This last weekend RSL saw its first win streak in over a year snapped at the hands of a team that hadn’t won a game so far this season. The fact that RSL has never defeated New York was drummed into Salt Lake supporters all week leading up to the match with the cautious proclaim of “This time will be different!” The RSL coaching staff was so confident in that proclaim that they left behind the man who is arguably the anchor in the back for them: Jamison Olave.
The main reason we are given that Olave didn’t make the trip to NY is that he has trouble with his knees. The coaching staff thought that this would be a great time to give Jamison a bit of a break. Playing on artificial turf is hard on any player’s body but someone with bad knees will especially feel it. Olave is one such player and this is the reasoning we receive from RSL.
The other reason we are given is that second year player David Horst has impressed in both practices and the preseason and deserved to get some minutes on the pitch. The times I have seen him at practices I would have to agree he has been looking much improved from his rookie season and while he is not going to take a starting spot from Olave or Nat Borchers any time soon, getting him some time early in the season can’t be a bad idea. The only other players on RSL that can even play that spot are utility man Robbie Russell, and new comer Kyle Davies, who wasn’t with the team at the time. The coaching staff seems to prefer Russell as a wing back (they played him there last season and are actively training him there in practices). So getting a center back trained and ready for the eventual red card that Olave will receive at least once or twice this year can only improve the team’s chances later.
My only complaint with both of these reasons is that while they are valid, they fail to mention the third and potentially the most decisive reason Olave was left home. The coaches thought they could get away with it. They put their faith not only in Horst but in the ineptitude of the NY attack. It reminds me of a game a few years back that DC United coaches made a similar mistake with RSL. DCU played backup keeper Jay Nolly that day in place of standout keeper Troy Perkins. RSL went on to win that game 2-1 for their first win of the season. In case some of you forgot, that was also the first victory Jason Kreis coached for Real Salt Lake.
So with three reasons to play Horst instead of Olave, the RSL coaches rolled the dice and went for it. Was it the right choice? Before the game I would have said yes, but now I want to say no. I only have one good reason to have changed my vote but in my mind it is probably the best one. I say no because the gamble back fired. RSL handed NY their first win this season by gambling with a young center back instead of a proven veteran. That said, I have also seen Olave making similar mistakes to the one Horst did as he is prone to the occasional mental lapse.
So even if Olave had made the trip, would the result have changed? Would RSL have started with more fire had NY not scored 2 minutes in? Maybe some questions have no true answer.
-Truhlk
Training Tidbits 4.22.09 by Truhlk
Training today was very intense as the coaches looked to punish their guys a little for last week’s lethargic start. They mostly worked on finishing drills, and moving the ball through the midfield on the ground, two areas that the guys struggled greatly with in NY. Injured wing back Ian Joy was out there with them, joining in on the finishing drills and seemed to be moving fairly well. He was held out of all the full contact drills though and is probably still a couple weeks away.
Kyle Davies also made his team debut and turned out to be a bit taller than I expected. From a distance I would say he is around 6’ 1” (just a little taller than Yura). Things seemed to be going well for him in his first practice. The players split up into two teams to finish practice and held a quick scrimmage, the usual starters vs. the reserves. Both Davies and Horst played center back on the reserve team, and while Horst was clearly the more dominant player on the back line, Davies did have a few flashes defensively that showed a lot of promise.
One play that particularly impressed me is he marked up on an opponent on the left side of the goal and when the player received the ball, Kyle stuck with him all the way across the goal to the right side. After denying two cutbacks, he also denied the eventual shot, deflecting it with his shins back out of danger. The area that he did seem to struggle with was moving the ball up to the midfield. Having just arrived and not knowing his new teammates it is somewhat expected and showed that, though he has a lot of promise, he will need some time to get to know everyone before he is ready. In a month or two he could easily be challenging Horst for that 3rd string spot on the defensive line but he will need to get acclimated first. His style of play reminds me more of Borchers, while Horst seems to have more Olave in him. They just might turn into a good pair in a couple years.
-Truhlk
Boz Training Fotoz...
Boz's RSL Art Gallery II
(***Also "On Demand" on the Mogulus video player at the bottom of the page***)
