Going a man down against Houston with the bulk of second-half play still ahead looked like a scenario with disaster written all over it for Real Salt Lake. When RSL held its ground long enough to force a 1-1 draw Saturday against the top Western Conference team, the promise of disaster passed by unfulfilled.
For the Claret-and-Cobalt, snagging four points in their last two road games has done wonders in revitalizing the team psyche.
"Definitely, the mood around the team is changing," midfielder Kyle Beckerman said. "We just feel like ourselves again. So we just need to keep building on it."
Earning a draw on the Dynamo's home field might be the best proof yet that RSL is heading in an upward trajectory.
Jamison Olave put his club into a real bind when he was sent off with his second yellow card in the 58th minute on Saturday. For the remainder of the match, RSL endured intense pressure. Houston made a tactical adjustment by shifting an extra player into the midfield and proceeded to bombard Real with one shot after another.
RSL held its ground until Brian Ching finally found the equalizer in the 89th minute. Real coach Jason Kreis felt like his team did an admirable job in only letting one goal materialize given the situation their defense had been put in by Olave.
"It's almost a bit like a war of attrition," Kreis said. "They keep serving balls into your box and at some point something is going to give. It's unfortunate for us that it keeps happening late in games."
What left Kreis feeling some displeasure was the fact that RSL's defense had been put in a position where it had to fend off constant attacking in the first place. He felt like Olave's ejection was ill-timed, ill-advised and completely unnecessary.
It marked the third time a Real player ended up being ejected in a match this season and the second time Olave was the player in question. In all three instances, Kreis thought the ejection proved hurtful to the rest of the team.
"All three ejections for me -- for our team this year -- have been (unnecessary)," Kreis said. "We've put ourselves at risk with referees. So I hope those decisions -- we can cut those out, so that we won't be down a man again this season."
The fact that RSL never trailed against Houston -- even with only 10 players on the field -- is a positive that should pay dividends as the team seeks to build on a three-game unbeaten streak in home matches versus San Jose and Toronto FC over the next two weeks.
"It speaks volumes for what we've been able to do in the last three games in this turnaround we've been able to achieve," defender Nat Borchers said. "Our commitment to defending has been excellent. We were able to come out of there with a point, which is what we wanted."
Getting a point was an unexpected result, considering RSL lost all four of their previous games at Houston. But a distinct sense of disappointment lingers with Real. The players and coaches alike know they had a huge road victory within their grasp before letting it slip away in the final minutes.
Any locker room celebrating over getting a draw was muted at best because RSL wants to do more than just come close.
"It's nice to get a point, but I want us to get to the point in our season where we take away three points in that particular situation because I think we're good enough to do that -- even with a man down," midfielder Clint Mathis said.
John Coon is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
