New York Red Bulls Defeat FC Dallas 2-0 in Preseason Opener

The New York Red Bulls got their 2012 preseason schedule off to a positive start in Cancun, Mexico today, defeating FC Dallas 2-0. A first half goal from Kenny Cooper and a late second half penalty from Corey Hertzog accounted for the scoring, while Ryan Meara and Jeremy Vuolo combined to keep a clean sheet. Without a live stream to follow, fans had to rely on sporadic updates from the Red Bulls official Twitter feed. FC Dallas hit the post once in the second half, but were unable to find a breakthrough, before Hertzog put the margin beyond reach near the final whistle.

The Red Bulls took the pitch missing a number key players, including Thierry Henry (on loan to Arsenal), Juan Agudelo (recovering from an ankle knock) Luke Rodgers (in visa limbo) and Wilman Conde (who just joined camp on Monday). The first half saw Hans Backe field his strongest available lineup, but it was all change after halftime, as a reserves and trialists got a chance to shine. Interestingly, Meara got the start in goal ahead of Vuolo. That may be indicative of Backe's preference at this time, or it may mean nothing at all.

The Red Bulls resume their preseason slate of games on Friday with a friendly against Atlante, before returning to the States.