August 18, 2008 6:09 PM
Gibbs debut a success
Brucio from the du Nord soccer blog asked me about the performance of Cory Gibbs on Saturday night.
"I have been a huge fan of his for many years and would love to see him healthy again," Brucio wrote.
Well, he looked just fine on Saturday. He made one mistake that I noticed, a play in the second half where he had the ball, was heading back toward goal and was being chased down from behind by a Kansas City player. He lost the ball on the play, but he shut down the player and the Wizards did not get anything out of the opportunity.
Conor Casey, earlier in the half, had scored on a play where he stole the ball from a defender (or two). So a gaffe such as Gibbs' could've been costly. But it wasn't.
Gibbs played a solid game, especially considering that the the entire back end of the field had not started together before. Gibbs was making his debut. Mike Petke was returning to the first 11 following injury. Jose Burciaga Jr. had started frequently early in the season, but that has dwindled. And Facundo Erpen, whom the team had relied upon in the middle with Ugo Ihemelu, was out on the left side.
And when you consider Preston Burpo was in goal, the Rapids' defense was a completely untested proposition on Saturday.
But you'd never have known from watching it.
The back line worked together smoothly and rarely got in trouble. Aside from the goal and one sweet K.C. cross that led to a spectacular Burpo save, the defense held tight throughout, even in the second half, when the Wizards were desperate.
Of course, it helped to have Pablo Mastroeni and Nick LaBrocca playing together in front of the defense. ...
But despite the lack of familiarity with his teammates and despite being thrust into the starting lineup just a few days after joining the team, Gibbs' debut with the Rapids was a success.
Now, with Burciaga, Gibbs, Erpen, Petke, Kosuke Kimura, Ihemelu, Stephen Keel and Jordan Harvey to choose from, the Rapids' coaching staff has some interesting choices about which four (or three) should start.
August 20, 2008
2:07 PM
bruce writes:
thank you george
it is a nice boost to ones ego when an email inspires a post
bruce
August 20, 2008
3:08 PM
Jeff writes:
Cory looked great. Also was a bonus having Petke back. If only we could have started the season this way.
Big news today with FC gone, the new boss should be able to get things headed in the right direction quickly.