Colorado Rapids vs Houston Dynamo: Player Ratings

Over the past few weeks, we have not really seen the Rapids put together a 90-minute showing until Saturday night. The Rapids put together a great 90 minutes, and with that came a 3-1 victory thanks to a goal from Doyle and two from Hairston. Here is how everyone looked out there:

Tim Howard (GK): 8

Tim had a number of great saves throughout the game, and he is a big reason why this game finished as a Rapids win. Whether the shots were from near or far, he had ‘em covered. When it came to the goal he let up, there was really nothing any goalie in the world could do, so he gets a bit of a pass there.

Dennis Castillo (RB): 6.5

Castillo did his job Saturday night. He was good on defense and didn’t let himself get beat much. On the offensive side, he was solid in possession, but he didn’t provide any great chances. For that, he gets a pat on the back and a job well done.

Mike da Fonte (CB): 6

Da Fonte received a yellow for standing his ground when Cubo Torres backed into him early in the game (quite possibly the softest yellow I have ever seen), but he did a good job playing on it for 86 minutes. He was serviceable in the middle, and he has proven to be a good depth option amidst all the injuries to the defense this year. Unfortunately, he was beaten to the near post by Torres for the Houston goal, and that just gat can’t happen when you start the play with positioning on our guy.

Eric Miller (CB): 7

Another game at CB for the natural outside back, and another job well done. Eric did a solid job filling in in the center last week, and it was the same case Saturday. He seemed to have pretty good positioning, and he managed not to let people really get behind him. His only real mistake came when Cubo Torres managed to get a foot around him on a cross, but Howard made the easy save.

Mekeil Williams (LB): 7

Williams played another solid game to back up his solid performance vs Atlanta. He was good in possession and made smart runs throughout the game. He was never really caught out of position, and he avoided getting beat off the dribble throughout the game. The only thing I wish he would have done better would be avoiding letting his man get crosses off. Houston only managed one goal, but they got a fair amount of crosses off from Williams’ side.

Marlon Hairston (RM): 9

Hairston managed to bag a brace in his return to the midfield. On the first goal, he managed to run onto a Badji cross and tap the ball in back post. On the second, he pulled out a nice far-post finish after Doyle had gotten him behind the defense. Overall, Hairston could not really do anything wrong throughout the whole game. Saturday’s performance will make it hard for Pablo to move him back to RB and not leave him in the midfield.

Nana Boateng (CM): 6.5

Boateng returned to the starting lineup after being injured early in the season. He was partnered with Saeid in the middle thanks to the suspension to Michael Azira, and that meant that he had to sit back more than he would like. He did a solid job playing as a more defensive center mid, but it seemed to limit his ability to make an impact. I think he will be able to do more if he is able to play above Azira.

Mohammad Saeid (CM): 6.5

Saeid played a solid game Saturday night. He didn’t turn the ball over, and he worked well with Boateng as his partner in the middle. On the other hand, he didn’t really create any big scoring chances, and it seemed like all the people around him were creating all night. For that, he gets a little lower grade than the rest of he guys.

Dillon Serna (LM): 7.5

After a series of good starts, Serna saw his name in the starting XI yet again, and he proved Pablo right. He made a number of good runs, and every time he had the ball it looked like something could happen. He made a great pass to get the assist on Doyle’s goal, and he had made a great run to get himself into position leading up to that. The only thing he really did wrong came when he got stuffed by the goalie after being played in on goal. Either way, Serna has done enough over the past few weeks to keep his name on the team sheet for the time being.

Dominique Badji (ST): 8

No, he didn’t score, but he had a major role in all three goals. On the first goal, Badji showed great hustle to poke the ball on to Serna who ultimately got the ball to Doyle. On the second, Badji beat the keeper to the ball and then sent a ball across the face of goal so Hairston could finish with a tap in. On the third, Badji hit a running Doyle who then fed Hairston for the goal. It is easy to say none of the goals happen without Badji, and for that he gets a great score.

Kevin Doyle (ST): 8.5

Along with showing his classic hustle, Doyle played a big part in two of the goals. First off, he scored one, so that is kind of an important role. The more replays I see of it, the more impressive it becomes. The ball was a bit behind him, but he still made good contact and slotted it in the corner with his left foot. On the third goal, he played a perfectly weighted ball to Hairston who was left with just the goalie to beat. His play rounded out a great night by the starting XI, and hopefully we can start saying that more often.

Sam Hamilton (in for Boateng in the 74’): 6

Hamilton had a solid 16 minutes on Saturday night. He completed all seven of his passes and stayed in good positions. He did receive a yellow card, but it was a smart tactical foul. He hasn’t gotten to play too much in his rookie season, but he has done a solid job when he has.

Caleb Calvert (in for Haiston in the 76’): 6.5

Playing on the outside, Calvert was able to find more of the ball than he had in his recent sub appearances. He was solid in possession and didn’t really look like he was playing an unfamiliar position. Hopefully he can build on this and find a way to deserve some more minutes.

Jared Watts (in for Badji in the 89’): N/A

Watts did not play enough to earn a rating.

Rating Scale

10: you played like Messi against a beer league team
9: pretty similar to ten but you only scored on 5 of your 6 shots
7-8.5: player stood out and could be man of the match (unless someone managed a 9 or 10)
6: average
5: pretty shaky
4: shoulda been subbed at half time
3: sit a few games
1-2: Welcome to the USL