Early heroics from Ned Grabavoy weren't enough for RSL (Realsaltlake.com)
There was good news and bad news for RSL coming out of Commerce City. Colorado, Saturday night. First and foremost for many fans, despite a gutty performance from the Claret and Cobalt, the Colorado Rapids evened the match at 2-2 in the second half to claim the Rocky Mountain Cup for the first time in seven years. It's indeed a bummer for RSL fans, but it's a well earned accomplishment for Oscar Pareja and his young Rapids group. Suffice it to say, the rivalry has been rekindled.
However it wasn't near all bad for RSL. A point on the road in MLS, especially in a rivalry match like this, is never a bad thing. This result, plus the draw between Portland and Vancouver, keeps RSL on top of the Western Conference exiting the weekend. That's right, despite only claiming 1 point out of their last 9, the Claret and Cobalt are still on top. Also Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman returned to the lineup after missing a month with Gold Cup duty. Rimando was clearly man of the match, with his several saves earning RSL that valuable point.
With the angst of the Rivalry melting quickly in the rear view mirror, what is next for the Claret and Cobalt? What lies ahead? Obviously attention immediately shifts to US Open Cup Semifinal match this Wednesday against Portland. It's two wins for RSL until they can collect not only a trophy to add to the cabinet, but to lock down a CCL spot for next year and claim the corpse of that particular White Whale.
Portland are no slouches though, and former RSL man Will Johnson will lead his club into Rio Tinto on Wednesday night with the exact same goals: the winner of this match will host the final. Hopefully RSL will be able to have the services of Javier Morales as he left the Colorado match early for precautionary reasons. Look for Nick Rimando to make his first start of this year's Open Cup campaign, and look for the return of both Tony Beltran and Chris Wingert to help bolster RSL's defense. Those points should be a great relief to RSL fans. Wingert and Beltran's suspensions are now over in league play, which means they can return to the lineup when RSL host the Houston Dynamo at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday night. Those three points could be crucial, especially with three six pointers coming up against Portland.
RSL will need to defend it's home field advantage to lock up the playoffs and make any kind of a run at the Shield or a high seed. There are six remaining League matches at the RioT vs Houston, Columbus, Portland, San Jose, FC Dallas, and Chivas USA. Hopefully worst case scenario lands you 12 out of those 18 points. That would put RSL at 50 points, if they don't earn another on the road. All of RSL's remaining road matches are against Western Conference Playoff teams, if one assumes that Seattle will make a run with Dempsey in the fold. The points on the road could be at a premium, making winning our matches at home even more vitally important. Circle the August 23rd date at LA and September 28 at Vancouver as matches that could be targets for at least a point. Seattle is kind of an unknown quantity with Dempsey, for now.
So there's plenty to play for, and the Claret and Cobalt are going to have to play at the top of their game from here on in to make a run at a solid playoff seed. The conference is going to be very tight.
RSL will need to defend it's home field advantage to lock up the playoffs and make any kind of a run at the Shield or a high seed. There are six remaining League matches at the RioT vs Houston, Columbus, Portland, San Jose, FC Dallas, and Chivas USA. Hopefully worst case scenario lands you 12 out of those 18 points. That would put RSL at 50 points, if they don't earn another on the road. All of RSL's remaining road matches are against Western Conference Playoff teams, if one assumes that Seattle will make a run with Dempsey in the fold. The points on the road could be at a premium, making winning our matches at home even more vitally important. Circle the August 23rd date at LA and September 28 at Vancouver as matches that could be targets for at least a point. Seattle is kind of an unknown quantity with Dempsey, for now.
So there's plenty to play for, and the Claret and Cobalt are going to have to play at the top of their game from here on in to make a run at a solid playoff seed. The conference is going to be very tight.
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