GALAXY PREVIEW: PENA FIGHTING BAD REPUTATION.

Byline: Fred J. Robledo Staff Writer

Danny Pena might not be the most famous player in Major League Soccer, but you'll know when he's on the field.

He's one of the league's favorite targets, accumulating more penalty points (36) than anyone while sharing the league lead in cautions (8) with New England's Ivan McKinley. He's missed two games this season because of yellow-card accumulation and has been kicked out twice in his three-year tenure.

When he joined the Galaxy in 1996, his rough tackles quickly earned him the reputation as one of the dirtiest players in the league.

``I'll never understand that (reputation),'' said Pena, preparing for the Galaxy's Western Conference match at Dallas this evening. ``I've never been in a situation where I've severely hurt someone, thrown an elbow at somebody or head-butted somebody.

``But if you go by the league and disciplinary committee, they will say I'm a player to watch out for. It's just crazy.''

During practice he's painfully vocal, screaming obscenities at fellow players for making mistakes and cursing himself if he does the same. During matches he's intense, causing attacking midfielders to wince when he comes their way at full-speed.

But he's also one of the Galaxy's most important pieces, a rare package of determination and skill who rarely loses 50-50 balls and who closes space as well as anyone on the field.

``That quality comes from being a great competitor,'' said Galaxy coach Sigi Schmid. ``His number one goal is to compete and win games and he really doesn't care if he offends anyone. He's an older player who has been through wars and you can count on him in the big games.

``And as far as players, they all have Danny's respect. When you have his kind of dedication and tenacity, you earn that respect.''

``If you're a new player to the Galaxy and you take Danny Pena seriously, he can scare you,'' said Galaxy goalkeeper Kevin Hartman. ``But he just has a unique sense about him. Whenever you see him get really mad, you kind of take it with a grain of salt because he takes the game very, very seriously.

``If he makes a mistake, he's the first to raise his hand and say, `I messed up.' And he expects you to do the same.''

Despite his aggressive play and sometimes volatile nature, Pena is loved and respected by his teammates and those who know him.

At 31, he's not a rah-rah guy seeking attention. In 1997, he turned down an invitation from then-coach Steve Sampson to join the U.S. national team in preparation for the 1998 World Cup in France.

The Galaxy was in a playoff drive at the time and Pena didn't want to leave to take a substitute role on the U.S. team. More important, Pena wasn't going to show up at the last minute after the national team had overlooked him during his entire career.

GALAXY vs. DALLAS

Time: 6 p.m., at Cotton Bowl.

TV/Radio: Fox Sports West; KRLA-AM (1110), KTNQ-AM (1020 Spanish).

Series update: Galaxy leads 2-0 and 8-6 all-time.

Galaxy (15-8, 39 points) update: It has won four consecutive and 10 of its past 12 to occupy sole possession of second place in the Western Conference. Now, the Galaxy has its sights set on its third Western Conference regular-season title in four seasons, trailing Colorado (16-7, 42 points) by only three points with nine games remaining.

Burn (13-12, 35 points) update: If the Burn hopes to stay in contention for a Western Conference title, it must secure a three-point victory this afternoon against the Galaxy.

- Fred J. Robledo

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Box: GALAXY vs. DALLAS (See text)