New England Revolution 1

Chicago Fire 0

Bermuda's Khano Smith and his New England Revolution team-mates reached the franchise's third straight MLS Cup final last night with a hard-fought win over Chicago Fire.

Taylor Twellman converted an acrobatic bicycle kick between two defenders in the 38th minute, to secure the Eastern Conference title for the Revs.

The Revolution advance to the MLS Cup on November 18 in Washington, DC. They'll be aiming to win the Revs' first MLS title against the winner of the Western Conference final at Houston between the defending champions Dynamo and the Kansas City Wizards. Twellman put them there with his third winning goal in his past six play-off games and ended Chicago's 10-game unbeaten streak.

Half the players wore gloves on a freezing night. Many of the 10,317 fans were huddled in their seats, wearing parkas and hats as the temperature dipped into the 20s.

Wells Thompson started the match-winning move with a pass from the right corner. Twellman, standing between Dasan Robinson and Logan Pause, won the ball. With his back to the net, he left the ground and kicked it to the left of goalkeeper Matt Pickens from 12 yards.

But if they tried to play conservatively after going ahead, the Revolution did a poor job as the Fire had several excellent opportunities in the second half.

Calen Carr headed the ball from short range into goalkeeper Matt Reis' hands in the 90th minute. And in extra time, Reis caught Wilman Conde's hard shot seconds before the game ended.

Most of Smith's work on the left side of midfield was defensive in the second half. But the former Dandy Town man broke forward in the 67th minute and put Twellman clean through with an inch-perfect pass. The US striker tried to chip the goalkeeper, but Pickens caught it at full stretch.

The Fire also threatened in the 65th minute when Paulo Wanchope and New England's Avery John went up for a ball to the left of Reis. All three collided and Reis fell to the ground, clutching the ball. One minute later, Wanchope headed the ball from about 12 yards but Reis saved it. The Revolution managed to control Fire's star playmaker Cuauhtemoc Blanco throughout the game.