Once that point was officially his, however, he had a much harder time appreciating it.
That's because RSL seemed destined to take three points for the second road game in a row - that has happened only once in franchise history - until a "three-minute brain fart," in the words of midfielder Kyle Beckerman, cost the team a two-goal lead late in the game and forced it to settle for a 2-2 draw in front of 18,893 fans at Gillette Stadium.
"But it's still a point," Kreis said. "So for me, that's two road games at the most critical stretch of the season, and our guys came away from two road games with four points, and I think we have to feel very positive about that."
After all, RSL (9-10-8) moved alone into third place in the MLS Western Conference with 35 points, with rival Colorado remaining in a tie with FC Dallas a point behind. Only the top three teams in the conference are assured of reaching the playoffs, something RSL has never done.
Yet if RSL ultimately fails to make history, this will be another of the games on which it will look back in disgust.
It dominated the first half and built a 2-0 lead on goals by midfielders Javier Morales and Andy Williams.
Morales scored on a floating chip shot over leaping defender Michael Parkhurst in the 13th minute after goalkeeper Matt Reis had come off his line to contest a long pass, and Williams blasted home what appeared to be an insurance goal off a pass from Morales on a counterattack in the 73rd minute.
But the Revs (12-8-7) had begun dictating the game after halftime, and suddenly broke loose not long after Williams scored his first goal of the season.
When RSL's Nat Borchers misplayed a cross that hit him at an awkward angle in the box, the ball fell right to New England's Steve Ralston, and Ralston ripped it past goalkeeper Nick Rimando in the 77th minute.
Just two minutes later, New England's Taylor Twellman settled a pass near the top of the box and negotiated around two defenders - including Beckerman, who said Twellman committed a handball - and fired a shot past Rimando inside the far post for the equalizer.
"Two mistakes, two goals," Borchers said. "We gave them those goals. We've said that the whole season, we've given goals away. But I think we can take a positive out of here. One point against a good team that's on top of the Eastern Conference is nothing to be sad about."
The fate of Williams, however, is a different story.
While RSL was blowing several great scoring chances in the dying minutes - substitute striker Kenny Deuchar missed two open breakaway opportunities - Williams was assuring he won't play in the inaugural game at Rio Tinto Stadium on Thursday. The veteran was red-carded for shoving New England's Jay Heaps to the ground during a confrontation in stoppage time.
"I'll stick up for my player here and say I thought that was completely wrong," Kreis said. The referee "got it absolutely wrong, and now he's taken the opportunity for Andy Williams to play in the stadium that he helped build. I think that's a sad state of affairs."
mcl@sltrib.com
