The Royal Review

Has it been a year already?

2011-03-30T13:40:00.003-06:00

Wow. Getting a bit dusty around here. Hard to believe it has been a year since my last post. Crazy how time flies. Not sure what I'm going to do around here, I'd still like to post, albeit probably not at the prolific rate I did in '09. On a side note, what a great year to pick to cover the team, huh? We're still the home for the Ben Cup, that's not something I will let die (in fact, this year's installment kicks off June 18th). Should be fun with a re-tooled DC United this year. Excited to see RSL take down Dax, Party Boy, and CD9!
Anyway, great start to the season so far. Great CCL results, even if RSL should be up 3-0 instead of 2-0 on Saprissa. I was right there, saw the goal that was called off. There was no call to be made there. That ref was an ass. But I digress. Hard fought win in the slop at San Jose and then the demolition of the Gals last weekend. It's been fun to watch. I'm very excited to see what RSL can put together in what is sure to be an imposing environment in Costa Rica.
And really, that's all I've got for the moment (this was a very spur of the moment post). If you still check in every now and then, thanks! If you enjoy the Review, leave a comment, please. It may inspire me to post more! In closing, I'd like to give a couple virtual high-fives out. First to RSL for signing nationally ranked player Conor Chinn as a fourth string forward. He puts star(kick)s in my eyes (and don't get run over)! And also to Nat Borchers for his sweet "Lambeau Leap" (Sandy Spring? Borchers Bound?) into the supporters end after the Saprissa game. It was a very nice touch!

2010 Game 1: RSL vs. SJ - Live Thoughts

2010-03-27T19:06:00.030-06:00

I'll work on this as long as I feel like it; if it suddenly ends, sorry. Ha!

Pregame- Espi and Findley up top, nice. Grabavoy on the right instead of AWill, who I kinda expected to see. Just seconds away!

1st min-And RSL 2010 is off and running! Kinda digging the blue stripes on the sleeves on the away jersey.

5th min-Both teams looking out of sync and tenative. Espindola goes flying over the boards as Leitch fouls him very near the sideline. Crazy!

7th min-Rimando slips trying to clear the ball, SJ nearly pounces on it... Yikes, not a good start.

9th min-Salt Lake's D looking very vulnerable early. This could be a high scoring affair if either team can get its passing together.

12th min-Dangerous SJ free kick in the corner but luckily right to Big Nick.

14th min-GOAL JAVI! Gorgeous shot from deep!
Wife wants the laptop so I'm out.

27th min-And I'm back. Javi a beautiful ball through the middle and 2 defenders to Espi who chips Cannon. 2-0 RSL!

30 minutes in, Espi, Javi, and Rimando looking good. Central defense still bending but haven't broken yet.

31st min-Both RSL and SJ players slipping in the same place Nick did earlier. Apparently there have been oil slicks installed at Buck Shaw.

33rd min-Announcers just said former RSL man Atiba Harris has scored a goal tonight. Nice to hear, always liked Atiba.

34th min-Grabavoy diving in recklessly again, luckily no foul. He's been doing that a lot tonight, he needs to be careful, many MLS refs will card him for efforts like that.

37th min-Findley really struggling with the touch tonight, even more so than usual. A bit overeager perhaps?

39th min-And there's Ned's yellow. He really needs to get his head on straight.

42nd min-Cornell Glen and Ryan Johnson causing RSL all sorts of problems. Becks comes flying into the box and saves the day just before Glen can turn.

Half time- RSL 2 - SJ 0. Nice first 45 minutes of the season for the Reds. Was it perfect? Not by any means, but up 2-0 on the road at half is not a place RSL sees themselves very often! B+. Javi, Nick, Espi, and the outside backs have impressed. The central defenders, Neddy G, and Robbie F. have looked a bit off.

46th min-30 seconds in, Espi already on the attack again, Cannon barely able to stop his run!

53rd min- Espi gets free, beats Leitch, who grabs him from behind just outside the box. Last man back, red card Leitch. Javi then rockets the free kick into the far post upper 90. 3-0 RSL! Javi looking like he should be going to South Africa with Argentina tonight! Up 3, up a man, barring a complete collapse, this is 3 points in the bank for RSL.

58th min-Brandon McDonald goes in very high and very late on WillJ. Yellow card. Quakes losing their composure here?

59th min-Nat Borchers looking like he's at the end of a Rocky movie, absolutely covered in blood. Cut on his forehead.

60th min-10 v 10 while Nat is attended to. Alvarez burns Robbie Russell, gets free in the box, but hits the post. San Jose's follow-up goes way over.

63rd min-And to answer the trivia question: Who are RSL's first subs of 2010? Rauwshan McKenzie for the bloody Borchers and Andy Williams for Ned Grabbingboys.

65th min-Olave beaten, ugly foul from behind on Johnson. Yellow card. Dangerous place for a free kick. Alvarez shanks it. Crisis averted.

71st min-Espi out, Alvaro Saborio in. Big new signing or Kenny Deuchar part 2?

73rd-Must say that the defense, for the most part, has looked improved here in the second half.

73rd-Johnson gets the ball right in front of the goal, great save Rimando! Also kicked Olave on the follow through, possibly in the knee. All subs have been made for RSL, we're going 10 v 10, at least for a while.

75th-Saborio with a long shot, rolls weakly to Cannon. First MLS shot for him.

76th-Olave back on but obviously hurt. This allows Glen to run right by him, but Rimando uts him off and he just puts it wide.

78th-Saborio beats and draws the defense, passes to Findley in the box, Cannon beaten, Corrales saves it off the line. Shades of things to come?

80th min-Olave still limping, announcers say it's the right knee. Could be a devastating blow for RSL if he is out for any extended length of time.

82nd-I know the shutout would be nice and all, but RSL should really think about just pulling Olave and not risk further injury. Since the Quakes are already down a man, you'd still be even strength. Not worth keeping him out there to protect a 3 goal lead for 10 min.

84th-Maybe a little early to say this but Saborio already looking much faster and with much better feet than Deuchar ever did.

85th-Ryan Johnson with a flick to Amerikwa who just can't quite get onto the ball for a free header.

86th-Ryan Johnson looks very dangerous still. Could be a big year for him.

88th-Wave after wave of SJ attack. Alvarez and Johnson leading the charge. You'd think they were up a man! Olave down again and now with a huge limp. GET HIM OFF THE FIELD!

90th-Olave on one leg with a beautiful challenge in the box on Amerikwa, denying his run. Perfectly timed! Dude is a beast!

90+1-Amerikwa throws a completely unnecessary shoulder/elbow into WillJ as he goes by, nearly starts a fight. Guess who just won Assclown of the Match?

Full time-RSL starts 2010 with a 3-0 victory ON THE ROAD!!! Nice start to the year. Second half got a little ugly late, especially with Olave hurt and San Jose desperate. Half grade-B

Grades:
Game grade: B+, nice 3-0 win, but probably should be a bit better up a man. Seemed to get a bit complacent late.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Stellar all night long.
Robbie Russell-6 A couple mistakes too many.
Nat Borchers-6 OK game for Nat, probably needs a transfusion now.
(Rauwshan McKenzie)-6 Quiet, but helped keep SJ off the board.
Jamison Olave-6 Had some great moments and some iffy ones.
Chris Wingert-6 Great first half, too quiet in the second.
Kyle Beckerman-6 Nondescript game for Becks.
Ned Grabavoy-5 A little too wild and crazy on his challenges.
(Andy Williams)-6 Not a ton to do, but tracked back well on defense.
Will Johnson-6 Quiet game for the Mountie.
Javier Morales-9 Absolutely brilliant. 2 goals and an assist.
Fabian Espindola-8 Great game. Got a goal and was a thorn in SJ's side all night.
(Alvaro Saborio)-7 Not a lot of time on the field, but very active.
Robbie Findley-5 Poor game for Robbie, touch was really off.

RSL Man of the Match: Javi Morales
Abused the San Jose midfield and defense. Simply masterful, by far the best player on the field.

Assclown of the Match: Quincy Amarikwa
Gives Will Johnson an overly-aggressive version of the old "high school shoulder" for no reason. Totally douchy move. Amarikwa the Assclown. It just rolls off the tongue.

Pros and Cons:
+Javi and Espi looking like their old selves.
+RSL already has half as many road wins as last year after one game.
+Nice solid shutout to start the year.
+Rimando great, as usual, in goal.
-Injury to Olave looks like it could be pretty big and possibly recurring throughout the year.
-Although they didn't give up a goal, the defense looked very suspect at times.
-Have Findley's feet actually gotten worse?

The Royal Review Does The Double!

2010-03-23T15:49:00.002-06:00

Now I have terrible luck with my sports teams usually (see: Chicago Cubs, Syracuse Univ. Football, Southern Utah Univ. anything, RSL until last year), but amazingly, both of the soccer teams that I root for have won the championship! We all know that RSL won the MLS Cup, but over last weekend, Sydney FC went into Melbourne and beat the hated rival Victory on their home turf for the Australian A-League championship. Nice! Oddly, both RSL and SFC needed penalty kicks to decide the championship. My favorite moment of the game? The 40-second or so sequence in the following video that is, in my opinion, one of the great sports sequences of all time:

Melbourne have a goal disallowed for offside and, while complaining, fail to fully get back on defense which allows Sydney to score a quick "counter attack" goal. Making it even better is the reaction of the Melbourne fan in front at about :56 seconds in. Classic. Congrats to my boys in sky blue, Sydney FC, on the championship! And while we are at it, good luck in SLC, Syracuse! Final Four, here we come. And last, but certainly not least, with the MLS season ready to kick off this week (finally, and thankfully, with the strike averted): GO REAL SALT LAKE!

Luis Gil

2010-02-23T13:25:00.002-07:00

How funny. I read an article this morning where US U-17 midfielder Luis Gil, recently won by the Wizards in a lottery, had stated he wanted to stay out west with either Seattle or Salt Lake. On my way here to the Review to talk about how I thought that would be a nice pickup for the future, I stopped by Steve Goff's blog on the Washington Post and he says that RSL has already traded for Gil! I really like the move and think Gil could develop well with the help of Javi, Kyle, Andy, WillJ, and coach K (not to mention perhaps some CONCACAF Champions League experience). I'm not sure how I feel about RSL sending ANOTHER of its few international spots to KC (hopefully this one's only for a year, not time and all eternity). More details to come, I'm sure, but for now, nice move by RSL!

2011 RSL

2010-02-01T11:12:00.004-07:00

So I've been playing a bit (ok, a TON) of Football Manager 2010 lately, and with the offseason dragging on, I decided to post the 2011 Real Salt Lake roster (at least with manager 'Max Power' at the helm):

GK:
Nick Rimando
Quentin Westberg ($30k transfer from ESTAC-French League-in 2010)

DF:
Nat Borchers
Jamison Olave
Tony Beltran (currently transfer listed by request)
Chris Wingert
David Horst
Drew Moor (claimed from waiver draft 2011)
Bakary Soro (signed on a free transfer 2009)
Jeremy Hall (also MF, trade for Chris Seitz-preseason 2011)

MF:
Kyle Beckerman (captain)
Javier Morales (vice captain)
Will Johnson
Andy Williams
Jean Alexandre
Alex Nimo
Nick LaBrocca (claimed off waivers 2010)
Rhyan Grant ($1.4 million transfer 2010)
DaMarcus Beasley (free transfer, released from club after WC2010)

FW:
Robbie Findley
Edson Buddle (claimed off waivers 2009)
Shane Smeltz ($775k transfer after incentives mid-2011)
oh, and one other guy...
(the oft-injured) Ruud van Nistelrooy (free transfer mid-2010)

All in with almost $1,000 to spare per week under the cap.

As of July 27, 2011, RSL is sitting 4th of 8 in the Western Conference with a 9-8-1 record and 28 points. However, the first stretch of the season was busy with games in the 2010-2011 Champions League, where RSL ultimately came in 2nd after falling to America in the final. RSL is also still alive in the USOC, with an upcoiming semi-final game against the Gals.

It'll never happen, but...

2010-01-19T15:26:00.003-07:00

Seriously, if anyone in "RSL FO-land" sees this, please take a good long look at Shane Smeltz out of the Australian A-League. I know he'd probably cost a bit more than the team would like to spend, but the man has a $277,234.76 (A$300,000) buy-out clause in his contract. 6' 1" striker, 28 years old, and will get great experience playing in the World Cup this summer (with the Kiwis), and has 19 goals in 21 games this current season. Yes, 19. If RSL upgraded from Yura "Can't Hit The Broad Side Of A Barn" Movsisyan to this man...wow. 10-15 goals a year in MLS, no doubt in my mind, he's that good. Unfortunately, it looks like he's getting some interest from China and possibly Scandinavia, so a move would have to be made sooner rather than later. Would he come? Hard to say. But you don't know until you ask...

MLS Cup 2009-Live Thoughts

2009-11-22T19:03:00.049-07:00

I'm not sure how much I'll actually do (I want to watch the game!) but I'm going to try and throw up some thoughts as the game goes on...

9th minute-Defense looking a bit shaky. Donovan gets the ball in the box but is too slow with it. Play develops into a pretty clear header for Buddle, luckily put wide.

11th-Javi wastes a free kick straight on about 45 yds out, puts it directly over the end line.

12th-Beckham has the worst hairdo ever. Worse than a mullet. Gonna call it "the douchecut" as it is, indeed, quite douchy.

17th-Javi looks hurt after Beckham chops his legs out from under him. Announcer says "I didn't see a foul there." Makes me think that if you're going to commentate a game you should probably actually watch the game.

19th-Sounds like a knee injury for Javi, but he's going to come back on, at least for a while.

20th-Yura beats his man and then finds a new creative way to blow it by falling down. Javi about done, Cleetus going to come on for him.

22nd-Javi crying as he comes off, my wife feels really bad for him (understandably so). She thinks it sucks for him that he has to go out once he makes it all the way to the final.

25th-Findley wide open run, but called offside. Looked very borderline, looks like the AR are calling this (too) conservatively.

28th-Terrible corner call for LA. Looks like they're going to get all the calls, as, sadly, expected.

30th-Neither team showing much in the attack, basically back and forth in the midfield so far.

32nd-Andy with a long shot, misses quite wide, but at least he's going for goal.

34th-RSL losing basically every header, that could become an issue sooner rather than later.

36th-Terrible transition defense by RSL, Magee misses an open shot JUST wide.

37th-RSL has been trying to push forward but looks totally impotent in the final 3rd. Not even getting chances, too many turnovers.

41st-RSL's terrible defending finally kills them. Open Beckham to open Donovan to open Magee, goal.

42nd-RSL looks done. This looks like RSL defense circa 2005.

44th-Salt Lake obviously missing Javi, team looking lost in the final third.

45th +-Borchers gets a head to it but right to Ricketts.

45th +2-Yura forced to rush a shot in the box, puts it 40 feet high. Hate to say it, especially since he's scored some clutch goals in his day, but I will not miss him and his absolutely atrocious finishing.

Halftime-Defense, especially the outside backs, looks terrible. Midfield forcing too much and turning it over way too much. LA sitting back and waiting for the counter and RSL can't break it. Kreis being outcoached and the team sorely misses Javi. Both forwards look pretty useless, especially Yura, who has provided nothing positive. This is going to take an even better effort than we saw after going down 2-0 at Columbus. With Javi hurt and WillJ sick, I'm not sure RSL's got it in the tank...

46th-Will-J must be too sick to go on, Grabavoy on for him at half. 1 sub left-yikes!

47th-Findley breaks free, bad touch and unable to get onto it well. Robbie, Ricketts, and Omar Gonzalez collide. Robbie and Ricketts hurt.

52nd-Finally back to action, everyone still in.

54th-Getting chippy. Hope the Findley play wasn't the best look RSL is going to get.

58th-Free kick LA, just outside the box just off center. Douchecut Dave to take it. Hits the wall.

60th-Yura takes too long to shoot, possible PK, somehow a call on RSL. Ref's paycheck obviously written in LA.

62nd-RSL player literally thrown to the ground. No card from referee LA Joe. Apparently armed robbery is the only way the Gals will get a card.

64th-Scramble in the box, ball falls to Robbie Findley, goal RSL. Hell yes! Back in this!

66th-Ricketts' hurt hand comes back to get him, he's subbed out.

69th-Momentum with RSL right now. Need to capitalize while we can.

71st-Beckerman is a man among boys out there. Starts an RSL break, Ned with a beautiful ball to Yura who again blows it, this time with a shot about 20 feet high. Damn...

74th-Russell with a turnover reminiscent of the Columbus game. This time he recovers and shoves Landycakes off the ball.

75th-RSL takes Yura out for the last time, Espi in. I hate to see the last sub already, but Yura was worse than awful tonight.

80th-Former Red Chris Klein in for the Gals.

85th-RSL leaving Douchecut Dave wide open. LA pushing for the game winner.

87th-Game opening up, if there's as much injury time as there should be, we could have a game winner in regulation. Gonzalez hurt now...

90th-7 minutes of injury time. Espi playing terribly, puts a cross into the side netting.

90+7th-Andy Williams slips in the box and a golden chance goes unused.

End of Regulation-RSL a different team in the 2nd half. This one could go either way, but LA having a sub left works in their favor. Unfortunately, recent history suggests LA wins this, having put 2 on Houston in overtime in the Western Conference Final, while RSL could only go 0-0. PKs have to favor any team with Nick Rimando in net, so if we get there I like our chances.

98th-Findley a heartbreaker into the side netting.

101st-Mathis with a free kick just outside the box, again into the side netting. RSL having the better of it, but nothing to show for it. RSL wasting too many attacks with long shots.

Extra Time Halftime-RSL wasting too many chances. Mathis with a nice look a few seconds ago but put it right into the one defender, LA with a counter attack but the defense (barely) holds. RSL needs to put one of these away, even with Rimando in goal, it's not a positive to face the likes of Donovan and Beckham in PKs.

107th-Espi open in the box decides to pass not shoot. SHOOT THE DAMN BALL!

110th-RSL finally gets a call. Foul on Klein trying to win a header over Wingert in the RSL box.

120th-1 minute injury time...

120+1-Clint with a gorgeous ball to Andy wide open in front of goal, but his legs refuse to work and the chance goes begging. Andy collapses on the field in disgust, he's exhausted. And off to PKs we go!

End of play-RSL facing a backup keeper but LA has Donovan, Beckham, Klein, etc. Anyone's game, but you like our chances.

PKs-Beckham limping but totally sends Nick the wrong way. Goal.
Mathis nails it. 1-1.
Berhalter?! Inside side netting. Perfect shot. 2-1.
Findley up, big time pressure. Left upper 90. Gorgeous. 2-2.
Kirovski now. Rimando time? Yes, indeedy! 2-2.
Kyle right to Saunders. Craptastic. Still 2-2.
Landycakes, you know he'll score. OH MY GOD, LANDON OVER THE BAR! HOLY SHITBALLS! 2-2.
Grabbing-boys bottom corner. 3-2 RSL!
Magee HAS to score... And does... 3-3.
Andy Williams FTW. This will be super sweet if he wins it... Poor shot, weakly dribbled to Saunders. 3-3.
Klein scores. 4-3 LA.
Wingert our last chance... Passes into the back of the net. 4-4.
Edson Buddle, can Nick take him? Yes! 4-4.
Now Robbie Russell to win. Knock on wood! YES! RSL IS YOUR MLS CHAMPION!!!

Do You Believe In Miracles? YES! Pt. 2

2009-11-06T17:53:00.003-07:00

OK, so maybe it's not a bunch of college kids defeating the Soviet wrecking crew in hockey, but it was still a HUGE win, especially for a team that has struggled so mightily on the road. I'm still giddy about the game so not much for commentary, but I do want to mention what a big difference it makes when the midfield shows up (compare this game to game 1 and you'll see what I mean). Anyway, on to the grades!

Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Possibly could have had the 1st goal, although not totally his fault. Otherwise stellar.
Robbie Russell-3 Only real weak link on the night. Really bad, 2nd goal is on him.
Chris Wingert-6 OK game for Chris. Still not on 2008 season form, but not bad.
Nat Borchers-7 Steady game for Nat.
Jamison Olave-7 Was it a penalty or no? Wasn't given so he stays at 7.
Andy Williams-8 Was an absolute animal in the first half. Really nice to see Andy score to lock it up after the year he's had!
(Jean Alexandre 91+)- Not on the field long enough to get a rating
Kyle Beckerman-7 Solid most of the night and, most importantly, didn't get a 2nd yellow so he's available for the conf. final.
Javier Morales-8 Finally looked like '08 Javi.
(Clint Mathis 82)-6 Not much of a chance to do a lot as the Crew were in desperation mode when he came on.
Will Johnson-7 As always, extremely active.
Robbie Findley-7 Was a little worried the pressure would get to him on the PK but he calmly put it away.
Fabian Espindola-7 Earned the PK that put RSL on top for good.
(Yura Movsisyan 65)-6 Solid, but like Mathis, got caught up in the Crew's desperate attacks.

Coach grade (Kreis)-7 Not sure how much was him and how much was the team just doing it themselves, but the squad kept motivated after going down 2-0, which is a complete unknown for an RSL team on the road.
Ref grade (Toledo)-4 As usual, a terrible game for Toledo. Missed some big calls for the Crew and called way too many fouls on RSL that he didn't call the other way.

RSL Man of the Match-Andy Williams
What can I say? The guy looked like a world beater for much of this one. The goal was just icing on the cake.

Assclown of the Match-Frankie Hejduk
Normally I'm a Hejduk guy, but his incessant whining brings his AOTM, just beating out teammate Alejandro Moreno who put on the biggest show of flopping this side of Blanco.

Eastern Conference Final Here We Come!

2009-11-05T20:20:00.001-07:00

YES!

3-2 RSL
4-2 on aggregate!

Holy crap!

MLS Playoffs 2009: Game 1 vs. Columbus

2009-11-03T14:31:00.003-07:00

First off, congrats to RSL for pulling off a near-miracle and making it to the playoffs. However, once you're there, can you do anything with it? The reds were out to do just that over the weekend.
It was a gorgeous Saturday afternoon, and with it being Halloween, there were plenty of costumes to gawk at. On a related topic, have you stopped at gawked at the total morons bemoaning the loss of freedom of religion to the left-wing gay conspiracy (led by President Obama, of course) just outside of the stadium? It is truly a testament to America's freedom of speech that such lunacy is allowed in public. But I digress. Back to the game. Realistically, RSL needed an effort much like the 4-1 shellacking they put on the Crew at the River earlier this season to give themselves the best chance to get to the Eastern Conference Final (note to MLS: fix the screwy playoff system. NOW!). Unfortunately, some extremely tenative and mediocre play through the midfield made this impossible, but after working out the jitters RSL was able to control the game for the most part. However, the mids weren't really able to work the balls up front in any sort of dangerous position for most of the game, limiting RSL's chances. And after Findley missed a shot into the side netting in the 83rd, I think most fans were thinking we were looking at a 0-0 tie on the day. And that's what made the goal in the 88th that much sweeter. Yura took a quick throw in from WillJ that broke him free from the defense and put a pin-point pass into the box that Robbie toed home for the game-winner. And the place went, for lack of a better term (cover your eyes, children) apeshit. It was a combo of being excited for the goal and just total relief that RSL had FINALLY broken the ice. So although it's not the multi-goal lead that I (and I'm sure RSL themselves) would have liked, it's at least a lead. Well done RSL, and good luck in Ohio. Bring home the Cup boys!

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Not a lot to do
Chris Wingert-7 Steady
Nat Borchers-7 Solid as always in the back
Jamison Olave-7 Kept his head straight and had a nice game
Tony Beltran-7 Very active, looked good
(Robbie Russell 79)-6 Not a lot of time to put his mark on the match
Andy Williams-5 Like the rest of the midfield, too may turnovers
Kyle Beckerman-5 Meh
Javier Morales-3 Just awful. Passed consistently to CLB, no defense, no hustle.
(Clint Mathis 75)-6 Nothing special but anything was better than Javi Saturday
Will Johnson-6 Probably the best in midfield on a bad day for MFs
Robbie Findley-6 Scored a goal but was a bit rough most of the night
Fabian Espindola-5 Never really read any of Robbie's runs right
(Yura Movsisyan 65)-9 I'm a Yura-hater for the most part, but he was spectacular and RSL was a different team with him on the field Saturday.

