It is time for the Houston Dynamo to get on another roll, and they say they know how to do it.
First they'll try to tune up their defensive play. And next? Well, they still need to do what they have been able to do offensively as one of the more balanced and deep teams in recent MLS memory.
Saturday night, Houston will look to keep things rolling in their second of three 2009 regular-season meetings against a Real Salt Lake team that is, for starters, hard to figure out.
Real are just barely on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoff picture and they would like nothing more than to solidify their positioning in the Western Conference standings against a team that they have not beaten in more than two years.
RSL's last win against the Orange was a 1-0 triumph on Aug. 4, 2007 at Rice-Eccles Stadium. And Salt Lake is a much better team at home, much like the Dynamo, who use heat and humidity to their advantage in southeast Texas.
Dynamo midfielder Brad Davis says Real uses the 4,450-foot elevation to their liking, but he isn't so sure that it will affect he and his teammates come Saturday night when the temperature is expected to dip into the low 60s.
"I don't know that altitude is all that much of advantage," said Davis. "I don't think that takes as much out of you as the heat does. But personally, I think we are looking forward to it.
"I think as a team we are all excited about going back to Salt Lake. The temperature is going to be good, they have a great field and it is going to be a great atmosphere. We have really been dealing with the heat for the last three games, and I think the guys are ready to get out of it and open up our lungs a little bit."
Open their lungs and maybe keep the ball out of their own net a little bit more. The Dynamo are 2-1 in their last three games, but they have allowed six goals during that span with their best defensive effort coming in a 1-0 loss at FC Dallas last Thursday.
The team sandwiched 4-3 and 3-2 wins against D.C. United and Chicago, respectively, around the loss to Dallas, and has not looked like the same defensive team that allowed multiple goals just twice in their first 19 games.
The positives, said 'keeper Pat Onstad, end with the team getting six of a possible nine points in those games.
"If you look at the way we are playing defensively, we are not going to be very successful come playoff time, and come CONCACAF Champions League," said Onstad. "So it is important for us to improve, and I think everyone recognizes that.
"Sometimes it takes a few days to step back, watch some film and say 'Hey guys, what has been the secret to our success?'"
The Dynamo needed an 89th-minute goal from Brian Ching to force a tie the last two times the teams played June 20 at Robertson Stadium.
That goal saved the Dynamo from what would have been a very disappointing loss to a Real team that took a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute on a goal by Fabian Espindola.
This week, the Dynamo got two days off, several good days of training and picked up center back Ryan Cochrane in a trade with San Jose on Friday. It was not immediately clear how long and where Cochrane, who was with the Dynamo in 2006 and 2007, would play.
But his presence will certainly solidify a team that needs a boost on the defensive side of the ball.
"We are going to keep getting our chances offensively, but defense is something that we have seen slip a little bit as of late," said Davis. "We are a little disappointed in that, but we have eight games left in league play, and we are at the top of the table.
"We must be doing something right, but we know it's not always going to be pretty. Getting the three points is the most important thing, and that is where are focus is."
Andrew J. Ferraro is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
