COMMERCE CITY, Colo. – As understatements go, to say Colorado Rapids coach Gary Smith was happy to have Conor Casey back in his squad for Saturday’s game against Philadelphia is a good one.
The leading scorer for the Rapids this season had missed two games following a head injury sustained against the Seattle Sounders on July 25, and the coach was more than thrilled to have him available again.
The Rapids have struggled to find the back of the net; they are tied with San Jose for the fewest goals scored in the Western Conference. When they have scored, it is usually Casey or strike partner Omar Cummings who has come up with the goods.
There has been some notable help from the midfield from the likes of Mehdi Ballouchy and Jeff Larentowicz, but the team is undoubtedly heavily reliant on Casey and Cummings.
After those two, there is a notable lack of depth up front. At the moment, the only other forwards available are Andre Akpan and Quincy Amarikwa. Rookie Akpan has yet to see MLS league action, and the 22-year-old Amarikwa, who started against Philadelphia, is far from the finished article.
“Quincy has some pace and is a passionate boy,” Smith told MLSsoccer.com after the 1-1 draw with the Union. “He is still learning and developing and his contributions may not be frequent enough as yet.”
Smith substituted Amarikwa for Ballouchy at the start of the second half when he felt the team wasn’t as exciting going forward during those first 45 minutes as they should have been. Casey then entered the game on the hour, shortly after Larentowicz’s goal put the Rapids in the lead.
“[Casey] could have started the game but I wanted to make sure to get him the right amount of football going into next week,” he said. “There is a future for Conor in this league and quite rightly so. He is our most clinical forward.”
Juan Pablo Angel and Thierry Henry may have supplanted Casey and Cummings as the most feared strike tandem in MLS, but there is no doubt that the Rapids duo remains a potent force. They should line up together again this weekend, when the Rapids travel to Columbus.
However, with foreign clubs circling around Cummings—the club recently rejected an offer from Mexican club Necaxa—one has to wonder how long the partnership will be available and whom the Rapids will turn to if it is eventually broken up. Even Smith himself is still searching for answers to that one.
