Clint DempseyÆs goal in the 48th minute gave the USA a 1-0 win over Poland Wednesday in a friendly played in snowy Kaiserslautern, Germany.
After a shaky performance in the first half, the Americans pounced on one of their few opportunities in the game when Eddie LewisÆ cross headed toward Taylor Twellman punched by Poland goalkeeper Artur Boruc, a second-half replacement, off TwellmanÆs head to Dempsey, who nodded home the gameÆs only goal.
In the ensuing snowstorm, the Poles were unable to challenge the Americans, supported by a majority of the crowd of 13,395 fans, many of them military personnel from nearby Ramstein Air Base.
The match was played at Fritz-Walter-Stadion, the location of the USAÆs June 17 World Cup match against Italy. The win improves the USAÆs record to 4-0-1 during their 2006 World Cup preparations. The USA wore black armbands in memory of Aidan O'Malley, son of U.S. Soccer's Sports Medicine Manager Hughie O'Malley, who passed away last week after a battle with leukemia.
March 1 in Kaiserslautern, Germany
USA 1 Poland 0. Goal: Dempsey 48.
USA — Keller (Howard, 46), Cherundolo, Berhalter (Bocanegra, 46), Onyewu, Lewis, Dempsey (Klein, 89), Zavagnin (Mastroeni, 55), Donovan, Beasley (Convey, 71), Twellman, Johnson (Wolff, 79).
Poland — Dudek (Boruc, 46),Jop (Klos, 83), Baszczynski, Bak, Michal Zewlakow (Rzasa, 72), Radomski (Sobolewski, 80), Smolarek, Krzynowek, Szymkowiak, Rasiak (Kosowski, 61), Frankowski (Niedzielan, 61).
Yellow cards: USA — Bocanegra 58; Poland — Jop 79.
Referee: Thorston Kinhofer (Germany).
Att.: 13,395.