Since the game was on stupid HDNet, I was unable to watch it, and therefore cannot give player grades for the game. So I'm asking you out there in internet-land, if you saw the game will you please post your player grades for the game in the comments? Also feel free to post a name (or screen name) and a website or anything you want to mention and I will try to give you a shoutout. I would really appreciate the help guys! After a couple days I will average any scores I get and post the results. Thanks again for the help!
By the way, HUGE win for RSL. Perhaps this team has the playoffs in it after all...
Also, here is a list of the players from the game, to make things easy on you:
Nick Rimando
Chris Wingert
Nat Borchers
Jamison Olave
Ian Joy
Robbie Russell
Kyle Beckerman
Javier Morales
(Andy Williams 76)
Will Johnson
Clint Mathis
(Robbie Findley 69)
Yura Movsisyan
(Kenny Deuchar 82)
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Game 25: RSL vs. Chivas TST: The Third Time's A Charm
Ah yes, the third time's a charm. After blowing two games on the road, RSL broke their undefeated streak at home with yet another beautiful choke at home. This one courtesy of a Rimando/Borchers miscommunication where Little Nicky ran out of the box after a ball that Borchers was tracking back to. No one called the other off, the ball bounced off of Borchers's chest, right to Esky, who escorted the ball into the net after Rimando ran into Borchers, taking them both out of the play. Very much like earlier this year against TST. You gotta learn from your mistakes boys!
Other than that, the game was pretty uneventful, with Findley's touch being even worse than usual and Movsisyan showing his uncanny ability to screw up a finish no matter how easy it is. Throw in Morales turning the ball over every chance he got (and not once hitting a free kick anywhere useful) and you've got another disappointing loss. Yes, RSL outplayed TST for much of the game, but since they couldn't finish, it didn't show on the scoreboard. Worse yet, the loss takes RSL out of playoff position; a loss to San Jose this week and you can say goodbye to the 2008 postseason. At least my Chicago Cubs are doing well...
Game grade: F
They blew their third straight winnable game. Could the grade be anything else?
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Had a great game up until "the play"
Chris Wingert-6 Quiet but solid
Nat Borchers-5 Decent until "the play"
Jamison Olave-6 A decent game for big J
Ian Joy-6 Played pretty well, got into the attack
(Robbie Russell 82)-6 Didn't have a lot of time to effect the game
Andy Williams-6 Played well early on, but faded quickly
(Clint Mathis 55)-6 OK but nothing special
Kyle Beckerman-6 A pretty solid game for Kyle
Javier Morales-3 Terrible. Tons of turnovers, free kicks were useless.
Will Johnson-6 Probably his worst performance in an RSL kit, but still decent.
Robbie Findley-4 His touch killed him in this one
(Kenny Deuchar 70)-6 Aggressive
Yura Movsisyan-4 As usual, can't finish
Coaching grade (Kreis): 4 Team didn't really come out very aggressive in the 2nd half. What in the hell is the Russell for Joy sub when you are down late? Is Nunez hurt? He's no Pele or anything, but he is a striker and has scored before.
Ref grade: 6 Fairly even, but let the game get a bit out of hand.
RSL Man of the Match: Kyle Beckerman
No one really stood out, but Becks was solid and kept himself involved in the game.
Assclown of the Match: Alecko Eskandarian
Seriously? You're going to give the crowd the "quiet" gesture after scoring a goal like that? You'd think he'd have hit the top corner from 45 yards or something from him showing off. Certainly not a cheap goal that a drunk monkey could have scored.
Other than that, the game was pretty uneventful, with Findley's touch being even worse than usual and Movsisyan showing his uncanny ability to screw up a finish no matter how easy it is. Throw in Morales turning the ball over every chance he got (and not once hitting a free kick anywhere useful) and you've got another disappointing loss. Yes, RSL outplayed TST for much of the game, but since they couldn't finish, it didn't show on the scoreboard. Worse yet, the loss takes RSL out of playoff position; a loss to San Jose this week and you can say goodbye to the 2008 postseason. At least my Chicago Cubs are doing well...
Game grade: F
They blew their third straight winnable game. Could the grade be anything else?
