COMMERCE CITY, Colo. – One week after a makeshift front line carried the way for the Colorado Rapids, the club could once again rely on its depth to try and stay perfect.
Forward Conor Casey is a question mark ahead of the club’s matchup on Sunday against visiting D.C. United (7 pm ET, Galavision) with nagging calf issues that held him out last week, and Irish import Caleb Folan missed a training session this week with an ankle problem.
Rapids head coach Gary Smith, however, is hopeful that Casey and forward Omar Cummings – who has returned from international duty with Jamaica – will be able to shoulder the load.
“[Casey] had a bit of reaction with his calf earlier in the week,” Smith said, “but I think he should be ok."
If Casey’s injury limits his minutes or shelves him for the match, the team could possibly lean on forward Quincy Amarikwa or Andre Akpan. Amarikwa scored the game-winning breakaway goal of the Rapids’ 1-0 road win over Chivas USA last weekend, and Akpan scored during the Rapids’ 2-1 loss to the Chicago Fire during a US Open Cup play-in match on Wednesday in Peoria, Ill.
“It was a fantastic effort from a team with so little experience against an experienced Chicago side," he said immediately after the game. "These players are competing for a playing spot and there were some performances out there today that will linger in my mind."
Defender Kosuke Kimura (shingles) and midfielder Jamie Smith (migraines) are expected to start against D.C. United.
