Holden's brace lifts Dynamo, stuns Quakes

HOUSTON -- Stuart Holden's rebound goal, his second of the game, in the third minute of stoppage time, gave a 10-man Houston Dynamo an emotional and first-ever win Wednesday against the San Jose Earthquakes at Robertson Stadium.

With time winding down and a disappointing tie all but secured, the team created one last rush and Holden finished it for his third goal of the season.

Midfielder Brian Mullan started the rush and caught the San Jose defense off guard. He fed Nate Jaqua with a looping early cross from the right, and Jaqua's quick shot hit the near post before deflecting to Holden. Holden buried the easy goal past stunned San Jose 'keeper Joe Cannon.

When the game ended, giving the Dynamo a five-point advantage ahead of Chivas USA with two games to play, Eddie Robinson, whose misplayed backpass led to San Joses tying goal in the 68th minute, fell to the ground.

He was redeemed by Holden's goal which gave Houston a seven-match MLS unbeaten streak and 10 in a row in all competitions. The Dynamo improved to 11-1-7 in their last 18 matches overall.

Even before Holden's heroics, it looked like Jaqua was going to win it in the 91st minute. He and Mullan raced toward Cannon on a 2-on-1, but Jaqua could not settle Mullan's bouncing pass when all alone in front of the Earthquakes goal. Jaqua's ensuing shot was smothered by Cannon as he raced off his line, but Holden won it two minutes later.

Leading 1-0 and locked into another defensive battle against a team fighting for its playoff life, defender Robinson's lazy backpass to goalkeeper Pat Onstad set up the tying goal for San Jose.

Playing with 10 men because of Kei Kamara's red-card ejection in the 11th minute, forward Scott Sealy silenced the crowd with what amounted to an empty-net goal in the 68th minute. Onstad came out to clear Robinson's backpass just as substitute Ryan Johnson seemed ready to run onto it, but Sealy was there to intercept and drive it back into the unguarded goal.

The highly-anticipated matchup between two teams that share their ancestry had much on the line as the Dynamo entered the match needed wins to secure home field in the playoffs, and the Earthquakes virtually needed to win out just to qualify. The game was originally scheduled for Sept. 20 and was postponed due to the effects of Hurricane Ike on the Houston area.

The Dynamo jumped on the Earthquakes from the get-go and scored the first goal of the game in the sixth minute when Holden converted a rebound.

Brian Ching pushed play forward off a free kick and fed rookie Geoff Cameron, who looped a nice cross over to former San Jose forward Kamara. Kamara's shot glanced off the crossbar and wound up right in front of Holden, who chipped the rebound over Cannon for the 1-0 lead.

Kamara's second match against his former team would not last very long, as the forward was sent off by referee Jair Marrufo with a straight red card for an apparent elbow against San Jose defended Nick Garcia.

Despite being shorthanded from the 11th minute on, the Dynamo dominated the scoring chances for the balance of the first half as the Earthquakes struggled to break down the organized home side.

In the 23rd minute, Corey Ashe found some room with the ball and barreled in on Cannon on a short breakaway. Instead of chipping over the 'keeper, Ashe fired low and Cannon was there to make his biggest stop of the half.

Seven minutes later, Holden saw his bid for a second goal snuffed out when he missed wide right with a shot in the 30th minute. Ashe used some fancy footwork to work the ball around Jason Hernandez and fed Ching who quickly spotted Holden. Holden, however, ran out of room and chipped a relatively weak shot just wide of the far post.

Early in the second half, the Orange was not able to double its lead despite having four straight corner kicks to work with. They got a good look on the second try when a Ching header just missed after Cannon got a hand on the ball.

Both teams return to league play on Saturday night. The Dynamo will look to secure home-field advantage for the entirety of the Western Conference playoffs with a victory at home against the Los Angeles Galaxy, while the Earthquakes will look to keep their slim playoff hopes alive when they visit the Kansas City Wizards.

Revs able to create chances without Ralston

WASHINGTON -- The question ahead of Thursday night's 2-1 loss to D.C. United was whether the New England Revolution would be able to create chances without Steve Ralston.

At least from one game, it appears the answer would be yes. "You miss a guy like Ralston, no doubt about it, but I think we did a good job of getting chances," Revs striker Taylor Twellman, scorer of his team's only goal said. "I have to start shooting from outside the box and getting chances for myself."

