SALT LAKE CITY - Real Salt Lake (1-2-2, 5 pts.) takes to the road this week for the first of four battles against expansion brethren Chivas USA (0-4-1, 1 pt.). This week's kickoff is at the Home Depot Center on Saturday, May 7, at 8:00 p.m. MT with the game airing live on Fox Sports Net Rocky Mountain and HDNet. RSL's road record stands at 0-2-1, with the team looking for its first road win of the season going into Saturday's game against Chivas USA.
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RSL remains undefeated at home, adding another point and moving into fourth place in the Western Conference with a 2-2 draw against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday. San Jose jumped on the scoreboard early with a goal from FW Brian Ching in the 11th minute. Just 10 minutes later, FW Jason Kreis added goal No. 93 when he slid a penalty kick past San Jose goalkeeper Pat Onstad.
In the 34th minute, MF Clint Mathis intercepted a pass in the midfield, which opened up a two-on-one attack for Mathis and Kreis. Mathis found Kreis on the left, and the League's All-Time leading scorer blasted it past Onstad in the 34th minute. The final goal of the game came in the 82nd minute, when Earthquakes MF Brian Mullan sent a long cross over the RSL defense to FW Alejandro Moreno, whose header provided the late equalizer for San Jose, ending the game in a 2-2 tie.
KREIS CLOSING IN ON CENTURY MARK: Major League Soccer's All-Time leading scorer, FW Jason Kreis added two more goals to his tally over the weekend pushing his total to 94 goals. The two goal effort against San Jose vaulted Kreis into 8th among 2005 MLS leaders with three goals in five games. No player in MLS history has scored more than Kreis and with the recent two goals, Kreis is just six goals away from reaching the 100 mark.
COUNT ON COUNTESS: RSL GK DJ Countess is providing a solid foundation between the pipes as the expansion team searches for cohesion. Despite a revolving door of an RSL defense in front of him due to injury, suspension and inconsistent play, Countess has provided several spectacular stops among his league-leading 30 saves during the month of April. The 23-year old 'keeper recorded 13 saves in Saturday's 2-2 draw, just five fewer than Tony Meola's single-game league-record set in 1997.
RSL CHANGES LINEUP TO 4-5-1: RSL Head Coach John Ellinger tweaked the RSL lineup from a 4-4-2, used in the first four games, to a 4-5-1 against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday. The change put MF Andy Williams, who returned from the injury list, and MF Clint Mathis in the midfield and left FW Jason Kreis as the team's lone striker. RSL responded with season highs in both possession and offense.
POPE RETURNING TO THE LINEUP: DF Eddie Pope makes his return to the RSL lineup against CD Chivas USA after serving a one-game suspension for his red card in the 73rd minute of the RSL-FC Dallas game when he was carded against a tackle from behind on FW Eddie Johnson. With Pope out of the lineup on Saturday, DF Matt Behncke and DF Nelson Akwari joined DF Brian Dunseth and DF Rusty Pierce on the backline.
RSL COACHES & PLAYERS ON LOCAL RADIO: RSL Head Coach John Ellinger continues his weekly appearance live on 1280 The Zone with David James and Patrick Kinahan on "The Manly Morning Show" tomorrow Tuesday, April 26, at 9:00 a.m. MT. Finally, tune in to 1280 The Zone every Thursday, at 2:30 p.m. MT. with Ryan Hatch and David Fox on "Hatch and Hollywood" and get the latest insight on the team from an RSL player.
TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR WEEK OF May 2, 2005: **All practices are open to Media members. All times and locations are subject to change.
DAY/DATE SITE TIME (MT)
Tuesday, May 3 Rice-Eccles Stadium 10:00 a.m.
Wednesday, May 4 Ute Soccer Field 10:00 a.m.
Thursday, May 5 Ute Soccer Field 10:00 a.m.
Friday, May 6 Rice-Eccles Stadium TBD
TRAVEL to LA TBD
Saturday, May 7 GAME @ Chivas USA 8:00 p.m.
RSL INJURY REPORT:
PLAYER STATUS INJURY
MF Andy Williams PROBABLE L groin strain
MF Evan Whitfield PROBABLE L/R groin strains
DF Rustin Pierce PROBABLE L hamstring tightness
GK Noah Palmer OUT R shoulder cartilage tear
SEASON TICKETS STILL SELLING BRISKLY: Real Salt Lake season ticket packages, now pro-rated following the first two games, remain on sale. The RSL 2005 season ticket package now features 19 games, including the remaining 14 MLS regular season games, four special bonus games and the highly-anticipated U.S.-Costa Rica World Cup Qualifier on June 4. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the RSL Ticket Office at 515 South 700 East, #2R, SLC, UT 84102, by logging onto www.RealSaltLake.com or by contacting the Real Salt Lake Ticket Office at (866) 9-SOCCER.
GET YOUR FLEX ON WITH NEW SEASON TICKET OPTION: To add more options for fans, RSL now offers the Flex Season Ticket Package, which is comprised of twenty vouchers of the same price category (North Goal, Corner Flag, Premium and VIP) that allows the purchaser to determine which games they would like to see in the regular reason and how many tickets needed for that game. Prices for the 2005 Flex Package are $260 for the North Goal, $320 for the Corner Flag, $440 for the East Sideline and $560 for the VIP seats. Tickets can be redeemed in the following way: one could use all the vouchers and bring 20 people to one game or 4 people could attend five games. Flex vouchers are discounted from the day of game pricing making it an even greater value. Vouchers can be redeemed in advance through the Real Salt Lake Front Office by mail or in person or on the day of the game at the Real Salt Lake Customer Service Window. Seating is best available per price category at the time of redemption. The June 4th US-Costa Rica and RSL-FC Dallas doubleheader is not included in the flex package.
SINGLE-GAME TICKETS ON SALE: Real Salt Lake single-game tickets for its inaugural 2005 season at Rice-Eccles Stadium continue to be on sale both online and at the University of Utah Ticket Office, located at the Stadium's south end. Individual game prices are $14 for north goal, $18 for corner flag, $25 for premier east and $32 for VIP west. Individual game tickets can be purchased by visiting the Utah Ticket Office at 451 South 1400 East, by logging onto www.utahtickets.com or by contacting the Ticket Office at (801) 581-UTIX. Fans are continued to be encouraged to purchase in advance.
ACCESS REAL: Real fans can now receive up-to-date information on the team by signing up for the RSL Weekly Newsletter at the fans section of RealSaltLake.com.
MLS CAMPS: MLS Camps, the Official Camp and Clinic of Major League Soccer, has partnered with Real Salt Lake to provide Packaged Camps, Clinic & Training Services and Supply Opportunities to the Greater Utah Community. To host a Program in your community, call (800) 680-6272 or by logging onto www.MLScamps.com and register for a program near you.