Coach grade (Kreis)-8 Usually his subs are inexplicable to me, but these were good (recognizing that Javi was killing us was a good move) and his team pressed to get a W.
Ref grade (Geiger)-5 Inconsistent on calls as per usual in MLS.

RSL Man of the Match-Yura Movsisyan
Left Rio Tinto with a great performance that hopefully will get RSL one step closer to MLS Cup 09.

Assclown of the Match-Frankie Hejduk
Went in 2-footed on an RSL man (can't remember which off the top of my head) that I have often seen a red given for. Wasn't even given a card, so you'd think he'd be happy right? Oh no, he bitched for 10 minutes. Assclown.

Quote of the Day-"The Italian pedophile" in reference to Columbus's Gino Padula, who does, in fact, look like an Italian pedophile. Good job guys standing behind me in section 1!

29 Down, 1 To Go

2009-10-22T16:00:00.002-06:00

Blah. Another poor road performance and RSL is now more likely to miss the playoffs than make them. Again. In a league that still has more teams qualify for the playoffs than miss them, if RSL again crashes and burns again this season it'll be 1 for 5 on making the playoffs. Let that sink in: in a system that makes it harder to miss the playoffs than make them, RSL can only get there 20% of the time. There is something VERY wrong with that. But I digress. Hopefully, with a little luck and a lovely hometown thrashing of the Crapids, RSL can sneak into the playoffs on the final day once again. It'll be cold and dark, yes, but I encourage EVERYONE to head out to the game. If you need a little more incentive (which, really? You can't get up for the RMC finale?), 101.9 The End is doing a $10 ticket promotion on their web site (details here), and they are decent seats. So come on out and help RSL pull out their 24.9% chance of making the playoffs (according to the awesome Sports Club Stats)! Go RSL!

2009 Game 24: RSL vs. Wizards: The Wiz Whizz On Their Chances

2009-09-02T19:02:00.003-06:00

Wow. Been a long time since an update, I apologize. Work has been crazy lately, but hopefully life is getting back to normal. First, a quick shoutout to Clint Mathis for being overwhelmingly voted the Royal Review Readers' Player of the 1st Half of the Season. Well done! Anyway, I'm keeping this one short, both to ease my way back in and because I doubt anyone will even see this after such a long break! Here's the grades from RSL's gritty road win (with only 10 men for a majority of the match) over a KC squad that not only squandered numerous chances in front of goal, but also possibly its chances for a playoff berth.

Player grades:
Chris Seitz-9 Showed why he's been so highly regarded. Would've taken a world class strike to beat him.
Chris Wingert-8 Very solid, especially in the second half.
Nat Borchers-8 Along with the rest of the defense, came alive in the 2nd.
Jamison Olave-8 Nearly a 9, he was a beast all night.
Robbie Russell-8 Solid defensively and got an assist.
Kyle Beckerman-6 Decent but not spectacular.
Andy Williams-7 Nice assist, really came alive after it.
(Jean Alexandre 46)-6 A couple big tackles, not at all out of place.
Ned Grabavoy-4 Red card was harsh, but he got it and did nothing before it.
Raphael Cox-5 One too many turnovers, but I like his game and if he figures out how to play under control, look out!
(Fabian Espindola 72)-7 Nice energy off the bench and a huge save late.
Pablo Campos-7 Inconsistent, but put away his best chance and that's what you ask for.
(Robbie Findley 56)-6 Not great offensively but contributed well to the team defensive strategy.
Clint Mathis-7 Nice game for Cleetus.

Coach grade (Kreis)-9 Yes, RSL got a lot of help from some atrocious KC finishing, but his adjustments at half and the subs all seemed to work and RSL earned a very unlikely road win.

Ref grade (Geiger)-4 Harsh red card combined with amazingly inconsistent calls earns him a low grade.

RSL MAN OF THE MATCH - Chris Seitz
Earned his first shutout (and I do mean earned) by combining with the defense to hold the Wiz (That's funny! Read it again and you'll get it).

Douchebag of the Day - Davy Arnaud
A bit too whiny for my taste. Shut your pie hole and play some ball!

VOTE!!!

2009-07-11T19:20:00.001-06:00

Everyone please vote in my new poll (on the right, in the sidebar) for your player of the 1st half of the 2009 season. I have my own ideas, but I'm curious who everyone out in RSL-land thinks has been the cream of the crop so far this year. Results will be posted once the poll closes. Thanks again for coming by and thanks for voting!

Yura's Staying

2009-07-10T11:52:00.003-06:00

Just got a note on facebook from RSL saying that Garth announced today that Yura is staying for the remainder of the season. My reaction is: Why? He obviously doesn't want to be here (see some of his quotes about the move from recent articles) and RSL/MLS now lose him after the season for nothing. If Randers offered a ham sandwich to let him go early the RSL FO should've jumped on it. Always get something (cash) instead of nothing (no cash), especially in a down economy. Blah (although, did I really expect anything less?).

2009 Game 15: Toronto FC vs. RSL: Where has this team been?

2009-06-28T13:27:00.011-06:00

I finally got out to my first game this season (with a little help from KALL's $7 ticket promotion), but I couldn't have picked a better one to go to. RSL put together one of its more complete games of the year in taking apart a Toronto team that came in on short rest.

RSL controlled the flow of this game, for the most part, and after going up 2-0, kept Toronto from ever really looking dangerous. Yura put together one of his best outings of the year and we had a nice cameo by Ian Joy late. Overall, some solid play by the home squad, and a good, and necessary, win.

First half grade: A-
A good first half but not spectacular. The second half saw a few players step it up (most notably Ned Grabavoy) and really lead RSL to the finish. Two goals, but the defense was not perfect and Toronto had a few chances.
Second half grade: A
Nicely done by RSL in the second, scoring the final goal, but more importantly, shutting down the Toronto attack completely.
Game grade: A
A good, solid win at home. Hopefully RSL can build on this without getting the big heads that killed the team after the 6-0 thrashing of the NERds.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Didn't have a lot to do, but made the saves when necessary.
Chris Wingert-6 Also didn't have a lot to do, but the attacks never seemed to come from his side.
Nat Borchers-6 Passing was iffy at times, but got the job done.
Robbie Russell-7 Nice job filling in for Olave.
Tony Beltran-6 Poor first half, but redeemed himself with a solid 2nd.
(Ian Joy 83)-6 Nice to see Ian back on the field.
Kyle Beckerman-6 Almost a 5, scored a goal, but missed 2 or 3 absolute sitters.
(Tino Nunez 91+)-NA Didn't have enough time for a true rating.
Ned Grabavoy-7 Bad first half, but astounding in the 2nd. Nice assist on the 3rd score.
Javier Morales-6 OK game, nothing too great.
(Andy Williams 75)-6 Nice to see Andy getting some run.
Clint Mathis-7 Hard to argue a goal and an assist.
Yura Movsisyan-7 Nice, composed finish on the goal (for once). Very active, but had a bad case of ballhogacitis.
Fabian Espindola-4 The only weak link on the night. Just awful. Absolutely no effort and zero movement off the ball. Probably could have had 2 goals if he'd followed up on some plays.

Coach grade (Kreis)-7 I'd have started Andy over Ned, but Ned proved me wrong on that one in the 2nd. A 3-0 win is hard to criticize, but I'm still shocked Espi got a full 90 with that sort of (non-)effort.
Ref grade (Jurisevic)-5 The usual inconsistent MLS ref effort.

RSL Man of the Match: Yura Movsisyan
Yes, he made some mistakes, but got himself into good spaces and looked good on the goal.

Douchebag of the Day: Amado Guevara
After his teammate delivered a late, crushing tackle and picked up an obvious yellow, what does Guevara do? Complain for about 5 minutes. Seriously, it was one of the easiest yellow calls you'll ever see and Guevara whined like someone had punched his mother. Grow up, dude.

And now, some low-quality pictures from last night's game courtesy of my crappy camera phone:
Setting up the formation on a goal kick.

For those who haven't yet seen it, the unfortunate aftermath of the Supporter's end stage debacle

And now, a series I like to call, simply, "Sunset Over Rio Tinto"

Mathis sends in a cross as the sun sets

And then, the sunset truly hits...

Toronto vs. Real Salt Lake GAMEDAY

2009-06-27T17:00:00.003-06:00

Trying to get my sidebars somewhat up to date and I thought, "What the hell? Let's throw a prediction or two out there." So here goes:

Tonight:
Those dirty, dirty Canucks (ha ha, sorry I have a Canadian friend and it has become habit) 1 - Real Salt Lake 2
Salt Lake at home against a jet-lagged, 2nd game in 3 days Toronto team at altitude? I like our chances.

Tomorrow:
Brazil 2 - USA 1
As much as I want the US to win (and there certainly is a chance they could pull it off), I don't see it happening. Especially with Bradley out with one of the worst (if not THE worst) straight reds I've ever seen. Plus, although related, judging by the calls from rest of the tournament, I doubt the US will get through the match with 11.

Discuss.

AGAIN

2009-06-23T17:02:00.002-06:00

So we've been having computer issues at the ol' homestead once again, meaning I am way WAY behind on everything Review related. I'm going to try and get the site back up to date as soon as possible, but we're a ways out I think. In the meantime, here's my player grades from the latest last minute RSL meltdown...

RSL vs. Houston Grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Saved a (questionable) PK, played well.
Tony Beltran-4 Attacks constantly came from his side, gave way too much space for the tying cross
Nat Borchers-6 Played well until falling asleep on the goal
Jamison Olave-3 Horrific. Played the lazy, careless game he can be known for, then gets tossed for dissent. Well done.
Chris Wingert-6 Meh.
Kyle Beckerman-5 Also asleep at the wheel on the goal.
Will Johnson-6 Active, but not especially useful
Javier Morales-6 Too much time diving, but ok otherwise
Clint Mathis-6 OK but needs to do more
(Tino Nunez 76)-6 Not really given a chance, came in with RSL a man down
Yura Movsisyan-5 Nice on the assist but otherwise useless. Needs to learn to win something in the air (and put a shot on frame and....)
(Ned Grabavoy 82)-6 Not a lot of time to do much.
Fabian Espindola-6 Solid goal, some good effort at times, but needs to impose himself on the game more.
(Robbie Russell 63)-6 Decent in trying to hold off the Houston onslaught.

Coach grade (Kreis)-6 New formation seems to suit team, needs to get Olave a crowbar to help him remove his head from his ass.
Ref grade (Maruffo)-3 Another MLS game that devolved into UFC-lite. Cards were also a bit one-sided and the PK call was a bit weak for my tastes. Plus, a 2 minute water break in the middle of the game? Really?

RSL Man of the Match: Nick Rimando
Singlehandedly kept his team in the game. Earned RSL 1 point as opposed to 0.

Douchebag of the Day: Jamison Olave
You should never, ever, EVER be dumb enough to pick up two straight cards for dissent like that. Dude, take a xanax and back away...

2009 Game 11: RSL vs. San Jose: Officially the worst team in the league?

2009-05-31T17:13:00.004-06:00

Well, are we? It sure looks that way after RSL was thoroughly dismantled by a previously 1-7-2 Quakes team. Yes, that's one win. And if not for some heroics by Big Nick Rimando (with a little help from Bulldozer Olave), this game could have ended up just the opposite of the 6-0 shellacking that "Twilight Zone-RSL" put on the NERds. Since I don't even want to think about this one anymore, here's the grades:

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Played big despite the d letting him down over and again
Chris Wingert-6 Decent game, not great
Nat Borchers-4 Probably Nat's worst overall game for RSL
Jamison Olave-7 Kept RSL in this as much as he could
Robbie Russell-3 Beaten over and over and over and over again
Will Johnson-5 Very up and down
Kyle Beckerman-4 Every pass went to no one
Javier Morales-4 RSL needs a LOT more out of their playmaker
Ned Grabavoy-4 Did nothing, then team improved instantly when he went off
(Clint Mathis 64)-6 Solid effort
Luis Miguel Escalada-4 Was he in the game?
(Robbie Findley 55)-8 Big goal; one of the few to give a real effort
Fabian Espindola-5 Try being ONside once in a while Espi!
(Yura Movsisyan 56)-5 Useless as usual

Coach grade (Kreis): 3
Lineup was terrible (seriously, why does Findley keep starting on the bench? He's one of the league's leading scorers!) and subs were too late and a bit over-reactionary. Plus, never seemed to do anything to react to the pressure his team was under. Poor job.

Ref grade (Stott): 2
Quite possibly the worst reffed soccer game I've ever seen. One sided to an obvious degree for the home team, but that wasn't the worst part, as bad calls (and no-calls) flew both ways. Let the game turn into a low-rent UFC match and didn't seem to care. Threw yellows for one thing and then let the same thing go minutes later. Just painful to watch. If I wasn't trying to get away from awarding DotD to refs, he would've won it by himself in a landslide (however, that doesn't mean he gets off scott free).

RSL Man of the Match-Nick Rimando
Yes, he let in two, but with the defense playing like it did, that is basically a shutout.

Douchebag of the Day-The SJ broadcast commentators and the officiating crew
Both guys were complete homers, which is ok to a point, but these guys went into the realm of idiocy. SJ could do no wrong in any situation, while RSL was just there to mug the poor Quakes. The play-by-play guy's complete inaccuracy in his retelling of the DCU game was an interesting twist. The mention of Cannon working hard to preserve his shutout, after letting in a goal minutes earlier, was even better. And the mangling of Movsisyan into something approximating Mowsivian? Just icing on the cake. I pity you, San Jose fans, if this is the best they can do for you. As for the refs, well, see above...

In other words, blah.

Uh Oh Spaghetti-O's

2009-05-28T18:24:00.002-06:00

Crap. Missed all the fanfare around the Ben Cup second leg as my computer has been out with...a computer version of swine flu? I'm not feeling too creative at the moment, can you tell? Anyway, congrats to RSL on a big (and surprising, given recent form) road tie that keeps the cup in Utah for another year. So craziness at home and at work here lately, but I hope to have the site back up to date and fully going again in the next couple weeks (that's not to say I won't possibly get some occasional posts in between now and then). As always, thanks for coming by!

And in honor of the win, here is the beloved cup itself:

Peaceness, kids.

Updates coming soon

2009-05-15T17:38:00.002-06:00

So I have grades ready for the Colorado game, but haven't yet watched the LA game. The plan is to watch it and the KC game this weekend and then get all caught up hopefully by Monday. Famous last words, I know, but the Review will keep plugging away and, as always, thanks for coming by!

How's that workin out for ya?

2009-05-09T13:32:00.004-06:00

Well, that Kyle Davies-for-basically-nothing trade is really paying off. Now Nat is hurt, Worst is hurt, Olave has no knee cartilage, and our other backups (Russell, Wingert) are really outside backs (and their backups are 1st and 2nd year guys). Good move guys, really well done.

2009 Game 6: RSL vs. Crapids: Rocky Mountain Cry

2009-05-06T19:25:00.004-06:00

Wow. What a turd. Will RSL ever win a road game? 8-ball says: Signs point to no. Since we are already to the midweek game, no use for a full review. Here's the grades from the game:

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Decent until the injury
(Kyle Reynish 35)-6 Left out to dry on the goal, solid debut
Robbie Russell-4 An abomination of a 1st half, only slightly better in the 2nd
Nat Borchers-6 Stopped most attacks going his way
Jamison Olave-5 Bad call or no, got to be more careful than he was on the red card
Chris Wingert-5 Very up and down
Clint Mathis-6 Still played decent even completely out of position
(Tony Beltran 74)-6 Quiet in garbage time
Kyle Beckerman-6 Very bad at times, good at others, however, the only RSL player with enough passion on the night
Javier Morales-4 Terrible. Turnovers galore, poor free kicks, and a 1 game suspension (although I am tempted to give an extra point for elbowing Mastro, who generally deserves it)
Will Johnson-5 Just a thought, but I'd be curious what would happen with Will as a 2nd striker and a burner like Findley up top. I think that would make a good combo
Robbie Findley-6 Needs to be more aggressive shooting the ball, but ok
Yura Movsisyan-5 Still couldn't hit the broad side of a barn from 6 inches
(Ned Grabavoy 66)-5 Mostly useless.

Coach grade (Kreis)-6 After going a man down, there wasn't a lot he could do
Ref grade (Jurisevic)-3 Most ordinary calls were ok, but the big calls were all missed. The straight red on Olave? Terrible. Morales's elbow on Mastro? Missed it. The obvious pick-up of a pass back by Pickens in the 3rd minute? The one that would have changed the whole complexion of the game for RSL? The easiest call he'd have all year? Didn't make it. Shockingly bad.

RSL Man of the Match-Kyle Beckerman
Did Kyle play the prettiest game for RSL? Did he play the most technical game? Was he even the best player on the field for RSL for much of the game? No, no, and no. But Kyle did something that few of his teammates wanted to do: hustle. He wanted that game. He wanted the RMC. And yes, he tried a bit too hard to make something happen at times, but at least he tried. If, say, Javi had put in that kind of effort maybe the scoreline would have been different. On a related note, Javier Morales gets an honorable mention for MOTM, not for his play, but for decking Pablo Mastroeni. Well done!

Douchebag of the Day-Pablo Mastroeni
Was his normal whiny, crying, dirty-playing, douchy self. Honestly, perhaps we could just change this to the 'Pablo M. Award'

Le Sigh...

2009-04-28T19:58:00.003-06:00

Everytime I start thinking that JnG get it, they pull another "WTF Moment". Here's the latest. I find it hard to believe that the U-20 captain (and a player capable of multiple positions in the back) is a) not better than David Horst, b) not worth more than a 2nd round pick, and c) not worth keeping for depth purposes. Not to mention the fact that there are plenty of candidates on the roster that I would imagine could be loaned out to free up roster space (Alexandre, Nunez, and W(H)orst come to mind immediately). Le sigh...

2009 Game 5: NERds vs. RSL: El Beatdown Grande

2009-04-27T14:54:00.002-06:00

I'm hoping to do an actual review but right now I'm too tired and out of it to do a full one now. Here's the grades from the big 6-0 shellacking:

First half grade: B+
RSL in control most of the half, but couldn't hit the back of the net.
Second half grade: A+
All that needs to be said: SIX goals in 36 minutes.
Game grade: A+
Once again, and even though it was against a New England B (or possibly C) team, it was 6 to 0. Period.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 First shutout and didn't have to do much for it
Robbie Russell-7 Got forward well
Nat Borchers-7 As always, a steady force in the back
Jamison Olave-8 Showed again why he is the starter and not W(H)orst. Got a goal to boot
Chris Wingert-6 Meh for Chris
Will Johnson-6 Very up and down, got it together in the 2nd half
Clint Mathis-8 Huge game for Clint and a possible Goal of the Year candidate
(Andy Williams 74)-7 Nice free kick goal for Andy. I'd like to see more of him, but who do you take out for him?
Kyle Beckerman-8 Played really well, controlled the midfield. Defending was brilliant
Javier Morales-7 Weak game until he started getting the corners locked in
(Ned Grabavoy 68)-7 Seems to always give some spark off the bench
Robbie Findley-7 Solid game for Robbie
Yura Movsisyan-6 FINALLY got a goal, but again missed easy ones including a 1v1 that a corpse could have scored on that he put right to the keeper
(Luis Miguel Escalada 72)-7 Showed a little of why J&G decided to keep him

Coaching grade (Kreis)-9 First half was meh, but whatever he did at halftime helped! Plus, all the subs contributed.
Ref grade (Toledo?)-6 I still think Findley should've gotten a PK late in the 1st half, but other than that, nothing was too egregious.

RSL Man of the Match: Clint Mathis
Brilliant game. Even without the goal and assist, he had a very nice game. Add those in and it's an easy call.

Douchebag of the Day is taking a week off out of respect for the NERds. They just got beat 6-0, no reason to add insult to injury.

Mr. Nimo Goes To Portland

2009-04-24T18:00:00.002-06:00

Just found this article (Courtesy of the always great RSLFM.com) about the 2009 Portland Timbers. Apparently, RSL's Alex Nimo has been loaned out to them and is already listed on the roster. I love this move, it gets a promising young player a better chance to see the field. And let's be honest, RSL does not have the best track record in developing young talent (Nik Besagno anyone? Jamie Watson? David Horst? (haha) Possibly Chris Seitz?). Let's hope Nimo can hit the USL and shine and give us another quality option in the future.

2009 Game 4: RSL @ Energy Bovines: Total collapse

2009-04-19T19:07:00.003-06:00

Wow. What a turd RSL laid out all over Giants Stadium last night. They were beaten in every facet of the game by a New York team that had not scored a goal of their own volition all season (their one score coming off an own goal). Apparently all that improvement we keep hearing about hasn't hit yet. The strikers couldn't finish, the midfield couldn't pass, the defense couldn't, well, much of anything. Poor all around. Basically, vintage RSL, and if you've been a fan for any length of time, you know how bad that is.

First half grade: F
From the whistle, NY took control, when David Worst (no, not a typo), in for Olave (for reasons I don't totally get) was outmuscled by Dane Richards who put the ball into the box. Rimando got a finger to it, but it defelcted straight to Kandji who pasted it into the open net. 1-0, 1:30 in. Yes, you read that right, Worst, at 6-4 and 210, was pushed around by the 5-7 and 153 lb. Richards. Yes, he sucks. The bovines kept control for most of the half as RSL feebly sent long ball after long ball skipping across the artificial turf and out of bounds. Blah. 1-0 Energy Bovines.

Second half grade: F
Basically see the first half with the following changes: 1) Worst was now beaten by Angel rather than Richards and 2) Jeremy Hall receives a straight red in the 66th, giving RSL the man advantage. But judging by RSL's play, you wouldn;t have noticed the difference if you hadn't been told.

Game grade: F
Once again, RSL loses 2-0 to a team that had not scored all season (4 games). They look horrible while doing so.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-5 Made some great stops, but probably could have done better on the goals.
Chris Wingert-5 Not Chris's best.
Nat Borchers-7 Got beat a little on the second goal, but otherwise was tremendous.
Robbie Russell-5 Too quiet.
David (W)Horst-3 Just awful. We are screwed if this is our "depth". Perhaps he'd be better suited for Ogden?
(Luis Miguel Escalada 65)-5 Bad. Did nothing in 25 min.
Clint Mathis-6 Did a lot of running, Not a ton else.
(Ned Grabavoy 82)-6 Made a nice penetrating run, but didn't have time for much else.
Kyle Beckerman-7 All over the midfield. Another nice game for Kyle.
Javier Morales-5 Not one good free kick all night, too much diving.
Will Johnson-6 Up and down, evens to about average.
Robbie Findley-5 First touch was bad.
(Andy Williams 78)-5 WAY too many turnovers for 12 minutes.
Yura Movsisyan-5 I'm sorry, I don't get the Yura love. HE CAN'T FINISH. Another bad game.

Coaching grade (Kreis)-3 Late scratch of Olave was baffling. Did nothing to fire up or organize the team.
Ref grade (R. Salazar)-3 Allowed way too much pushing off (see the first NY goal), cards were all soft. Just awful all around.

RSL Man of the Match: Nat Borchers
Perhaps slightly at fault on the Angel goal, but was basically defending for 4 as he got no help. The only defender, and only player outside of Beckerman and maybe Grabavoy, that looked sure of himself or composed. Without his play, RSL loses 6-0.

Douchebag of the Day (aka Assclown of the Match, I like the alliteration DotD provides): Dane Richards
Did it all. From pushing off defenders all over the field (and getting away with it with help from the awful Ricardo Salazar) to flopping at the slightest touch, Dane was King Douche all night long.

Pros:
+No one got hurt.

Cons:
-David Horst didn't get hurt (JOKING! I don't wish injury on anyone, regardless of how bad they suck).
-David Horst proved once again that he is terrible.
-Thoroughly outplayed by a bad NY team, now without RSL killer Van Den Bergh.
-Is Olave hurt?
-Yura still can't finish. We need a real striker.
-Escalada was also terrible, giving us 3 poor forwards.
-The fact that RSL really couldn't even mount a serious challenge with a man advantage.
-The lack of fire from RSL for much of the game.
-The entire game.

What we learned:
1) RSL still can't play on the road (2 games, 2 shutout losses).
2) The Energy Bovines will still be RSL kryptonite, even without DVB.
3) Once Espi gets to town, Yura should find a nice comfy spot on the bench (won't happen, but should).