How did the Revs bolster their offense?

The passing improved slightly in the middle of the field. There was more possession than in recent weeks. More set pieces placed the United back line under trouble. And there was a willingness from everyone on the field to try to play more directly by playing balls over the top.

"Direct is a bad word," Nicol said. "They just assume you're kicking it. The ball is getting played up if it's there. We try to get it down and play as well. I thought we did fine. We were in a real comfortable position."

Twellman scored in the 58th minute from a counterattack started by Michael Parkhurst and played through midfield by Kheli Dube and Mauricio Castro. Dube's pass forced United 'keeper Louis Crayton off his line, and Castro slid over for Twellman to tuck home into the vacated net.

With the lead, chances looked good that the Revs could find a way to escape D.C. with an improbable three points.

Instead, the Revs' winless streak reached five as Twellman missed a chance at the far post to double the lead and United scored an equalizer five minutes afterwards.

"In the second half, we got ourselves in a great position," Nicol said. "We nearly went 2-0 up and they come down the other end and score on a bad defensive play. The second one was the same."

But the Revs defense held the line when they should have pressured Jaime Moreno in midfield to allow Francis Doe to slip behind and tally the equalizer.

Then Route One football from Crayton to Santino Quaranta played Doe in again for the winner 10 minutes from time.

"If we're solid defensively as a whole, we win this game 1-0 or 2-0," Twellman said.

Most of the damage was self-inflicted, Twellman said.

"We keep shooting ourselves in the foot," Twellman said. "We've got the game 1-0 up on the road. I had half a chance that I probably could have done better with, but it is what it is. They went down and scored."

With the playoffs beckoning and the chances for home-field advantage in the Eastern Conference Semifinals slipping away, the Revs have to improve their form starting with the regular-season finale at home against Kansas City next Saturday.

The end of the regular season doesn't count in the playoffs, but Parkhurst knows the team has to find a way to play better before the MLS Cup run begins.

"We've struggled of late," Parkhurst said. "It's getting frustrating. We have one more game to get our confidence back heading into the playoffs. We need it. Once the playoffs start, it's a whole new season. Everything goes away and it's all about getting results. At the same time, we need to get our confidence going."

United remain in playoff picture after draw

HOUSTON -- D.C. United improved their standings in the race for the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs ever so slightly, thanks to a scoreless tie with the Houston Dynamo at Robertson Stadium on Sunday evening.

Though disappointed not to be leaving Houston with a win, United are happy to be leaving Robertson Stadium with at least one point.

"We came here for more than a tie," United goalkeeper Louis Crayton said. "We came to win here. Just like in past results, we didn't come here thinking we were going to lose this game. We came here prepared physically and mentally to win. But we still got a good result."

Coach Tom Soehn agreed, saying that the tie is "a good turning point for us. We've gotten two results on the road, and now we go back home."

The game was largely a defensive struggle, with the teams combining for only nine shots, including just three on goal. Soehn praised his team's effort in holding Houston's potent offense scoreless.

"[We] defended with passion tonight," Soehn said. "We're really coming out and giving ourselves a spark as far as how we're dedicated to coming out and getting behind the ball, making it hard for teams to score on us."

Crayton's play was a bright point in that defensive effort, bouncing back from a disappointing effort in which he surrendered three goals to Chivas USA on Oct. 4.

Though the 'keeper was only called upon to make two saves during the course of the game, he was very active in the defense, punching away crosses and sliding to stop attacking Dynamo forwards. On one occasion, Crayton came more than 30 yards out of the box to stop a run by Houston forward Dwayne De Rosario.

"I am very grateful to God for having played a good game tonight," Crayton said, "especially after what happened last week against Chivas. I think it was a redemption game for me tonight."

The play got physical in the second half, as both teams were frustrated with their inability to score. Referee Baldomero Toledo felt compelled to issue seven cards in a 20-minute span between the 53rd and 73rd minutes of the second half.

"When it started being physical, we retaliated," Crayton said. "Not in a negative way, but we had to be strong because playing here is difficult. I'm very impressed with the way my team played here today, especially playing with one man down, we still played very well, and that is good."

