Rapids Died Of Dysentery In Oregon

Ok, maybe not dysentery but they were run over by the Timbers.  A slip-shop defensive effort and a lack of killer instinct in front of goal (again) meant the Rapids were never really in this game.  A particularly bad defensive lapse may have cost us Yarbrough for some time as well.  All in all, a pretty lousy weekend for the burgundy boys.

Random Musings:

• First and foremost, hoping for a speedy recovery for Will Yarbrough.  Its been some time since I've seen somebody go out like that due to a collision on the pitch.  He was clearly woozy after coming to and will need to make sure he's healthy and his concussion is dealt with before we even worry about when he'll play again.
• Of course, Yarbrough came rushing out for a ball that should have been an easy pickup, but Danny Wilson was sleeping on the play and let a Timbers striker close on the ball, leading to the collision.
• This wouldn't be the first, or last time, in the game the defense was napping.  A poor effort across the board from the backline.
• Meanwhile Warner just wasn't up to the level needed.  He was more engaged than the defenders, he just wasn't good enough on Saturday.
• Meanwhile on the other end we had 5 shots on goal, an xG of 1.5, and 0 goals.  Not good enough, not nearly good enough (to give Portland some credit, Ivacic had a great night in net).
• Zardes is getting paid a lot, and doing little.  Compared to the NYCFC game he was at least involved, but wasn't getting to the crosses from Lewis and Barrios.  Bad crossing or bad positioning?  A little of both.
• Once the game was lost I would have liked to see Fraser give more time to the young kids on the bench.  our average bench age on Saturday was just over 20 years old and there was no experience at all.  Why not bloody them in a lost cause?
• There's something off with this team right now.  They're inconsistent, don't have the drive they had last season, and are just going through the motions too often.
• Now its on to Austin at home on Independence Day.  We need to kickstart this season with a big performance.

Man of the Match: Abe Rodriguez.  He was thrown into the deep end, facing a PK as the first action of his MLS career.  But he didn't hesitate was was talking trash to Blanco before the kick and giving his defenders much deserved dressing-downs in the second half.  None of the goals were due to his play, and he actually showed a passion a lot of the team was missing on Saturday.