2009 Game 3: DCU vs. RSL: Ben Cup: Round 1, FIGHT!

2009-04-16T13:02:00.002-06:00

(Sorry for the Street Fighter reference in the title, couldn't help myself.)
Anyway, I had planned a big review of the big Ben Cup match but a busy (and strange) week kinda pushed all that to the side. In its stead, a mini-review, starting with some sweet, sweet player grades:

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Not a lot to do, left out to dry a bit on the goal.
Tony Beltran-6 Not spectacular by any means, but serviceable.
(Raphael Cox 59)-6 Too many turnovers, but I LOVE this guy's hustle. Getting on my favorites list very quickly.
Nat Borchers-7 Pretty solid in the back, stymied most DCU attacks that came his way.
Jamison Olave-7 Caught defending no one on the goal, but scored one of his own to atone.
Chris Wingert-6 An average Chris Wingert day.
Clint Mathis-6 Didn't get involved as much as he had in the previous 2.
(Ned Grabavoy 74)-6 Providing some nice depth in midfield.
Kyle Beckerman-7 Best game of 2009 so far, got involved and nearly scored.
Javier Morales-7 Quiet, but came up with a HUGE goal out of nowhere for the win.
Will Johnson-6 Similar to Wingert and Beltran, not great by any means, but solid.
Robbie Findley-5 2 of the quietest assists you'll see. Got beat a few times by Jakovic.
(Andy Williams 89)-6 Very little time, hard to grade, but gets an average 6 for not doing anything wrong.
Yura Movsisyan-5 WAY too selfish; decision making is not there.

Coach grade (Kreis)-6 There were some minor adjustments I'd liked to have seen, but overall, ok.
Ref grade (Stott)-4 Not for any egregiously unfair calls, but for his seeming confusion on whether he was reffing for MLS or WWE. A little too physical for a soccer match.

RSL Man of the Match: Kyle Beckerman
Tough one to call as no one stood out. Olave blew it with poor defense on the DC goal. Javi was close but only seemed to play about 25 out of the 90 minutes. Becks wins it with a solid, full-90 effort.

Assclown of the Match: Mother Nature
Another cold, rainy, miserable day for an RSL match? Why of course! And this week, with RSL on the road? Mid-60s and sunny in Sandy, what else?

Pros:
+RSL is on the verge on winning the Ben Cup yet again.
+Late game winning goal for Javi was a beauty and may provide him with a spark.
+Kyle returned to his proper form.
+RSL was able to answer back quickly after an opponent's goal.
+Did I mention that RSL now has the upper hand in the Ben Cup?

Cons:
-The strikers again looked fairly lost for much of the game (like in Seattle).
-Yura's decision making never seems to improve.
-Until the goal, Javi seemed absent for much of the match.
-DCU always seems to kill us at RFK. Can RSL buck the trend to keep the Cup?
-The weather again messes with a home game. C'mon, it's supposed to be spring dammit!

What we learned:
1) RSL can beat DCU, even when they play their first-string keeper.
2) Will Johnson continues to look good on set pieces, giving the reds another option besides just Javi.
3) RSL may finally have the resiliency needed to carry on after getting behind, rather than throwing in the towel.

Game grade: B
It wasn't pretty, and it certainly wasn't RSL's best effort. But the team recovered from being outplayed at home for much of the first half to deliver a nice come from behind win. Let's make it 3 in a row this week boys!

The Traditional Pre-Ben Cup Interview

2009-04-08T19:38:00.003-06:00

As has become tradition, here is the pre-game interview with the losing half of the Ben Cup, DCU Ben:

1) Well, here we are yet again with the Ben Cup upon us, and DCU is now 0-3. Is this the year that finally changes?

Yes this is the year that DC United finally claims what is rightfully theirs. The Ben Cup yearns to reside in the greater DC metropolitan area.

2) Do you think United has FINALLY learned from past mistakes and will start their first-string keeper in Utah for once?

They have not learned anything. However, by pure lucky happenstance, the backup keeper appears to be injured. The only problem is that the starter is Louis "I think I have the moves of the young Maradona before cocaine" Crayton, and he will try to dazzle you with his footwork... and he will get burned by Robbie Findley who is not kind to keepers of fancy feet.

3) Do you see Rio Tinto playing a factor in this game? This will be DC's first trip there? May it even help DCU by getting them off the artifical turf at Rice-Eccles?

Rio Tinto and real grass will slow down the game which will benefit the aged United attack with their preference to control the pace of the game.

4) I hear that you are not getting local TV coverage of this one. Is that true? And if so, what the hell? When did DCU start getting RSL-style media coverage?

Local TV has boycotted the United coverage for the first part of the season specifically to spite me because I have Verizon Fios and cannot purchase Direct Kick. I can think of two specific events that ushered in the era of DCU getting RSL-style media coverage, (1) DCU started playing like RSL and (2) when PG County denied the stadium building. Local TV is ahead of the curve on this and can see that this franchise has no marketable future in DC. Is a hint of bitterness coming across? Just checking.

5) Which RSL player are you most concerned about as a DCU fan? And conversely, which probable starter (RSL has used the same lineup in both games so far) concerns you least? Do you think DC will be able to exploit this player?

I think we have to be most concerned about RSL's speed in the attack, which means Findley. It's hard to tell after two games which player does not concern me or if we could exploit that particular player, but I'll go with Olave. I think he has a short fuse and we have some guys that like to get under the skin. I'm hoping for an early straight red.

6) On a scale of 1-10, how pumped are you for some sweet sweet Ben Cup action?

Let's put it this way, I love the Ben Cup so much I wanna take it behind the middle school and get it pregnant. (ed. note-quite possibly the best and most appropriate response ever)

7) Finally, I'd like to say that I think fans all over MLS wish you guys the best in getting a stadium. Now that it appears the PG Co. plan has fallen through, where else do you think DCU could settle? Are you concerned they may move the team?

I'm going to go with the esteemed Mr. Soccer Insider and say, Vamos St. Louis United! They can only keep the team in RFK and losing money for so long before wiser business minds prevail and send them somewhere else. I'm still holding out for a Northern Virginia stadium but if I were to put money on it, I'd put money on St. Louis.

In closing, I would just like to say that between insane work hours, technical difficulties with MLSLive.tv, and no local coverage I have yet to watch an entire match this season. I am hoping that changes this weekend as DC takes a big step towards bringing the Ben Cup to its rightful home. Vamos United!

BEN CUP IS HERE!

2009-04-07T19:16:00.002-06:00

Man, I can't believe that only 3 games into the season, we already have the Ben Cup upon us. And, of course, this is a terrible week for it with my schedule, but I will try to have some fuller coverage up in the next couple of days. But as a quick recap, let's take a quick look back to last year:

Leg 1, April 12th, Salt Lake City, UT: DCU 0 - RSL 4
-2 goals for Kyle Beckerman, 1 each for Espi and Robbie Findley
-RR MOTM: Dema Kovalenko; 2 assists and seemingly involved in every positive RSL play.

Leg 2, April 26th, Washington, DC: RSL 1 - DCU 4
-2 (PK) goals for Moreno, 1 each for Gallardo and Quaranta
-Carey Talley salvages the Ben Cup with a late goal off a Tony Beltran assist
-RR MOTM: Chris Wingert; only RSL player with an above average grade on the night.

RSL and DCU tie on record (1-1-0), but RSL wins on aggregate goals: 5-4.

Let's hope RSL doesn't need to take this year's Cup to tiebreakers. Come on ya Reds! Go RSL!

2009 Game 2: Crew vs. RSL: Beatdown Supreme

2009-04-03T10:45:00.003-06:00

Hmmm... So was game 1 just an "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" situation or something? Because this looked like a completely different team out there this week. RSL looked energetic, they pushed the action, and, most importantly, finished some chances. Hopefully RSL can build on this one and go on a *gasp* early season winning streak!

First half grade: B+
RSL certainly started off with a bang, when about 1:30 in, Will Johnson hit a blistering free kick from about 30 yards that Will Hesmer just parried away. The ball dropped right to Robbie Findley who put it away for an early 1-0 lead. I like the move of letting someone other than Javi take a kick every now and then, and it certainly showed it can pay dividends here. Columbus seemed to take control soon after, culminating in a Jason Garey goal in the 22nd on a classic RSL scrambling-nonsense defensive play. Momentum swung back to RSL 7 minutes later when Columbus keeper Hesmer inexplicably kicked a clearance directly into Robbie Findley at the top of the box. Findley collected the ball, calmly ran around Hesmer, and neatly tucked the ball away. 2-1 RSL. RSL played fairly strongly the rest of the half and took that lead into halftime.

Second half grade: A+
Wow. RSL basically laid 45 minutes of complete domination down on Columbus this half, and it showed with RSL scoring 2 more (and if Yura could finish, it would have been about 4 more). In the 62nd, Yura and Robbie proved that they CAN work as a unit with Yura taking a ball out wide left of the box and playing a gorgeous cross in to Robbie in the box. Findley then hit an equally gorgeous header into the bottom left corner of the goal. 3-1. Just five minutes later, Kyle Beckerman opened his scoring account for the season, rifling a header (off a Mathis corner) past Hesmer and into the net for a 4-1 lead. Findley was then pulled soon after, to a standing ovation from the home fans, or else I'm convinced he would have gotten a 4th. RSL nearly struck again a few times, but the Columbus D held for the last 20 minutes and RSL won going away, 4-1.

Full game grade: A
A very VERY solid home opener for the reds, which hopefully portends good things to come. Even with Columbus missing Hejduk, they still are a good team, last year's champions, and RSL took it to them. Well done.

Positional Grades:
Defense: B-
Midfield: A
Forwards: A-

Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Caught a bit out of position on the goal, but otherwise made good decisions.
Tony Beltran-6 MUCH improved over last week's disaster.
Nat Borchers-7 Solid in the back.
Jamison Olave-6 Made some big plays, but showed his careless/lazy side quite a bit in that first half.
Chris Wingert-6 Struggled at times, but overall ok.
Clint Mathis-8 Another stellar game from Clint. Where was this last year (and in 05)?
(Ned Grabavoy 75)-6 Did well in limited time, should have an assist, but Yura was busy at Grand Suck-tral Station.
Kyle Beckerman-7 One of KB's better games in a while. Maybe he should go on ESPN.com more often?
Javier Morales-6 Quiet game but made the plays when needed.
(Jean Alexandre 85)-6 Didn't have a lot of time, but looked energetic.
Will Johnson-7 The early free kick (that led to the RF goal) was a doozy.
Robbie Findley-9 Made the most of his chances and was rewarded with RSL's first hat trick! Awesome!
(Andy Williams 70)-6 Decent in a brief stint.
Yura Movsisyan-5 Bonus point for the assist, but he has got to work on his finishing. He missed another 2 or 3 this game that a drunk monkey would've scored on.

Coach grade (Kreis)-7 Kept his team on the attack and with the right mentality. Nice to see RSL not let up, even with a 3 goal lead.
Ref grade (Prus)-7 RR whipping boy Alex Prus apparently got some contacts or something. Certainly wasn't perfect (although for him it may have been), but a decent job all around.

RSL Man of the Match-Robbie Findley
Gee...that was a tough decision...

Assclown of the Match-Alex Prus
For making me eat my words (see the Ref grade section). The bastard.

Pros:
+Robbie Findley comes alive.
+Is Clint for real? Finally?
+RSL gets a nice win over a solid team.

Cons:
-Weather, increased ticket prices, poor marketing, a Thursday game, and some community apathy lead to a horribly small crowd.
-Yura still can't finish, even the easy ones.

What we learned:
1) RSL may just be a team to be reckoned with after all.
2) Columbus needs Hejduk to have a chance.
3) Luis Miguel Escalada may not be with the team much longer. I know he is coming off and injury and was listed as questionable, but it's a bit surprising Jason didn't give him even 5 or 10 minutes of garbage time late.

And now, up next for RSL: The beauty, the pageantry, the wonder...The Ben Cup 2009. Kicking off April 11th in Sandy, UT! YES!

April 1st, 2009

2009-04-01T13:37:00.003-06:00

Wow. Just wow. In a stunning turn of events, rumors are swirling of an RSL signing of Milan/Chelsea star Andriy Shevchenko to a 2 year DP contract with a player option for a third. The contract will begin this summer once Milan's season is over. Details of the transfer from Chelsea (who held his rights) were not given, so we don't know what (or if) a transfer fee was paid. Sheva apparently is thrilled to be coming to the US, both to finally get some solid playing time, but also to allow his American wife to come back home.

So wow... I guess RSL's needs at striker are suddenly a little less. HUGE news. Go RSL!

Royal Rankings #1

2009-03-30T13:58:00.003-06:00

Frequent readers of the review know I like to put together a "power ranking" every now and then (I try to do every week, but it doesn't always happen. Now that every team has gotten started, here is the first Royal Ranking for the MLS season:

15-Dallas (0-2-0) - Handily beaten in both their games. Could be a long season.
14-Kansas City (0-2-0) - Everyone's favorite soccer-playing-minor-league-baseball team with a rough start.
13-Los Angeles (0-0-1) - Scored a controversial tie in week 1 against DC.
12-New York (0-1-1) - Got a home tie against the injury ravaged Revs after getting dismantled by Seattle.
11-REAL SALT LAKE (0-1-0) - Extremely poor all around against the expansion Sounders.
10-Houston (0-1-1) - Falls in a shootout at San Jose.
09-San Jose (1-0-1) - Get the win against a middling Dynamo squad.
08-Colorado (1-0-1) - Protected the home turf against KC.
07-DC United (0-0-2) - Probably should've beaten LA, get the draw against the solid Fire.
06-Toronto (1-0-1) - 1500 fans head to Columbus to prove they are the classiest in MLS.
05-Chivas TST (2-0-0) - 2 wins, but against poor opponents.
04-Columbus (0-0-2) - 2 ties in games they probably should have won for the reigning champs.
03-Chicago (1-0-1) - Eke out a road tie at DC after an easy win at Dallass.
02-New England (1-0-1) - Manage a road tie against the energy bovines even while injuries reduce them to starting the fat kid sitting in the 57th row.
01-Seattle (2-0-0) - Two very convincing shutout wins, but can they do it on the road?

I hate to put the expansion team first, but they have earned it after those first two games. I will be curious to see, however, if they can keep the momentum going.

Also, on a quick side note, RSL's own Mr. Kyle Beckerman will be joining ESPN.com for a live Q and A tomorrow starting at 1 pm (Mountain). Should be some interesting stuff.

2009 Game 1: Wait, who is the expansion team?

2009-03-29T15:35:00.006-06:00

Wow. After all that talk about how the players now knew the system and how much better RSL was going to be this year, they went up to Seattle and laid a complete egg against the expansion Sounders in losing 2-0. If you didn't know better, you'd have thought RSL was the expansion team and Seattle was a 2008 playoff team. Ugly stuff to start the year as RSL continues to prove they can't play on the road.

First half grade: D+
Seattle obviously still had a boost from the crowd and the newness of it all and they came out and took it to RSL. Beltran was continuously abused down the flank and finally paid for it when Zakuani faked him out of his shoes and put a pass to an unguarded (thanks Nat) Nate Jaqua for a goal your blind great-grandmother could have scored. 1-0 at half.
Second half grade: F
RSL needed to come out in the second half and put their stamp on the game and really take control. Instead, they continued to fling long ball after long ball upfield to no one in particular. Kreis then inexplicably (and therefore about the norm for him) took out Findley for Williams, who a) showed he shouldn't be playing as a forward, and b) should've come in for Yura if he's going to play as a forward as Yura had an atrocious game. Soon after, Fredy Montero sealed it with a long range strike that seemed to take Nick off guard. 2-0 Seattle, and from that point on, RSL seemed to give up with the exception of late sub Raphael Cox who became easily RSL's best player on the field late.
Full Game Grade: F
RSL certainly looked like a team playing its first game of the season. They also looked like a team that struggles on the road. And for much of the match they looked like a U-14 squad. Ugly.

Positional grades:
Defense: B-
Midfield: F
Forward: D+

Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Played well, but loses a point for the Montero goal.
Tony Beltran-3 Awful. Burned for the first goal and couldn't complete a pass.
(Raphael Cox 84)-7 Was the best player on the field after coming on.
Jamison Olave-8 Without the big O, RSL loses 5-0.
Chris Wingert-5 Shaky stuff from Chris.
Nat Borchers-5 Takes partial responsibility on both goals.
Kyle Beckerman-4 Too many late, swiping tackle attempts. Easily could've gotten a red.
Javier Morales-4 Poor first touch, terrible corners. Never put himself in the game.
Clint Mathis-7 Beautiful vision. Probably his best game since coming back.
(Jean Alexandre 89)-6 Not much time to do anything.
Will Johnson-6 Very up and down all night.
Robbie Findley-6 Good passing and took the few opportunities he got.
(Andy Williams 74)-5 Looked lost out there, needs to impose himself on the game.
Yura Movsisyan-4 Almost a 3. Blew about 3 golden opportunities, gets way too cute with the ball and turns it over too much.

Ref grade (B. Toledo)-5
Not good, but certainly not into Alex Prus territory. Some uneven calls and some very soft yellows.
Coach grade (Kreis)-4
Didn't seem to know what to do once RSL got behind. Did nothing to turn the tide at the half.

RSL Man of the Match-Jamison Olave
Made numerous big plays in the back. The one black mark was the stupid yellow he picked up on a needless shove on Montero.

Assclown of the Match-Dan Sheldon
It was nearly Montero for his whining all game (and for putting the nail in the coffin), but it goes to Sheldon for his sparse, monotone "play-by-play". If you are calling the game and getting completely shown up by the color guy, it's time to find a new profession. Is this really the best channel 2 can do? Can we get Bill Riley back in there, please? Hell, I can do a better job and I'll do it for much less than they're paying Sheldon, I'm sure.

And now for a new segment to the Review, it's time for "What We Learned":
1) RSL (and Chivas TST) were completely shafted when they came into the league. They shared an expansion draft and the Superdraft. Meanwhile, Seattle signs players from its USL team and then gets the expansion and Superdraft picks to itself. What a joke.
2) RSL seems to have come into the season a bit overconfident. Hopefully this result will humble them a bit.
3) Jason Kreis has a looooooong way to go before he can compete with the likes of Sigi Schmid in the coaching department.
4) RSL STILL cannot play on the road, and now apparently can't play on turf anymore either.

Just in time for First Kick '09, the '08 Season Grades!

2009-03-28T13:50:00.005-06:00

Ha ha ha, boy am I late with this one. But with no further ado, here are my final grades and such from the 2008 season:

Top 5 Grades (Season & Playoffs, minimum 15 games):
5-Dema Kovalenko 6.04167
4-Jamison Olave 6.06423
3-Robbie Findley 6.08344
2-Andy Williams 6.12655
1-Nick Rimando 6.66667

Honorable mention goes to Chris Wingert, who missed the list by approximately .0001, and Will Johnson, whose 6.41667 would have made the list but he appeared in only 12 games for RSL.

Regular Season Heroes (min. 15 games):
3-Robbie Findley 6.058
2-Andy Williams 6.180
1-Nick Rimando 6.633

Not surprisingly, since the playoffs were only 3 games, the top 3 are the same on both lists.

Clutch Performers (Top 3 Playoffs, min. 2 games):
2 (tie)-Nat Borchers and Javier Morales 6.667
1-Nick Rimando 7.000

All 3 players had a nice playoff run and it shows here.

Manliest Men (most RR Man of the Match awards, regular season and playoff):
3-Jamison Olave 4
2-Nick Rimando 6 (5 + 1 playoff)
1-Javier Morales 6 (4 + 2 playoff)

Although it was a tie and the top, I give the award to Javi for getting 2 of his 6 awards during RSL's playoff run.

And now, the awards no one wants, the low scorers for 2008:

Nerves of Butter (Lowest Playoff Scores, min. 2 games):
3-Robbie Russell 5.333
2-Clint Mathis 5.000
1-Kyle Beckerman 4.667

Russell parlayed an atrocious Conference Final into a 3rd place showing, while Cleetus and Kyle each made a solid run of subpar form throughout.

Season Suckers (Regular Season only, min. 15 games):
3-Kenny Deuchar 5.621
2-Ian Joy 5.333
1-Yura Movsisyan 5.106

Even some very clutch goals couldn't save Yura, who killed himself with some terrible early season form and way too many missed chances and selfish plays.

Big Loads (Reg. Season and Playoffs, min. 15 games):
3-Kenny Deuchar 5.6333
2-Ian Joy 5.3165
1-Yura Movsisyan 5.1732

Again the full season and regular season awards mirror each other. Let's hope that Yura can be in good form all season this year and not just for the last 6 games or so.

Based on all this, with some help by my own subjectivity, here are my Top 3 RSLers of 2008:
Honorable Mentions: Borchers, Williams, Wingert
3-Jamison Olave
Made some big mistakes at times, but was overall a beast in the back and his 4 Man of the match awards were double what any other defenseman got.
2-Javier Morales
Had a midseason dip in form that hurt his score (only 5.79), but when he was on, the team usually won. Plus, even with the rough patch he still came up with a (tied for) team-high 6 Man of the Match awards.
...and your 2008 Royal Review RSL MVP is:
1- Nick Rimando
What can I say? RSL's most consistent performer not only kept "super-prospect" Chris Seitz bolted to the bench, but he also won all 3 2008 grade awards as well as tying with Javi for most Man of the Match awards. It's hard to argue with that kind of performance, even if it was from a goalkeeper and not a field player. Congrats Nick Rimando!

And now, in about 6 hours, your 2009 season!

PS-If you want to see the grades for every player, for every game, I have uploaded them to http://drop.io/royalreview for you to download or just look at. They are in Excel format, bothe the new version and in a version for Excel 97-2003. Enjoy!

Quick Update

2009-03-25T13:40:00.002-06:00

Ah yes, MLS 2009 has begun, and our (well, at least my) hometown Real Salt Lake take to the field starting this Saturday! I'm hoping to have a short game preview (no promises) later this week. I do promise, however, to get my final 2008 grades up BEFORE RSL takes the field this weekend. I've got one more game to rewatch and then it is done. Anyway, it should be an interesting season; I can honestly see RSL anywhere from 1st or 2nd in the West down to 5th or 6th. I think we'll learn a lot this weekend. Also, I hope to get my predictions back up and running, but after the embarrassment of last week's results on mfls.com, that remains to be seen!

Coming Soon: A New Season

2009-02-15T15:15:00.002-07:00

2009 is upon us, and with it, a new Ben Cup. There is no logo (yet), but the games are locked and loaded. This year's Ben Cup will take place on April 11th in Sandy at the River and on May 23rd in DC. Of course, the Review (and the Edgell Supporters) will have full coverage as the games draw near.

But before we move on to the '09 season, I have some finishing up to do from last year. I promise I will have the full season grades available for 2008 BEFORE first kick '09. Granted, that's not the November 2008 timeline I was looking for, but at least it is realistic! I will also update the sidebars and everything for the new year.

But for now, thanks for sticking with the Review after the last 5 months of inactivity (although RSL's 5 months of near-inactivity have contributed to that) and we should be back up and running soon, so stay tuned. Until then, and as always, GO RSL!

Expansion Draft '09

2008-11-20T10:26:00.002-07:00

So with Seattle coming into the league MLS is subjecting everyone to yet another expansion draft. According to Garth "You didn't tell them about my pubes did you?" ~~Algar~~ Lagerwey on the Bill Riley show, RSL can protect 11 players, 3 of which must be internationals. Also, Gen. Adidas players (who don't "graduate" from the program this year) are automatically protected. Another interesting wrinkle is that if Seattle chooses a developmental player, then they must offer the player a senior roster spot. The full rules can be found here. So here is who I would keep and who I think RSL will keep protected:

Gen. Adidas/automatically protected:
Beltran
Nimo
Seitz
(Nik Besagno should lose his status this year from what I've heard)

My protect list:
1 Beckerman
2 Movsisyan
3 Borchers
4 Johnson
5 Findley
6 Rimando
7 Wingert
8 Williams
9 Morales
10 Olave
11 Espindola

I struggled on my last pick or two, but decided to go with Williams over Deuchar (and Russell) for my final pick. Why? First, because I think the team flat out plays better when Andy is in the game. I'm not sure that is generally the case with Kenny D (although it has been at times). Secondly, I think Seattle is less apt to use an international spot on Deuchar than they are to take the American (for MLS purposes) Williams. And lastly, simply to pay back some of the loyalty that Andy has shown this franchise, pay cuts and all. And for those questioning my keeping Big Nick protected, I have two good reasons. One, while he is completely under-recognized since he plays in Utah, I think he has been one of the top 2 or 3 goalies in the league over the last 2 years. Secondly, if you keep Nick, you may be able to find a buyer for Chris Seitz, get a decent return on that investment, and still have a quality man in the nets. So who does RSL lose in this situation? Here are the most probable losses:
Russell-Can play multiple positions, solid defender
Sturgis-Good player on the rare occasion he isn't hurt
Deuchar-Big target forward, but can he produce in MLS

Now that list is for if I were in charge of RSL, which, obviously and unfortunately (for me), I am not. So here is the list I seem the team coming up with.

