The biggest question the Colorado Rapids have faced in their first two matches has been the makeup of their midfield line. With their first game at home, Terry Cooke had the answer.
With Pablo Mastroeni playing a World Cup qualifier with the U.S. national team, Jacob Peterson earned the start Saturday ahead of Cooke. And while Peterson earned his stripes, pressing a stingy Kansas City Wizards defense, it was Cooke, who finally opened it on a free kick in the 65th minute, breaking a scoreless standoff and ultimately providing the spark for a 2-1 Colorado win.
"The second half was lit up really by Terry," Rapids head coach Gary Smith said. "Absolutely wonderful free kick, and the ball that he played for Colin [Clark], a reverse pass cross-field, was absolutely wonderful.
"He changed the game, there's no two ways about it. There was more of a creative edge. There was more feel to his deliveries at that point. Before that point, I thought we got into some nice areas. Jake had some one-v-ones. He was very positive, but there just wasn't any finesse about the finish or the delivery. And for sure, Terry upped the ante in that respect."
Cooke followed his opening goal by setting up the game-winner after the Wizards had tied the match, setting up a counterattack after a Wizards corner kick with a cross to Clark who sprung Omar Cummings at the top of the penalty area.
Colorado set the pace from the start, but Kansas City was able to stifle the attack, keeping the Rapids from finding the back of the net. Smith noted the missing "quality" throughout the first half, and was perhaps more disappointed with his club's play in victory than he had been with their loss a week ago against Chivas.
"In the first half we had a lot of possession," Smith said. "At important moments quality failed us. Choice of pass, some of the decisions -- one springs to mind where Mehdi [Ballouchy] found himself in a very unusual position attacking their back forward. They defended very well, very stoutly in the first half. And he chooses to pick a pass rather than drive at defenders and commit them. That really for me was the story of the first half."
With Mastroeni away and Cooke starting on the sideline, quality was a precious commodity. The Rapids showed the ability to create chances that defined them last season, but the vital finishing touch remained lacking.
The Rapids halftime adjustments were key, with the side coming out even quicker, more determined to find the feet of their forwards. Much of that was set up before Cooke took to the pitch, but his reputation as one of the league's best playmakers proved well-earned as he set up the game winner for Clark and Cummings, a beautifully executed counter-attack that fulfilled all the promise the club had shown earlier in the match with the added element of a quality finish.
"That was one of the only plays in the game that had a real edge to it," Smith said. "It had pace, it had more clinical passing. It had real determination about it. It was an attack that from start to finish, all three people involved, looked like they were going to create something. Terry's ball. Colin chugging to it on a pace and drove inside, Omar's energy to join him was wonderful and at sheer pace he slots it home with a real edge. That was one of very few occasions that we looked like a team that might win the game."
It was the perfect recipe, combining the team's trademark speed with a clinical precision that Smith has been striving for in preseason.
"We have a lot of speed on our team, so when we go to counter, we're good," said Clark. "Cookie played a great ball to me, I started running at my defender, and Omar's faster than just about anybody in the league, so it's an easy choice for me. Just play it to the top of the 18 and let him run to it."
If anything, it's encouraging to see a coach so disappointed with his side's play after a big win at home. Smith found fault with the defense, stressing their flat shape and their vulnerability if a ball slipped past a defender, and he was nothing short of repulsed by the ratio of shots taken shots on goal, charging his players to step up their game if they expect to contend to anything of consequence.
But he couldn't complain about the ultimate result, taking three points at home before hitting the road for the next three weeks. The challenge of finding the right midfield combination remains at the top of the list that includes improving an attack that falls short of finishing too often and solidifying a defense that has underachieved in its first two matches of the season.
With so many crucial questions lingering in the early spring air, one answer was irrefutable.
"It was Terry that won the game for us," Smith said. "He is an extremely valuable member of the group. You've seen what a good professional he is. He comes on. He attacks the game. And on this occasion he wins it. He did win it for us. No two ways."
Owen Perkins is a contributor to MLSnet.com
