This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Sandy
Real Salt Lake, the team that will have to reintroduce itself in a couple of months, made a lasting impression Saturday night.
By rallying for a 2-1 victory over Houston, RSL pretty much maximized the pre-May portion of its crazy 2016 schedule. Real played its way into a first-place tie in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer after maybe the most memorable half of soccer ever staged on a Rio Tinto Stadium field that's about to be replaced.
The finish featured Jordan Allen's and Yura Movsisyan's goals via wonderful assists from Justen Glad and Demar Phillips, followed by Nick Rimando's saving face.
Whatever it takes, right? Rimando deflected Leonel Miranda's shot with his hand. The ball hit the goalpost and came back to Houston's Andrew Wenger, whose kick went right into Rimando's face and caromed away. The goalkeeper was dazed, but stayed to finish a meaningful victory in RSL's last home game for seven weeks. When the final whistle blew and the comeback win was completed, Real coach Jeff Cassar raised his fist in triumph.
"We felt they were starting to bend," Cassar said later, "and we had to make 'em break."
Earning another three points in the standings was vital for RSL, considering what's ahead. The time required for the installation of a new grass field explains the huge gap in the team's home schedule. Real will play away from Sandy for five straight games before returning to play Portland. That's seven weeks from now, if you're keeping track, which is long enough for a lot to happen in the West standings.
Make a note: RSL (5-1-2) is tied with Colorado and Dallas for first place at the moment, having played fewer games than those teams. Check back in mid-June to see where this team stands.
Eventually, of course, RSL will end up playing the same numbers of home and road games this season. So the scheduling phenomenon of May can be overplayed, even if it is fun to talk about. The franchise itself tried to capitalize on the scheduling anomaly, marketing the game as the home team's last appearance for a long time, and the strategy worked. Nearly 20,000 fans packed the stadium on a cold, windy night.
The bottom line is RSL has done well enough to give itself some cushion. Home wins over Western Conference rivals Seattle, Colorado, Vancouver and Houston, a road defeat of Sporting Kansas City and ties with Orlando and Portland created an encouraging start for a team whose streak of playoff appearances ended last October after seven years.
That run began shortly after the stadium opened in Sandy, so this original patch of grass was the site of some good stuff for RSL after the expansion team played on the artificial surface of Rice-Eccles Stadium for nearly four seasons.
Saturday's game will make the list of memorable showings — with some drama that may have seemed unnecessary, considering the opponent for the occasion. The Dynamo came to town with a 1-4-2 record and a five-game winless streak and easily could have fallen behind in the 16th minute.
RSL's Burrito Martinez found himself alone against goalkeeper Joe Willis. A soccer player could never ask for a better scoring opportunity, and Martinez got two of them. Willis blocked the shot — and then did it again, six seconds later.
Houston went ahead with Miranda's goal in the 54th minute, but RSL responded with Allen and Movsisyan scoring eight minutes apart. Then came the Dynamo's sequence of scoring chances, ending with Rimando's close-range save via his face. That kind of play "happens all the time, to be honest with you," said Cassar, a former MLS goalkeeper, pointing to scars on his forehead.
Wenger's shot may leave a mark on Rimando. That's OK. The veteran goalkeeper will count it as another save and another win. The turf installers should give him that chunk of the old grass in front of the goal, for his efforts.
Twitter: @tribkurt