The Rapids were sorely frustrated by their scoreless tie with Houston here Sunday, but more than satisfied with a 1-1 draw in Kansas City on Wednesday night.
Facing three games in seven days — Vancouver plays here Saturday — coach Gary Smith left midfielders Brian Mullan (back spasms) and Jamie Smith (tight calf) at home for the midweek game, hoping treatment and rest would ensure their availability Saturday. And when Pablo Mastroeni left the game with a hyperextended knee in the 30th minute, that meant the Rapids were playing without three of their four best midfielders.
Conor Casey scored the fifth goal in his last six games (having missed the Houston game on a red-card suspension) off a beautiful long ball by Tyrone Marshall and a lethal finish.
Earning a road draw against a hot team pleased Smith.
“Kansas (City) are in a real confident run,” Smith said. “At home they’ve been looking pretty bright. I thought we started and played very well in the first 30 minutes until Pablo came off. The goal was obviously a big lift for us. It was always going to be a tough task to keep that (lead) intact, but in the end, I’m very, very pleased with a point.”
Goalkeeper Matt Pickens had some big saves, including a brilliant one in second-half stoppage time to preserve the draw. And the Rapids were a little lucky too. Kansas City hit the woodwork twice.
“Really world class,” Smith said of Pickens’ save in the game’s waning moments. “He’s going the wrong way. If he’s not 6-foot-4, he doesn’t get it. Even then, he manages to tip it onto the bar and recover.”
Smith believes Pickens is playing with heightened confidence because the Rapids now can put their best four defenders on the field — Marshall, Marvell Wynne, Drew Moor and Kosuke Kimura. Wynne missed four games with a hamstring strain.
“He looks comfortable, his confidence looks there, and honestly I think it comes with playing with a solid back four,” Smith said of Pickens. “When I put out Drew, Tyrone, Marvell and Kosuke, I think that group with him behind have a nice relationship and a confidence with each other.”
Hopeful on Mastroeni.
Smith said he’d have a better idea about the severity of Mastroeni’s injury today, but based on the way the veteran was walking around in the airport Thursday, Smith believed the injury wasn’t serious.
Mastroeni wouldn’t be able to play Saturday anyway, because he earned a yellow card on the play when he was injured, his fifth of the season. He’ll be suspended one game for yellow-card accumulation.
Capsizing in Vancouver.
The expansion Whitecaps (2-9-8) will be desperate for a good result here Saturday night.
At home against Columbus on Wednesday, they lost their fourth consecutive game, 1-0, on a Jeff Cunningham goal in the 90th minute. Midfielder Terry Dunfield missed a penalty kick, and the Whitecaps had to play the last 15 minutes with 10 men after midfielder Shea Salinas was given a red card.
