Colorado Rapids vs. Seattle Sounders: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Colorado Rapids took to the field on Sunday against Seattle Sounders FC with a lot of hope that they would be able to break their two month long winless streak, but that hope was quickly dashed as the Sounders crushed the Rapids 4-1.  The game got out of "hand" after the Rapids surrendered a penalty kick within the first 15 minutes and two Sounders goals later, the rout was on.  The Rapids got a goal from Deshorn Brown at the end of the first half which also saw the return of Clint Irwin in goal and the debut of Zat Knight.  Despite all of this it was the same old story for our Rapids and confirmed missing the 2014 MLS Cup Playoffs.

Here is The Good, The Bad, The Ugly--Colorado Rapids, Round 31

The Good: Honestly, The Crowd

As I was looking at the schedule and saw this game was going up against the Denver Broncos, I was greatly concerned that there would be no one there.  Couple with a beautiful fall day (temps in the 70's) and it was a recipe for a small crowd.  But the crowd was solid (over 17,000) and they were into it.  The voices were strong, the singing was good and they were backing the Burgundy Boys no matter what the score was.  It was great to see the faith that the crowd had and I am hopeful that they are repaid with some solid soccer the rest of the way.

The Bad:  Broken Record, Meet The Defense

Not sure how many time it can be said, or who plays in goal, or who is in the starting defense: we simply stink back there.  It is a tired topic to continue to preach on, but the Rapids defense got out-classed again and were eviscerated.  If not for some pretty good goalkeeping by Irwin, it could have been worse.

The Ugly:  How Will 2015 Shape Out

As the game continued to tick down to the full 90 I began to really wonder who is going to be back next year for the Rapids.  There are many good and young players that form this core (Irwin, Chris Klute, Shane O'Neill, Dillon Powers, Dillon Serna, Brown, Gabriel Torres) that things should be bright for the Rapids quickly.  They need to add more veterans to the core and they need to decide what formation they want to run.  And what players on the roster, aside from the young core, are on the roster for 2015?

The Rapids head to Chivas USA with a chance to break their 0-9-2 streak against a team that will probably not be around in 2015.  When I think about this match, I would like to see this formation and lineup (taking into account international absences and caution accumulation):

GK:  Clint Irwin

DEF:  Marc Burch Thomas Piermayr  Zat Knight  Chris Klute

MID:  Vicente Sanchez Jose Mari Dillon Powers  Dillon Serna

F:  Edson Buddle Gabriel Torres

Will this match be the one where the Rapids get a victory?  It could be their best chance and nothing less than three points would be a disappointment.