the assist leader in MLS a season ago -- swung in a service from the right, and Herculez Gomez got up in front of his marker to nod the ball past United goalkeeper Troy Perkins for the opening goal after 19 minutes.
• Then in the 35th minute, the Rapids doubled their lead. Kyle Beckerman was sent through in the left side of the penalty area, and he sent a ball through the goal area that sailed untouched to beyond the far post. But Cooke was there to collect it, and it laid back a pass for Roberto Brown at the penalty spot. The Panamanian international coolly took a touch before slotting it home inside the left-hand post.
• United pulled a goal back in the 80th minute. Brian Carroll sent substitute Kasali Yinka Casal free on the left, and he hooked a cross into the area where Luciano Emilio opened up his MLS scoring account, heading home past Rapids 'keeper Bouna Coundoul. But the Rapids withstood a final flurry from United to ensure a win to inaugurate their new home.
• Here's Clavijo's team (4-4-2): Bouna Coundoul - Brandon Prideaux, Ugo Ihemelu, Mike Petke, Greg Vanney - Terry Cooke, Kyle Beckerman, Jovan Kirovski (Pablo Mastroeni 60), Herculez Gomez - Roberto Brown, Nicolas Hernandez (Jacob Peterson 79). Substitutes Not Used: Nico Colaluca, Dan Gargan, Zach Thornton, Daniel Wasson, Chris Wingert
• Here's Soehn's team (3-4-1-2): Troy Perkins - Facundo Erpen, Bobby Boswell, Bryan Namoff - Stephen deRoux (Kasali Yinka Casal 58), Brian Carroll, Ben Olsen, Justin Moose (Fred 54) - Christian Gomez - Luciano Emilio, Jaime Moreno. Substitutes Not Used: Devon McTavish, Jay Nolly, Clyde Simms, Jamil Walker, John Wilson
D.C. UNITED
D.C. United saw their seven-game unbeaten streak come to an end, Real Salt Lake getting goals on either side of halftime on their way to a 2-1 victory last Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium. United still sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 17 points from 11 matches, three points behind third-place Kansas City and five points behind the first-place New England Revolution.
LAST MATCH
• Real Salt Lake had started the league campaign with an MLS-record 11 games without a win, while D.C. United came to Utah having last lost in April, after opening the season with a three-game losing streak of their own.
• Acquired just days before from the Los Angeles Galaxy, rookie Robbie Findley scored on either side of halftime to give RSL all the goals they would need. The goals were of similar fashion. In the 41st minute, a long ball from Jean-Martial Kipre bounced high over Bobby Boswell, and Findley spun around the United defender and raced in alone on goal, slotting the ball past United 'keeper Jay Nolly inside the left post for the opener.
• Five minutes after the restart, Findley doubled the margin. A perfect through ball from Alecko Eskandarian caught out a pulled-up United back line, and Findley again raced in alone on Nolly -- who was making his United debut after being acquired from RSL in the offseason -- before finishing with aplomb.
• A year ago Real snatched a 2-1 victory against United with two penalty kick goals after the 90th minute, and United brought back those memories when Luciano Emilio scored in the 87th minute. A cross wasn't dealt with and bounced around the goalmouth before Fred poked it to Emilio to prod home from close range for his fourth goal in three games, but that was as close as D.C. got.
• United head coach Tom Soehn made two changes to the team that defeated the Chicago Fire 3-1 at home the weekend before. Bobby Boswell returned from suspension to come back into central defense in place of Devon McTavish, and Jay Nolly was given his first start of the season in goal in place of Troy Perkins, coming against the team where he started his professional career.
• Here's Soehn's team (4-3-1-2): Jay Nolly - Bryan Namoff (Nicholas Addlery 79), Bobby Boswell, Facundo Erpen (Clyde Simms 59), Joshua Gros - Fred, Brian Carroll, Ben Olsen - Christian Gomez - Luciano Emilio, Rod Dyachenko (Guy-Roland Kpene 44). Substitutes Not Used: Marc Burch, Devon McTavish, Justin Moose, Troy Perkins
• "We didn't come out with any intensity at all. We talked about it all week, that no matter what game it is, we say there are no layups in this league. And if you don't come out and match the intensity, you're not going to win," Soehn said. "Possession-wise, we're a possession team; if you don't match the intensity to win balls, you're not going to keep the ball."
TEAM NEWS
• Seeing the seven-game unbeaten streak - equaling the longest in the league this season - come to an end was painful enough for United, but what was even more disappointing was the manner in which it happened.
• "It's not hard to figure out what happened. We came out soft and light and took them as if they were a last-place team, and they came out fighting for their lives. That's what you saw," said Ben Olsen. Added Josh Gros: "I always look at it as there's one game a week so there's no excuse not to come out and play your hardest. For whatever reason we didn't do that, and it has nothing to do with the preparation from the week because everything was fine. We just didn't show up today."
• It was Nolly's United debut in goal, after coming over from Real Salt Lake, where he made seven league appearances in his first two seasons as a professional.