DC played a man down for the last 17 minutes of the match after defender Bryan Namoff received his second yellow card for elbowing Houston midfielder Brad Davis when the two both went up for a loose ball.

"It was a completely accidental knock," Namoff said. "Not allowing a 50/50 challenge at that point in the game with a 0-0 tie is a complete error. I don't think [Toledo] even knew that I was already on a yellow card."

Despite unhappiness over that specific call, D.C. is happy about the result and like their chances of making it to the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs.

"We had a very good game tonight," Crayton said. "I'm very proud of how we played. We didn't get three points, but we played a good game."

"Give credit to Houston," Soehn said, "they're a good team. To get a result here, you know you have to defend hard. We were passionate about the way we defended, and knowing what it takes to get a result, so it was a real positive step for us, and our guys are really fighting for each other right now."

Surprising Quakes must make stand

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Given their expansion status, the San Jose Earthquakes' journey to respectability has been swift. Even as the calendar ventures deeper into October, the reborn Quakes still find themselves part of the playoff conversation, something that the three prior expansion sides didn't come close to accomplishing.

Yet time is running out on San Jose, and unless they can fashion a victory in Houston on Wednesday night, its postseason hopes will be all but extinguished.

Of course, even if San Jose somehow escapes Houston with a win, a perfect convergence of results would still have to occur for the Quakes to make the MLS Cup Playoffs. But manager Frank Yallop is intent on buttressing the confidence in his side, even as a four-game winless streak has brought the team's momentum to a halt.

"We're not afraid to go out and play anybody," said Yallop. "It's not like we've sat back in the last four games and got hammered. We've played fine. ... We've just got to let it go and forget about all that other stuff."

San Jose certainly felt like they did enough in last Saturday's 1-0 loss to Chivas USA to get a draw, if not the full three points. The Quakes were much more energetic in attack than they had been in their two previous games against Real Salt Lake and FC Dallas, yet they were unable to translate their territorial dominance into goals.

"I just think our play in the final third hasn't been good in the last three games," said Yallop. "That's what is missing from our game at the moment. Goals come in bunches, and sometimes teams dry up."

One way of getting the goals flowing again is for the Quakes to get better service to midfielder Darren Huckerby. In previous games, San Jose had plenty of success finding the Englishman with long cross-field passes that caught opposition defenses napping. But Chivas was able to either slow down or cut out San Jose's attempts to switch the point of attack, and Huckerby found himself more starved of service than he had been in previous games.

"We've got to play well and not just switch it to Darren, but slip him in with good passes also," said Yallop.

That goes for the Quakes forward line as well, who have largely been kept in check over the last several weeks, and with Ryan Johnson still likely to be sidelined by a hamstring injury, more pressure will be put on Arturo Alvarez and Scott Sealy to shoulder more of the goalscoring burden.

Finding the requisite breakthrough could prove difficult given the dynamics of the Western Conference table. When combined with Houston's 0-0 draw with D.C. United, San Jose's result allowed Chivas to creep within two points of the first-place Dynamo, although Houston has a game in hand. Now, rather than use Wednesday's match as a chance to rest some of his players, it's likely that Houston head coach Dominic Kinnear will employ most of his first-choice lineup.

Not that Houston needs any more motivation heading into the game. San Jose has managed a 1-0-1 record against the Dynamo so far this season, and emotions ran high in both matches. Case in point was Brian Ching's goal celebration following his equalizer in San Jose on Sept. 13, when he gestured at the Quakes fans for some taunts directed at Houston bench earlier in the match. Yallop is expecting Houston to have their game faces firmly in place on Wednesday.

"They're not coasting at all," said Yallop of Houston. "That team is very competitive; they want to win every game."

Given the dire straits the Quakes find themselves in, it will be interesting to see just how much risk Yallop is willing to take if he finds his team tied late in the match. But the Quakes head coach indicated that the team's level of aggressiveness is something he'll manage as the game goes on.

"We won't become desperate," said Yallop. "You can't. You've still got to play the game; you can't play two at the back and have everyone else go forward from the start. We'll see how the game goes."

Dynamo emotions running high for rematch

HOUSTON -- This time of year, when just about every team in Major League Soccer is playing a crucial match, there is always one that carries a little more importance with every passing tick toward kickoff.

