The stakes are always high when Real Salt Lake and the Colorado Rapids square off for the Rocky Mountain Cup. This week, when the two rivals meet at Rio Tinto Stadium in a nationally televised match it will have some added juice as RSL vies to leapfrog the Rapids in the Western Conference standings as the two clubs fight to remain among the top spots in the Western Conference.
Currently third in the West at 11-8-7 (40 points), RSL can catch the Rapids (11-3-10, 43 points) on points with a win on Friday and could be just two points behind FC Dallas (13-7-6, 45 points). So RSL Head Coach Jeff Cassar knows there is a lot on the line.
“There’s the Rocky Mountain Cup involved. There’s positioning for the playoffs, positioning for the Supporters’ Shield and the Western Conference,” Cassar counted off after training Wednesday. “Everything’s on the table for us. This is a huge, huge opportunity for us to move up the ladder and stake a claim to a playoff spot.”
The Rocky Mountain Cup has been hotly contested since RSL came into MLS in 2005. Created by the supporters groups from Salt Lake and Colorado, the trophy is presented to the winning team each year, with the clubs typically presenting it to their supporters after the last match in the series. RSL has emerged victorious seven times, while the Rapids won four times, including two of the last three years. Currently knotted up at one win apiece, this match will determine the series winners this year. In the event of a draw, Colorado will retain the trophy as winners in 2015.
For RSL, presenting the trophy back to the home fans at Rio Tinto Stadium is an added incentive to a match already teeming with motivational points.
“It’s a big game for us and for our fans. Our fans take this very serious. It’ll be a little feisty on the field and it’s another game that we want to get three points,” RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando said. “If we get the Rocky Mountain Cup on top of that, it will be good.”
Both prior matches this season have ended with 1-0 victories for the home sides. With a pair of solid defensive teams in front of top-flight goalkeepers Rimando and Tim Howard, Friday’s contest stacks up to be very similar.
After facing another stingy defense in FC Dallas on Saturday and emerging 1-0 victors, RSL is well-prepared for another fierce battle against the Rapids.
“We know what we’re going to be up against. It’s a mentally strong team. It’s another team that plays like their head coach, who is passionate and committed. He has them really organized right now and feeling good about themselves. We know we have to not just match that, but beat that to be successful at home,” Cassar said. “We have to be the aggressors at home and really go after three points.”
As the season winds down to the final weekend and the playoff picture becomes clearer, points rise in importance. RSL has just eight games remaining on the schedule, so a win on Friday could spark more momentum heading into that last stretch. Confidence is growing at Rio Tinto Stadium and Friday’s match could go a long way toward seeing it reaching new heights. The final eight matches are all against Western Conference foes and with matches against West-leading Dallas and other contenders in the LA Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City all coming in Utah, the schedule is favorable for RSL.
“It’s in our hands,” Rimando said. “If we take care of business at home, I don’t see why we can’t be at the top at the end of the season.”
