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No real criticism from me. No one needs to be on the chopping block. The effort was there. The changes were there. But the result was the same, a 1-0 loss. Granted, Colorado is quite good this year, but in the past we've had a propensity to play up to higher teams, so I had a good feeling after the thirty. We played well and seemed to have a game plan that was working. Defensive mistakes, poor luck, and the ever present questionable referee decisions (which I honestly, as frustrating as it is, won't lay the blame on the ref in nearly any case, we had plenty of other chances and every fan feels hard done by the ref when calls don't bounce their way).
So what's the solution? I'm not sure that I know. Some roster moves have been made, and I think it's safe to guess that several more are in the works. Finishing seemingly remains an issue. Do "Finishing coaches" even exist? 14 shots, 3 on goal.
For some season wide context, Sporting Kansas City ranks second to last in Shots on Goal vs Shots at just 30%. They're also second to last in Goals vs Shots, at just 7.5%. If they could manage just an average level (36% SOG to Shots and 10.5% Goals per Shot) they'd be sitting on an extra nine goals. Can you imagine 9 games where we could have used an extra goal? Because lord knows I can.
In any case, the tight schedule and road travel hasn't made things easy, and with CCL on the horizon lineup and roster juggling is going to get interesting. I suppose the good news with sitting on having played the most games in the league is that we should get a bit of respite in league play for the second half of the season. That said, FC Dallas has also played 22 and is in much better position.
Anyways, let's go to the spreadsheet generated and totally not at all subjective player ratings.
| Colorado Rapids | |
| Tim Howard | 6.5 |
| Axel Sjoberg | 6.5 |
| Mekeil Williams | 6.0 |
| Marc Burch | 6.0 |
| Jared Watts | 6.5 |
| Marlon Hairston | 6.5 |
| Michael Azira | 5.5 |
| Sam Cronin | 6.0 |
| Marco Papa | 5.0 |
| Dillon Power | 6.5 |
| Shkelzen Gashi | 4.0 |
| Kevin Doyle | 4.5 |
| Luis Solignac | 4.5 |
| Team Average | 5.7 |
| Sporting Kansas City | |
| Tim Melia | 4.5 |
| Saad Abdul-Salaam | 4.0 |
| Ike Opara | 4.0 |
| Benny Feilhaber | 5.0 |
| Roger Espinoza | 4.0 |
| Jimmy Medranda | 5.0 |
| Soni Mustivar | 4.5 |
| Lawrence Olum | 5.0 |
| Brad Davis | 5.0 |
| Connor Hallisey | 4.5 |
| Jaob Peterson | 4.5 |
| Justin Mapp | 4.5 |
| Dom Dwyer | 4.5 |
| Diego Rubio | 4.5 |
| Team Average | 4.5 |
It's hard to parse the numbers. Sporting definitely looked to be in at for most of the match, and the RoadRon faithful were well out in support. We could feel hard done by some calls, but at the end of the day, defensive lapses and an inability to convert shots to goals continues to be a theme.
Still, these are not blow out losses, this is still a solid team with a good core of Veteran leadership, some youth with potential, and staff and owners who seem to be able to scout and acquire quality talent from around the globe; No panic button/throwing in the hitchhikers towel for me. Not now and not soon.