If you don't think the Houston Dynamo and San Jose Earthquakes have been looking forward to Wednesday's match for quite sometime, you're wrong.

Most MLS fans are acutely aware that the Dynamo used to play in San Jose. They left after the 2005 season, moved to Houston and, in a nutshell, won back-to-back championships.

Mind you they were a pretty good team in California as well, racking up many kudos and league accolades along the way.

Fans there, understandably were and perhaps still are bitter about the relocation, but now they have their own team -- a team that kept all of the aforementioned records -- and they are undefeated against the Orange this season.

After playing to a 1-1 draw in San Jose on Sept. 13, arguably both teams' most emotionally draining of the year, both teams could not wait until the following weekend for the rematch.

But that didn't happen. The lingering effects of Hurricane Ike left the stadium in no condition to host a competition, and the game was moved to Wednesday night.

After playing to a scoreless draw against D.C. United Sunday night, the Dynamo are more than ready to take out their frustrations on a team that has outscored them 3-2 this season.

"We feel like we owe them a little bit and there is a little chip on our shoulders in that we feel a bit disrespected because we did not get to keep all our accomplishments from San Jose," said defender Eddie Robinson. "A lot of these guys worked our tails off for those things, and we feel a little bit disrespected. We are really looking forward to showing them who won those two championships there and who won the two here."

Forward Nate Jaqua said Wednesday's match has been circled on his calendar since the Sept. 13 meeting. He said he was disappointed in the result and was looking forward to the rematch the first time it was scheduled.

"I was disappointed that we did not get a little bit more as that was one of those hard-fought games this year," Jaqua said. "I came away from that match really wanting to play them that next week and bring them back here. But (because of Ike) we obviously were not able to do that. Now we get that opportunity and this is one of those games that we really want to win."

And there are several other reasons that make Wednesday night's battle one to watch.

San Jose needs to run the table and get help just to make the MLS Cup Playoffs. Their 1-0 loss last weekend to Chivas USA not only put their playoff hopes on life support, but it allowed Chivas to solidify their positioning behind the Dynamo in the Western Conference standings.

Houston head coach Dominic Kinnear said his team needs to be ready for an intense 90 minutes of football.

"They have three games to go, and if they run the table and something else happens, up above them, they have a chance to make the playoffs," Kinnear said. "They will be looking to rebound from their most recent result, and we do know our games against them have been very physical and very emotional. I don't think it will be any different this time around."

Jaqua said his team gave maximum effort in the 0-0 tie with United, but noted several area in which the team could improve.

If the Dynamo are going to beat a desperate San Jose team Wednesday night in Houston, the Orange, he said, are going to have to learn from Sunday's miscues.

"We know San Jose is really going to be fighting for their playoff lives and we need to be ready for that," Jaqua said. "Hopefully we can get the ball down (field) a little bit more, and I kow we want to be sharper. When we do get our chances, we need to be a little bit better with them."

No glitz, just guts for Galaxy in win

CARSON, Calif. -- Coming into Sunday night's game, the Los Angeles Galaxy knew what they were up against. Sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference standings, anything less than a victory would effectively doom LA to an early vacation for the third consecutive season.

Billed as one of the more glamorous sides in MLS with players like David Beckham and Landon Donovan on the roster, the Galaxy took a much more workmanlike attitude into the contest, scrapping out a 3-2 decision against the Colorado Rapids.

The game didn't start out well for Los Angeles, as they were outplayed for long stretches to open the game. Yet LA avoided disaster early and played their way back into the match.

"The first 15 minutes of the game we were thoroughly beaten all over the field," said head coach Bruce Arena. "I like the way our guys fought back into the game."

The Galaxy took a first-half lead when Edson Buddle scored his 14th goal of the season from just inside the area. A defensive lapse on a corner kick late in the half allowed Colorado to level the score, then things nearly turned disastrous to open the second half.

Tom McManus hit the post with a header just minutes into the second half. Fortunately for the Galaxy, they dodged a bullet and settled in, eventually taking the lead through an own goal from Ugo Ihemelu. The goal came when Bryan Jordan drew a free kick deep in Colorado territory. In fact, Jordan was all over the park on the night, typifying the performance of the entire Galaxy team.

"I give our players a lot of credit. They worked real hard and played a scrappy game and walked off the field with three points, which was certainly the objective for the night," said Arena.

