The Big Picture
The Colorado Rapids (4-15-10, 22 pts) fell 3-2 on the road to Portland Timbers FC (11-11-9, 42 pts) at Providence Park on Saturday night. After conceding a pair of consecutive goals in the first half, Diego Rubio and Andrew Gutman each struck to level the game on the cusp of halftime before Portland ultimately found the game-winner through Felipe Mora in 71st minute. Rubio’s goal marked his 37th regular-season goal all-time for the Rapids, tying him with John Spencer for third-most in club history. With tonight’s result, the Rapids are officially eliminated from postseason contention.
Notable:
- F Diego Rubio scored his 37th regular-season goal as a member of the Rapids, tying him with John Spencer for third-most in club history.
- D Danny Wilson recorded his 123rd regular-season start as a member of the Rapids, tying Kyle Beckerman for seventh-most in club history.
- D Andrew Gutman scored his first goal as a member of the Rapids, his 10th in MLS.
- M Cole Bassett delivered the assist on Rubio’s 31st-minute goal, marking the Homegrown Player’s third consecutive match with a goal contribution (two goals, one assist).
- D Keegan Rosenberry registered 45 minutes tonight, surpassing 19,000 regular season minutes in MLS.
- M Ralph Priso recorded 58 minutes tonight, surpassing 1,000 regular season minutes in MLS.
COLORADO RAPIDS INTERIM HEAD COACH CHRIS LITTLE
On the match:
“Obviously disappointed with the result and a loss, but really pleased with the fight. To go two goals behind in a poor start to the game and then show a lot of spirit and character, I was really proud of the group and the fight that they showed. Shows this group is together, and from a coaching perspective, we were delighted with that. Just unfortunately, it wasn't enough.”
On being eliminated from playoffs contention:
“Obviously, disappointment. We want to be a playoff team and in contention for the playoffs so not to achieve that goal is disappointing. But no, it doesn't change anything. I think as fans, people want to see a team that's committed to the club and to the badge and to fight and show spirit and commitment. Although we've lost the last two games, I think they've seen that, so it's not a group that's quit on the team or stopped playing. I think they've shown a lot of fight and character and this kind of goes back to what we said before: we know where we are and we're disappointed with that. We're going to fight and do everything we can to try and improve the situation.”
COLORADO RAPIDS DEFENDER ANDREW GUTMAN
On the match:
“Yeah, I think it was a tough game. Obviously going 2-0 down, but great fight from the team to come back 2-2. I think, again, it's just the little errors that we do. We don't secure the ball in the middle of the field. Sometimes our passes are a little loose, and you know, we get punished on it. But again, we could have just put our heads down two-nill and it could have been one of those nights again, but we are able to fight back, and you know, as long as we keep having that fight, we give ourselves a chance every single game.”
On the team’s recent performances:
Yeah, I don't know if one thing or another is causing that. I will say, though, that when you're in this league, you have to play like this every single game. You can't have games where it takes you 75 minutes to get into the game or you have a good spell of 10 minutes but the rest of the game is poor. So, it doesn't matter who the coach is, who's in charge, who's giving us instructions. If you're a professional player, you have to play 90 minutes to the best of your ability, every single game. Otherwise, you're not going to be in this league long and I think there's a lot of young guys on the team that are struggling their way through understanding that, but I have to give them credit because a lot of them don't give up, and you can see that. Okay, they have a bad performance. They bounce back the next game and they have a great performance. So for me, as long as that continues to go well, then I'm happy with where the team's heading.”
