by CVI's Geoff McPherson
Rapids vs. Earthquakes April 19th, 2008
In putting my ideas together before the game my thoughts are “Three weeks into the season and I see that the Earthquakes as an easy ATM 3pts”. Am I getting ahead of myself? Or should I spend more time listening to people wiser than me that could foresee the dark clouds on the western horizon i.e. Mr. WeWantRapidMan?
Saturday night for me was date night with my wife, time for us to spend some quality time on a constantly evolving relationship. Yeah I know poor planning…..so yes viewing of the game for me would be delayed as any hope to see the game live was shot down by the unhelpful bar tender at North Star stating that they did not have FSC which we all know is a croc as it comes with most cable packages especially those that a public house would subscribe to.
It’s got to be said with San Jose in town the fans relationship with the franchise is quiet unique. As a fan could you imagine when you thought everything was going well for you and then they just walked out on you? To Texas of all places. Then two years later you have some what moved on and not 100% sure if you’re ready to date again.
Colorado goes with the same starting team they have all season with the formation of 4-4-1-1. San Jose selects a standard 4-4-2 formation.
The first 10 minutes was what we have seen in initial three games of the season after that there was a half chance here and a half chance there but where did our 2008 Rapids go? Slow, predictable, and San Jose back four were solid, which is the same back four that got carved up by the two player Galaxy team just 16 days earlier. Where was the hustle? The pace? The options? If Cooke gets closed down then we go with Gomez, or Clark, Burciaga is making his runs, but no it’s like painfully watching a Honduras mid-table club football game the weekend they installed Direct TV when you immersed yourself in the three 24 soccer channels at the expense of anything else.
We are not linking up at all, a lot of ping pong football and then we go a goal down in the 43rd minute, not great but this Earthquakes team is very beatable. Gomez & Gomes enter the game at the start of the second half as we move to a more attacking 3-5-2 formation. We start with a few opportunities but nothing that’s going to get San Jose shaking in their boots. They bring defender Vide on in the 56 minute with what I can gather is a 4-5-1 formation which I think should be banned; I blame defensive minded EPL managers for its recent global popularity.
The risk of pushing forward is that they might sneak a second and they do, you know the rest which was not pretty and not the Rapids that have got the fans buzzing after three games.
Sometimes you get comfortable with relationships sometimes they really push your limits, sometimes you question whether you want to be in the relationship and through all those twists and turns you stay with it and you work at it, and why? For nights like March 29th against the Galaxy where everything clinks and you remember why you got into the relationship in the first place.