There certainly was no quit in the Galaxy, knowing their backs were against the wall. Donovan contributed 30 minutes of work, despite having gone the full 90 minutes against Cuba in World Cup qualifying the night before. It was that type of energy that put the Galaxy over the hump.

"Coming into the game we knew what we needed to do. What we were trying to do was come out, work hard, and scrap a win out of it," said Jordan. "I thought we played well. We moved the ball well, got our goals and I'm happy."

Even with the workmanlike effort, it was a masterstroke off the right foot of Brandon McDonald that spelled the difference. The rookie scored his first career MLS goal in emphatic fashion, ripping a shot from 35 yards out that will no doubt be a goal of the week candidate.

"I try to strike balls like that quite often in practice, so I'm kind of used to hitting the longer shots," said McDonald. "I looked at the opposition and they weren't stepping to me, so I took a touch to prepare the shot and no one stepped so I just blasted it. The rest is history."

McDonald's goal proved to be the game winner, leaving the Galaxy's playoff hopes alive for at least one more week. The road doesn't get any easier, as the Galaxy travel to face Houston next weekend. For Arena, however, it's all quite simple.

"We have to win games. I've said all along, I don't concern myself with standings or points," said Arena. "We have to win games. Even if we win out, we may fall short. But at least we know what we have to do. We're not going into any games looking for a point. We have try to win."

Unexpected sources power Crew offense

COLUMBUS -- The Columbus Crew have unexpected production from the backline; a healthy contribution of goals from the midfield and a good number of scores from the forwards.

They have scored nearly a fourth of their goals off set pieces as well as converting four penalty kicks and were also the beneficiary of an own goal.

What the team hasn't received, at least in the eye of the beholder, is respect for having one of the best offenses in MLS.

While the attention has focused on the crowd-pleasing attack of the Los Angeles Galaxy, the Crew have quietly generated 46 goals to trail the league leader by only four -- if anyone noticed.

"I know our offense was a little hurt by that because people are talking about (LA's) explosive offense and it's like, 'Hey, we've almost scored as many goals,' " Crew coach Sigi Schmid said after Saturday's 1-0 win against the Galaxy.

He explained his remarks earlier this week.

"We don't have the glamour boys. Obviously, we don't have David Beckham, whose the most expensive player in the league and for sure the most recognizable name in this league. We don't have Landon Donovan, who on his day is the best American player, and Edson Buddle had gotten off to a very good start, though when you look at his goals the last 10, 12 games it hasn't been very good.

"The glamour guys," he said. "Aren't we the team with the hard hats, anyway? We're a little more hard hat."

Befitting the "America's hardest working team" motto that the Crew used to espouse, this year's squad is gritty when it needs to be but can also play with flair when all cylinders are clicking.

Besides, Los Angeles can keep all the fanfare -- the Crew will take their league-best 53 points -- ahead of the 29 by the last-place Galaxy.

"Part of it is due to in LA they have a lot of goals coming from certain key players," Crew defensive midfielder Brian Carroll said. "Here, they're coming from all over the place, which is a good thing. It shows everyone has contributed something to the success of the team and shows an overall team mentality."

The statistics don't lie. The Galaxy's 50 goals have been scored by 11 different players. Of those, four scorers have two or more goals. Fourteen players have contributed to the Crew's 46 goals, including 10 with at least two goals. D.C. United are third in scoring with 41 goals by 13 players; six have two or more.

Crew forwards have scored 22 times, led by the career-best nine from Alejandro Moreno. Guillermo Barros Schelotto has six, including 4-of-4 from the penalty spot. Jason Garey and Steven Lenhart have three apiece goals off the bench and Pat Noonan salvaged a tie at Toronto on Sept. 13 with his first goal since being acquired in August.

Robbie Rogers has six of the 17 goals from the midfielders, who also got the first goal since 2006 out of the Carroll. Central midfielder Brad Evans has four after replacing the injured Adam Moffat.

"We felt going into the year we needed to get more goals out of the midfield, also more goals out of the middle of the midfield and we have with Evans and Moffat, who had a couple early in the season," Schmid said. "We've definitely gotten more goals from the middle of the midfield and we've gotten a fair amount from the outside midfield. I've been happy with that. The front line's also thrown in their goals."