Projected RSL protect list:
1 Beckerman
2 Movsisyan
3 Borchers
4 Johnson
5 Findley
6 Joy
7 Wingert
8 Russell
9 Morales
10 Olave
11 Espindola

I know that's a lot of defenders on the list, but I'm not sure who RSL keeps over them. I think Kovalenko is unprotected solely based on his salary. I think Deuchar may go as he seems to be on the outs with the coaching staff/team right now. I think Williams is out based on his minute playing time in the playoffs combined with the fact that he oftentimes struggles going a whole 90. Sturgis is out as he is never ever healthy. Rimando is out because Seattle already has a keeper in Kasey Keller and because of Seitz already being protected. On the other hand, I think Joy makes it on locker room and leadership qualities, while Russell is in based on his ability to play multiple positions. That being said, I would not be surprised to see someone from the former group replacing one of the latter two. Who are the most probable losses in this scenario?
Williams-Gives you possession and some creativity in attack
Sturgis-Young, talented, perma-hurt
Rimando-Trade bait?

For another view of the upcoming draft, check out WV Hooligan's team-by-team look at the expansion draft (you can start with RSL). Highly recommended.

Looking Ahead to 2009

2008-11-19T11:56:00.003-07:00

On the Bill Riley show last night, Garth "No way. Way." Lagerwey mentioned that the first game next year will be on MARCH 21st. He did not know if it was home or away, but oddly had a date for it... Anyway, mark the calendars; only 122 days to go!

Playoffs: Round 2-Western Conf. Final : NY @ RSL: Frustration From Defeat

2008-11-16T15:05:00.007-07:00

Cue the fat lady. RSL's 2008 season is over. Looked at in the big picture, this season was a massive success, with the team making it farther than I think anyone really expected. However, on the day after, it is tough to swallow. Especially when RSL proved they were the better team and yet had nothing to show for it.

Really, this game boiled down to the fact that our strikers (especially the starters) are not that good. Yes, Yura has scored some HUGE goals as of late, but he still misses way too many easy ones (he also needs to get a new move, the bulls seemed to have figured out his little hesitation stepover thing). Mathis was largely useless and missed an absolute sitter. Late in the game he was hounding the refs as he couldn't get a call and I found myself saying out loud, "Clint, shut up. You missed an easy one that would've tied this game. Yes, the ref may have missed some calls, but you've got to take care of business on your end too." After 3 hit posts, 3 or 4 open net sitters that were shanked (Olave is up for World Shank of the Year after his effort. There's a reason he's a defender.), and numerous other wasted opportunities (when will this team learn to crash the box?) it was an incredibly frustrating evening. And that was just for the fans. I can only imagine how it was in the locker room afterwards. Overall, it was a game the RSL could have and should have won. But they didn't put their (8,000) chances away and the energy bovines put their 1 away. It happens. Unfortunately, it happened in the biggest game of the year. On the plus side, I don't see any situation where the bulls are not absolutely flattened by Columbus. And it will be sweet!

Pros:
-RSL outplayed NYC in basically every facet of the match.
-A true sellout crowd. Not only that, it was loud and boisterous, as it should be. Even the non-supporters sections were standing for the final 15.
-The fact that RSL even made it this far.
-Chris Wingert coming over to the fans after the game to show his appreciation. Unfortunately, he had swapped jerseys with Mendes and 3/4 of the crowd thought he was with NYC. The insults and middle fingers were flying as Chris tried to plead his case. Priceless comedy.

Cons:
-RSL didn't outplay NYC in the one place it counts: the scoreboard.
-That NY gets the Western Conference trophy even though they are in the Eastern Conference. That is messed up. In this case, the trophy should go to the runner-up (RSL) or, my preference, to the regular season conference champ (Houston).
-It was friggin' freezing Mr. Bigglesworth.
-The fact that with such a big crowd, many I'm sure at their first game, RSL couldn't put together a better scoring night.

Grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Very composed in the net. Nice game.
Robbie Russell-3 Horrendous. Contributed to the NY goal, killed our attacks all night.
Nat Borchers-7 Very solid.
Jamison Olave-5 Point(s) off for the terrible missed tackle that set NY's goal in motion.
(Andy Williams 72)-6 Did OK off the bench, would've liked to see him out there MUCH sooner.
Chris Wingert-6 Average game for Chris.
Kyle Beckerman-4 Terrible. Completed maybe 1 pass all game. He has really regressed the past month or so.
Dema Kovalenko-6 Active out there.
(Robbie Findley 59)-6 Tons of effort.
Javier Morales-6 A little too lax at times, but decent.
Will Johnson-5 Had his moments but missed a couple great opportunities.
Clint Mathis-4 Totally useless.
(Kenny Deuchar 91+)-6 Really too late to grade, but made a presence in his short stint.
Yura Movsisyan-5 A little too much diving, a bit lacking results wise.

Coaching (Kreis)-4 Offensive subs needed to come much earlier. It took the whole north and west ends chanting "Andy! Andy!" for 15 min. before he got Williams in the game. Deuchar sub was too little too late. Mathis should not have been in the game 90+ minutes. At the beginning of the 2nd half the team seemed to lack fire and focus.
Ref grade (Jair Marrufo)-5 Let the "beautiful game" turn a bit too much into the "sweet science". Nothing egregious, but he let a bit too much slide.

RSL Man of the Match: Nick Rimando
With the lack of any standouts, "Big Nicky" wins for his steady night in goal.

Assclown of the Match: All the NY players who were suddenly massively injured late in the game, rolled on the ground for 5 minutes, and then got up and walked off the field with no problem.
Seriously, this shit needs to stop. This is worse than the basketball "we're down 25 points with 2 minutes left and can't win, but let's foul every time the other team touches the ball". If you can't win without basically cheating then you don't deserve to win at all. Play some ball and earn your win, don't cry your way to victory. disgraceful.

And now, some pictures from last night, courtesy of El Spam (click on them to view them full size):
Heading in to "The River"

Pregame warmups (from my crappy camera phone)

Leo warms up the crowd with the help of explosions

Ready to kickoff

What passes for a halftime show in Utah (Mt. Crest HS marching band)

Setting up for a corner

Javi gets ready to take a corner

As always, thanks for stopping by. As soon as I get some time, I will have a post-season wrap-up with full player grades and the 2008 Knighthood Ceremony (aka the Royal Awards). And, as always, go RSL (or as some like to say it: Come on ya Reds!)!

Gameday. Real Salt Lake against the Energy Bovines for the Western Crown

2008-11-15T11:31:00.003-07:00

Wow. Think back 12 months ago as RSL fans everywhere sat home and moped while the MLS playoffs swirled around them. Eddie Pope had left. Woe was everywhere. Life as we knew it had ceased to exist. Famine and pestilence spread across the Wasatch Front. Have I made this melodramatic enough for you? Nevertheless, how many of us truly believed that RSL would not only make the playoffs in 2008, but would be hosting the Western Conference Final? I can't imagine too many. (On a side note, how sad it is to have this amazing run happen the year after Eddie Pope hung it up. Thanks again Eddie, you were pure class!) But life is funny like that and here we are.

Can RSL beat this team? Absolutely. RSL outplayed the bulls just a few short weeks ago in the Rio Tinto opener, a game they gave away and that ended 1-1. With a similar effort tonight (and some actual finishing: I'm looking in your direction, Yura), RSL can easily be through to the MLS Cup final. That being said, NYC's dismantling of Houston last weekend cannot be understated. I'll be honest, the thought of RSL going to Texas to face the Dynamo? Kinda scary. So the fact that NYC did it, and with such seeming ease, does give me pause. If Richards and Angel both bring their best tonight, it could get ugly.

So I think the key tonight, and something that is easier said than done, especially for this team, is for RSL to get on the board first and then keep the pressure on. Don't let the energy bovines get the boost from an early lead. If we do get the first goal, great, but don't then go into defensive mode. Keep the pressure on and put them away if the opportunity arises. Take advantage of the home crowd and the altitude and win this sucker!

So now it is time for my prediction. I think the home team factor will be enough to get RSL through if they play smart. RSL 2 - NYC 1.

Other assorted thoughts:
-Who will play tonight? Do we see Dema over Andy again? Will Cleetus roam the field once again? Will Espi be fit enough to play a role?
Here is my starting 11:
GK: Rimando
D: Wingert, Olave, Borchers, Russell
M: Williams, Johnson, Beckerman, Morales
F: Yura, Findley
Top 3 subs: Dema, Espi, Deuchar
Who do I see actually starting?
GK: Rimando
D: Wingert, Olave, Borchers, Joy
M: Dema, Johnson, Beckerman, Morales
F: Yura, Mathis
Top 3 subs: Williams, Espi, Findley
-I am sick to death of hearing of the "massive upset" over Chivas TST. It was a 2 seed vs. a 3 seed! Not a big difference! On top of that, many (especially actual fans, not sportswriters) predicted RSL to beat TST. In fact, RSL was predicted to win by a nearly 2-to-1 margin by Soccer by Ives readers. Not exactly scientific, I know, but it does prove a point. This was most certainly not the giant upset every media outlet wants to make it.
-This is worth a post of its own but can we stop with the "leader of the points table takes the championship" BS. Not going to happen. Nor would I want it to happen. The playoffs are genuinely exciting and there is a palpable sense of tension to them. Anyone who says different is either a) lying, b) a eurosnob elitist who doesn't actually watch MLS, or c) warped beyond belief.

Playoffs: Round 1, Game 2: RSL @ TST: How Sweet It Is

2008-11-10T10:39:00.002-07:00

Shinkes! I get stuck on a second shift at work and the site goes all to hell just like that! Sorry for getting so far behind so fast, life happens when you least want it to I suppose. Anyway, grades and pictures for game 1 coming after I wade through them all, but in the meantime, here's the grades and a few thoughts on the clinching game 2.

First off, let me just say, it is official: I hate Chivas TST more than any team in MLS. More than Colorado. More than just about any team in any sport that I can think off (they are in the rarefied air shared by the Yankees and the Lakers). I know I am supposed to hate the Crapids the most (and granted, I dislike them plenty), but, to me, there is just something about TST that I do not like. So imagine my joy in watching RSL win the series at the Home Depot Center. And after squeaking into the playoffs by breaking the hearts of Crapids fans everywhere? Sweet sweet icing on the cake. Couple that with the energy bovines' shocking win over Houston on Sunday, giving us home field for the conference final, and I am a happy boy. And now, I implore RSL to smack NY around. Not just for themselves, not just for us fans, but also for our Ben Cup brethren, the DCU fans who would love nothing more than to see the bulls go down in flames (on a side note, props to the Edgell Supporters for cheering for RSL this playoffs, well done). MLS Cup, here we come!

Grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Had some nice moments, but was helped by poor TST shooting.
Jamison Olave-8 Showed a ton of heart.
Nat Borchers-7 Solid in the back.
Robbie Russell-7 Made some big recoveries in this one.
Chris Wingert-6 Fairly quiet, I'd like to see more.
Dema Kovalenko-6 Would be a five, but a bonus point for the beautiful header.
Kyle Beckerman-5 Passing has been TERRIBLE as of late.
Javier Morales-8 Should've had 2 goals, but you can't argue with a goal and an assist.
(Fabian Espindola 87)-5 Looked a bit lost out there.
Will Johnson-7 Do we have this kid locked down long term yet?
Clint Mathis-5 Basically useless.
(Robbie Findley 72)-7 Needs to be getting into games much earlier than he is.
Yura Movsisyan-6 Meh.
(Andy Williams 80)-6 See Yura.

Coaching grade (Kreis)-7 Some of the sub patterns were odd, but we got the needed result.
Ref grade (head ref: Michael Kennedy)-2 Shockingly bad refereeing. Inconsistent on calls, lost control of the game early, missed calls, pretty much anything he could do poorly he did. Just terrible.

RSL Man of the Match: Javier Morales
Up to his old tricks! Scored a goal, got an assist, and helped drive the offense.

Assclown of the Match: Ante Razov
There were many contenders (give honorable mentions to Kennedy for piss-poor reffing and to Atiba Harris for his trademark recklessness), but I give it to Razov for his Oscar-worthy performance while getting the PK call. Dude falls down and pulls Javi on top of himself. Watch it again, it is clear as day. Super duper classless. Well done, ya assclown!

Two To Go

2008-10-28T16:54:00.003-06:00

So I'm finally almost caught up with grades for this season, I only have 2 games left to watch:
-The River opener against the energy bovines, which I was at, so I just need to watch it to refresh the memory.
-The ESPN2 Houston game which I watched in bits and pieces, but need to watch the whole thing to grade fairly.
After I get that done I will have season-long grades for all the RSLers (with much thanks to Jim G. and Dadof6 for their help with the San Jose affair on the station that must not be named).
But for now, the rest of the site is up to date and ready to go (the team leaders/stats section is updated). And once RSL's season is over, say...November 23rd (with the Cup of course), I will have an end-of-season recap and the Royal Awards (better name coming depending on my brain-ha!). Thanks for coming by and GO RSL!

Game 30: RSL @ Crapids: One Tremendously Beautiful Turd

2008-10-25T21:31:00.004-06:00

Wow. Just wow. Real just played an asstastic classic, and yet, were somehow able to throw out the plumber's snake and grab a goal from the sewage. RSL was continuously outplayed, outhustled, and outsmarted, but with the heroics of one Nick Rimando were able to keep Colorado at one goal. My oh my, RSL is off to the playoffs with a HUGE tie that also brings home the Rocky Mtn. Cup.

Game grade: A+/D-
An A+ for the massive achievement of FINALLY making the postseason. But really, that game and that effort was worthy of a D- at best (an F is more appropriate perhaps, but they did pull out a tie).

GRADES:
Nick Rimando-9 Singlehandedly kept RSL in striking distance. When motivated and on form, Nick is truly a world-class keeper, I don't care what anyone says.
Jamison Olave-3 An absolute disaster of a game.
Kyle Beckerman-4 Lots of hustle, but tried too hard and forced things.
Nat Borchers-5 Not a good game, but MUCH better than Olave.
Will Johnson-4 Worst game in an RSL kit.
Javier Morales-4 Started to come on late, but a terrible game.
Ian Joy-3 Abused by Cummings all night.
(Robbie Russell 56)-7 Should've started, by far RSL's best defender tonight.
Yura Movsisyan-5 Bonus point(s) for the HUGE goal, but really a bad game, missed WAY too many.
Chris Wingert-5 Very up and down game.
(Robbie Findley 72)-6 Did fairly well with VERY limited service.
Dema Kovalenko-5 Meh.
(Andy Williams 54)-7 Also should've started, helped set up the winner.
Clint Mathis-5 Another one with an up and down evening.

Coaching (Kreis)-3 Starting lineup was all wrong, wasted 2 subs (55 min. in) putting in what should've been the starters. Team also looked strangely lifeless, it's JK's job to get their heads right.
Refs (Prus)-2 An absolute nightmare of refereeing. This game alone should get Alex Prus a pink slip. Absolutely atrocious in every facet.

RSL Man of the Match: NICK RIMANDO
Far and away the best player on the field tonight. Well done Nick, you didn't deserve a loss in this one.

Assclown of the Match: Alex Prus
There was plenty of assclown-ness to go around on the Colorado side, but in sympathy to their fans for the heart-wrenching way their season ended, and in honor of the absolutely horrible officiating, Alex Prus, you win!

REAL SALT LAKE:
2008 Ben Cup Champions
2008 Rocky Mountain Cup Champions
2008-First Ever PLAYOFF APPEARANCE

Also, welcome back and HUGE props to RSLFM.com for allowing us RSL fans to watch the game. Just massive what you did for us tonight!

It's so good, I'll do it twice...

2008-10-25T16:26:00.002-06:00

LET'S GO RSL! Flush those Crapids!

Complete and Total Horses***

2008-10-23T18:02:00.002-06:00

Now I will do my best to control my urge to post a profanity-fueled tirade here, but there are foul things afoot concerning this Saturday's HUGE, GIANT, MASSIVE, and ENORMOUS game against our old friends, the Crapids.
I sat down to set the dvr to record the game and noticed that I couldn't find it. "Hmm...how odd" I thought. So I went into the search mode and tried "Real", "Salt", and even "Rapids". No dice. I start getting desperate. Maybe it's listed weird, something like "RSL @ Colorado" or "MLS Soccer". Nothing, not even after a triple check of Directkick. Fox Soccer Channel? Nope. Well, maybe I'm remembering wrong and it's on Sunday...dammit, no. Maybe it's tonight (even though I know the bovines are on the ESPN game)? Nope, not here either. "Well, what the hell? Where is..." and then it hit me, "Oh no...oh HELL no. Please God don't let it be so... Is this game on that scourge of MLS telecasts, HDNet???" I run to the computer. Bingo. "Aw, shit."
The biggest game in RSL's history. The Rocky Mountain Cup. A chance for RSL to finally make the playoffs. Win and keep playing, lose and go home. And it's on HDNet. Where 95% of RSL fans will not see it. And because of MLS's b.s. deal with Cuban's nightmare, no rebroadcasts. No highlights even. A total blackout. And that, my friends, is complete and total horseshit. Guess I can always curl up with the ol' Victrola and listen to the dulcet tones of Bill Riley. It's my only option, actually. Way to screw your fans, MLS...well done.

PS-Since I won't be seeing it, I will again be relying on all you on these tubes we call the internet to give me your player grades from the game (those of you who actually see the game that is). As always, your contributions are always appreciated.

PPS-Dear Mark Cuban,
You can make this up to me. It won't be cheap or easy, but it is possible. Up your bid for the Cubs (and Wrigley) to something outrageous and ensure that there is no way you won't get the team. Then invest the kinds of resources into the Cubbies that you do into the Mavs. Proceed to win the World Series. Upon completion of this task, making me miss this game will be forgiven. I promise.
Sincerely,
Ben

Game 29: Dallass vs. RSL: First Win at the River

2008-10-20T13:44:00.004-06:00

I'm a bit busy today so just player grades for this one. Not a pretty win, but a big 3 points for the boys and with only a tie against the Crapids/Cripids, RSL will be a playoff team at last!

Grades:
Nick Rimando-6 OK game for little Nicky
Chris Wingert-7 Got forward pretty well, assist on the Johnson goal
Jamison Olave-8 Beast in the back again, broke up a ton of early FCD breakaways
Robbie Russell-6 A little too quiet
Ian Joy-7 Played well, especially late
Kyle Beckerman-7 Played destroyer all night long
Dema Kovalenko-5 Could've (and possibly should've) had a red for slapping an opponent across the face
(Andy Williams 46)-6 Steady game for Andy
Javier Morales-7 Had a very quiet 2 assists, but I'm giving him credit for them
Will Johnson-7 Almost an 8, just one too many mistakes, but the goal was beautiful
Clint Mathis-7 Some good old up play from Clint, looked totally worn out by the end
(Kenny Deuchar 89)-6 Didn't have much time to affect the game
Yura Movsisyan-7 Got lucky on it, but a goal is a goal
(Robbie Findley 73)-7 Goal was almost as pretty as Will's

Coaching grade (Kreis)-8 Subs made sense and brought the proper attacking mentality to the 2nd half.
Refs grade-6 Calls were a bit uneven and maybe a bit card happy, but the game was very rough and they had a tough job to do.

RSL Man of the Match: Jamison Olave
Almost went to "Billy", but since he earned the only 8 I gotta give it to him.

Assclown of the Match: Pablo Ricchetti
Easy call. Dude unnecessarily takes out Johnson with an ugly tackle and gets a straight red. Then he proceeds to argue the call, not leave the field, and tries to pick a fight with Joy (granted, that's not hard-if he didn't PLAY soccer, he'd be a soccer hooligan!). Very classy Pablo. Assclown stuff all the way.

PS-If you are interested in taking a bus trip to see RSL beat "the Dicks" (sorry, any chance for a new Crapids insult must be used, especially if it can be used in a delicious double entendre) there is "official" information over on the DesNews blog. Also thanks to SoccerPrime for the original tip-off on this, I just haven't been updating as much as I should lately and hadn't gotten around to posting it!

First game at "The River"

2008-10-10T13:46:00.007-06:00

I will try and get a review done (I think I'll try and rewatch the game on the dvr beforehand) and also would like to post some thoughts on the new stadium, but for now, here's a few pictures from the game last night.

The east side of the stadium.

West siyeed!

The pre-game watering.

Pre-game lineups.

Fancy shmancy video board.

Lining up for the free kick.

Javi getting ready to take the aforementioned kick.

Game 26: RSL @ SJ: I need your help!

2008-09-28T13:42:00.003-06:00

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)

Game 25: RSL vs. Chivas TST: The Third Time's A Charm

2008-09-23T15:53:00.002-06:00

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.

If you see RSL...

2008-09-22T13:43:00.002-06:00

...help them out

RSL Stadium Opener Tickets

2008-09-19T14:24:00.002-06:00

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!

Game 24: RSL @ Energy Bovines: That's More Like It!

2008-09-14T20:06:00.003-06:00

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.

Besagno's Back?

2008-09-08T14:48:00.002-06:00

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

2008-09-08T13:55:00.002-06:00

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...

US Open Cup

2008-09-03T19:45:00.002-06:00

Congrats to Ben Cup rival DC United on winning the Open Cup over Charleston tonight. Well done ya blacks!

I'm Baaaaaaaaaaack: Crapids vs. RSL 8/29

2008-08-30T10:11:00.007-06:00

Hey everybody, sorry about the long break since the last post, I have fallen way behind. Between work and vacations and everything else, I have been pretty busy. I did finally get to watch a game live (on TV) last night (hooray!) and so I'll do some quick grades here to start getting back in the flow. I have work in a half hour and have the cold from hell so this is the best I can do for now! Enjoy.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-8 Positioning was good, made some key plays.
Chris Wingert-7 No big mistakes, played 90 in a shutout.
Nat Borchers-7 Got slightly caught off guard a couple times but otherwise solid.
Jamison Olave-8 RSL's defensive rock for the night.
Ian Joy-7 Played pretty well, pushed forward when opportunities arose.
(Robbie Russell 46)-7 Had a very similar game to Joy: quiet but good.
Will Johnson-7 He was active and looked to be helping to push the RSL attack
Kyle Beckerman-7 While still missing some of that spark from last year, he was feisty in the midfield.
Javier Morales-6 Disappeared for stretches, had 8,000 corner attempts, maybe 1 was any good. Long assist to Espi was nice though.
(Clint Mathis 81)-6 Wasn't on the field long enough to judge well.
Andy Williams-8 Played well both ways, his assist on the first goal was a thing of beauty.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Looked pretty active but blew a header and was a bit too unselfish.
Fabian Espindola-9 Simply amazing. Best player on the field by miles.
(Yura Movsisyan 72)-4 Why this guy is getting paid to play soccer is beyond me. Should've had 2 or 3 goals with the chances he had. On the flip side, much more active than usual.

Coaching grade: 5 The lineup seemed to play well together but points off for the subs. Yura Movsisyan should be working at Burger King, not being the first sub off the bench. If you're going to pull Espi, and not a mediocre Deuchar, at least put in Robbie "I score millions of goals as a sub" Findley over Movs. Hell, put a wheelchair bound grandmother in before you put in Movs.

