Dasan Robinson's first career goal as a professional proved to be enough to give the Chicago Fire a 1-0 win against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday night at Toyota Park.
Robinson, a rookie defender, scored in the 12th minute, heading home a corner kick from veteran midfielder Chris Armas. Chicago has now won three straight league games and five consecutive games overall.
Chicago came out hoping to use momentum they gained from beating New England three days ago to advance to the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup. In the initial five minutes, the Fire were on their heels.</p>
Colorado proved to be the early aggressor as U.S. international Pablo Mastroeni received a yellow card for his tackle on Chicago's Diego Guttierrez in the second minute. After a nice cross by Rapids midfielder Kyle Beckerman turned into a wasted corner kick opportunity, the momentum of the game shifted dramatically.
Chicago midfielder Justin Mapp made a nice run to the left side of the box in the eighth minute. Without space to take the shot, he looked to the top of the box and sent in a quick pass that Chad Barrett couldn't get to. The Fire were getting their chances and looking for every opportunity to score.
A minute later, Mapp gained possession in the midfield, juked his way down the field to the top right of the box and sent in a cross that went out across the opposite sideline.
Ten minutes into the contest, Colorado made another attempt at goal. Off a nice cross, Rapids forward Thiago Martins took a hard shot that Fire goalkeeper Zach Thornton blocked. On the rebound, Colorado midfielder Daniel Wasson headed the ball towards the far post. Stretched as far as he could, Thornton managed to push the ball out of play.
After a nice counterattack and good passing through the midfield, the Fire worked their way up to the offensive third, gaining another corner kick in the 12th minute. This time, Fire captain Armas took the kick. Off the curling delivery, Robinson headed the ball to the near post to get his first career goal and to put Chicago up 1-0.
Chicago did not let up, continuing to look for a second goal. One of the standout plays of the night was an aggressive effort by Andy Herron to spark a counterattack. Rather than sitting back to catch his breath, he came in quickly for a tackle and to dispossess Colorado. The ball found its way to Chad Barrett who made a through pass to find a streaking Herron in a one-on-one opportunity, but Colorado 'keeper Joe Cannon easily blocked the shot.
The first half ended with a confident Chicago side pressing for more opportunities for a second goal.
Five minutes into the second half, Chicago started where it had left off. After being called offsides several times on the night, a pass finally found Herron in the onside position. He then ran the ball into the box, where he made three cuts to shake the defender. Herron found a shot on his left foot but didn't have enough speed on it to beat Cannon. </p>
In the 63rd minute, Colorado had their closest chance at scoring. After a nice cross into the box, Rapids defender Mike Petke headed the ball past Thornton only to see it skip off the post over the endline. </p>
With three minutes left in regulation, Chicago got a chance to extend the lead when rookie striker Calen Carr was taken down from behind inside the 6-yard box. After some deliberation, referee Jozef Batko pulled the red card out and showed it to Rapids defender Hunter Freeman, a move that gave Chicago a penalty kick.
With Herron out of the lineup, Gutierrez had the honor of taking the kick from the spot. With the supporters cheering loudly behind the net, Gutierrez squared up and put the ball wide to the left.
With the win, Chicago gained three points on Eastern Conference leader D.C. United, who lost earlier in the evening to the Los Angeles Galaxy at home.
Jack Daniel Chavez is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
