Bring it on Toronto

By: Rocky Cole | June 27th, 2009

RSL has done pretty well of late. A road win in LA and a tie in Houston (while not as good as two resounding wins) were still pretty good results, and my hopes rose significantly. In a previous post I mused that the road monkey wouldn’t be off RSL’s back (in my eyes) until they strung two consecutive road wins together, but the heart they showed in earning a tie result in Houston while playing a man down has caused me to think that the monkey is finally off the teams’ back. Other than the annoying experience of listening to the Houston game announcer repeatedly pronounce the Premiere League team “EE-ver-ton” instead of Everton (I mean, c’mon… where did they get that guy) when hawking the upcoming MLS All-Star game to be played in Salt Lake, I was impressed with the teams heart and the new formation Kreis has put in.

Seriously, RSL weathered a significant assault from Houston once Olave was sent off, but the man of the match (again exceeding my expectations) was Nick Rimando. I was a goalkeeper in a previous life, and I watch Rimando do things a keeper of his physical size just shouldn’t get away with. I mean, stopping a penalty kick, literally flying from one corner of the upper net to the other to stop a curving shot from someone like Brian Ching. Rimando has some of the best reaction saves I have ever seen, and he definitely has kept us in questionable games all season. If he gets just a little more support from the offense and some solid play from his back line, RSL can still get where it wants to be this season.

Tonight the team faces Toronto in Rio Tinto, and I have to say that the energy for RSL is high right now. How could it not be? EVERY member of RSL watched the amazing victory of the U.S. Men’s National Team, and then to get the fantastic news that Beckerman received a call-up for the US MNT for the Gold Cup that follows the Confederations Cup, is a pure shot of motivation and energy not just for Kyle, but for the whole team. The bad news in the Gold Cup call ups is that not just Beckerman, but Jean Alexandre (Haiti), Will Johnson (Canada), and Andy Williams (Jamaica) will be playing for their respective home countries’ rosters for the upcoming 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament, to be played at stadiums across the U.S. between July 3′rd through the 26′th. Johnson and Alexandre will depart Utah early this week to join the Canadian and Haitian training camps, while Williams will join the Jamaican team on Sunday, allowing him to play in tonight’s game against Toronto FC.

My prediction for tonight (due partly to the excitement generated by tomorrow’s US MNT final against Brazil – check ESPN for time of game) is for high energy in Rio Tinto from both the crowd and the players. A few weeks ago Jason Kreis was disappointed in how his team was playing, especially on the road. He made some tweaks in the formation and the starting squad, and he kept focusing the team on playing with intensity and energy from the first kick. Getting Rimando back in full-form from his injury, and now the results in two tough road games, has to bode well for tonight’s match. Toronto is a tough team but they have had a short turn around from a mid-week game. Even so, Toronto is never a team to trifle with. They understand the power of a rowdy home crowd, and they will come into the match looking to counter RSL’s obvious home energy with an early strike. Rimando will need to be sharp from the opening whistle tonight, but I have faith, boy do I have faith!