Ref grade: 6 Decent, but a bit inconsistent. Second half was better than the first but (especially early) he would let hard, obvious fouls go, and then call ticky-tack little fouls that no one should ever call. But for the most part seemed fair and eventually got a handle on the game before it got too rough.

RSL Man of the Match: Fabian Espindola
Was there any doubt?

Assclown of the Match: The Crapids
In a surprisingly (and somewhat unfortunately) low-key RMC match, no one really stood out. So I give it to the whole Crapids organization, just for being them.

Game 18: RSL vs. Chicago: POST 100!

2008-07-21T12:40:00.002-06:00

Everyone party! The Review turns 100 today! 100 posts that is. That's 100 entries of my pointless ramblings for your reading (dis)pleasure! To be honest, when I started this I wasn't sure how long it would last; I'm glad I've stuck with it, it's been fun! Anyway, enough of that, on to the review!

First half grade: B
RSL played what was probably their most aggressive half on the road so far in '08. The attacking mentality seemed to work with RSL creating many chances. Unfortunately, the coaching staff stuck with the goal-anorexic tandem of Movsisyan and Nunez for a second straight game, meaning that RSL would almost assuredly not score. And they didn't, even with some quality chances. While I did like the
attacking pressure shown by RSL (and I think with decent, aka our regular, forwards in there it would have paid off), it did leave the team open to counter attacks, which Chicago took advantage of with regularity. Chris Rolfe especially seemed to be dangerous going forward, especially with the help of Loungais' (er, I mean, Blanco's) quality passing. Still, with some hustle and some luck, and after a hard fought first half, RSL took the game to the locker room 0-0.

Second half grade: F
Ah yes, vintage RSL, how we have missed you. RSL came out extremely flat in the second half, while Chicago looked like they had exchanged jerseys with an actual soccer team at the half. The Fire came out firing (damn, that's a clever pun) and had tons of chances. Luckily for RSL, their attack looked about as limp as RSL's normally does. And really, the lone bright spot of the second half offensively for RSL was Robbie Findley, who came on at the half. For the second straight game, Robbie came out like a man possessed, causing havoc for Chicago all over. Unfortunately, his best chance came early in the half when he took a misplayed ball into the box, one-on-one with the keeper, Jon Busch. Robbie fired low to the near post, but Busch made an outstanding acrobatic save to just push the ball wide. In fact, both goalies in this game were outstanding. Not long after that, RSL seemed to give up on the game, I'm not really sure why. Instead of trying for the win, they just bunkered and tried to hold off wave after wave after wave of Chicago attacks. Sound familiar? It looked very much like Ellinger-era RSL, and it was terrible. The clearances were bad and often right back to the Fire. Positioning was often questionable as well. No attempt was made to hold possession or move the ball upfield. Very, very ugly. However, despite the poor play, with the help of a couple great saves by Little Nicky, the defense held on just long enough for RSL to escape Illinois with a 0-0 tie (and a sorely needed road point).

Pros:
-RSL steals a point on the road.
-Findley again looked sharp.
-Rimando looks to be rounding back into the form he showed last year (when he should have been MLS keeper of the year).
-RSL's defense somehow was able to keep the ball out of the net.
-The game was on KSL so we all could enjoy Bill Riley on the call.
-Real Salt Lake stays in first place for another week!

Cons:
-Morales decided to prove Steve Nicol right by having a terrible game.
-Beckerman still doesn't look right out there.
-The bunker ball needs to go! Play to win, boys, not to tie!
-Blanco is hard to watch, his diving is infuriating.

Game grade: D+
A pretty good first half is wiped out by an astonishingly bad second half. The team showed little passion or fight in the second, which does not bode well coming into the home stretch of the season, especially considering how many road games (7) the team has left. With only a one point lead in the conference (and with the teams behind them with a game, or even two, in hand), RSL needs to look to get as many points as possible. That means playing to win, not bunkering for an entire half.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-9 This game featured two goalies on top of their game.
Chris Wingert-7 Seemed pretty solid in his first game back.
Nat Borchers-7 A little iffy early, became a brick wall late.
Jamison Olave-6 A few too many mistakes.
Ian Joy-6 Perhaps a little generous on the score, but this was possibly his best game for RSL.
Andy Williams-7 The only consistent performer in the midfield.
(Tony Beltran 89)-6 Wasn't on long enough to make an sort of impact.
Dema Kovalenko-6 Pretty bad early, had a solid second half.
Javier Morales-4 Pretty much useless all night. Even his free kicks were bad.
Kyle Beckerman-5 Touch is still terrible, played better very late.
Yura Movsisyan-6 First game I can recall not hating every second he was on the field.
(Kenny Deuchar 67)-6 Actually dribbled (well, tripped) around someone!
Tino Nunez-5 Not a good game for Tino.
(Robbie Findley 46)-7 Came out like a man possessed; once the team refused to attack, his influence waned.

Coaching staff-4 Yes, it's a road point, but the Nunez/Movs experiment must end now and allowing the team to play like that in the second half is unacceptable.

Referees (head ref: Ricardo Salazar)-6 Perhaps let a little too much go, but most of the calls were fair and he seemed to take control when needed. Overall, an average performance (which for MLS is probably an exceptional one!).

RSL Man of the Match:
Nick Rimando
Didn't have to make a lot of saves, due to some decent defending and poor attacking, but positioned himself well, and when he needed to make the big save, he did. Well done, Little Nicky!

Assclown of the Match:
Cuauhtemoc Blanco
Dude, seriously. Quit your diving and whining. It's obnoxious as anything. It's the sort of behavior expected of an...assclown...how fitting!

Ye Olde Royal Predictions: Week 17 and other assorted musings

2008-07-16T19:34:00.004-06:00

I know, I know, I missed posting another week of predictions, but as usual, they were made and can be scored. But, to get back on top of things, here are this week's:

Thursday, July 17:
Kansas City 1 vs. THE 2

Saturday, July 19:
NTOTB 0 vs. Streamer Warehouse 3
LAG 3 vs. Non-Reynas 2
Crapids/Cripids 1 vs. Dallass 2
REAL SALT LAKE 1 vs. BSOF 1

Tuesday, July 22nd (odd day for a game, so it gets tacked onto this week):
Creamsickles 0 vs. Ben Cup Losers 2

As for the last two weeks' results...
Week 15: 2 correct (0 exact), 4 wrong (33%)
Week 16: 3 correct (1 exact), 2 wrong (60%, 20%)

MLS Season Total:
46-65 [8 exact] (41%, 7%)

In other news, Cletus himself, Mr. Clint "The Original RSL Bust" Mathis was spotted recently playing for the RSL reserves in a match against the school which shall not be named (it's in ~~Hell~~ Provo). Apparently, he is out of contract following his stint in Greece and needs somewhere to work out. While I don't see him signing with RSL (LAG still hold his MLS rights anyway), I can't say I'd be 100% against him being signed as a threat off the bench. That having been said, there are countless better options out there, and with two free International roster spots, let's hope RSL takes them.

Finally, in a blatant bid to win points at home, I want to say hi to my wonderful wife! :) She joined me at the Columbus game, which was a lot of fun and I appreciate, seeing as how she has little to no interest in sports. Interestingly enough, she actually made some very astute observations. The one that stands out in particular was her calling out of "number 5" (Becks) for being too hesitant and for not taking the lanes the defense was giving him. At one point (after he stalled an attack by pulling back with the ball even as he could've broken towards goal with it) she turned to me and said, "Why didn't he keep running up the field? No one was coming after him!" And, of course, I had been thinking basically the same thing. Great minds think alike I guess. Well done, honey! And, in fact, I've been thinking a lot about Kyle's performances lately, but that is planned for a whole separate post that I will be working on soon. Until then, enjoy the view from first place everyone! I know I am.

Game 17: THE Crew at RSL: Good buds, good times, good results

2008-07-13T20:41:00.003-06:00

I finally made it to my second game of the year, this time accompanied by my lovely wife and a charming fellow by the name of DCU Ben (who, on a side note, was allowed 10 seconds to look at the Ben Cup before it was returned to its rightful place). With lovely weather and some good company, a good time was had by all. Anyway, on to the game!

First half grade: B
The Royals came out with a bang-bang combination. The first was the shocking forward line of Yura "I play like a 4th grader" Movsisyan and Tino "Still just a rookie" Nuñez. The second was Javi Morales' gorgeous free kick goal from just outside the area in the 4th minute. What a wonderful way to start off a game! From there Columbus looked shell-shocked, letting RSL control the game and mounting very little offensively. On the other hand, RSL was a bit sloppy and unnecessarily killed a few offensive opportunities by slowing the attack too much (especially Movs), but they play reasonably well for the most part and took a well deserved lead into halftime. 1-0 RSL.

Second half grade: C
Whatever was said and done in the Columbus locker room at halftime sure worked, as the Crew looked like a completely different team in the second half. Part of it I think stemmed from the realization that the combination of Nuñez and Yura posed no threat. On top of that, the Crew came out motivated and RSL looked a bit complacent. THE was able to mount attack after attack (aided by some shaky defending by the defenders, minus Olave), but poor finishing doomed them. However, that all changed in the 64th with the insertion of Robbie Findley. From the moment he stepped on the field, he looked like a man on a mission, just barely missing a goal wide in the 70th. Minutes later (with the help of a fresh Kenny Deuchar, on in the 69th), Findley gave RSL the insurance goal it sorely needed, taking a touch around the keeper and burying it in the top of the net. Columbus futiley tried to answer back, but to no avail, RSL wins 2-0, and takes over first place in the West for the first time ever.

Pros:
-Findley looked great.
-Morales' free kick.
-Olave once again was a beast in the back.
-RSL is in first!

Cons:
-The backline (minus Olave) was pretty awful.
-Especially Beltran, who was consistently hesitant AND out of position.
-Beckerman was also hesitant and mostly useless.
-The clock stopped at 45 and 90, making it so you had no idea how far into stoppage the game was.

Game grade: B-
Yes, it was a 2-0 win, but it was a surprisingly lackluster 2-0 win. With the exception of Olave and Findley, no one really stuck out and the front line of Nuñez and Movs proved useless. While I think Tino has a future and is just not ready for prime time yet, I presonally think it is time to let Yura on his merry way. The dude sucks period. He killed way too many attacks with his clumsy footwork and slow mind. Back to the game, it was, nevertheless, a solid win over a good team and topping the standings (although both LAG and TST are only a point behind with a game in hand) should do wonders for the confidence of the team.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Tested little, but solid when called upon
Tony Beltran-3 Absolutely awful. Mistake prone on nearly every play all game.
Nat Borchers-5 Some good plays, others were awful.
Jamison Olave-8 Nearly single-handedly shut out the Crew.
Ian Joy-5 Pretty meh.
Andy Williams-6 OK game, didn't seem to do a lot.
(Nathan Sturgis 89)-6 Very short appearance, nice to see him on the field!
Dema Kovalenko-6 Poor early, but really came on late.
Javier Morales-6 Brilliant goal, kind of dissapeared afterwards.
Kyle Beckerman-4 Poor touches, bad decisions, and worst of all, seemingly none of the passion he is known for.
Yura Movsisyan-3 Absolutely useless. I can has pink slip?
(Robbie Findley 64)-8 A one-man wrecking crew. Really should have had two or three.
Tino Nunez-5 OK, but not ready to basically be a lone striker (Movs didn't count).
(Kenny Deuchar 69)-6 Active, and got an assist, but missed a gimme goal.

RSL Man of the Match:
Robbie Findley and the kid in about row 20 of E37 (TIE)
Robbie changed the whole face of the game by providing RSL with strike ability that they had been lacking all game. He then put the game away with a sweet 78th minute goal. The kid earns it for his priceless line halfway through the national anthem: (in a whiny five-year-old voice) "Do I have to stand up?" Priceless.

Assclown of the Match:
The people running the scoreboard at Rice-Eccles
I wanted to give it to Schelotto for his Blanco-worthy diving, but I'm giving it to the crew at the stadium for not keeping the clock running into extra time like they usually do. Fat lot of good it does us to know there are four minutes of extra time when we don't even know how far into extra time we are. KEEP THE CLOCKS RUNNING, ASSCLOWN!

Cleaning House (Cordobas, Predictions, and Grades; oh my!)

2008-07-03T12:47:00.005-06:00

Yes, I know there has been a distinct lack of content here on the Review as of late. I apologize and throw myself at the mercy of the soccer gods! ...Or something. Actually, I recently got a new job and am currently having a very difficult time adjusting to the hours, which has made it hard to keep the site up. I'll try and keep it up better in the future. Anyway, on to all that needs to be done!

First off, if you missed it, Matias Cordoba is gone, back to Argentina (thanks, SL Tribune). Apparently, he was upset with the paltry amount of playing time he'd gotten. Of course, if he'd shown ANYTHING in that playing time, maybe he'd have gotten more; I'm just sayin'. That means RSL has two roster spots and, if I recall correctly, they also have two international slots available. Hopefully Jason and Garth can get us a striker (Archie dammit! Or even Indra perhaps?) and another attacking minded midfielder or outside back (Kipre, come home!). Actually, let me revise that, hopefully they can get us someone who can actually put the ball in the net. That would be a nice change.

Secondly, let's get back up to date with 'Ye Olde Royal Predictions.' Here's my picks for this week:

Thursday, July 3rd:
Creamsickles 2 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 3

Friday, July 4th (Happy 232!):
Kansas City 1 vs. Dallas 2
Energy Bovines 0 vs. Crapids/Cripids 2
NERds 3 vs. LAG 2

Saturday, July 5th:
Chicago BSOF 1 vs. Columbus The 2
NTOTB 2 vs. TST 2

Last 2 weeks' results:
Week 13: 2 right (1 exact), 7 wrong (22%, 11%)
Week 14: 3 right (1 exact), 4 wrong (43%, 14%)

MLS Season Total:
41-59 [7 exact] (41%, 7%)

And finally, here are the player grades for the ugliness that was RSL at Kansas City:
Nick Rimando-7 Distribution lacking, but solid keeping.
Tony Beltran-3 Beat all night, passed to opposition, scored an own goal.
Nat Borchers-5 Missed a few marks, clearances were fairly poor.
Jamison Olave-8 A beast all night.
Chris Wingert-5 Too many passing mistakes.
Andy Williams-5 OK, but seemed to wear out in the 2nd half.
(Kenny Cutler 80)-5 Didn't have much effect on the game.
Dema Kovalenko-5 More poor passing by an RSL player.
Javier Morales-4 As leader of the offense, needs to do a LOT more.
Kyle Beckerman-7 Feisty and all over the place. Good game.
Robbie Findley-6 OK considering he was out of position all night.
(Tino Nunez 69)-5 Barring one play, largely invisible.
Kenny Deuchar-5 Wore down early 2nd, needs to shoot AROUND defenders, not INTO them.
(Yura Movsisyan 69)-5 Looked energized against his old team. Lots of effort, no results; needs to pass now and then.

Jason Kreis-4 The 4-5-1 got beat all night. Findley is NOT a middie. Taking out Findley AND Kenny for Tino and Yura???!?!

Officials (Head Ref: Alex Prus)-4 Let way too many tackles from behind go, often when an RSL player was headed towards the 18. Let the game turn ugly.

RSL Man of the Match:
Jamison Olave-Forget OnGoal, Olave owns the Wizards!

Assclown of the Match:
Jason Kreis-Ah yes, Professor Kreis! How goes your "How Not To Coach A Soccer Game 101" class?

Like I said, I will do my best to keep the site up in the future! Thanks for sticking with the site, I appreciate it!

Game 13: SJ vs. RSL: What's Indra Up To These Days?

2008-06-18T21:01:00.004-06:00

Turdriffic. That's the word I'd use to describe RSL's latest 0-0 debacle at Rice-Eccles. That now makes it two straight home games where RSL has thoroughly outplayed the competition and not been able to win. I guarantee that those 4 points will come back to haunt RSL by season's end. Even now, it would put RSL near the top in the West. But I digress, on to the review!

First Half Grade: C-
A very boring first half. In fact, at different times I got up and went and got something to drink and then later to make a sandwich. Of course, I didn't miss much. The highlight was Jason Hernandez's stupid foul on Findley in the 44th for his second yellow (ie a red). Although it was scoreless at halftime, things were looking up for RSL. They had slightly outplayed San Jose at even strength; up a man, how could they not win?

Second Half Grade: F
By being RSL, that's how they could not win! A complete lack of finishing, which resulted in a game total of 24 shots, with a whopping FOUR on goal (according to the MLSnet Match Tracker). That's a whopping 17%! Seriously, I'll get paid to play soccer if that's as well as you have to do! Sign me up! Anyway, combine that with a very lacksadaisical attitude and an odd substitution of Nunez for Deuchar not even 60 minutes in and you have a 0-0 tie, even with the extra man. This was vintage RSL: shots missing the goal by 30 feet and no one providing any life or passion. Meanwhile, Kreis stoically stood on the sideline (at least, every time they showed him he was). Dude needs to get on his team, light a fire under them. They obviously weren't going to do it themselves. So while RSL completely controlled the second half, due to the man advantage, their lack of heart and attack leads to an F.

Pros:
-RSL still unbeaten at home.
-Rimando gets his third straight clean sheet.
-The defense looked pretty good when tested early on.
-We get Andy back next game right?

Cons:
-No passion at all. I think I cared if they won more than they did!
-Nunez showed me nothing in extended minutes.
-Is it too soon to call Cordoba a bust? He's done nothing in 2 straight starts.
-No one on RSL seems capable of keeping shots on frame.
-After only one game away, RSL seemed to forget how to play the turf.
-RSL really didn't (or couldn't because of poor passing) play the possesion game that led them to the last win over NTOTB.
-RSL has blown 4 easy points in their last two at home.
-You have to beat the expansion team, those are points ripe for the taking.

Game grade: D-
I really wanted to give RSL an F for this one, but they did only tie, not lose. So as awful as this result was, there were some minor positives. Although it resulted in nothing, RSL did try to attack and did control the game when they had the man advantage, as they should. Unfortunately, this was one of those games where by about 70 minutes in, you could tell RSL wouldn't score. Sure enough, I was right. But far outweighing any positives was the lack of passion showed. Kudos to the RSL fans who booed the team at the game's end. If that's all the effort they will give, they deserve it.

Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Solid when tested.
Tony Beltran-6 Active but needs to do more with the ball on both ends.
Jamison Olave-7 Helps get a 3rd straight clean sheet.
Kyle Beckerman-6 Decent game, but as captain, needs to inspire his team.
Nat Borchers-7 See Olave.
Matias Cordoba-4 The guy is invisible when on the field.
(Kenny Cutler 67)-5 One of the few with any life, but didn't do much.
Robbie Findley-6 Generous 6; drew a red card, only legit threat in the 2nd.
Javier Morales-6 Some nice plays, but not his best effort.
Kenny Deuchar-5 For someone known for headers, his sure suck.
(Tino Nunez 57)-4 Too tentative.
Chris Wingert-6 Decent game, turf ate him up a couple times.
Dema Kovalenko-7 Starting to impose himself on games again.

RSL Man of the Match:
Dema Kovalenko - A tough call. Another game where no one really wanted it or stood out. Dema gets it for his hard-nosed play and for being one of the few at least trying to attack late, even if his shots were horrible. An A (well, A- maybe) for effort.

Assclown of the Match:
The whole officiating crew - I agree, Beckerman was offsides on the "goal" in the 73rd, I*'m fine with that. However, you CAN NOT wait for 3 minutes, after a complete goal celebration and everything and then call it back. If you don't make the call, you didn't make the call. I really think the assistant waited for a replay on the video screen and then made his call. Poor.

Game 12: RSL vs. TST: Some Home (Depot) Improvement

2008-06-18T14:19:00.002-06:00

Well, while RSL certainly made it much more adventurous than it needed to be, they did go on the road, to the place where RSL teams go to die, and pulled out a 1-0 victory. The win at Chivas TST was RSL's first road win on the season and will hopefully start the team down the right path for the rest of the year.

First Half Grade: B
No, it wasn't pretty, but RSL played TST even (if not a little better) for most of the half. Neither team looked real sharp, but for a team that has struggled as much as they have on the road, especially in the Home Depot Center, RSL looked pretty good. While both teams struggled to create any definitive chances, it was RSL who was able to bust through. In the 34th minute, Kyle Beckerman played a nice ball forward from the midfield. Robbie Findley ran free and onto the ball, which drew TST keeper Dan Kennedy out of the goal. Robbie took the ball, ran past a chasing Klejstan, around a charging Kennedy, and buried the ball into the back of the net. 1-0 RSL. TST turned up the attack after the goal, forcing RSL into some pressure situations, but never really got anything on net. Halftime score: 1-0.

Second Half Grade: D
Wow. Not just ugly, but OOGLAY! Apparently Jason's speech at halftime was: OK, we got a goal, now everybody sit back in the final third and try to repress wave after wave of TST attack for 45 minutes. I hate this "Let's play not to lose" mentality, and it has cost RSL more times than I can count. In this game, it almost cost them again, as TST attacked again and again and again and again. Credit to Olave and Borchers who repelled TST over and over. Chivas TST's best chance probably came in the 53rd, when Utah native Justin Braun (who couldn't possibly have been onside, but I digress) ran free into the 18 and put a hard shot directly into the arms of Nick Rimando. Little Nicky did a good job cutting off the angle, but credit to Braun for making that one WAY too easy for Nick. Finally, around the 80-85th minute, RSL remembered they were allowed to hold possesion and even move forward in attack and easily killed the rest of the game. Despite facing a deluge of shots in the second half, with the help of some poor TST finishing, RSL was able to "Kansas City" their way to the shutout. Final score 1-0, RSL.

Pros:
-Findley scores again.
-The two center backs look very legit.
-Beckerman seems back to his old active, pestering self.
-Morales was all over.
-Justin Braun can't shoot.
-Rimando was solid.
-Tino Nunez looked pretty good.
-A WIN AT THE HOME DEPOT CENTER!!!

Cons:
-Cordoba looks lost out there.
-Second half tactics were, to be kind, atrocious.
-Another card for Olave. He's pulling a Mantilla 2007.

Game Grade: C
I can't really be too harsh, as RSL went on the road, where they are awful, to the HDC, where they are awful, and beat Chivas TST, which is always nice (suck it, Luis Bueno!). A very painful second half, but RSL showed some character in hanging on and earning the win. Now back home to face San Jose yet again, which will be tough. Can RSL beat them again for the 500th time in the last month or will the NTOTB finally have RSL's number?

Player Grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Solid when tested
Tony Beltran-7 Some iffy tackles but good
Nat Borchers-8 A brick wall in the back.
Jamison Olave-8 Big, enforcer style game; I love it!
Chris Wingert-6 Decent game, let "Whiny Sacha" get in his head a bit.
Dema Kovalenko-7 Much more of a factor than he had been recently.
Matias Cordoba-4 Did he play?
(Yura Movsisyan 62)-4 Mostly a non-factor, left injured after 25 min.
(Kenny Cutler 87)-6 Team seemed to settle when he came in.
Robbie Findley-7 Had a goal, and looked good even out of position in the 2nd.
Javier Morales-7 Pestered the goats all over the field.
Kyle Beckerman-7 Nice to see the old Kyle back.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Once again, hustled, but little else. Is he a bust?
(Tino Nunez 80)-7 Limited minutes, but pushed forward well.

RSL Man of the Match:
Jamison Olave - When Kreis decided he didn't want to win, but just "not to lose," it was Borchers and Olave who stepped it up. Both were great, but Jamison gets the nod for a couple well-timed, crucial tackles and clears, but mostly for the tough guy attitude that ran through his game all night long. Well done.

Assclown of the Match:
Jason Kreis - I wanted to give it to "Whiny Sacha" Klejstan for his incessant complaining (what is it about LA and whiny athletes/coaches? See: Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, the rest of the Lakers, Landon Donovan, etc. etc. etc.), but Jason won it with his tactical "brilliance." A not-even-totally-fit Yura Movsisyan at right mid? Robbie Findley seemingly playing left wing back? The complete bunker ball strategy employed the whole second half? As the kids say, "WTF?"

The Royal Rankings #8

2008-06-18T11:48:00.002-06:00

After a week off from the rankings, I'm baaaaack. Last week was a bit crazy and the rankings reflect that. Here we go!

