeper Doug Warren.

"Well, I think we deserved more," Toronto coach John Carver said. "There were chances on both ends, but with us, it was just lack of concentration. We had clear chances for more goals but just didn't put them away."

For Barrett, it was his seventh goal of the season and second in four games with Toronto since being acquired in a deal with the Chicago Fire.

"I was just following the play and was hoping it would bounce right," Barrett said. "When it came to my foot, I looked around and didn't really see anyone around, so my first instinct as a forward was to push it ahead and just take the shot. I guess it worked in the end."

Taylor Twellman had put an impressive header into the lower left corner from the penalty area in the 35th minute to give the Revolution a 1-0 advantage.

It was the fourth goal for Twellman, who has scored in three of his last four games. It also was the striker's fourth tally in four career games against Toronto.

"Obviously, we're a little disappointed not getting the victory, we definitely had the better run of play early on, but to get a result on the road in a hostile place like this is big," Twellman said.

Entering the match, New England (11-6-4) had lost three of four. With the tie, it failed to maintain sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference.

The Columbus Crew (11-6-4) posted a 3-0 victory over Real Salt Lake (7-8-6) on Saturday, pulling even with the Revolution at 37 points.

"I was pleased with the overall play of my team tonight. I felt we passed the ball well and made great run-ons," Revolution coach Steve Nicol said. "It was just one of those games where the ball doesn't go to the back of the net. We also made great opportunities but were shut down by their defense."

Toronto's scoring woes have it stuck in the middle of the East pack, but current roster changes could propel it to a late-season surge. The club waived midfielder Laurent Robert on Tuesday and completed midfielder Maurice Edu's transfer to Scotland's Glasgow Rangers three days later.

But Toronto also added Carlos Ruiz, acquiring the forward from the Los Angeles Galaxy on Wednesday for two early-round picks in next year's draft. Ruiz, tied for seventh on MLS' all-time list with 82 goals, scored once for the Galaxy in 10 games this year but left as the club's second-highest scorer with 51 tallies in 82 regular-season matches.

The international star played for Guatemala in a World Cup-qualifying 1-0 loss to the United States on Wednesday and was not ready to make his team debut against the Revolution.

"Well, he had one or two things to sort out obviously because he was away on international duty and it was very difficult for him to get back into Los Angeles to sort all that out," Carver said. "But he is our player ... he wished all the guys the best of luck tonight. He'll be with us hopefully Monday and he can't wait to get going."

Toronto lost at New England, 2-1, on June 28.