RSL at Colorado player grades

Real Salt Lake at Colorado Player Analysis

Each game this year Deseret News staff writers will grade individual performances from Real Salt Lake’s players using the following scale:

1 — Truly once-in-a-lifetime poor performance
2 — Horrifyingly bad
3 — Very poor
4 — Poor
5 — Below average
6 — Average
7 — Above average
8 — Outstanding
9 — Sensational
10 — Truly once-in-a-lifetime outstanding performance

Here are the grades for RSL’s starting 11 and substitutes:

Nick Rimando (6) – A freak finger injury forced him to leave the game in the 35th minute, and realistically he was helpless to do anything about Colorado’s first goal.
Chris Wingert (5) – The Rapids only had three shots on goal, and Wingert’s work up and down the flanks was a big reason why.
Nat Borchers (6) – Did a good job of building the attack out of the back and breaking up most of Colorado’s chances.
Jamison Olave (3) – His careless challenge led to a red card and all but sealed RSL’s fate already trailing 1-0.
Robbie Russell (5) – Was on a verge of being subbed off with stomach pain in the first half, but was forced to gut it out after Rimando’s injury.
Kyle Beckerman (6) – Returning to Colorado is always an emotional game for Beckerman, and he did a decent job of anchoring the midfield.
Will Johnson (4) – Hasn’t found his groove yet this year, and he definitely let a promising scoring opportunity get away from him late in the first half.
Clint Mathis (7) – Continues to be RSL’s best player so far this year. He created a couple of promising opportunities that weren’t finished, and showed his versatility by playing left back after the Rimando injury.
Javier Morales (4) – Seemed more worried about Pablo Mastroeni than playing soccer.
Robbie Findley (5) – Did a decent job of holding up the ball in wet and cold conditions on an otherwise subpar night for the attack.
Yura Movsisyan (4) – On a night when opportunities were tough to come by before the red card, he failed to take care of business when he had his chances.

Substitute grades:

Kyle Reynish (6) – Thrust into the line-up because of Rimando’s injury, Reynish did an admirable job even though he might’ve been able to react quicker to Colorado’s second goal.
Ned Grabavoy (6) – Came on for Yura Movsisyan in the 66th minute, but there really wasn’t much he could do about the outcome.
Tony Beltran (6) – Played well in his 16 minutes, perhaps helping him regain his confidence in the weeks to come.

There you have it, our grades from the Colorado match, but what do you think?