14 NTOTB - Seriously, if they get OUT of 14th, it will be huge.
13 Chivas TST - Lost to RSL in the Royal Burial Grounds (aka HDC).
12 Kansas City - Finally get a home game...and lose 3-0.
11 Energy Bovines - Shocked and awed in DC.
10 Cripids/Crapids - Playing poorly as of late.
09 REAL SALT LAKE - Finally get the elusive road win, in the most unlikely of places.
08 Dallass - Solid win over Chicago.
07 Creamsickles - Dominated by New England at home.
06 Ben Cup Losers - Finally rounding into form.
05 Toronto Streamer Warehouse - Very strong home win over the Crapids.
04 Chicago's BSOF - Coming down off the early season high.
03 LAG - Defense is holding enough to let the big O win games for them.
02 Columbus - Break the goal drought with a big 3-0 win in KC's homecoming.
01 NERds - VERY impressive in dismantling Houston in Texas.

Game of the week:
(#2) Columbus travels to California to take on the red hot (#3) Galaxy.

Ye Olde Royal Predictions: Week 13

2008-06-18T11:36:00.005-06:00

Still working on getting through the TST game before tonight's game, but I wanted to get the predictions up on time this week for once.

Wednesday, June 18th:
Energy Bovines 0 vs. NERds 2
NTOTB 2 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 3

Thursday, June 19th:
Chicago's BSOF 2 vs. TST 1

Saturday, June 21st:
KC 1 vs. Streamer Warehouse 2
Dallass 1 vs. Energy Bovines 1
NERds 2 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 1
Creamsickles 2 vs. Crapids/Cripids 2
THE* 2 vs. LAG 3

Sunday, June 22nd:
NTOTB 1 vs. Ben Cup Losers 3

*THE is my newest reference for Columbus because of the stupid "THE Crew" in their logo. If it's on their logo, it's their name. Presenting the Columbus THE. (Yes, I'm reaching)

Last week's results:
A solid, plus-.500 week. And honestly, I hate to mark myself down for the RSL game, did ANYONE see that coming? Didn't think so.
4 right (0 exact), 3 wrong (57%)

Season Total:
36-48 [5 exact] (43%, 6%)

Game 11: KC vs. RSL Grades

2008-06-18T11:21:00.003-06:00

I'm finally trying to get the Review back up-to-date so here's the grades for the 0-0 draw-that-feels-like-a-loss (DTFLAL) against Kansas City on June 7th.

1st Half Grade: B
2nd Half Grade: B
Both halves were very similar, with RSL dominating the possesion and attacking consistently. They also ended up with nothing to show on the scoreboard.

Game Grade: C+
How do two Bs make a C+? I'll tell you. If you thoroughly outplay your opponents and create as many chances as RSL did over 90 minutes and don't win, well, you don't deserve much more than a C+.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Got the clean sheet with no effort required
Tony Beltran-6 Very up and down game
Nat Borchers-7 KC didn't test him much, but when they did, they were denied.
Jamison Olave-6 Played well, but had a few too many mental mistakes.
Chris Wingert-6 Pretty quiet game for Chris.
Andy Williams-6 Involved but nothing special.
(Matias Cordoba 70)-5 I think I saw more of him when he was on the bench!
Dema Kovalenko-6 Decent game for Dema
Javier Morales-7 Really making himself the catalyst for this team.
Kyle Beckerman-7 2nd half was his best effort in a while.
Kenny Deuchar-4 Needs to finish some of these golden opportunities.
(Tino Nunez 76)-6 Didn't really get a lot of time
Robbie Findley-5 Finishing wasn't as egregious as Kenny's, but still awful.

RSL Man of the Match:
Javier Morales - Most of the good offensive opportunities for RSL were created by Javi. His confidence is visibly through the roof and it is paying dividends on the field.

Assclown of the Match:
Kevin Hartman - Dude played out of his mind and somehow pulled a clean sheet out of his behind. Couldn't you have just let one sneak by Kevin? Really? Way to harsh our buzz, man! (There weren't too many good candidates in this one, so I gave it to Hartman for single-handedly stealing the points from RSL).

Ye Olde Royal Predictions: Week 12: FM 2008 is the devil!

2008-06-13T21:28:00.003-06:00

So I've gotten sucked back into Football Manager 2008 (well, Worldwide Soccer Manager, but it's the same thing) and, as a result, the Review is suffering. But, quickly, here are my week 12 predictions (as before, all predictions were made before this week's games-proven by my painfully wrong prediction on Thursday's game):

Thursday, June 12th:
NERds 1 vs. Creamsickles 1

Saturday, June 14th:
Crapids 1 vs. Streamer Warehouse 2
Energy Bovines 0 vs. Unitedwagen 2
THE Crew (seriously, does their logo need the word 'The'?) 1 vs. Wiz 2
LAG 3 vs. NTOTB 1
REAL SALT LAKE 0 vs. TST 3

Sunday, June 15th:
Blanco School of Flopping (BSOF) 1 vs. Dallass 2

I hate to make that prediction for RSL, but they are headed to the HDC this weekend. Also known as the 'Royal Burial Grounds'. But trust me, I would like nothing more than a big RSL win over tst. GO RSL!

Last week's results:
BIG week for me! It's about time!
5 correct (1 exact), 2 wrong (71%)

Season Total:
32-45 [5 exact] (42%, 6%)

And, oh yes, never fear RSL fans! If my game is correct (and we can all hope that it is), RSL WILL win the MLS Cup this year. Of course, they also should have won the Open Cup this year for that logic to work, but we can conveniently forget that part, right?

News and Notes, Thoughts and Opinions

2008-06-06T12:09:00.005-06:00

First off, thanks to all who voted in the Royal Review Color poll, the current RSL scheme has won out. However, the black and white scheme did pull enough votes for me to look into viable options for those people. If I get time to try a few things, I will let you know. As for now, enjoy the colors of the homeland! :)

In place of the old color scheme poll I have added a new one. In your eyes, who is RSL's player of the year so far? I took the top 6 (it would have been 5, but two players were tied for 5th) players in my season long player grades and put them on there. I'm just curious to see what the rest of RSL-land (and MLS-land) thinks.

As everyone knows by now, Real Madrid cancelled its 2008 exhibition with RSL, hopefully to the surprise of no one. The "partnership" between the teams has always been shaky at best. The Madrid sponsored youth academy? No where to be found. The loaning of promising young stars? Hasn't happened. The biannual (every two years) friendly in Salt Lake? Well, we got 1 (out of five). So basically, this partnership that was supposed to be so fruitful for RSL has ended with RSL getting 1 friendly, 1 preseason training at Madrid's facilities, and the shaft. And worse yet, RSL doesn't seem upset about it. In the linked article, Lagerwey even admits he doesn't know if RSL will be compensated for the missed friendly. You know, the one specified by a legally binding contract. RSL front office: Grow a pair. Stand up to someone besides your own fans. China's national team doesn't pay your bills. Neither does RM. The fans do. Fight for them (not against them) and for yourselves once in a while, damn.

There's a decent article in the SL Tribune today about Nate Sturgis. It basically reiterates what I said months and months ago, this kid is ALWAYS injured. He is RSL's Mark Prior. I feel bad for him, especially after the article pointed out something I hadn't thought of: if his injury doesn't heal up soon, he won't be fit enough to play in the Olympics. That would be a heartbreaker. For Nathan's sake, I hope he heals up soon and gets to go to Beijing. I mean, seriously, who doesn't dream of being in the Olympics?

Finally, to the Fox Soccer Channel: Please hire me as Max Bretos's pronunciation guide. His mangling of the names of players and places has gotten to be too much. And even better, I come cheap (just ask my current employer!). Yours, Ben.

The Royal Rankings #7

2008-06-04T12:59:00.002-06:00

14 NTOTB - A decent expansion team, but an expansion team nevertheless.
13 Unitedwagen - When will this team show up?
12 REAL SALT LAKE - Big win, but need to do it away from the U.
11 Dallas - RSL has got to still be kicking themselves over that one.
10 Kansas City - Last 4 league games: loss, loss, tie, loss.
09 Energy Drinks - Altidore on the move
08 Houston - Playing much better after a slow start.
07 Chivas TST - Big win over the Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria.
06 LAG - Pretty weak without Beckham and Donovan.
05 Columbus - Zero goals in their last three league games. Ouch.
04 Crapids/Cripids - Still on top in the West.
03 Toronto Streamer Warehouse - Nice to see Cunningham on the score sheet.
02 NERds - On top by 1 pt. the East, but Chicago has 2 games in hand and a whopping +11 advantage in goal diff.
01 Ow! The Fire! It burns! - Cuauhtemoc Louganis and friends keep on rollin'.

Ye Olde Royal Predictions: Week 11

2008-06-04T12:35:00.002-06:00

Wednesday, June 4th:
Creamsickles 1 vs. Ben Cup Losers 2

Thursday, June 5th:
TST 1 vs. Energy Drinks 2

Friday, June 6th:
Texas Stripes 1 vs. NERds 3

Saturday, June 7th:
NTOTB 1 vs. Columbus 3
Ben Cup Losers 0 vs. Where There's Smoke... 2
Takin A KC Wiz 2 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 2
Crapids/Cripids 2 vs. LAG 3

Sunday, June 8th:
Streamer Warehouse 1 vs. Creamsickles 2

Last week's results:
Another week, another similar result. Hopefully this week will get me out of the rut!
3 correct (1 exact-the RSL game, YES!), 4 wrong (43%, 14%)

Season Total:
27-43 [4 exact] (39%, 6%)

Game 10: Shakin the Quakes: NTOTB vs. RSL

2008-06-04T11:37:00.006-06:00

Wow. Can we take that 20-25 minutes to start the second half and play that way for 90 minutes? Seriously, it makes the bad play all the more frustrating when you see what the team is actually capable of...

1st Half Grade: D
I'm not sure how this was the same team we saw in the second half. RSL was gifted a penalty early after a handball in the box. Javi proceeded to step up, use his body language to tell everyone where he was going, and then weakly kick it directly at Joe Cannon. Honestly one of the worst penalty takes I've seen. The rest of the half was vintage RSL...by both teams. Ugly pinball play in the midfield, few, if any, scoring chances, just very blah. An odd substitution came right before half, with Findley coming on for a fine-looking but apparently injured Espi. It seemed odd at the time, but didn't strike me as being too important. Boy, was I wrong... Halftime: 0-0.

2nd Half Grade: A-
Praise the Lord! Robbie Findley has remembered he is good! After making SJ defender Jason Hernandez look like, well, ME, he thenran to the edge of the box and absolutely blistered home a shot near post, getting it right past the outstretched arms of Cannon. Boom, 1-0. The goal seemed to finally energize the royals, with RSL dominating the next 20 minutes of play. In fact, I don't recall NTOTB making it past midfield on an attack more than maybe once in that whole span. Another brilliant goal came in the 60th, when Javi came screaming upfield. Smartly, he held onto the ball for as long as possible, drawing two defenders, before laying it off to Findley. Sensing the danger, both defenders turned to go at Robbie, who read the play perfectly and put a brilliant one-touch pass forward to a wide open Javi. Morales took the ball, and after a perfect extra touch to pull Cannon off his line, put the ball expertly behind Cannon and into the net. The RSL flurry continued with a couple of possible (but would-have-been-weak) shirt-pulling PKs going uncalled while a suddenly renewed Deuchar wreaked havoc in the box. RSL finally got its second PK, although not from Kenny, in the 73rd after Morales put a perfect ball into the box for Williams who was dragged down from behind by Nick Garcia as he prepped the shot. Smartly, the Reds kept Javi far away from the spot and Kovalenko stepped up, waited for Cannon to commit, and then went the opposite way for the third goal. 3-0 RSL. So why not an A or even A+ for the half? After going up 3-0, RSL got lazy. Meanwhile, SJ pressed, trying to salvage anything from the game. It didn't matter, that is, until John Cunliffe decided to take the game over. He took a brilliant back heel pass at the top of the box in the 84th and blasted it past Little Nicky to dirty up the clean sheet. He nearly did it again just minutes later, just missing the top left corner on another rifle shot. Luckily for RSL, the shot missed and any possible lifeline for the visitors was cut. Final score: RSL 3 - NTOTB 1.

Pros:
-Findley returns to form.
-Deuchar finally showed up in the second half.
-Javier Morales continues to be an assist machine.
-The defense (both on the backline and from the midfield) did well before letting the 3 goal lead get to their heads.
-The team showed better vision in creating attacks.
-RSL continues their home form, something they HAVE to do, given their road woes.

Cons:
-Much of the first half was awful.
-The midfield refused to settle a ball and try and hold possession in the first half.
-RSL quit playing after building the lead.
-Espi left injured.

Game grade: B-
A tough game to grade. When RSL was on, they looked like world beaters (granted, it was against an expansion side, but they still looked THAT good), but for the first half and the last 15-20 minutes, they looked pretty mediocre. Overall, I think it's a solid win, but I'd like to see a better effort over a whole 90 minutes.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Didn't have much to do.
Tony Beltran-6 See above.
Nat Borchers-6 Did get beat on the goal, but looked good otherwise.
Jamison Olave-7 Solid game by Jamison, although, again, the D didn't have much to do.
Chris Wingert-7 Have to give him credit as every attack seemed to go down the left side.
Andy Williams-7 Active and attacking, earned a PK as well.
Dema Kovalenko-5 Had a goal, but was otherwise nonexistent.
Javier Morales-7 Goal and basically 2 assists, but a missed PK and poor 1st half.
(Matias Cordoba 79)-5 Pretty blah after coming on.
Kyle Beckerman-5 Did better in the 2nd, but never really made his mark.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Bad first half, second half was his best effort in ages.
(Tino Nunez 85)-6 Too little time to really judge.
Fabian Espindola-6 One of the few even decent players early.
(Robbie Findley 45)-8 Almost a 9, just a brilliant game from #10.

RSL Man of the Match:
Robbie Findley - It's gotta be him. The whole complexion of the game changed after he entered and his goal woke up the whole squad. On top of that, his goal was a thing of beauty and he capped it off with a perfect assist to Javi. Is Robbie finally rounding into form?

Assclown of the Match:
Max Bretos - For the last !@#$ing time, it's Robbie FindLEY and WaSATCH not Findlay and Wasottch. Friggin hell.

Game 9: RSL vs. FCD Player Grades

2008-06-04T11:21:00.002-06:00

Hey, cut me some slack, I'm only a week and a half late! Ha ha! Anyway, I just wanted to post some grades for the Dallas game so that all my season rankings and such still are correct.

Nick Rimando-7
Chris Wingert-6
Nat Borchers-3 Was at least partially responisble for both goals.
Jamison Olave-6 Defense held until he came off
(Matias Mantilla 77)-5
Ian Joy-4 Sadly, RSL's best player going forward in the first half, but can't forget the red.
Dema Kovalenko-5
Kyle Beckerman-4
Andy Williams-4
Javier Morales-5
Kenny Deuchar -4
(Fabian Espindola 54)-6
Robbie Findley-6 Thoroughly outplayed Deuchar, yet comes off instead of Kenny...
(Kenny Cutler 46)-4

RSL Man of the Match:
Nick Rimando - None of the field players earned it, and both goals were not Nick's fault. I have to give it to someone, so I give it to Nick and his 5 saves.

Assclown of the Match:
TIE Bobby Rhine and Jason Kreis - Rhine for his complete overreaction and unnecessary "assault" of Javi Morales. Kreis for his inexplicable substitution patterns.

Ye Olde Royal Predictions: Week 10

2008-05-30T12:51:00.002-06:00

I know, I know, the week has already started and seems to be about half over, but I promise I made these predictions BEFORE the week started. In my defense, I don't know the finals of any of this week's games so far so I may be posting wrong predictions for games that already happened-yay!

Wednesday, May 28th:
Houston 3 vs. Dallas 2

Thursday, May 29th:
Unitedwagen 1 vs. NERds 2

Saturday, May 31st:
LAG 2 vs. Streamer Warehouse 2
Energy Drinks 1 vs. Houston 2
NTOTB 1 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 3
Niña, Pinta, Santa Maria 2 vs. TST 1

Sunday, June (already?!?!) 1st:
Dallas 0 vs. Crapids/Cripids 3

Last week's results:
About the usual around here these days.
3 right (0 exact), 5 wrong (38%)

Season Total:
24-39 [3 exact] (38%, 5%)

Not Dead

2008-05-27T21:24:00.001-06:00

I'm waaaaaaaay behind on the Review this week, in fact, I still haven't even watched the Dallas game. I'm working on getting caught up, but updates will be a bit behind schedule. Sorry!

The Royal Rankings #6

2008-05-19T14:24:00.003-06:00

I made the mistake of finally picking RSL to win last week in their bid to take over first place for the first time ever. I was rewarded with that craptacular in Denver. Well done, boys. At least they are back into a familiar place in the rankings (and standings); near the bottom.

14 (14) NTOTB - Expansion woes continue.
13 (12) VW United - A complete and total collapse against a bad TST.
12 (09) REAL SALT LAKE - Already time to pack up the RMC?
11 (13) Chivas TST - Finally a win.
10 (08) Dallass - Absolutely BLASTED by David and the Beckhams.
09 (10) Houston - HUGE win over Chicago, that's two in a row.
08 (11) LAG - Make sure you sit down for this one: Edson Buddle with the hat trick.
07 (06) Kansas City - Handed a point to a ten man Energy Drink squad.
06 (05) New Jersey - Quietly putting together a strong season, only 1 loss so far.
05 (07) Crapids/Cripids - Made RSL look stupid.
04 (04) Toronto Streamer Warehouse - Earned a draw against a good Columbus team.
03 (01) Chicago - Whoops! Lost to one (now two) win Houston.
02 (03) NERds - Took care of San Jose, as they should.
01 (02) Columbus - With Chicago's stumble, they finally take over 1st.

*I'm sure everyone already knows, but just in case, the numbers in parentheses are last week's ranking.

Ye Olde Royal Predictions: Week 9

2008-05-19T14:00:00.002-06:00

So I had an improvement this week, but I'm still not up to where I want to be. I did, however, notice this disclaimer on James Edward's blog on his predictions:
"Note: I'm counting draws in my record, therefore picking 33 percent of the games correct would be considered average."
Mainly I'm just posting this to make myself feel better, as I run on the same rules. By his logic I am still above average! YAY! Ah, lowered expectations, you are a sweet, sweet nectar.

Wednesday, May 21st:
Ben Cup Losers 1 vs. Streamer Warehouse 3

Thursday, May 22nd:
Houston Creamsickles 2 vs. NTOTB 1

Saturday, May 24th:
NERds 0 vs. Columbus 2
Streamer Death 2 vs. Unitedwagen 2
REAL SALT LAKE 2 vs. Dallass 3
TST 0 vs. Crapids/Cripids 2
Kansas City 2 vs. LAG 3

Sunday, May 25th:
The Blanco School of Flopping 1 vs. Energy Drinks 2

Last week's results:
3 right (0 exact), 4 wrong (43%)

Season total:
21-34 [3 exact] (38%, 5%)

Game 8: Rocky Mountain Disaster

2008-05-15T21:33:00.004-06:00

1st Half Grade: C+
RSL looked like they could finally get their act together on the road in the first half. They were able to string passes together and hold possession. The defense was shaky at times but held. However, when they were unable to get a goal to really set the tone, I got worried about what may happen in the 2nd half. Boy, was I right on that one... Anyway, a decent, but entirely pedestrian effort in the first half.

2nd Half Grade: F
I believe RSL has invented a time machine! They had to have, because that was vintage 2005 RSL. No defense, no offense, no nothing. Every player that attacked wide for the Crapids was WIDE OPEN. I'm not sure if it was tactics or just laziness, but the outside backs (ESPECIALLY Beltran) didn't cover anyone in the 2nd half. Beltran was burned again and again and again by leaving Colin Clark wide open and he was finally able to make RSL pay by threading a perfect cross into the box in the path of Omar Cummings who put it away for the first goal. Of course, after that RSL went into a more attacking mindset, which resulted in very little extra offense unfortunately. Too many turnovers by RSL when they could not afford them. RSL's attacking did help Colorado's offense, however, as the defense became even more unorganized and scrambling. It was during one of these scrambles that a ball came up and hit Mantilla in the arm in the box. PK, Christian Gomez, drive home safely. 2-0 Colorado.

Pros:
-Borchers looks to have regained his form, he was huge in the back.
-Rimando was solid again. How much do you think DC wishes they still had him instead of Wells right now?
-Deuchar finally started getting involved in the attack again.

Cons:
-Tony Beltran was absolutely horrible.
-Matias Mantilla was also horrible.
-Beckerman's first touch seems to be getting worse.
-Morales was injured and couldn't go.
-Espi was trying to do too much.
-For a Rocky Mountain Cup game, there was little to no passion from RSL.
-We lost to Colorado.

Game Grade: F
Yes, the second half was THAT bad. It cancels out any positives from the first half. For whatever reason this team is beyond terrible on the road. If RSL has any designs on the playoffs, they better get this figured out, and quick.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Confident play from 'Little Nicky'
Tony Beltran-3 Atrocious. No defense and turnover prone.
Kyle Beckerman-6 Active, but unspectacular.
Nat Borchers-8 A rock in the back.
Fabian Espindola-5 Tried to take on too many defenders too many times.
Kenny Cutler-5 OK, nothing special.
(Robbie Findley 69)-5 Never really got going.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Needs to keep his headers down.
Chris Wingert-6 Hard to score. Great going forward, weak in defense.
(Dustin Kirby 87)-6 Did all right with very limited time.
Dema Kovalenko-8 Was all over the field all night.
Matias Mantilla-3 Clearances were terrible, gave up the (inadvertent) handball in the box.
Andy Williams-6 Performance dropped as the game wore on.
(Matias Cordoba 84)-5 Never really had a chance to get involved.

RSL Man of the Match:
Dema Kovalenko - He seemed to be one of the few capable of passing tonight. Or seeing the field and changing the point of attack. Or going at Crapids players. A good game on any night stood out even more because of the lack of quality from most of his teammates.

Assclown of the Match:
Pablo Mastroeni - Just because.

Ye Olde Royal Predctions: Week 8

2008-05-15T11:40:00.002-06:00

Sigh...well, it WAS better. Only slightly. Here's to hoping my form returns soon! Hopefully, I will turn it around starting with this week.

Thursday, May 15th:
Rocky Mtn. Cup Leg 1
REAL SALT LAKE 3 vs. Crapids/Cripids/Denver West Sideuhz 2

Saturday, May 17th:
Columbus 2 vs. Toronto Streamer Warehouse 2
Kansas City 1 vs. Energy Drinks 2
NTOTB 1 vs. NERds 3
Houston 1 vs. Louganises 3
Ben Cup Losers 1 vs. TST 2

Sunday, May 18th:
LAG 2 vs. Dallass 3

On a side note, don't miss this week's game of the week, the Rocky Mtn. Cup matchup on ESPN2! And you insomniacs, don't miss the big TST/Unitedwagen craptacular on Saturday!

Last week's results:
2 right (1 exact), 4 wrong (33%)

MLS Season Total:
18-30 [3 exact] (38%, 6%)

The Royal Rankings #5

2008-05-15T11:26:00.002-06:00

14 NTOTB - Who else?
13 TST - How did RSL lose to these guys?
12 Unitedwagen - See above.
11 LAG - Yes, it was a friendly and without Landy, but they lost to Vancouver.
10 Houston - Creamsickles finally get a win.
09 REAL SALT LAKE - Nice win over a mediocre looking Dallas.
08 Dallas - Stays ahead of RSL based on RSL's road results.
07 Crapids/Cripids - Gave Houston their first win of '08.
06 Kansas City - Spent an enjoyable week 7 on the couch.
05 Energy Drinks - Can the "10 Million Dollar Man" lead them to glory before he leaves?
04 Streamer Warehouse - Spent a hectic week 7 digging out from under all the streamers.
03 NERds - Nice win over TST in the HDC. (I'm a rapper yo!)
02 Columbus - 3-goals-in-10-minutes outburst was a joy to watch.
01 Chicago - Smacked around DC like it was the playoffs (or like RSL in the Ben Cup)

Game 7: Dallas vs. RSL

2008-05-13T21:45:00.003-06:00

I'll try and get an actual review up, but just to be safe, I wanted to throw out my grades and awards for the game.