• "I needed to help out my team and come up with one of those saves to keep us in the game. It's tough coming back and playing here and having that happen," Nolly said.
• Even though both goals were situations where Findley and Nolly went head-to-head, with Nolly coming out on the losing end, Soehn said it wasn't fair to pin the blame of the goals on the young goalkeeper.
• "We talked about their only threat being balls over the top, and we got caught flat on two goals. Their outlet offensively was the ball over the top and they did it twice to us," Soehn said. " ... [Nolly] was strung out on one-on-ones. You hope that he comes up with a save like that. Sometimes you do and sometimes you don't. But we don't need to put him in those kinds of situations."
• Said Nolly: "It looked like both our backs stepped up to both of their players, and they got a lucky bounce through and he was just in clean. I think if we would have sat off a little bit and let him come at us ... I don't think he would have been clean through."
COLORADO RAPIDS
The Colorado Rapids lost for the fourth consecutive match, this time falling to the game's only goal from FC Dallas at home last Saturday evening. The Rapids now sit in fourth place in the Western Conference with 15 points from 13 matches, two behind Chivas USA and now 10 adrift of conference-leading FC Dallas.
LAST MATCH
• Colorado had seen their losing streak extended to three games the weekend before at Chivas USA, while FC Dallas had their two-game winning streak snapped in a comprehensive defeat by Toronto FC.
• A tame opening 45 minutes was punctuated by a fine save by FCD 'keeper Dario Sala to deny Herculez Gomez, then the Hoops took the lead just after the hour.
• A cross from the right found Carlos Ruiz, and he laid back for defender Clarence Goodson. Rapids 'keeper Bouna Coundoul saved Goodson's low blast, but the ball squirted away and Juan Toja came it to poke it home from nearly on the goal line. It was Toja's fourth goal of the season, and the third where it's provided the final margin of victory.
• Gomez had one final chance to save a point for Colorado in stoppage time but his half-volley from the top of the box whistled inches wide of the right post. The Rapids ended the game a man down after Ugo Ihemelu was sent off for a flying tackle on David Wagenfuhr near the touchline.
• Rapids head coach Fernando Clavijo made three changes to the team that lost 2-0 to Chivas USA the weekend before. Greg Vanney returned to the first team for the first time since May 13, coming into the back four in place of Dan Gargan. Kyle Beckerman returned from suspension, coming into the midfield for Nick LaBrocca, while Nicolas Hernandez returned to the lineup in place of Jacob Peterson.
• Here's Clavijo's team (4-4-2): Bouna Coundoul - Brandon Prideaux (Roberto Brown 76), Ugo Ihemelu, Mike Petke, Greg Vanney - Terry Cooke, Kyle Beckerman, Jovan Kirovski (Jacob Peterson 61), Nicolas Hernandez - Conor Casey (Jose Cancela 37), Herculez Gomez. Substitutes Not Used: Dan Gargan, Zach Thornton, Daniel Wasson, Chris Wingert
• "I'm a little disappointed. I do not think we played with the urgency that we needed to from the very beginning," Clavijo said. "We didn't play well, we didn't play quick enough. At the end of the day they scored a goal and Bouna [Coundoul] had to come out with two really great saves."
TEAM NEWS
• It was a second consecutive game the Rapids were shut out, and they haven't scored more than a single goal in a game since April 30 (a span of nine contests).
• "We have to keep making changes and keep working as a team. We have a roster that we need to play and need to tweak because right now we are too slow," Clavijo said. "The message was clear: Put pressure on the defenders and attack, and we had chances but we were too slow in the middle. I am very unhappy but we will find a solution."
• However, Clavijo must find replacements for both ends of his strike partnership for the game against United. Gomez has joined the U.S. national team for the Copa America, which will put him out for at least the next three matches, while Conor Casey was forced from the field against Dallas after just 37 minutes with a hamstring injury that will put him out for this week's game.
• "The game plan was clear, but it's up to the players to put it in play," Clavijo said. "We wanted to put pressure on them, but we played too slow."
• Gomez was once again the focal point of the Rapids attack, taking three shots at goal, forcing a fine save just before halftime from Dario Sala. The week before he was also denied twice by Brad Guzan when in good position.
• "I don't feel like we've tried everything yet, that we're doing everything we can to get better," Gomez said to the Denver Post. "We've all got to be held accountable."
• Despite the fourth consecutive loss for the Rapids, Clavijo didn't fault the play of goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul, who has started every minute of every league game this season.
• "About the goal, you can't fall asleep. It was quick and it was very close to me. A lot of time we make bad mistakes and that is how the other teams score. A goal is a goal. They got the goal and the win so they are happy," Coundoul said. "This has been a rough month for me and I just want to put it behind me."
• For the first time since April 22 - the third game of the season - Clavijo was able to put out his first-choice back four of Vanney, Petke, Ihemelu and Prideaux. But he won't be able to once again on Thursday, after Ihemelu received the late red card.
