Rapids 1 - 5 Real Salt Lake
Final
  for this game

Rapids hope to stop the rot at RSL

Sep 18, 2014 - 9:47 PM Sandy, UT (SportsNetwork.com) - The Colorado Rapids will be hoping to put an end to an eight-game winless run on Friday when the club heads to Rio Tinto Stadium to face Real Salt Lake in the final Rocky Mountain Cup clash of the season.

Colorado still has a chance of sneaking into the postseason, but it seems very unlikely based on current form.

The Rapids have not won a league game since cruising past Chivas USA in a 3-0 victory on July 25. They have gone on to drop seven of eight in their current rut with five of those defeats coming against Western Conference opposition.

But Colorado could be on the upswing as the club earned a point from a 2-2 draw with the Portland Timbers last time out.

"We came up for air this game with a point," Rapids head coach Pablo Mastroeni said. "Now, it's what we do with it going into a difficult place to play. I love it. I wouldn't want to go somewhere easy. We're like a cornered animal. We want to fight. That's where our mindset is at."

Colorado's troubles this season have not come without reason. Heavily bitten by the injury bug, the Rapids have had to field players on minimal rest and sometimes out of position.

"We've battled injuries left and right this year," said Mastroeni. "Thomas Piermayr is playing out of position and doing a great job. Shane (O'Neill), having one week of training, stepped on the field and played 90 minutes. There are a lot of guys sacrificing for the better of the team."

While it's nice to admire Colorado's spirited attempt at resiliency, Real Salt Lake will not be so eager to ease off the pedal.

The Claret and Cobalt enter the weekend in third place in the Western Conference, sitting eight points back of first-place Seattle Sounders FC.

Top spot in the West appears to be out of reach for Real Salt Lake, but the club has a firm grip on a postseason berth, even following a dramatic 3-2 loss at Seattle last time out.

"When you play against good teams like Seattle, they have big players," said Salt Lake talisman Javier Morales after the defeat. "Details make the difference. We made little mistakes and they cost us a lot - three points. Because I think we dominate. We play good soccer. We create chances. But, at the end, we got nothing. So that was the difference. Details tonight was the difference between them and us."






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