Colorado Rapids 2 LA Galaxy 0 - Movin' On Up

Sure, it was a game against an LA Galaxy side that was depleted of several of their best players, but the Rapids still managed to pull a mighty fine result out on Saturday night when they took a 2-0 win at home against Pablo Mastroeni and the defending MLS Cup champs. How often did we see the Rapids drop a winnable game like that last year and at the start of 2013, especially with the spotlight of national TV coverage on them?

It wasn't just a win, either. It was an emphatic one. Though the Galaxy made their threats early, Colorado got off on the front foot right from the beginning, avoided getting scored on in a chippy first half and eventually managed to snag a messy goal of their own right on the edge of the half. Hendry Thomas was the scorer, finally getting his first ever non-penalty score after several close calls since he joined the team.

With a goal in their back pockets and a much cleaner game on both sides coming out of the half, all Colorado needed to do was hold onto the ball and try to keep the Galaxy away from their net. They instead did one better, as Edson Buddle had a flash of brilliance to flick on the ball to an onrushing Dillon Powers. Despite getting clothed by a couple of LA defenders, he had enough time to slap it into the far corner.

After that, the most notable moment was probably the fine reception that Pablo Mastroeni got from the DSGP crowd when he was subbed out in the 77th minute. Other than that, the Galaxy had a few chances hit the side netting from the edge of the area and Colorado came close through Edson Buddle on a side-net shot of their own, but it never seemed likely that we were going to be subjected to a finale like we saw in the Real Salt Lake match today.

Speaking of which, they're on a losing streak and the Rapids are on a hot streak going into next weekend's Rocky Mountain Cup finale. It's guaranteed to be an interesting one at DSGP in seven days time.