Hartman saves the draw

By: travis | June 10th, 2008

After getting a chance to watch the game from the weekend, a mixed reaction. Definitely good to be over and done with the road trip. Six games straight on the road is not going to be easy for any team, no matter how good. Coach Onalfo was forced to shake things up, thanks to injuries to Carlos Marinelli (unable to start, but subbed on later in the game) and Scott Sealy’s wife was giving birth, so he didn’t make the trip. The turf at Rice Eccles was ugly as usual, with the yellow football lines overshadowing the University of Utah slogan in the endzone. I also learned that Real Salt Lake’s mascot. Not sure why I find that funny, but go here to learn more.

The Wizards started with a lot of purpose against RSL, controlling the game in the first ten minutes of the match. They came out organized, and seemed comfortable on the ball, making smart passes along the turf. Davy Arnaud has an early chance, hitting the crossbar in the seventh minute. From there, the Wizards remained in control, looking like a team with a good direction, knocking the ball around with ease in the midfield. The turnovers that had plagued them in previous games was hardly present.

However, RSL settled and took control of the second half of the opening period. Kenny Deuchar was giving the backline fits, as his size allowed him to get to knockdown crosses, fortunately there wasn’t anyone in support to create any danger. He did get his head on the ball off a corner in the 29th minute, only for a great reaction save from Hartman keeping the game scoreless. The midfield looked less sharp as the first half went on, turning the ball over on a number of occasions. To their credit, RSL was putting great pressure, as they were really pressing. Harrington and Jewsbury had turnovers that were almost converted into goals. Halftime couldn’t come soon enough as Deuchar and Findley were giving Jimmy Conrad and Aaron Hohlbein a headache.

The second half brought more of the same. Even with a couple of changes, the midfield still was inconsistent in the second half, and the defense gave up too much room to shoot, as RSL was able to tee off on a couple of occasions. Things opened up for both sides in the final 25 minutes as players began to wear down, although neither side could convert. RSL had the bulk of the chances, finishing with a total of 19 shots and seven on goal. Hartman was equal to everything they could throw at him, in the process earning his 71st career shutout.

Anything short of a win at this match can be considered a disappointment. I knew before the season started that the defense would be key, and while they weren’t at their best, a shutout is a shutout. The problem has been with the midfield, as against they struggled to keep possession consistently to try and build attack towards the opposing net. Bottom line, the road trip is now over, and time to regroup back at home.

Final thoughts:

Winless streak now at five games. Not a good sign in the challenging East.
Neither team will make the playoffs if they continue with their respective away records: RSL 0-5-0, KC 1-3-2.
A win at home next weekend is a must. After a difficult road trip, losing at home simply can’t happen.

Next weekend the struggling Crew comes to town. A good chance to grab three points, as Columbus hasn’t scored in four straight games. More on that to come later. For now, I’ll leave you with Jimmy’s post game comments about the turf, which is a must read:

“What is funny about turf is that every turf field plays a little different. You hit long balls, sometimes they chuck straight up and sometimes they skip out of bounds. You just got to be ready for the unexpected out here. That is what turf does though – the ball doesn’t slow down on turf when it is on the ground. We have turf to practice on at home, but the turf here is still a different turf than we practice on at home. Both teams are playing on it though.”