Colorado Rapids 1 Real Salt Lake 1 – Irwin, Brown Say Hey Hey Hey

My pregame prediction for this one was that we would see a very exciting affair with two teams both trying to beat each other at the same game — that is, possession, passing and plenty of well worked chances through all sides of the offense. I was right on one of the points (I personally thought it was a very exciting game compared to some of the other snoozefests that 'Rivalry Week' presented us with) but I was wrong on the other one.

Oscar Pareja surprised me by doing something that he had never done before: swapping the tactics to grind out a result. When I talk about Pareja evolving tactically, this is the sort of thing I mean. Never before in Pareja's tenure had we seen the magical art of bunker ball imposed, but on Saturday it was the order of the day.

Despite who was in net though, the aim from the start was fairly clear. The Rapids ceded most of the possession to the Salt Lakers and tried a good ol' fashioned game of Clog N Hoof. It didn't work all that badly either, with Deshorn Brown proving to once again be an absolute handful whenever the weakened Salt Lake defense was forced to deal with him. He couldn't parlay some of his early chances into goals despite plenty of chances, but there was a feeling that all we would need to do is sit and wait.

Hopefully they can continue their newfound points streak against LA next weekend.