A Point Is Just Not Good Enough

For the fourth straight game the Rapids finished with a 1-1 draw.  Unlike the last two however there was no excuse for the Rapids failing to get all three points.  In the first half the team played its worst 45 minutes of soccer since the season opener and in the second San Jose gave them chance after chance to get back into the game and it still took until stoppage time to score.  Its really time for something to change.  Obviously with Lusi Solignac joining training today and Doyle arriving soon the team leadership is hoping that's the change we need but I'm having my doubts.

General impressions:

• Mini-donuts are back!!!!
• Despite that the 10 or so minutes on each side  of halftime are about as miserable as I've been as a Rapids fan in a long while.  Horrible play on the field, pouring rain, and no real end in sight.  This isn't the low point of Rapids fandom (Clavijo's "how true fan are you" still holds that spot) but its pretty depressing.
• 11 in a row winless at home, a new MLS record
• 1 win in 24.  If that's not a MLS record it has to be close
• At this point I'd rather see Torres up front out of his best position than Badji starting.  He needs to head to Charlotte to learn more than his physical gifts give him naturally.
• Sanchez was better this game, which was a positive sign.
• I like Ramirez but he needs to learn to look for the pass before he dribbles into a dead-end and gets desperate.
• Seriously Eloundou, you had the perfect set up and skied it.  WTF?
• Pittinari, I know you're new to the league but let me tell you a secret.  That Wondo guy is pretty good, letting him run free on a set piece is horrible defending.  Standing around ball watching doesn't help anyone.
• Some fans wanted to blame Moor or Irwin on the goal but when a teammate leaves a former Golden Boot winner and World Cup veteran unmarked on the far post there's not much you can expect them to do.
• Nice header by Riley, right place right time.
• In general the Rapids showed a great final 5 minutes or so.  They needed that drive for the 90 minutes before that though.
• Pablo post-game: "We did enough to win".  No, no we didn't.  I'm not sure what's worse, he believes the Zen platitudes he spouts in post game interviews, which means he has no ability to read and analyze a game in real-time and shouldn't be coaching, or he knows the platitudes are just that, in which case he's showing some serious contempt for the fans that supposed him the vast majority of his career.
• Either way I'd like to hear less "Everyone gets a cookie!" and more "We need to do X, Y, or Z better" at this point.
• The Rapids are currently 3rd in the league in shots, 5th in shots on goal, and in a 3-way tie for 14th in goals.  We need a finisher.
• The 6th placed team, which would be the final playoff team this year, has averaged 46 points a season since the league went to 34 games.  That means the Rapids need to average 1.5 pts/game the rest of the way to hit that mark.

Man of the Match: Dillon Powers.  Nobody had a great game but Powers had a good game.  That's still better than a number of players.  Its becoming clear that the offense will run through Powers this season and he seems to be up to the challenge.