The Union’s first-ever road playoff win came with unexpected heroes and an unexpected formation

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Chris Donovan doesn’t have Mikael Uhre or Julián Carranza’s talents as a striker. He doesn’t have Tai Baribo’s pedigree, Quinn Sullivan’s teenage promise, or Joaquín Torres’ skill in tight spaces.

And right now, that all doesn’t matter.

Just as Leon Flach was last year’s most unlikely candidate to score a clutch playoff goal, Donovan now stands as this year’s postseason hero. The 23-year-old Paoli native’s redirection of Jack McGlynn’s late-game free kick stood as the only goal of the Union’s 1-0 win at the New England Revolution on Wednesday — the first road playoff win in team history — which sealed a 2-0 sweep of their first-round series.

“I have certain instructions when I go in the game, where I should be making my runs on set pieces,” Donovan said. “But on that one, it was kind of just instinct. I decided to make a darting run right in the middle of the goal. That’s where you score goals.”

» READ MORE: Jack McGlynn and Chris Donovan spark the Union to a playoff sweep of New England

Good instincts are a sign of a good player, and Donovan has improved in recent months. This was his fourth goal of the year for the Union’s first team, to go with six for the reserves. His place on the depth chart is still certain, but moments like this can earn him more opportunities off the bench.

“Just being able to practice around really good players every single day, it’s going to make anyone better,” Donovan said.

McGlynn, meanwhile, had another superb night. In 82 minutes on the field, he recorded 73 touches, two shots, five scoring chances created, 43-of-48 passing (including 19 passes into the attacking third of the field), five defensive recoveries, and two clearances.

He also fulfilled a prophecy. An astute Inquirer reader reminded me after the game that in McGlynn’s interview with me on Tuesday, he called for a set-piece goal. He duly delivered it.

» READ MORE: Jack McGlynn has hit the heights he and the Union hoped for, and now can rise even higher

When Jim Curtin summoned Joaquín Torres from the bench in the second half, they both knew Torres hadn’t gotten into a game since Aug. 31, a stretch of nine contests. And they knew that in September, Curtin publicly called out Torres’ lack of good work in practice.

At this time of year, though, and with so many key players absent, Curtin turned to what he knew he had: a savvy attacker who could keep the ball and make plays on Gillette Stadium’s artificial turf.

“It’s been a while without playing, and I’m not getting the minutes that I’d like,” Torres told The Inquirer in his native Spanish after the game. “But I try to stay fit, and when I have the chance, to be able to play — do my thing, keep the ball, try to break lines, create chances, and take care of the ball when we have to.”

In 23 minutes on the field, Torres recorded 23 touches, one shot, 15-of-17 passing, and two defensive recoveries for good measure. Curtin didn’t hesitate to praise the 26-year-old Argentine.

» READ MORE: Is it win or bust for the Union? Not when a busting might be coming no matter what

“A guy that is a true professional,” he said. “His talent, and I talk to him all the time about it, is undeniable — he can play anywhere. For a lot of reasons, decisions have gone against him this year, but he’s an example of a guy who has trained good in the last couple of weeks, and got an opportunity, and really helped us.”

Torres appreciated the compliments.

“I’m thankful,” he said. “I’m prepared for the minutes that I get. I’d like to get more, and I feel prepared, I’d like to get the chance … Hopefully we can get there.”

As notable as Curtin’s turn to Torres was how the manager used him: the first time in ages the Union have played a 4-2-3-1 setup with wingers. Sporting director Ernst Tanner’s tactical playbook is built around not using wingers, and he has built the Union’s roster accordingly.

The team knows, though, that an occasional change of tactics can throw opponents off. Donovan noted that the players who mimic opposing teams’ attacks in practice are used to playing in a 4-2-3-1 because so many other MLS teams do.

» READ MORE: How the Union won Game 1 of the series vs. New England

Curtin knows that in Torres and Sullivan, he has players with ample histories as wingers for other teams — CF Montréal in Torres’ case and the U.S. under-20 national team in Sullivan’s.

So there’s lots of credit to go around. Curtin earns it for his tactical move, and for saying openly after the game that the move was “to go for this thing” and win the game. And the players deserve it for their execution.

» READ MORE: Union’s Kai Wagner suspended 3 games for using racist language in a game

As soon as it became clear this week that Carranza had a hamstring problem, thoughts turned to whether Sullivan could step in for him. That indeed happened, and the Bridesburg native met the moment in one of his biggest games as a pro.

Starting next to Uhre on the front line, Sullivan registered 40 touches, three shots, 15-of-18 passing, three defensive recoveries, and five duels won out of eight contested in 82 minutes. He also seamlessly made the transition from the 4-4-2 pairing with Uhre to the 4-2-3-1 spell with Torres and Donovan.

“There was no fill this, fill that — they have trust in me to play my position and do what I do best on the field,” Sullivan said of his assignments for the night. “We don’t play [with wingers] too often, but when we do, we trust ourselves to be in that formation and play to the best of our abilities and create chances.”

As for Carranza, the long layoff until the Union’s next game (more on that in a moment) should help a lot. So will the knowledge that every game from here on out will be on grass instead of artificial turf.

“It’s a high hamstring,” Curtin said. “He wouldn’t have missed Sunday [a Game 3 if necessary], I can tell you that. Now he’s got 18 days to recover and get ready for Cincinnati. … If we’re going to lift the trophy, he’s going to be on the field, and that’s what we need.”

No one knows the answer yet. The conference semifinal will be Nov. 25 or 26 at FC Cincinnati, this year’s Supporters’ Shield winner for the best regular-season record. The long wait is thanks to the Union’s sweep and a FIFA national team window next week.

With the Bengals at home that Sunday (they play in different stadiums), FC Cincinnati might rather play Saturday to be out of the way. But if the game is to be on traditional TV, not just Apple, there’s more time available Sunday.

Cincinnati also swept its first-round series, and will wait even longer to play after finishing off the New York Red Bulls on Nov. 4.

But the prize for the longest wait of all goes to Cincinnati star centerback Matt Miazga. He’ll miss the next game due to yellow card accumulation, and many games after that as punishment for going into the referees’ locker room after the series clincher at Red Bull Arena. The exact suspension should be levied in the coming days.