The backline has six tallies with Chad Marshall heading in four, to match his output of the previous four years.

"Set pieces are bonus goals. Most of our defenders who've gotten goals have usually come from those situations. It's not like they're coming from overlapping in the flow of the game," Schmid said.

One that did was an arcing shot -- at least that's what he said -- from Frankie Hejduk against New York on Sept. 18 for his first goal in more than three years.

Otherwise, the defenders have been stellar on corner kicks and set pieces because of the presence of the 6-4 Marshall and rookie Andy Iro (6-5), who has one goal.

"I've always tried, wherever I've coached, to have somebody who could score goals on those things. In LA it was somebody like Danny Califf. Danny Califf won an Open Cup for me by scoring off a corner kick," Schmid said. "When I was at UCLA I had guys like Carlos Bocanegra and Paul Caligiuri; (former Crew defender) Mike Lapper when he played for me. I always had a defender who would get somewhere between four and six goals a year coming forward on set pieces. Now we've got Chad here. That's definitely been a link we've been missing in the past few years."

The Crew have been lethal in deadball situations. Their 10 goals have come via five corners and five free kicks, one directly from a free kick strike. By contrast the Beckham-led Galaxy have scored only one from a corner and two from free kicks.

"Getting goals from set pieces are important because they can turn tight games," Schmid said. "It's like getting a goal every third game off one of those things and I think that's good for us. We believe we can be dangerous."

Columbus (15) and LA (13) are the only teams to score in double figures in the final 15 minutes of the first half and Colorado (11) and the Crew (10) are the most productive teams from minutes 61-75.

"Our offense has been fantastic in the sense when we did struggle a little bit defensively our offense was always there," goalkeeper Will Hesmer said. "Sometimes when you're down you push too hard. We don't do that. We relax and believe in ourselves that the goals will come."

Timely goals and the second-stingiest defense in the league have carried the Crew to a 16-6-5 record. That's why the Crew tops MLS with a 4-6-4 mark when allowing the first goal in addition to a 12-0 record when scoring first.

Yet, it doesn't take much to humble the players. They only need to remember that early this season they set a team record by not scoring for 371 minutes.

Real Salt Lake left wondering after draw

SANDY, Utah -- Javier Morales produced one of those moments that make a soccer stadium opening memorable.

With Real Salt Lake trailing New York by a goal in the first-ever match at Rio Tinto Stadium, Morales found defender Jamison Olave for the equalizing goal just before the first half drew to a close.

In getting the assist -- his 15th in an RSL uniform -- Morales surpassed teammate Andy Williams to set a new club record. But the milestone felt somewhat hollow to the midfielder when RSL failed to follow up with another goal and spoiled its debut at its new home with a 1-1 draw on Thursday night.

"I would have been happier if we had won and I had not gotten the assist," Morales said.

For RSL, Thursday's match against the Red Bulls left a bunch of what-ifs for the club to ponder.

What if they had come out sharper from the beginning in the first half? What if they had defended corner kicks better and not allowed New York to create so many scoring chances off that one set piece? What if they had put more shots on frame in the second half when they so desperately needed a goal?

The main positive Real can draw from a flat showing at home is that the club at least managed to snag one point instead of none.

"If we would have lost this game tonight, I don't know what I would have done with myself -- but it wouldn't have been good," midfielder Will Johnson said. New York secured the honor of scoring the first-ever goal inside Rio Tinto Stadium. The Red Bulls marched out to a 1-0 lead in the 31st minute when Dave van den Bergh capitalized on a corner kick.

Seth Stammler put his header right on target after the ball swung into the box, just beating Nick Rimando's dive. Kyle Beckerman had perfectly position to head it off the line. He did so, but sent it right to van den Bergh.

From there, the Red Bulls midfielder rocketed a full-blooded drive on the rebound and sent the ball zooming into the back of the net.

RSL answered with the tying goal by Jamison Olave in the 42nd minute. Morales swung a corner kick toward the center of the area. The ball took a bounce and Olave got his right foot onto it and looped it over Conway and into the back of the net.

Real had plenty of chances to go ahead in the second half, but never seriously threatened to score -- even when New York was down a man in the final minutes of the match when Juan Pietravallo was ejected with a red card in the 83rd minute. RSL head coach Jason Kreis attributed his team's offensive struggles to a general nervousness when they had possession.

