Dax McCarty named to MLS Team of the Week

It's not common for a player from a losing team to be selected to MLS's official Team of the Week, but the league's talent-spotters have been won over by the all-action performance of the New York Red Bulls' captain, Dax McCarty, in Week 13.

This is the first appearance by a Red Bull in MLS's TotW since Week 10, when Kemar Lawrence and Bradley Wright-Phillips were applauded for their work against New York City FC.

RBNY won that week, but was not so lucky in Week 13 in Seattle, where the Sounders snatched a win in the closing minutes of the match.

Still, Dax's performance was indeed of the stand-out variety. But for the last-minute goal conceded, RBNY would have been deserving recipients of a point (of course, but for scoring fewer than the winning team, any side can claim to "deserve" a good result), and Captain Dax was instrumental in bolstering the defense and marshaling distribution out of the back.

This is McCarty's second TotW selection this season. BWP and Lloyd Sam have each made three Teams of the Week; Damien Perrinelle and Kemar Lawrence both have one nomination to their respective names.

The captain would unquestionably prefer league points to this prize, but in times such as these the team is well advised to take the positives from a disappointing result and move swiftly on to the next challenge. Dax's work was certainly a positive.

Gutted to lose that game, deserved more. Staying positive, we will be alright. Thanks to the fans who made the journey, safe travels home.

— Dax McCarty (@DaxMcCarty11) June 1, 2015

Congrats, Captain! Roll on Friday, Houston, and the chance to make Week 14 a happier occasion than this last round was for RBNY and its fans.