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Had a great game up until "the play"
Chris Wingert-6 Quiet but solid
Nat Borchers-5 Decent until "the play"
Jamison Olave-6 A decent game for big J
Ian Joy-6 Played pretty well, got into the attack
(Robbie Russell 82)-6 Didn't have a lot of time to effect the game
Andy Williams-6 Played well early on, but faded quickly
(Clint Mathis 55)-6 OK but nothing special
Kyle Beckerman-6 A pretty solid game for Kyle
Javier Morales-3 Terrible. Tons of turnovers, free kicks were useless.
Will Johnson-6 Probably his worst performance in an RSL kit, but still decent.
Robbie Findley-4 His touch killed him in this one
(Kenny Deuchar 70)-6 Aggressive
Yura Movsisyan-4 As usual, can't finish
Coaching grade (Kreis): 4 Team didn't really come out very aggressive in the 2nd half. What in the hell is the Russell for Joy sub when you are down late? Is Nunez hurt? He's no Pele or anything, but he is a striker and has scored before.
Ref grade: 6 Fairly even, but let the game get a bit out of hand.
RSL Man of the Match: Kyle Beckerman
No one really stood out, but Becks was solid and kept himself involved in the game.
Assclown of the Match: Alecko Eskandarian
Seriously? You're going to give the crowd the "quiet" gesture after scoring a goal like that? You'd think he'd have hit the top corner from 45 yards or something from him showing off. Certainly not a cheap goal that a drunk monkey could have scored.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
RSL Stadium Opener Tickets
I just have a note for anyone who bought the single game tickets online for the big opening night extravaganza at the new Sandy stadium. Although the web site says the tickets will be shipped out the next business day, they will actually ship about 2 weeks before the game according to the RSL offices. So by my count, that would be around next Thursday, the 25th. So don't worry (like I did) if you haven't seen your tickets yet, do that if you haven't seen them by the 5th or so!
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Game 24: RSL @ Energy Bovines: That's More Like It!
Ah yes, RSL has returned. After looking like they may become a competent team and finally make the playoffs, RSL has now reverted to their normal state, completely blowing the second game in a row now. Welcome back, crap team, how we've missed you!
Game grade: F
This is the kind of game RSL needs to win if they want to be considered a good team. In a fairly even match, they take an early lead and then squander it with stupid mistakes. The Angel goal was especially egregious with Olave doing his now-signature half-assed follow the ball routine (perhaps he's been listening to Sherry Bobbins? "Don't pout, don't sob/Just do a half-assed job...It's the American way!"). Angel then did a little swim move past Olave (who inexplicably collapsed as though he'd been hit by a semi truck) got the ball and put it in the net. RSL has to earn some points on the road to make the playoffs and in the last two they have squandered at least 3 (2 to LA and at least 1 here). If the reds can't remove their heads from their rectal cavities, and soon, the season will be over in a scant 6 games... Is an F a bit harsh? Perhaps, but if they can't even pull a tie out of a game like this, they don't deserve any better.
Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Some great saves to help keep RSL in it.
Robbie Russell-5 Not a great night for Russell, too many little mistakes.
(Ian Joy 84)-6 Not really enough time to do anything.
Chris Wingert-5 Was overrun by Richards in the 1st half.
Nat Borchers-8 Without Nat it is probably 6-1.
Jamison Olave-3 Absolutely terrible in every facet. And we let Mantilla go for nothing...
Kyle Beckerman-7 Pretty active, tried to lead the charge.
Javier Morales-4 Too many giveaways, not one good free kick. Not one.
Will Johnson-8 Man, has he been a great pickup. We better make sure he is locked up long-term, and soon.
Andy Williams-6 OK game.
(Clint Mathis 59)-5 Did nothing, as per usual.
Robbie Findley-5 Beautiful assist, otherwise his touch killed him. Should've probably had 2 goals...
(Kenny Deuchar 78)-6 Tried, but was smothered by Bovines.
Yura Movsisyan-7 Nice goal, but like Findley, probably should've had more.
Coaching grade-4 I get the Mathis sub, but when you are down late you put in Deuchar for Findley??? And then Joy for Russell??? How about Deuchar for Wingert or Russell? Where's Tino Nunez? How about looking for the tying goal? How about 'fortune favors the bold'?
Officiating grade-8 Other than a soft yellow or two on RSL the officiating was solid.
RSL Man of the Match: Nat Borchers
Nat is retaking his title as the brick wall in center defense. He stopped everything that came his way (and quite a bit that went other ways). A great performance by Nat.
