Crew heads off Union at the pass

SEBASTIEN LE TOUX used le noggin last night.

Not in the literal sense, but on a heads-up play that conveyed not just his skill, but his soccer IQ.

The crafty French forward helped set up his own penalty kick in the third minute of first-half stoppage time when he took a tumble inside the penalty box after his leg grazed that of Columbus Crew defender Frankie Hejduk.

The 36-year-old Hejduk, the Jamie Moyer of Major League Soccer, pleaded his case, but referee Richardo Salazar called him for tripping.

Le Toux slotted the ensuing penalty kick to the right of Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer just before the half.

"I knew he [Hejduk] didn't see me and I didn't have an angle to shoot so I just touched it past him and ran towards his direction and he touched me enough to create the foul," said Le Toux, who increased his goal count to nine. "It was a tough call, but the referee called a PK so I am not going to complain about that."

In the end, it didn't change the final result as the Crew's Steven Lenhart, who used his noggin, scored two goals as Columbus defeated the Union, 2-1, in an Eastern Conference match in front of 18,001 onlookers at PPL Park.

Lenhart's first goal came on a pristine 45-yard free kick from Crew designated player Guillermo Barros Schelotto in the 43rd minute. The second came just minutes into the second half where Lenhart, who doubled his goal count on the season, pounced on a well-timed cross from forward Emilio Renteria, a Venezuelan international.

"We did not do a good job of marking Steven Lenhart coming in, but for us it was the same thing where we dominate game after game, but our mistakes keep doing us in," said Union manager Peter Nowak. "Give them credit, I think Columbus was very efficient - two shots, two goals - but it has been our mistakes that have cost us goals and games."

The Union played a first half devoid of offensive spark, arguably due to the absence of forward Danny Mwanga, who is nursing an ankle sprain.

The Union went on the attack in the second half as newcomer Justin Mapp offered his playmaking abilities to create chances. A substitution in the 82nd minute, which brought in Jack McInerney for Mapp, nearly provided the equalizer when a ball in the box - misplayed by Le Toux - was nearly buried past the right post on a mad scramble by McInerney, who celebrated his 18th birthday yesterday.

Eventually, the Crew (11-4-4) caught on and theatrics began to play a role in Columbus' efforts to preserve the win. The rains didn't come as predicted, but the dives from the away team certainly did.

"It's frustrating because with all that [diving] stuff going on, it was hard for us to find a rhythm," said the Union's Fred, who was taken out in the second half after a foul that caused pain in his neck. "If it's how they want to play the game, whatever, but yes it does get very annoying."

The gripes won't change a result that put the Union (4-9-3) in a tie with New England for the sixth spot in the East. Both have 15 points with the Union leaving tomorrow afternoon for a game in Dallas on Sunday. New England takes on lowly D.C. United tomorrow night in Foxborough, Mass.

The Union earned a 1-1 tie against Dallas at Lincoln Financial Field in its last meeting, with Mwanga pounding home a pivotal goal in stoppage time.

"Our goal is not to sit back and hope chances come to us, but it's the same old . . . where we need to be more efficient," Nowak said. "The efficiency part, playing the game simple and playing the game effective, is still missing. It was not just the story of the game tonight, but the story of our season."