Revolution II Suffer Defeat in Opening Round
New England's second-ever playoff run ends in heart ache.
Following an incredible regular season that saw the club finish in third place, Revolution II kicked off its second-ever playoff run Sunday evening when New England hosted sixth-seeded Chicago Fire II in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal.
Richie Williams made zero changes from the lineup that secured a 5-2 victory over Inter Miami CF II on Decision Day. Donovan Parisian started in goal behind the backline of Hesron Barry, Victor Souza, Gabe Dahlin, and Damario McIntosh. Cristiano Oliveira, Marcos Dias, and Eric Klein formed the midfield trio behind the attacking trio of Gevork Diarbian, Liam Butts, and Malcolm Fry.
New England’s first big chance came in the 29th thanks to a well-placed corner kick. Dias sailed a ball into the box that forced David Molenda to punch the ball away. Molenda’s clearance didn’t go far as it fell to Oliveira, who attempted to volley home the clearance but had his attempt blocked by a Chicago defender.
New England nearly found the opener in the 49th thanks to some good movement on a short corner kick. After receiving the pass from Fry, Dias took a few touches forward before lobbing the ball into the box, where it found the head of Butts. The striker attempted to get under it and hit the upper-half of the net, but put a tad too much on it as the ball skimmed over the crossbar and out.
Donovan Parisian came up big in the 50th minute when he got his hands to Dylan Borso’s attempted cross from the right flank.
New England came close to finding the opener in the 56th minute. A counterattack opportunity led to Gevork Diarbian sprinting onto the ball at midfield. After dishing the ball to Marcos Dias at the center of the field, Dias slotted a ball forward into the path of Liam Butts. Butts pushed forward before attempting to find the back of the net from just outside the box.
Parisian came up big again in the 71st minute when he was alert and got both hands to David Poreba’s volleyed attempt to keep the game scoreless.
New England’s first changes of the night came in the 81st minute as Alex Monis and Javaun Mussenden replaced Fry and Oliveira.
After a hard-fought match from both sides, the scales tipped in Chicago’s favor in the 86th minute. After working the ball to Borso out wide on the right, the forward lobbed a cross to the center of the box that found the head of David Poreba.
Poreba headed the ball down right at Parisian, but the ball miraculously found the five hole and rolled in as Poreba’s close-range header dribbled into the back of the net as Chicago found the late go-ahead goal.
New England’s second-ever playoff run ended just as it started, as the road team walked out of Gillette with the 1-0 victory and punched their ticket to the Eastern Conference Semifinal.
Despite the heart-shattering loss, 2025 was a successful one for New England as the club clearly progressed as a unit throughout the regular season while enhancing the development of several young first-team and Academy players.
While the season may be over, the coverage does not! Stay tuned to The Blazing Musket throughout the offseason for the latest news and updates regarding Revolution II ahead of the 2026 season.
A heart breaking loss but these kids have nothing to be ashamed of. They had a great season and they were very exciting to watch. See you guys next season.