IS locker might be slightly smaller than that of New York Giant Antonio Pierce, but Khano Smith still has a decent piece of real estate in the heart of American sport.

His sport might be lower profile ? and his salary certainly isn't $33 million over five years ? but the former Dandy Town striker is still very much a local boy done good.

The Gillette Stadium is signposted for a good ten miles in every direction and during football season, the Patriots guarantee a sell-out crowd of a good 60,000.

Smith's Revolution don't quite have that same draw, with more than half the seats in the stadium covered up and roped off to force the crowd in smaller sections to ensure some atmosphere and a better backdrop for the TV shots.

The crowds average around 15,000 here, although the turn-out for the visit of Eastern Conference leading DC United ? with teenage Ghanaian superstar Freddy Adu ? was a more impressive 16,209.

Three hours before this MLS encounter took place, the USA were taking on Italy on the grandest stage of all and the marketing boys at the Gillette Stadium thought the fans might want to watch it together.

So on a big screen in front of a good 2,000 fans, the national side played out their red-card filled encounter to probably the soccer-friendliest crowd in the country.

There was plenty of cheering and excitement, as there also was in the Revolution locker room where Clint Dempsey's team-mates watch the national side battle gamely.

Some were supporting the US because they were American, others simply because of Clint. Smith, however, has three World Cup favourites.

The USA, because of team-mate Dempsey, Trinidad, because of team-mate Avery John, and England because of Bermuda's links with the country that is so reliant on Peter Crouch.

In a season that has so far been all but ruined by injury, Smith has had to make do with watching from the stands ? not even travelling to away games ? and working on his fitness.

As well as watching the Revolution, the Bermudian has also watched his share of Celtics and Patriots but so far not indulged in the Red Sox nor the Bruins ? "that would probably send me to sleep".

Although many outside the States believe MLS football would have a similar soporific quality to it, the game itself is very palatable indeed.

Admittedly the atmosphere is hampered by more than two-thirds of the stadium seats being empty, but all the trappings of American sport are very much there.

The scoreboards bombard you with adverts and stats, the loudspeakers blast out American rock while silly mascots aplenty prance around and goals are greeted with the blast of a cannon ? presumably some attempt to recreate New England's grand military history.

The crowd, to a man, stood for the national anthem while the on-site McDonald's gave the soccer-knowledgeable crowd all the sustenance they could need.

The away team wander out aimlessly from the tunnel and don't even bother waving because they know there are no visiting fans, the Revolution, meanwhile, sprint out ? accompanied by the booming voice of an over-enthusiastic PA announcer ? down a channel of high-fiving local schoolchildren.

As for the match itself, well, the World Cup it ain't, nor is it the Premiership but it is certainly another planet compared to even triple-crown winning North Village ? something they proved by putting nine past Dandy Town without reply in just 45 minutes in 2005.

Crowd-wise, it is not quite comparable with the English League Championship, perhaps the upper echelons of League One ? the level of Shaun Goater's Southend last year.

Skill-wise, it is probably Championship level, Manchester United would come and win here no problem, teams like Reading and Watford would sneak victories and the likes of Norwich and Derby County would probably earn draws.

In terms of the patterns of play, it is a cross between the ferocity of the English game and the languid step-overs and trickery of Italy or Spain.

Moments of individual brilliance come in equal measure with moments of wasted passes and wayward shots.

Adu, described repeatedly as a "phenom" and apparently the object of desire for both Chelsea and Manchester United, did little to justify his billing, instead falling over like an Argentinian every time anyone went near him and constantly setting off on mazy runs that went nowhere.

Smith has done well to reach this level ? and can regard holding down a regular first team place as a genuine success ? but this is still America and sharing a ground with the Patriots is probably the only thing they have in common.

And as for a comparison with the Red Sox for popularity, well, they are just in an entirely different ballpark.

For the record, the game finished 1-1 courtesy of a 44th-minute goal from DC United skipper Jaime Moreno, wearing the number 99 shirt, followed by an 85th minute equaliser by Andy Dorman off the inside of the post.

What summed up the American attitude to the game were the inane questions being asked by a clearly non-soccer specific young female journalist in the Press Box.

Her inquiries, which would have got her thrown out of the media area at any English ground, included; why does the clock not stop when the ball goes out of bounds?

At half-time, as the subs warmed up: Why are those players still out there?

How many points for a goal?

And the expected classic: What does offside mean?

Presumably referring to the linesmen: What do those guys with flags actually do?