August 12, 2007 8:26 PM
Solution to Rapids' woes: Get the other team to score
For a team having trouble scoring goals, the Rapids found just what they needed Saturday night to end their 10-game winless streak: a visitor gracious enough to score an own goal.
Well, if Craig Waibel's one-finger salute to the fans in the second half was an indication, perhaps gracious is the wrong word.
But goalkeeper Pat Onstad did mis-kick a bouncing ball, gift-wrapping a corner kick for the Rapids. And Dwayne De Rosario was kind enough to head that corner kick into his own net for the winning goal.
If that ain't gracious, what is?
The Rapids, though, deserve credit for the 1-0 victory at Dick's Sporting Goods Field. First, it was a victory. The team held the Dynamo scoreless, which is important if you yourself don't plan to score.
And the Rapids didn't buckle after going down to 10 men. Ugo Ihemelu, forced to foul Joseph Ngwenya after the Houston forward got behind him with the ball, was ejected in the 77th minute. Not only did the Rapids keep Houston from scoring, they managed some forays into the Dynamo's half.
But relying on the other team to beat its own keeper is no long-term solution. And it doesn't change the fact that Colorado has scored just six goals in the past 11 games.
The Rapids have dug a hole in those 11 games, and Saturday's victory was the first step to climbing out. A goal would be a nice second step.
And a victory Thursday over New England, which beat the Beckham-less Galaxy 1-0 on Sunday, might get these Rapids moving in the right direction.
GAME TIME: The start of Thursday's game against New England has been moved to 7 p.m.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Terry Cooke hustled his arse off. He often could be seen running at top speed to intercept passes from Dynamo players who weren't expected him and to help the defenders behind him. It may not be the type of assist he's used to, but the fans recognized his hard work. Cooke also had many fine services from the right wing, particularly in the first half. The Rapids chose Colin Clark as their man of the match. Clark was Cooke's offensive equal on the left side, but Cooke's hustle was the difference for me. My honorable mention would go to Dan Gargan, who helped keep De Rosario quiet.
SOME NIGHTS YOU HAVE IT; SOME NIGHTS ... It was no surprise that Jacob Peterson was the first player subbed off by coach Fernando Clavijo. Peterson seemed just a step too slow most of the game, for whatever reason. Peterson might have been the only player who had a good game against Seattle last week, but Saturday he wasn't there. A few weeks ago, I suggested my ideal pairing up top would be Herculez Gomez and Peterson. But they simply haven't been on the same page during the two games they've started at striker together. Should Clavijo give the pairing another chance? Or should he try another combination?
INJURIES? Houston keeper Pat Onstad appeared to be nursing a problem with one of his legs. When the ball was in the forward third, he often would take a minute to stretch or try to shake what was bothering him. The Dynamo coaches (Spenny!) even had Zach Wells warm up near the end. So Houston fans should keep an eye on that. Also, the likable Ryan Cochrane hurt an ankle during the first half and didn't return. He made his way to the Houston bench on crutches for the second half.
"EIGHTEEN THOUSAND TWENTY FOUR RAPIDS FANS ... HA ... HA ... HA ... " Even the Count on Sesame Street could tell there weren't 18,024 fans at Saturday's games. You could easily ready the C-O-L-O-R-A-D-O spelled out in white seats on the east side of the stadium during the first half.
HORRENDOUS CALL: Mere minutes after sending off Ihemelu with a straight red card, referee Terry Vaughn failed to eject Craig Waibel for hog-tying Gomez. In the 80th minute, the Rapids' sparkplug raced past the clunky Houston defender, who grabbed Herculez from behind and ruined his run to goal. Vaughn somehow ruled that a yellow card was acceptable punishment, and Waibel was spared. After his gesture, though, he earned the wrath of the fans for the final 10 minutes.
CHEERS TO D-RO: The own goal couldn't have happened to a better player. De Rosario is the most thrilling player in the league not named Beckham or Blanco. He obviously felt bad about the error and did his best to redeem himself at the other end of the field. Any player is capable of such an error, even a player who works as hard as he does and keeps fans on the edge of their seats in every MLS city. And Saturday's crowd seemed to understand. Onstad was heckled for flubbing the kick that led to the fateful corner. But folks mostly backed off when it came to De Rosario. It's another example of the cruel nature of assigning the own goal to the player who put the ball in the wrong net. Awarding such a goal to "Rapids team" would be much more appropriate than punishing one player.
MORE ON ONSTAD: After a collision with Clark in the first half, the Houston keeper swatted away Clark's hand as the midfielder extended it in a sign of good will. Clark had been surging forward to collect a loose ball that Onstad reached first in a sliding motion. But a Houston defender had pushed Clark, who lost his balance and struck Onstad while on the ground. Perhaps Onstad didn't see the push, but he didn't give Clark the benefit of the doubt, either. Bush-league move by Onstad.
August 13, 2007
10:21 AM
Allen writes:
I'm with you on rating own goals. Most times that they happen is a bad fluke on the defenders part.
Any word if Clavijo commented about the Fire Clavjio folks greeting him when he came into the stadium? Anything more on the fall-out between Petke and Clavijo?
August 13, 2007
4:24 PM
Doug Olson writes:
Nothing in your postgame about Colorado's luck when the keeper was given a save for a ball that was pretty clearly beyond the post on the replay? If you're going to challenge the referee's judgment against you on the Waibel yellow, honesty demands you challenge his dicier judgments when it helps you, too.
REPLY FROM GEORGE
yes, that play certainly could've worked against the rapids. in defense of the referee, it happened very quickly. and it was difficult to tell where the ball actually was from ground level. my seats are five rows off the pitch on the side of the north goal where bouna came down. we had a straight, unobstructed view of the play from the stands, and we couldn't tell if the ball had crossed or not. it was way too close for our comfort; i'll say that.
the national hockey league has adopted the use of video replay to examine if a puck has completely crossed the goal line or not. this would be an example of where such an innovation could help the game of soccer. however, i understand that some of the reluctance to adopt the use of video comes from the varying economic demands it would place on soccer federations around the world. but one might argue that if the technology is available and not cost-prohibitive, why not use it?
August 14, 2007
2:01 PM
Mac writes:
Don't forget the goal that was scored off H. Gomez around the 4th minute that was called back because a high flying elbow was ruled as deliberate contact with the ball. He was then issued a yellow card via a call signaled to the referee by the linesman.
Honestly, I could not make out the elbow altering the direction of the ball in any of the replays and would question if it was in fact any contact.
REPLY FROM GEORGE
so if we count bouna's miscue, De Rosario's own goal and Herculez's "elbow of God" goal, the rapids essentially won 2-1 on the basis of the three worst goals ever scored in a professional soccer match.