Game grade: F
This is the kind of game RSL needs to win if they want to be considered a good team. In a fairly even match, they take an early lead and then squander it with stupid mistakes. The Angel goal was especially egregious with Olave doing his now-signature half-assed follow the ball routine (perhaps he's been listening to Sherry Bobbins? "Don't pout, don't sob/Just do a half-assed job...It's the American way!"). Angel then did a little swim move past Olave (who inexplicably collapsed as though he'd been hit by a semi truck) got the ball and put it in the net. RSL has to earn some points on the road to make the playoffs and in the last two they have squandered at least 3 (2 to LA and at least 1 here). If the reds can't remove their heads from their rectal cavities, and soon, the season will be over in a scant 6 games... Is an F a bit harsh? Perhaps, but if they can't even pull a tie out of a game like this, they don't deserve any better.
Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Some great saves to help keep RSL in it.
Robbie Russell-5 Not a great night for Russell, too many little mistakes.
(Ian Joy 84)-6 Not really enough time to do anything.
Chris Wingert-5 Was overrun by Richards in the 1st half.
Nat Borchers-8 Without Nat it is probably 6-1.
Jamison Olave-3 Absolutely terrible in every facet. And we let Mantilla go for nothing...
Kyle Beckerman-7 Pretty active, tried to lead the charge.
Javier Morales-4 Too many giveaways, not one good free kick. Not one.
Will Johnson-8 Man, has he been a great pickup. We better make sure he is locked up long-term, and soon.
Andy Williams-6 OK game.
(Clint Mathis 59)-5 Did nothing, as per usual.
Robbie Findley-5 Beautiful assist, otherwise his touch killed him. Should've probably had 2 goals...
(Kenny Deuchar 78)-6 Tried, but was smothered by Bovines.
Yura Movsisyan-7 Nice goal, but like Findley, probably should've had more.
Coaching grade-4 I get the Mathis sub, but when you are down late you put in Deuchar for Findley??? And then Joy for Russell??? How about Deuchar for Wingert or Russell? Where's Tino Nunez? How about looking for the tying goal? How about 'fortune favors the bold'?
Officiating grade-8 Other than a soft yellow or two on RSL the officiating was solid.
RSL Man of the Match: Nat Borchers
Nat is retaking his title as the brick wall in center defense. He stopped everything that came his way (and quite a bit that went other ways). A great performance by Nat.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Besagno's Back?
Not sure if this is still true, but Nik Besagno may be back riding the pine here in Salt Lake as soon as tomorrow. According to his profile on the Sounders web site, "Nik Besagno comes to the Sounders on loan from Real Salt Lake for period between June 9, 2008 and September 9, 2008." The 9th, of course, is tomorrow. If he does come back, get your goodbyes in, I have a feeling he won't be back with the reds next year...
Game 23: RSL @ LAG: Broken result, broken leg
Sigh...kind of a tough game to watch. RSL really outplayed the Galaxy for 99% of the game and yet could only come away with a draw against a very beatable LA team. A Galaxy squad that was also missing Beckham and MLS's leading scorer Landon Donovan. Instead, RSL decided to use some defensive moves from RSL circa 05-07 to give up 2 goals to nobodies. And in the process, give up two points that will be very crucial coming down the stretch. In addition, the inevitable finally happened and Espi injured himself doing his celebratory backflip. To add insult to injury, the goal was waved off. To make matters worse, the official word is that Espi has broken his leg. Well, that was a nice 80 or so minutes he gave us since the first injury...
On the plus side, RSL did get a point on the road, which is sadly a vast improvement over their usual road result. In addition, Yura finally played a game where he didn't look 100% lost. His goal was just a right place, right time affair, but credit is due on the assist on the Johnson goal. That was a beautiful pass. Unfortunately, if you discount the 15 seconds that those plays took up, he was completely invisible in this match. At least it is a step in the right direction.
Overall, this is a game RSL could and should have won and one that will come back to haunt them. If RSL misses the playoffs, they will look back to this game as the point where it got away. That being said, they did outplay LA on the road and looked like a team that may be able to put a couple road results together yet.
GAME GRADE: B-
Individual Grades:
Nick Rimando-5 Put in a bad position on both goals, but if he's going to dive after the ball he needs to get it clear at the very least.
Chris Wingert-6 Pushed forward well, pretty good defensively.
Nat Borchers-5 See below
Jamison Olave-5 I wanted to give 6's across the board for the D, but those two insane scrambles that led to the goals (that prominently featured these 3) push them all down to a collective 5.