He felt like, in a lot of ways, they let themselves get distracted by all the hoopla surrounding the opening of Rio Tinto Stadium.

"My single biggest fear about this match was ourselves and how we would deal with everything that goes into this night," Kreis said.

Coming up a couple points short felt like a punch in the gut to a lot of the players who felt like the fans that turned out to see the match deserved better. Beckerman said he thought RSL had played one of its worst games of the year and the club can't disappoint its fans like that the next time out.

"We got to get a win," Beckerman said. "These fans deserve it here with this atmosphere and this stadium. We'll just keep at it, I guess."

The win isn't just crucial to the fans, but it might be essential to whatever playoff hopes remain for RSL after this weekend. Real have 36 points already, but more likely than not will need three points in their home finale against FC Dallas next Saturday.

"We just have to bear down and focus on the fact we've got to play better soccer next week," Kreis said. "Hopefully all the nerves and the adjustments will be out of us by then and we can just focus on playing good soccer."

Rapids lose control of destiny in LA

CARSON, Calif. -- Before Sunday's match against the Los Angeles Galaxy, the Colorado Rapids seemed to have a bit of fortune with the schedule. World Cup qualifying kept David Beckham from playing on Sunday and also kept Landon Donovan from starting the match, though he began the game on the bench.

But misfortune eventually ruined Colorado's day and perhaps the season. Ugo Ihemelu scored on own goal in the second half to break a 1-1 draw and the Rapids eventually fell by a 3-2 score.

Colorado now does not control its own destiny -- winning both of its remaining games would not guarantee a playoff spot.

"It makes things a lot more complicated, tougher," Ihemelu said. "Before this game we were right in the middle of everything, in a very good position but with this loss ... it definitely makes the last two games must-win. We need some luck."

Colorado's first order of business will be to win at The Home Depot Center a week from now. Colorado plays Chivas USA, who clinched a playoff spot on Saturday, before closing out the season at home against Real Salt Lake.

The Rapids have 34 points, sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference. Real Salt Lake currently sits in third place with 36 points, but in between is FC Dallas, with 35, and games at RSL and the Galaxy to conclude the season.

Had Colorado even tied, the result would have been in line with what coach Gary Smith had wanted prior to the game.

"It's very damaging," Smith said. "I really felt we needed at least four points, five maybe depending on other results, in the last three games. (The loss) means we put ourselves under a lot of pressure coming back here next week against Chivas, a very difficult game."

Facing a Beckham-less Galaxy squad may have made things easier for Colorado initially. Beckham was with England for Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan. Donovan, meanwhile, went the distance for the USA on Saturday in a 6-1 win against Cuba in Washington, D.C.

Colorado, however, wasn't exactly licking their lips in anticipation of an easy game without Beckham and possibly Donovan.

"We came down here, had a game plan and it didn't work. We didn't think much about that," Rapids goalkeeper Preston Burpo said about the Galaxy's lineup. "That's the way it was with that lineup. We prepared all week. We had a decent team out there. That's just the way it went."

Edson Buddle scored the Galaxy's first goal when he shook off Rapids defenders and buried a shot from 15 yards out in the 36th minute. Cory Gibbs equalized, though, just two minutes from halftime when he buried a header off a corner kick.

But the game slipped away from the Rapids in the 70th minute. Ihemelu found himself in a bad spot at the wrong time on a Galaxy set piece.

"I was running with my guy," Ihemelu said. "The ball got through somehow. I was just on the goal line running."

Eddie Lewis knocked the ball into the penalty area when it skipped and found Ihemelu's chest.

"There was not much I could do about it. I saw it last minute and it went off me, own goal. Not something you want to do when the game is tied in a game you really need to win," Ihemelu said. "I just saw ball, you know, I'd say two feet away from me bouncing right to my chest. Any other part of my body maybe I could redirect it but it's a bad spot to bounce into."

With the game carrying such importance and significance, Smith conceded that nerves may have got to some of his players.

"Within a lot of teams that are in that playoff run right now, there is a real edginess to their games," Smith said. "Some players can deal with it and some can't. It affects their performances and ... I felt there were two or three of our lads who under-performed and left us in a difficult spot."