Game grade: B-
Too many defensive lapses (that, luckily, didn't cost us for once), but RSL seemed in control most of the game and pushed to the end. A fair result and a solid, if unspectacular, win for the boys in red.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Pretty good game, helped by some bad Dallass finishing.
Jamison Olave-4 Didn't make a mark on the game.
(Andy Williams 40)-8 All over the field, involved in nearly every positive RSL play.
Matias Mantilla-5 OK, but Dallass got way too many open chances that they squandered.
Nat Borchers-5 See above.
Tony Beltran-6 A clear improvement over Mr. Joy.
Kyle Beckerman-6 Came on late in the game, goal was nice, but touch was AWFUL all game.
Dema Kovalenko-6 Hard nosed, solid effort.
Javier Morales-7 Solid game for Javi.
(Kenny Cutler 57)-7 Looked good in the midfield.
Chris Wingert-5 Odd game from him (and for him, position wise).
Fabian Espindola-7 RSL's most dangerous forward on the day.
(Robbie Findley 80)-6 Hard to judge, not a lot of time to do much.
Kenny Deuchar-5 Needs to impose himself on the game more.

RSL Man of the Match:
Andy Williams - Kept his head in the game and stayed active. Really helped push the attack. And his assist on the Beckerman goal? Perfect.

Assclown of the Match:
Ricardo Salazar - No, not for the officiating (which was surprisingly decent), but I can't remember when I've seen a ref get in the way of the action so many times. He even got hit by passes at least twice. GET THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY, RICO SUAVE!

The Royal Rankings #4

2008-05-07T13:20:00.003-06:00

14 NTOTB - It ain't easy being an expansion team.
13 Houston - Seriously, what is the deal here? Is Nate Jaqua really that big of a difference maker?
12 REAL SALT LAKE - Completely blew an easy 3 points.
11 Chivas TST - Guess they needed more than Esky and Atiba...
10 LAG - Beckham steals a point for LA.
09 Herbie the United Love Bug - My pick for class of the east are letting me down.
08 Energy Drinks - Is Altidore worn out?
07 NERds - When will the 'Revenge of the NERds' begin?
06 Dallass - You gotta beat San Jose. They didn't.
05 Streamer Warehouse - Disappointing result at Streamer Death Stadium.
04 Crapids/Cripids - How is this team any good?
03 Kansas City - Tough loss, but a solid looking team.
02 Columbus - Solid win over MLS's minor league baseball team.
01 Chicago Louganises - Another win, another #1 spot.

Ye Olde Royal Predctions: Week 7

2008-05-06T18:22:00.002-06:00

A crazy year in MLS has led to some crazy weeks for YORP, last week included. I had a horrible week, getting just one right. Of course, I did get that one exactly right. That counts for something doesn't it? Here we go with this week's, which WILL be better:

Thursday, May 8th:
Louganises 1 vs. DC Beetles 2

Saturday, May 10th:
Crapids/Cripids 1 vs. Houston No-Wins 1
Dallass 2 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 1
Columbus 3 vs. NTOTB 1
Energy Drinks 2 vs. LAG 2

Sunday, May 11th:
NERds 2 vs. TST 1

Last week's results:
MLS: 1 right (1 exact), 6 wrong (14%)
USOC: 1 right (0 exact), 0 wrong (100%-it's nice to write that, even if only for 1 game!)

MLS Season Total: 16-26 [2 exact] (38%, 5%)
All Comps Total: 18-27 [2] (40%, 4%)

Game 6: LA vs. RSL

2008-05-06T17:35:00.002-06:00

1st Half Grade: C-
The first 20-30 minutes of this game were a thing of beauty. RSL came out and took the game to the Galaxy, scoring twice and nearly netting a third on a couple occasions. Both goals were solid goals too, both with superb service from Javi. The first ended with a gorgeous chest trap to Espi, who settled the ball on the run and beat Cronin to the far side. The second was a perfectly weighted ball that Deuchar headed into the back of the net with purpose. Then came Beckham's first goal. Given a 10 yard cushion by RSL, he neatly settled a pass, used his foot to set it up just right and then rifled what basically became a free kick from 25 yards into the side netting. And both Borchers and Wingert just stood there and watched it happen. Minutes later, Beckham took an actual free kick from around the same distance (but this time straight on net), put it over and around the wall and into the net. Many have been blaming Rimando on this one, but he had his wall there to cover the near post and put himself where he could get to a ball on the far side. When the wall got beat, it was all over. After that, RSL scored a third goal on a gorgeous step over move and pass from Beckerman, who found Deuchar at the far post who put it away. Unfortunately, the assistant ref was on LSD at the time and imagined an RSL player to be offsides when they clearly weren't. After this, RSL seemed deflated and coasted to half, 2-2.

2nd Half Grade: D
What a blah, boring second half. This was the RSL we know and love. Giving up possesion cheaply. Defensive lapses in dangerous areas. Shaky coaching. A complete and total lack of anything resembling finishing. Luckily, Nick Rimando seemed to think it was 2007 all over again and made some superhuman saves including a point blank reaction save of a Donovan rifle shot header from about 2 feet. Amazing. Go watch it if you haven't seen it, quality stuff. RSL had some chances of their own but never really challenged Cronin and never looked able to finish. Findley came in late and looked active out of his...right midfield role??? Did JK not watch the Olympic qulaifying??? The man is a striker and that's all. Get him up front! Yura came in even later and did his usual "completely stall the offense" routine. Cordoba came in with about 2 minutes remaining, much too late to add anything to the midfield. RSL limped it home to a 2-2 tie.

Pros:
-Beltran looks to be a solid pickup (I'm still not sold on the #3 pick) and looks to be a big improvement over Ian Joy.
-The RSL of the first 20 minutes. Now THAT is a team to watch!
-Espindola seemed to provide an instant boost just by being back in the lineup.
-Deuchar finally got another one (two, really). Can he heat up?

Cons:
-Nearly every RSL midfielder disappeared in the 2nd half.
-The first goal. Why would anyone give Beckham that kind of time and space?
-The phantom offsides call that nullified the go ahead goal.
-The complete lack of finishing capability shown in the 2nd half.
-RSL giving away 2 points they easily could have had.

Game grade: D+
RSL showed some flashes of brilliance, but basically handed the win away. And with the way this team plays on the road, RSL needs every point it can get at home...and they just blew two.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Stood on his head for a couple of those saves.
Tony Beltran-7 MUCH better going forward (and faster) than Joy.
(Robbie Findley 74)-6 Did well considering how poorly utilized he was.
Nat Borchers-4 Grade probably a little harsh, but we know what he's capable of.
Jamison Olave-5 Was solid, but mistake prone. A big version of Matias?
Chris Wingert-5 Back down to Earth for Chris.
Andy Williams-7 Pretty solid, for more than 45 even!
(Matias Cordoba 90)-6 Hard to judge, VERY limited time.
Dema Kovalenko-5 A little too quiet, knock someone's teeth out or something!
Javier Morales-6 Stellar first half, invisible second.
Kyle Beckerman-5 Keeping up his 2008 "Mr. Invisible" routine.
Kenny Deuchar-6 Great 1st half, seemed tired in the second.
Fabian Espindola-6 Brilliant early, useless by the time he came out.
(Yura Movsisyan 79)-3 Came on and was promptly outrun by a 80-minutes-of-fatigue Chris Klein. Seriously.

RSL Man of the Match:
Nick Rimando - Tough choice this week as no one really stood out. It was Javi's to lose, and he did by doing nothing of note in the second half. Nick's huge saves on Vanney and Donovan alone earn him this one.

Assclown of the Match:
TIE! Landon Donovan and the ref who called the offsides on Deuchar's second goal - I hate giving them to refs but that offsides call was SO egregious he earned it. Landycakes earned his AOTM for his near-constant cheap shots after plays. We get it, you're "tough" now...assclown.

We Are The Champions! Ben Cup Leg 2 Review

2008-04-30T19:47:00.002-06:00

I'm trying a new format on my reviews to try and cut down the length. Not every game requires the 'War and Peace' treatment. Right now I'm just testing things so this will be a work in progress. If you've got any suggestions, let me know!

1st Half Grade: C-
Judging by the scoreline (and the reaction from people across the internet), I must say I was expecting worse in this one. RSL played pretty well in the 1st half, controlling the first 15 minutes and then outplaying DC over the last 10-15. The 15 in the middle though? All DC, all the time. RSL's defense held up pretty well to only allow one goal. Of course, the goal was on a PK called after a Dema Kovalenko handball in the box. If you haven't seen it, it was called when Dema went in for a sliding tackle and the DC cross hit him in the arm. Intentional? No way. A soft call? Perhaps. If the shoe were on the other foot would I want/expect a PK for RSL? Definitely. So I can't really say too much about that call, I can forgive it. Plus, if RSL's midfield play could lead to an attack, or our forwards could find some seams, perhaps we'd get a shot or two off and maybe even *gasp* score!

2nd Half Grade: F
Honestly, RSL didn't play all that bad as a team for most of the second half, but any time you give up THREE FREAKING GOALS in a half, it's hard to get any other grade. I'm not sure why, but that's two games in a row that RSL has actually improved after going 3 in the back. I know we can't score, so loosening up the defense is probably a bad idea, but if results don't change soon, maybe Jason should look into it. How bold are ya? Anyway, before you ask, let's get to the 2nd PK. This one I'm not so forgiving on. Mainly because the foul that should have been called was the hold outside the box. Emilio never would have been slowed down enough for Talley to catch him if he hadn't been held outside the box. The tackle itself looked fairly clean, but it was from a weird angle and from behind, so I can understand it, even if I've seen far worse go without being called. Talley really was terrible on that sequence, with the turnover that started to DC break and the tackle that was whistled for a PK. Nice job buddy! Either way, I think this was a pretty iffy call, like I said, since the original, blatant foul was outside of the box. The Quaranta volley goal was nice, but too easy. Morales fell asleep and let him go free on the weak side, and with Borchers distracted on the 3-man backline, he never even saw him to pick him up. In fact, RSL's weak side defense was exposed numerous times in this game, including on the Gallardo goal. Borchers missed the header, letting the ball fall to Gallardo near the end line. He then bent the laws of physics and volleyed it into the back of the net. An amazing goal. If you haven't seen it, check out the 'video highlights' link on the MLSnet game recap. RSL did pick up what ended up being the Ben Cup winning goal after they went down 3, with Beltran getting on the scoresheet for the first time as a pro by flicking a header to Talley off of a corner. Talley basically just ran into the ball and bulldozed it into net. And with that, RSL are your 2008 Ben Cup Champs, oh yes!

Pros:
-Olave looks like he could be the real deal.
-Joy at least looked like he belonged on the field for stretches.
-Chris Wingert looks good as of late.
-RSL looked to still be putting in some effort, even down 4-1 late.
-We got to see that goal by Gallardo. Wow.
-RSL are your Ben Cup Champions (by a score of 5-4)!
-Thomas Rongen's bow ties. Hilarious!

Cons:
-Deuchar and Beckerman were nowhere to be found.
-Movsisyan tripping over the ball, trying to force through 5 defenders, and never, ever passing.
-Weak side defense.
-Complete ineptitude going forward. Can't cross, can't send through balls, can't get shots on net (13 shots with only 4 on goal [31%]! DC had 16 & 11 [69%])
-This RSL team looks like every other RSL team.
-Thomas Rongen's bow ties. Horrendous!

Game grade: D-
Ouch. RSL's problems in attack are back again. You're telling me that Indra is actually worse than our current strike force? I don't believe it (plus, he'd sell RSL jerseys overseas. Oh well.). Gallardo is the real deal, I can't wait until we "earn" our DP. That'll be sweet.

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Some decent work, not a lot he could do on most of the goals
Chris Wingert-7 Pushed forward, defended well, nice game for Chris
Nat Borchers-5 Probably his worst game for RSL so far.
Jamison Olave-6 Showed some flashes, he could be a good one
Ian Joy-4 Again, positioning problems, but sadly probably his best game for RSL
(Andy Williams 58)-5 Played well, but too many of his patented shots to the moon
Dema Kovalenko-5 Very up and down, let frustration get to him
Javier Morales-3 Nice free kicks, otherwise contributed nothing to the attack
Carey Talley-4 Good game other than the horrendous turnover/PK combo play
Kyle Beckerman-3 Completely absent from the game, we need more from Becks
(Tony Beltran 73)-5 Decent in limited time
Kenny Deuchar-3 I honestly thought that I'd missed him being subbed off at one point
Robbie Findley-4 RSL's best forward on the day. That's not saying much
(Yura Movsisyan 59)-3 PASS THE @!%*$ BALL!!!

RSL Man of the Match:
Chris Wingert - For the second straight game, Wingert has been the best player on the field for RSL. He looked good in the back, in the midfield, and even pushing forward on the wings. He even put a decent corner in. Too bad for RSL that our best production is coming from right back, but well done Chris!

Assclown of the Match:
Luciano Emilio - He must have spent the summer at the "Cuauhtemoc Blanco School of Flopping." Financial aid is available for those who qualify.

Ye Olde Royal Predctions: Week 6

2008-04-30T11:39:00.003-06:00

I'm still trying to get through the second leg of the Ben Cup, but it is difficult. I'm only to the first PK and already it is difficult to watch. But I will try to press on. Anyway, here are this week's predictions:

Thursday, May 1:
Energy Drinks 1 vs. Streamer Warehouse 3

Saturday, May 3:
Louganises 1 vs. NERds 1
KC 1 vs. Columbus 2
TST 1 vs. Houston 2
LAG 3 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 2
Dallas 2 vs. NTOTB 0

Sunday, May 4:
Ben Cup Losers 2 vs. Crapids/Cripids 1

Bonus Pick:
Wednesday, April 30:
US Open Cup Play-In:
NTOTB 1 vs. REAL SALT LAKE 2

Yes, I have RSL losing to LA, I'm aware. The last two games have inspired no confidence whatsoever. I'm not sure they can stop Donovan with how well he is playing.

Last week's results:
OK, that was much better. Not my best week ever, but at least it was decent.
4 right (0 exact), 3 wrong (57%)

MLS Season Total: 15-20 [1 exact] (43%, 3%)

The Royal Rankings #3

2008-04-27T21:50:00.005-06:00

It's time for another edition of the Royal Rankings. Don't worry, there will be some Ben Cup Leg 2 content up soon, but I want to get my new rankings up sooner rather than later. And awaaaaay we go:

14 NTOTB (aka San Jose) - Expansion fever, catch it! Actually, don't. It makes you suck.
13 REAL SALT LAKE - Is it still deja vu when it has happened so many times? At least the Talley goal saves the Ben Cup.
12 Houston - As the kids say, "WTF?"
11 Chivas TST - I've said all year I wasn't sold. They are proving me right.
10 LAG - Donovan is on fire. Must be prepping for his part in "Eurotrip 2: Landycakes Abroad"...
09 Energy Drinks - ...Co-starring Jozy Altidore as 'Farnsworth, the wide-eyed emigrant'. No, I have no idea where I got that either.
08 DC United/Ben Cup Losers - I still think they have the firepower to bring home the Shield once again.
07 Crapids/Cripids - Just like Kid, they've got a sweet fade. Ah, 'House Party' references, will you ever be out of style?
05 (tie) NERds & KC - Tough teams to figure out. Can't pick one over the other.
04 Dallas - Leading the West. Right now that's like taking first in a U-5 league.
03 Toronto Streamer Warehouse - You need streamers? We got 'em! You can't beat our prices, they're INSAAAAAAAAAANE!
02 Columbus - Your current MLS points leader. Welcome to 'The Twilight Zone.'
01 Chicago Louganises - Diving right in to a second straight #1!

Game Preview: Ben Cup Leg 2-Full Throttle

2008-04-25T22:43:00.006-06:00

I'd have liked to get more Ben Cup content up this week, but work has been crazy. If you haven't already, check out my interview with DC Ben, done after Leg 1. Some good stuff there. Also, on a quick non-BC related note, the infamous 'anonymous' appears to be calling us RSL fans out after last weeks crapfest in Toronto (check the comments at the bottom). Stand up for yourselves and be heard, RSL fans! Do I smell a new rivalry coming on?
Anyway, here's some keys to tomorrow night's game:
1) Abuse Gonzalo Peralta. He was awful in Salt Lake and, by all accounts, awful last week at home in DC. RSL needs to take the game to him and force him to prove that he can defend.
2) Cover Emilio. Yes, he has been worse than terrible all season, I agree. However, one of these days he is bound to break out of it, you don't have a 20 goal season by accident. He got free a couple times at Rice Eccles and luckily didn't make RSL pay. At RFK I see that having a different outcome.
3) Come out with purpose and attack always. RSL has never played well in "bunker mode." Yet, they try to do it all the time. For a prime example of why RSL should not do this, see last week's 1st half. Enough said.
4) Solid defense. Yes, this is an obvious one, but it needs to be said in this instance. Sturgis is out for at least a couple weeks, so it will most likely be Talley back at d-mid. He's been very up and down this season. Hopefully he's up tomorrow. In addition, Ian Joy has been VERY shaky all year. If he's in, we need some better play from him. I say if as there are grumblings that Beltran and Olave may both start this week. If that happens, we need the defense to gel quickly. Can it happen? Let's hope.
5) Remember, it's the Ben Cup, relax. RSL always wins the Ben Cup. They have a 4-0 lead. No worries, just relax and let nature run its course. RSL having the Ben Cup is just the natural order of things.

Lineup I'd use: GK-Rimando; D-Wingert, Borchers, Mantilla (Olave if injuries are too much), Beltran; M-Kovalenko, Williams, Beckerman, Morales; F-Deuchar, Findley (Espi is out injured)
On a side note, I still rate Findley WAY above Movsisyan. Wake me when Movs does something, ANYTHING, productive in an RSL kit.

Lineup I expect: GK-Rimando; D-Wingert, Borchers, Mantilla (Olave if injuries are too much), Joy; M-Talley, Kovalenko, Beckerman, Morales; F-Deuchar, Findley

Royal Prediction:
United will be too fired up. Between the 4-0 shellacking in Leg 1, the 2 game losing streak, the run of bad form for many key players, and the backing of what still looks to me to be MLS's most passionate crowd, I just think there are too many things for DC to use as motivation in this one. Ben Cup stays in Salt Lake, but it won't be pretty. DCU 3 - RSL 1; RSL wins Ben Cup 5-3.

Ye Olde Royal Predctions: Week 5

2008-04-22T20:15:00.003-06:00

Ouch. Let us just kind of skip over last week and never speak of it again. This week will be better, I promise (basically because it cannot possibly be worse). Here's the predictions for this week's games:

Thursday, April 24:
NERds 1 vs. Dallas 2

Saturday, April 26:
KC 1 vs. Toronto 2
Houston 1 vs. Columbus 0
REAL SALT LAKE 1 vs. Ben Cup Losers 3
Crapids/Cripids 0 vs. Louganises 2
TST 3 vs. LAG 2

Sunday, April 27:
New Team On The Block (NTOTB) 1 vs. Energy Drinks 2

Last week's results:
Feel free to stop reading at any time...
0 right, 7 wrong (0%)

MLS Season Total: 11-17 [1 exact] (39%, 4%)

Game 4: Real Salt Lake @ Toronto FC

2008-04-22T12:47:00.002-06:00

So I just went through the game again (although it was on fast forward again, this time I paid better attention). I also looked back over my first impressions and realized that that all basically still stands, so this review will be pretty short as I went over a lot in that other post.

First off, what in the hell is with all the streamers in Toronto? Did someone hijack a semi full of streamers and drive it to BMO Field? Seriously, that was a bit, ok, a LOT, out of hand. Folks, let's start stocking up on streamers now and when TFC comes to town absolutely annihilate their players with paper while they attempt free kicks. I swear I thought Javi was going to drown in a paper deluge while sending in a couple of those corners.

Anyway, what a terrible first half by RSL. There's been a lot of talk of pushing the action and being a possession team, but this looked like the RSL of old. Back on their heels, sending worthless long ball after worthless long ball forward. To make matters worse, both Deuchar and Findley spent long stretches of time playing so deep, you'd think they were playing defensive mid. Not good, not good at all. At least Jason Kreis owned up to it, saying "I think we came out tactically and played that game a little bit wrong, to be honest. The coaching staff takes full responsibility for that. We were sitting back when perhaps we should've pressed them from minute one, which is the tactic we took up in the second half." (Thanks to MLSnet and James Edward) Well duh, Jason. You want to press teams and try to score goals and make them work rather than sitting back and letting attack wave after attack wave come at you? I'd have never guessed. I guess that's why he makes the big bucks... Honestly, RSL was lucky to escape that first half down only 1-0.

Half grade: D-

The second half was a lot better with RSL cutting down on the number of long balls and working on keeping some possession. They actually outplayed TFC this half (by a bit of a margin as well), but were hit with the most common of RSL's ailments: a complete and total lack of finishing. First in the 47th, there was the scrum off of a Morales corner kick where I think every RSL player (and maybe some RSL fans as well) got a foot on the ball in the 18, but no one came close to putting it away. This sequence led to a series of approximately 1,342 corner kicks in a row for RSL, out of which they did something positive with exactly 0 of these. In RSL's defense, a lot of these corners were not that good, although Morales can be partially forgiven for that as he was being blinded by the world's supply of streamers while trying to send the balls in. Then in the 67th, RSL had another great chance when Dema Kovalenko, wide open in the 18, had a ball fall to him and hit a volley to...Montreal. Whoops. He was open enough to settle the ball and then shoot for an easy goal, but the rush job led to the choke of the week. RSL probably would have finally broken through in the 73rd when Findley fought through a foul, got the ball to the corner of the 18 and the end line and had a wide open passing lane to multiple RSL players directly in front on net. But the ref inexplicably did not let RSL play the advantage, setting up a free kick that went nowhere. Thanks ref! There were other instances of RSL's ineptitude in front of net (see: corner kick to Williams at the top of the box where he puts in 50 feet over the goal), but I'm not trying to write "War and Peace" here. All in all, RSL outplayed TFC, but in usual RSL fashion were unable to get the equalizer. On a side note, it was strange to see RSL actually play better when they replaced Joy with Williams and went to a 3-5-2. They really seemed to take control at that point. It's good to know RSL can play different formations if need be. Final score: 1-0 TFC

Half grade: B-

Pros:
-Much improved 2nd half.
-3 man backline of Mantilla, Borchers, and Wingert looks capable if needed.
-Findley looked a lot better this game than he has.
-Morales is very steady and solid of free kicks.

Cons:
-The first half.
-Streamer death.
-Joy with another poor game.
-Sturgis's injury.
-Espindola was hurt and didn't play.
-TOO MANY LONG BALLS.
-The lack of finishing.
-The not given advantage call.
-The magical 3 minutes of stoppage time that lasts 1:45

Game grade: D+
Can't give a much higher grade for a game where they go scoreless and look overwhelmed for 45 minutes of the match. They better turn this around before next week!

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Solid game, held off some TFC attacks
Ian Joy-4 Seemed lost again
(Andy Williams 62)-5 OK, some decent balls, some awful ones
Matias Mantilla-6 A couple minor mistakes, but solid
Chris Wingert-8 Saved RSL's bacon on a few breakaways
Nat Borchers-7 Quiet and solid as he has been all year
Kyle Beckerman-5 Not enough from the cap'n
Dema Kovalenko-5 On again, off again kind of game
(Yura Movsisyan 79)-5 Didn't have time to do much, and didn't
Nathan Sturgis-6 Decent, but in limited time
(Carey Talley 27)-5 Not a bad game, not a good game
Javier Morales-4 Other than a few nice free kicks, didn't show much
Kenny Deuchar-5 Needs to start finishing some of these headers
Robbie Findley-6 Active, but playing too deep

RSL Man of the Match:
Chris Wingert - Yes, he had an error or two, but his game-saving stops on counter attacks were golden. Without Wingert, this game ends 3-0. Well played Chris!

Assclown of the Match:
Is there any doubt? The whole refereeing crew wins the day here! Start with the not given advantage play that would have been RSL's best scoring chance and add a dash of showing 3 minutes of stoppage time while giving less than two. Bake at 400 degrees for 90 minutes and voila! You win Assclown of the Match!