Ian Joy-5 See above
Will Johnson-8 Has been a great pickup; nice goal and was EVERYWHERE on the field.
Kyle Beckerman-7 Finally, some of the feistiness that's been missing.
Javier Morales-6 Meh.
Clint Mathis-5 Didn't really provide much of anything.
(Dema Kovalenko 67)-6 Nice to see Dema on the field.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Kept the defense honest throughout.
(Robbie Findley 75)-6 Why he came in so late is beyond me (did he run over Jason's stupid cry kids or something?); was ok after coming in.
Fabian Espindola-3 Broke his leg celebrating a goal that got called back...at least wait on the celebration until you know it stands!
(Yura Movsisyan 9)-7 Goal and (very nice) assist, yes, but invisible for the other 80 minutes he was on.
Coaching grade-6 JK lucked out with the Movs sub, but I'd still have liked to have seen Robbie get some extended minutes against a club that he would have something to prove to. Why exactly does Jason hate Robbie anyway? He seems to be SO reluctant to use him...
Refs grade-6 Would've been a 7, but really, does it really take 15 minutes to decide whether a goal stands or not? On top of that, there were a few foul calls both ways in this game that came in REALLY late. It almost seemed the ref was watching the game on tape delay or something...
RSL Man of the Match: Will Johnson
Scored a goal and, with Beckerman, was really the catalyst for the offense. On top of that, he worked hard defensively as well and was more than willing to mix it up.
Assclown of the Match: Fabian Espindola
I love ya, Espi, but 80 minutes between major injuries isn't going to cut it. Especially when it's 100% preventable...
On the plus side, RSL did get a point on the road, which is sadly a vast improvement over their usual road result. In addition, Yura finally played a game where he didn't look 100% lost. His goal was just a right place, right time affair, but credit is due on the assist on the Johnson goal. That was a beautiful pass. Unfortunately, if you discount the 15 seconds that those plays took up, he was completely invisible in this match. At least it is a step in the right direction.
Overall, this is a game RSL could and should have won and one that will come back to haunt them. If RSL misses the playoffs, they will look back to this game as the point where it got away. That being said, they did outplay LA on the road and looked like a team that may be able to put a couple road results together yet.
GAME GRADE: B-
Individual Grades:
Nick Rimando-5 Put in a bad position on both goals, but if he's going to dive after the ball he needs to get it clear at the very least.
Chris Wingert-6 Pushed forward well, pretty good defensively.
Nat Borchers-5 See below
Jamison Olave-5 I wanted to give 6's across the board for the D, but those two insane scrambles that led to the goals (that prominently featured these 3) push them all down to a collective 5.
Ian Joy-5 See above
Will Johnson-8 Has been a great pickup; nice goal and was EVERYWHERE on the field.
Kyle Beckerman-7 Finally, some of the feistiness that's been missing.
Javier Morales-6 Meh.
Clint Mathis-5 Didn't really provide much of anything.
(Dema Kovalenko 67)-6 Nice to see Dema on the field.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Kept the defense honest throughout.
(Robbie Findley 75)-6 Why he came in so late is beyond me (did he run over Jason's stupid cry kids or something?); was ok after coming in.
Fabian Espindola-3 Broke his leg celebrating a goal that got called back...at least wait on the celebration until you know it stands!
(Yura Movsisyan 9)-7 Goal and (very nice) assist, yes, but invisible for the other 80 minutes he was on.
Coaching grade-6 JK lucked out with the Movs sub, but I'd still have liked to have seen Robbie get some extended minutes against a club that he would have something to prove to. Why exactly does Jason hate Robbie anyway? He seems to be SO reluctant to use him...
Refs grade-6 Would've been a 7, but really, does it really take 15 minutes to decide whether a goal stands or not? On top of that, there were a few foul calls both ways in this game that came in REALLY late. It almost seemed the ref was watching the game on tape delay or something...
RSL Man of the Match: Will Johnson
Scored a goal and, with Beckerman, was really the catalyst for the offense. On top of that, he worked hard defensively as well and was more than willing to mix it up.
Assclown of the Match: Fabian Espindola
I love ya, Espi, but 80 minutes between major injuries isn't going to cut it. Especially when it's 100% preventable...
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
US Open Cup
Congrats to Ben Cup rival DC United on winning the Open Cup over Charleston tonight. Well done ya blacks!
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