The Crew SC enjoyed strength in numbers as the Philadelphia Union's attack reached the top of 18-yard box less than a minute after the home side equalized inside Mapfre Stadium.

Six defenders in the area, not counting goalkeeper Steve Clark, were tasked with marking four opponents. The math favored Columbus. Little else did. While bodies were back, minds lacked focus.

Some were caught up in the excitement of Adam Jahn's tying goal. Some were guilty of ball watching instead of reading their keys. Some didn't sense the danger until Union rookie Keegan Rosenberry drove a left-footed shot past Clark for a go-ahead goal just 62 seconds after the Crew knotted it.

The Crew SC enjoyed strength in numbers as the Philadelphia Union's attack reached the top of 18-yard box less than a minute after the home side equalized inside Mapfre Stadium.

Six defenders in the area, not counting goalkeeper Steve Clark, were tasked with marking four opponents. The math favored Columbus. Little else did. While bodies were back, minds lacked focus.

Some were caught up in the excitement of Adam Jahn's tying goal. Some were guilty of ball watching instead of reading their keys. Some didn't sense the danger until Union rookie Keegan Rosenberry drove a left-footed shot past Clark for a go-ahead goal just 62 seconds after the Crew knotted it.

"It seemed like a mental collapse by the whole team," center back Nicolai Naess said. "They played right through us after kickoff and it's not supposed to happen like that."

In a season rife with late-game letdowns what transpired Wednesday night in the 74 th minute might prove among the most damaging. If the Crew had gotten the next goal it may have headed into Saturday's match with San Jose just three points out of a playoff spot with a game in hand. Instead, a momentary loss of concentration allowed the Union to claim a 2-1 win, leaving Columbus six points adrift with 10 matches remaining.

Thursday, players and coach Gregg Berhalter attempted to make sense of a senseless goal coming off a kickoff. It developed so quickly the television feeds missed the rapid buildup to the stunning goal.

How could the Crew (4-9-11), with so much riding on the outcome, allow such a play to occur?

Holding midfielder Wil Trapp believed the overriding issue was a lack of focus as the Union put the ball back into play. He said, "we took a (mental) break" as the home crowd celebrated the tying goal.

Trapp also thinks a few players were "jumpy" as the Union possessed the ball in midfield. Because there's no definitive replay of the buildup it's hard to determine what happened, but Berhalter conceded there was "a gamble" that didn't work.

Trapp expanded on his view:

"We don't need to be as eager stepping out on guys. We should just keep our shape. We might have been too jumpy trying to go after the ball . . . We stepped too early trying to put pressure on the ball where maybe we don't need to do that. You could just slide across and stay in our banks of four."

As Tranquillo Barnetta ran into a pocket of space down the middle of the field, Berhalter said one of his players should have committed a foul just to kill the dangerous run.

"I would have liked to see a foul on the first pass and we're talking 45 yards from goal, not even close to the area," he said. "That's where you take a smart foul just to slow things up and get organized."

Still, the Crew appeared in good shape as Barnetta played the ball wide of the box to Roland Alberg. It's at this point, however, the paralysis took root. All six defenders looked at Alberg.

As the winger sent a return pass to Barnetta, Rosenberry dashed from the touchline, making a diagonal run into the box. Nobody picked him up. There were no heads of a swivel. Naess attempted to close out Barnetta, but the midfielder quickly played it to the cutting Rosenberry.

"It was a lack of a definitive decision-making at the time of the play," Trapp said. "We don't know who's stepping (up). We're out of position and it turns into nobody makes a decision."

Rosenberry, one of the league's top right backs, made a terrific play to score. He accepted the pass from Barnetta on his right foot and stepped across Trapp's body before transferring the ball to his left foot. Rosenberry beat Clark with a low shot to make it 2-1.

Clark stood up and shook his head in disbelief, clasping his hands behind his neck. Other bewildered Crew players looked at each other trying to process the breakdown.

Trapp saw it as the latest example of the Crew letting its concentration and intensity wane in a critical moment

" . . . It's just bad defending plain and simple," Berhalter said "It's something where a guy is able to dribble and play a one-two basically through three player and our defense is exposed. Having said that, we're still in position to make a play on the goal and we don't make the play . . . We had too many guys going to the ball instead of reacting and seeing what the right movement is."

A few quick notes:

--- Berhalter said left back Hector Jimenez and winger Justin Meram, who were shaken up in the game, were fine Thursday.

--- The coach isn't worried about the four-game goalless drought of Ola Kamara, subbed out in the 60 th minute. He admitted all the minutes logged since taking over as striker in mid-May might be having an impact.

"That's why we thought it was important to bring Adam in because the minutes add up quickly. Ola has never played in a summer like this where it's extremely humid. The weather in Norway is not like that. It's about managing his minutes . . . We're happy with him. His chances will come."

--- As if his club possesses the requisite mental and physical toughness, Berhalter replied: "We'

treed@dispatch.com

Twitter: @treed1919