RSL @ TFC First Impressions

2008-04-21T10:34:00.003-06:00

Hello all. I am trying to do a full review, but I feel like I should watch the game again before I do that, as I watched most of it the first time in 1x fast forward. That and I kinda faded in and out of it at times. In other words, what an ugly game. One that will make it hard to watch again, but I'll try. So in lieu of a full review (which, like I said, I will try and get up later this week, work permitting), I thought I'd just put down some impressions I got from the game.

First of all, I was as excited as anyone about the signing of Ian Joy. The guy plays with a ton of heart and bleeds his team. Unfortunately, he's not very good. He's consistently out of position and when he is back covering his man, he often leaves a 5 yard cushion between him and the attacker with the ball. The only thing I read from this is that Ian thinks/knows he is too slow to keep up with anyone so he gives himself a cushion so he doesn't get burned. Unfortunately, this leaves a wide open space for opposing players to send in crosses and find other open players on the field. I like the hustle Ian puts in, but I'm not liking his game. Perhaps it's time to get our #3 pick on the field? Or put Sturgis (when not injured, which seems not to be often) back there? Have Forko and Kipre signed elsewhere?

Secondly, this team looks more and more like RSL 2007 which scares the pants off of me. Blowing leads deep in extra time (Chicago), losing games big in which you play fairly even most of the game (TST), beating down DC at home, and now, the "it's 20 minutes in and I can already tell RSL won't find the back of the net" syndrome has creeped back in. You could just tell RSL would never get an equalizer. And they didn't. If there was any doubt, Dema Kovalenko's absolute disgrace of an open volley proved RSL could not score in that one. (Note to Dema, if you're that wide open and can't hit a volley, here's what you do: Settle the ball THEN shoot. You'd have still been open.). The reflections of last year are striking. And the results are, sadly, nearly the same.

Going back to Sturgis for a minute, I really like his game, and when available I would always put him in over Talley (or Joy). However, as I mentioned a few months ago the guy is ALWAYS hurt. The latest injury is being vaguely reported as a hamstring strain, so I'm not sure how long he'll be out, but between this and (if healthy) the Olympics, I don't expect to see much of Nate this season. Too bad, he's a quality player.

Sigh. This was a disheartening loss as an RSL fan. RSL came out looking like they could sleepwalk to a win and it proved to be their undoing. I worry that this team thinks they are a lot better than they are. They ARE good enough to make the playoffs if they really get their minds in the right place and work. But with the same old "We're just unlucky" drivel coming out of RSL-land all season, I'm not sure this team will get in the right frame of mind. I think this next game will prove a lot. RSL will be up against a hungry DC United team in the second leg of the Ben Cup. DC is coming off two straight losses, should be well rested and healthy (and thereby playing ALL their players, like Gallardo), and will be looking to avenge the leg 1 massacre at Rice Eccles. If RSL can get a result on the road in this environment (and keep the Ben Cup a blowout for this year), then there is hope for them still. If they are lethargic and sloppy like they were against TFC, it will get ugly and won't bode well for the rest of '08. Go RSL!

RIP RSLFM.com

2008-04-17T22:25:00.007-06:00

([cue KSL voiceover guy] 'We now present a Royal Review editorial opinion')
Well, it appears RSLFM.com is going the way of the dodo, and with it, the best news and opinion resource that RSL had. Some seem to be taking particular glee out of this development, which I do not know (and don't care to know) the details of why, but I find that sad. RSLFM was always a welcome resource, often breaking player news and offering solid critical analysis. Some took that as being anti-RSL but nothing is further from the truth. No one would put that kind of effort into a blog about a soccer team that they didn't like. That doesn't even make sense. Knowing the amount of time I put into this stupid little blog, I can't even fathom the amount of time and work put into that site. Honestly, agree with it or not, like her or not, RSLFM was probably the gold standard in MLS blogs, and I, for one, will miss it. I encourage RSLFM to take a couple weeks and relax and let the soap opera blow over (go to the RSL board on BigSoccer if you don't believe me, specifically here), then come back with renewed focus and vigor. Don't let the terrorists win! :D
(And now back to our regularly scheduled programming. I'm trying to get a small TFC preview up tomorrow, we'll see if it happens!)
PS-I will speak no more on this so don't even try. Seriously. I don't care.

Ye Olde Royal Predctions: Week 4

2008-04-16T11:52:00.005-06:00

A decent, if unspectacular, week for my predictions last week as I went an even .500. I did call the big Ben Cup win for RSL, but I don't think anyone on Earth (or beyond) had that scoreline. That was insanity, but in a good way! Here's the Royal Predictions for this week's MLS action:

Thursday, April 17:
Columbus 1 vs. Ben Cup Losers 3

Saturday, April 19:
REAL SALT LAKE 2 vs. Toronto FC 2
NERds 0 vs. Energy Drinks 1
San Jose "First Goals" 1 vs. Crapids/Cripids 3
Creamsickles 2 vs. LAG 1

Sunday (Sunday! Sunday! <-insert monster truck announcer here), April 20 (Duuuuuuude.....4/20! heh heh....wait, what's going on?):
Takin a KC 0 vs. Chicago Louganises 2
Dallas 1 vs. TST 1

Last week's results:
On MLS action I did ok, getting half right. Then, on the CCC action I also got them half right. A very wishy-washy week for the predictions.
MLS: 4 right (0 exact), 4 wrong (50%)
CCC: 1 right (0 exact), 1 wrong (50%)

MLS Season Total: 11-10 [1 exact] (52% right, 5% exact)
All Comps. Total: 12-11 [1] (52%, 4%)

DCU Ben Interview

2008-04-15T19:08:00.003-06:00

So I decided to do a quick interview with the eastern half of the Ben Cup committee after last Saturday's 4-0 shellacking. Here's the results in their entirety:

Royal Review: First of all, let's get your general thoughts on Leg 1 of the Ben Cup.

DC Ben: I'll try to keep it family friendly, but there is a special curse that Jables (Jack Black) uses when Kage (Kyle Gass) criticizes his inward singing. Initials C.A.. Best curse ever. That's my first thought. Then there is a curse from the film Donnie Darko that I reserve for Tom Soehn. Initials S an F. Second best curse ever. But since I do not use such language I will say that I was quite disgusted and disappointed.

RR: Did you end up watching the entire game or did you give up?

DCB: Of course. I did go to bed at half, but I watched the rest of the game without knowing the result on Sunday morning. I did not abandon ship on Saturday night because of the score so much as 14 hour work days and a newborn. I had to sleep. Although I will say the lack of sleep did soften the blow.

RR: How can DCU turn things around in Leg 2?

DCB: Easy. 4 man back line. And I will be there, which will make them realize that they care about the Ben Cup.

RR: What will be the outcome of Leg 2?

DCB: DC 5 RSL 0 fueled by anger and a DP that got plenty of rest. (editor's note: HAHAHAHAHA!)

RR: Why does DCU have such a hard time in Utah?

DCB: I'll go with altitude, that sounds about right... oh and ALWAYS thinking RSL is a crap team on a crap pitch (ok, that part is true), which they CLEARLY are not. Maybe RSL sucks all season long, but they DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT suck against DC.

RR: A lot has been said about Soehn's decision making in the game (not playing Gallardo, 3-man backline, etc.)-what are your thoughts? What do you think of him as a coach in general?

DCB: I realize I have adopted a frustrated and angry tone for most of this interview but to be honest DC plays a ridiculously crowded schedule for the number of quality players that we have. The coaching staff has to decide to put a lesser team on the field every now and again. I have to believe that Soehn knew he was not putting out his best squad but I'm not sure how to explain the 3 man back. I mean, on the road you should as a rule bunker and counter which means bolstering the defense and going thin on the attack. Maybe it was the best lineup for using the most reserves.

In general I think he is pretty good. I think he is learning and experimenting and I'm ok with that right now. Soehn has the benefit of assuming his squad can win if he puts the first team out there. That gives him more time to try new things without the pressure. Obviously these are all assumptions. And when you assume bla bla bla...

RR: DC has been very up and down so far this year, what are your expectations for the rest of the season?

DCB: I expect to see some more ups and downs for another month or so and then I expect the team to come together and do very well. I don't expect them to lose 4-0 ever again.

RR: How much does this team miss now-gang member Christian Gomez? Is Gallardo going to be able to replace him?

DCB: The team does not miss Christian Gomez version 2007. He disappeared for games at a time and was always so pouty. I wish him only the best but not for him to come back. Gallardo has replaced him. Gallardo is better than Gomez. Is he worth DP money? That is a question for another day... a day that comes after the 2008 season

RR: If you could pick one RSL player and put him on United, who would it be (if anyone)?

DCB: Beckerman. I love his bite, passion, dreadlocks, and those bombs he puts in the net. It's weird that I like him so much considering how much I hated him when he played for the Denver West Sideuhz. Also, he scored 12 points for my MFLS team.

RR: Any other thoughts on anything (Ben Cup, DCU, RSL, MLS, popular music, world politics, the letter H, anything!)?

DCB: The Ben Cup will come to DC sometime in the next 3 years. I guarantee it. Music sucks. Politics, especially those of the world are AWESOME! The letter H is my favorite Spanish alphabet letter.

Good stuff as always from DCU Ben; be sure to check out his DCU blog The Edgell Supporters. And thanks to him for the interview and for tipping me off to THIS (seriously, go here. NOW.).

One More For Today

2008-04-14T14:59:00.003-06:00

This will be my last post today as it is my second (well, really third, I combined the first two) of the day, but I just found this nugget I wanted to pass along. James Edward is reporting that RSL is finalizing a LOCAL TV CONTRACT with KSL to broadcast 13 RSL games this season, starting with this weekend's trip to Canada. It's about time, nothing will help bring in the casual follower like actual local TV coverage. The casuals and the curious DO NOT buy Directkick, and why should they? This allows RSL to get out there to all of the potential fanbase, and who knows? Maybe a few think, "Hey, that's entertaining, maybe we ought to go to a game or two!" Local TV is currently the best way for RSL to get out to the public and try to expand their base beyond the already established group. It may be a couple weeks late, but as they say, better late than never. Now let's just hope they keep Bill Riley on the play-by-play, he's awesome. And, of course, winning never hurts!

One final note on Saturday's game/Royal Rankings #2

2008-04-14T10:25:00.005-06:00

I just want to congratulate all the RSL fans for turning out to the game on Saturday. It looked to be about an average sized RSL crowd, which normally wouldn't be anything to mention. However, Saturday's game was during a Jazz game; a Jazz game vs. a divisional/geographical rival, a team with TWO superstar players (the Nuggets), and was a game of vital importance for the Jazz's playoff seeding. When I realized that, I figured we'd get 6 or 7k tops at Rice Eccles. But no, we had the usual crowd of around 13,000, and they were loud and boisterous. Very cool to see...maybe this team's got a future in this town after all... ;)

(insert tacked on 2nd post to reduce the number of posts on the morning:)
Annnnnd, jump cut to the 2nd installment of my 'MLS Power Rankings' that I like to call "The Royal Rankings," get it? Royal Review, Royal Rankings-it's funny right? Right? Anyway, after little to no research, and 3 weeks (already? Wow!) of games, here's the first rankings of the regular season (in reverse order and now in single table format):

Royal Rankings #2:
14 San Jose - Expansion woes strike again
13 LA Galaxy - Beckham now officially on suicide watch
12 Toronto - Can the new signings (including the insane Amado Guevara) help?
11 New York City - They need a healthy Angel.
10 Houston - Very disappointing start. Where is the stifling defense?
9 DC United - This team should be much better than it has been.
8 REAL SALT LAKE - Have they broken the no scoring curse or was it an anomaly?
7 Chivas TST - Other people have them rated highly, I'm not sold.
6 Columbus - Can't argue with 2 wins in 3 games. Nice win vs. TST.
5 New England - Surprisingly decent with 3/4 of the team in the ER.
4 Crapids - Hate to have them this high, but they've been shockingly decent.
3 Dallas - Class of the west so far.
2 Kansas City - Eddie who now?
1 Chicago - Give 'em a 10 for that dive, it seems to be a winner!

Game 3: Ben Cup Leg 1: DC United @ Real Salt Lake

2008-04-13T18:27:00.003-06:00

Wow. Am I glad that I go to the Ben Cup games. Last year was RSL's first win of the season, all the way in June. This year was an absolute drubbing, resulting in a 4-0 win, RSL's biggest ever. Normally, I'd go through the motions and write a full review, but even though it was not perfect, I'm not in the mood to be critical. You saw it, and if you didn't, do yourself a favor and find it somewhere. Truly entertaining. Anyway, without a full written review, that just leaves us with the grades and the regular "Pros and Cons."

Pros:
-The Ben Cup is basically assured of keeping the Ben Cup, so for the 3rd year (of 3), DCU will not win it.
-FOUR goals. Four. By RSL. Just think about that.
-Beckerman finally came back to life, scoring two goals.
-Sturgis started for Talley and looked good.
-Dema Kovalenko was just great. Aggresive, in control, and always moving play forward.
-Findley. His touch was still rough, but it's hard to argue with a goal and an assist in 20 minutes. Plus, the goal was hilarious. Just a terrible goal from a defensive standpoint. Go watch it and laugh!
-Granted it was when the game was solidly put away, but Beltran looked good in limited minutes.
-The central defense was very strong. Borchers is the new Eddie Pope back there, I tell ya.
-The absolutely dejected "We paid to see THIS?" body language from the little Barra Brava corner.
-The attacking mentality by RSL in the second half. Instead of the usual RSL 'Let's sit on a lead' game, the took the game to DCU and played a full 90.
-Just about everything else.

Cons:
-Joy still leaves guys way too open and seems to lose sight of what he's doing at times.
-Deuchar was out of control in the first half, bad calls or no. He needs to keep his emotions in check.
-There were still a couple of dangerous moments on defense, including a scary 1st half moment where Emilio got an opening WITH THE BALL in the 18. Most of the dangerous plays seemed to come from the sidelines.

1st Half grade: A
2nd Half grade: A+

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Didn't have much to do, but was strong when called upon.
Chris Wingert-7 Another quietly solid game from Wingert.
Nat Borchers-8 Very strong on the back line, stymied DCU all game.
Matias Mantilla-8 Solid game, more under control than usual.
Ian Joy-6 Good for the most part, still a couple lapses.
(Tony Beltran 83)-7 Didn't have time to do much, but looked capable.
Dema Kovalenko-9 Simply brilliant. Involved somehow in nearly every good play.
Javier Morales-7 Played well, occasionally took a touch too many.
(Andy Williams 63)-8 Saw the game well, good passing.
Nathan Sturgis-8 Carey who?
Kyle Beckerman-9 Solid defensively...oh yeah, and two goals...
Kenny Deuchar-7 Missed a header or two, let emotions get the best of him, but when under control was very strong.
Fabian Espindola-8 Put his body on the line repeatedly (including getting kicked in the face), looked good.
(Robbie Findley 70)-8 First touch keeps him from a 9, but otherwise brilliant.

Game grade: A+
4-0. Against a solid DC team. Basically singlehandedly winning the Ben Cup. Brilliant. Possibly RSL's best game.

RSL Man of the Match:
Dema Kovalenko - Yes, Becks had two goals (and it was a VERY close decision), but without Dema, RSL may not have gotten one. Great game.

Assclown of the Match:
The ref was seemingly MLS usual: pretty awful, but this weeks "AOTM" is dedicated to DC fans and goes to Tommy Soehn. You pay Gallardo over $1.5 million and have him sit the bench? I don't care how many games you've played recently, get his lazy ass on the field! Then, you play a ton of reserves and go with a 3-man backline? Without your DP midfielder or your holding mid stalwart (the injured Olsen) to control the game? Stupid.

4-0!

2008-04-12T22:14:00.001-06:00

Mark it down and put it in the bank. Barring a collapse of epic proportions, the Ben Cup stays in Salt Lake for another year!

Ben Cup 2008 Leg 1 Preview

2008-04-11T12:21:00.007-06:00

Well, it is already here. And in less than 3 weeks, we will have a winner. This weekend is Leg 1 of the annual Ben Cup between RSL and DCU. RSL comes in with a disappointing 0-1-1 record, while DC comes in at 1-1-0. DC is a bit of a mystery this year, looking very good in destroying Toronto (although TFC was down a man for much of the game) and looking not so good while getting smacked around by Kansas City. Last year's MLS MVP and golden boot winner Luciano Emilio has looked very awkward this year; let's hope he doesn't turn that around any time soon. I've already predicted a 2-1 RSL victory for the game and I stand by it. DCU does not play well in Salt Lake City and RSL should be hungry for a win, we don't need to lose another season by May 1st. GO RSL! Viva la Ben Cup!

The keys for RSL:
1) Everyone: "Knock, knock"
JK: "Who's there?"
Everyone: "Nathan"
JK: "Nathan who?"
Everyone (frustrated): "NATHAN @!#&! STURGIS!"
I think everyone is in agreement that Nate should get the start over Carey Talley, but even if he doesn't, JK should not be hesitant to pull the trigger and make the sub should Carey falter at all. (Or he could go with my even more crazy idea of putting Sturgis in for Joy and go with a midfield of Dema-Becks-Williams-Morales, but that's a whole different story)

2) FINISHING. Someone on RSL needs to put the ball in the back of the net. Please. I'd like to see a bunch of high crosses this game, trying to get them to the head of Kenny Deuchar. However, I will take goals any way I can...PLEASE! RSL needs to at least put some of these shots on goal, Wells has been shaky so far in '08, so let's test him and make him work!

3) NO MORE EXTRA TIME GOALS!!! I don't care if Esky's goal was meaningless and undefended, it was still deep into 2nd half injury time. That means 2 games, two 90+ minute goals. Completely unacceptable. If RSL wants to win, this needs to stop. Now.

4) Have Robbie Findley come on and score two goals again. That seemed to work last year. :D

Kenny Deuchar celebrates with the Ben Cup! Sweet!

BEN CUP LEG 1
DC United at Real Salt Lake
Rice Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City, UT
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Kickoff at 7:00 PM Mountain
TV: Directkick
Radio: 700 AM (still with the wonderful Bill Riley)

PS-Be sure to check out the DCU half of the Ben Cup, The Edgell Supporters and their interview with the creator of the new Ben Cup logo, the newly dubbed "3rd Party Ben." It's worth reading just for my new favorite quote: "It would make sense, as an outside observer, to cheer on the underdog, who, remarkably, in this case would be DCU."

Ye Olde Royal Predctions-Week 3

2008-04-09T12:21:00.003-06:00

I hate to distract from the Ben Cup fun (so make sure you go there!), but I just realized there's a Wednesday night game this week, so I need to get the predictions up. Here we go:

Wednesday, April 9:
NERds 1 @ KC 2
Bonus CCC picks:
Pachuca 2 @ DCU 2 (Pachuca wins 4-2 on aggregate)
Houston 1 @ Saprissa 2 (Saprissa wins 2-1 on aggregate)

Saturday, April 12:
Chi. Louganises 3 @ San Jose 1
Crapids 1 @ NERds 1
Goats TST 2 @ Crew Socks 1
Houston 1 @ KC 1
Energy Drinks 1 @ Dallas 2

BEN CUP LEG 1:
Ben Cup Losers 1 @ Real Salt Lake 2

Sunday, April 13:
Toronto 1 @ LAG 2

Last weeks results:
MUCH MUCH MUCH better than week 1. I'm back in the saddle baby! Cowboy up! Eight seconds! Other rodeo related phrases!
6 right (1 exact), 1 wrong for 86%

Season total: 7-6 (54% right, 8% exact)

One last note, congrats to Seattle fans (and to the ownership for actually listening to the fanbase) on keeping the Sounders name. Well done. And then talk of bringing in a "Thierry Henry-caliber player" (Did you watch the press conference? I did.)? Wow. Although, I'm not sure how the fans have earned a DP already, but I guess they're doing something we aren't.

Ben Cup 2008 is here!

2008-04-09T11:46:00.007-06:00

It is that time of year once again. Ben Cup season is upon us. In 3 short days RSL will once again be halfway to glory. 2-1 RSL. I'll try and get some more in-depth stuff going soon (this is a terrible week for the Ben Cup to be coming), but I wanted to get this picture of our official 2008 logo up and running. Major thanks to DCU Ben's friend Ben on the logo. And, as always, check out our Ben Cup partners The Edgell Supporters for more Ben Cup festivities.

Game 2: Real Salt Lake @ TST 4/5 Mini-Review

2008-04-07T11:56:00.006-06:00

Sigh, I hate to say "I told you so"....well, maybe I don't, perhaps I relish it, but that's not the point. Anyway, I unfortunately called this one. Although I missed about 20 minutes of this one (no goals were scored or anything), I haven't had the heart to go back and watch and take my usual notes. If I do, I will post a full review, but otherwise I'm just going to leave you with some thoughts and notes on the latest HDC disaster.

Pros:
-Nat Borchers looks like the real deal. Another solid game from him.
-RSL seemed to outplay TST for much of the game. The first goal, especially, was totally against the run of play.
-Deuchar looks like he'll be a solid MLS player.
-I must admit I liked JK taking a chance there at the end and taking out Joy for Espindola. It didn't pay off, but at least he realized there was nothing to lose at that point.
-This game is out of the way and we can now focus on the big BEN CUP FIRST LEG next weekend!!!

Cons:
-The scoreline.
-Atiba Harris AND Esky scored. Is there just a curse on the RSL jersey?
-I like his heart and his attitude, but Ian Joy has just not been very good. Totally out of place on the first two goals. Why is he not keeping a better eye on Klejstan of all people?
-Wingert's turnover leading to the 2nd Chivas goal. Ugly.
-Rimando was pretty bad. If you're going to rush out for the ball you better get it, and on that first goal, he didn't. Similar concept on the 2nd; he dove for the cross, missed, and left the net wide open. And he just got told by Esky late.
-I know RSL was in desperation mode at that point, but RSL is now 2 for 2 in giving up a goal deep into second half extra time. So much for that much improved defense.
-No finishing. One of the two banes of RSL's existence (the other being defensive breakdowns), continues to rear its ugly head.
-Why were there not more balls being played in the air to Deuchar in the box? Has JK never seen TST before? Does he not realize their tallest player is about 5' 2"? And the players shoulder this too. Figure it out. Especially after the only RSL goal was scored in this very manner.
-That set play from the corner to Andy Williams for a long volley shot. When does he ever make those? Never. Perhaps once a season if you are being generous. Basically that is a set play designed to turn the ball over. Coaching genius.
-This JK quote from MLSnet, on RSL's performance: "I think that they put their hearts and souls into it and I feel like we're getting out of a game not getting quite what we deserve." Jason, at some point, you're going to have to stop blaming bad luck. Yes, RSL is unlucky, we get it, but sometimes you gotta make your own luck.

Half grades:
1st: C
2nd: D-

Player grades:
Nick Rimando-4 Worst game in a long, long time
Chris Wingert-5 Decent, but points off for starting the rush on the 2nd goal
Nat Borchers-7 Another solid performance, he's quickly growing on me
Matias Mantilla-6 Pretty good game from Matias
Ian Joy-3 Terrible game. Why did we let go of Kipre/Forko again?
(Fabian Espindola 73)-5 Limited time, didn't do a lot with it.
Kyle Beckerman-5 He's been pretty invisible this year. Needs to regain his feisty former self.
Javier Morales-6 Got forward well, but went long spells without doing anything.
Carey Talley-5 I think this is what Carey has left; quiet, unspectacular games.
(Andy Williams 64)-5 See Fabian Espindola.
Dema Kovalenko-6 Decent game, added some sorely needed bite at times.
Kenny Deuchar-7 First MLS goal. First RSL goal of 08. Why were more balls not played to his head?
Robbie Findley-6 OK game. Still waiting for 07 Findley to return.
(Yura Movsisyan 60)-6 Good game. Not great, but a HUGE improvement over the Chicago game.

Game grade:
D
Although RSL really seemed to have the better of the possession for most of the game, as well as most of the scoring chances, they blew another one. The same old demons: no finishing and defensive lapses. End result? A (generous) D.

RSL Man of the Match:
Kenny Deuchar - Welcome to the American scoring charts buddy!

Assclown of the match:
Alecko Eskandarian - After scoring his meaningless, undefended extra time goal, he looked to be taunting the RSL bench, as if to show them up. Esky, if you'd scored a damn goal last year, perhaps they wouldn't have been so eager to get rid of you. I normally like Esky, but that was douchebaggery of the highest caliber.