Houston Dynamo Player Ratings:
Tally Hall (5) - Yes, Hall got schooled on the penalty kick diving in the wrong direction, but it's much harder to save a PK than to make one. Hall can't be blamed for the midfield defensive mistakes, but his defense didn't look too organized either.
Kofi Sarkodie (6) -Sarkodie helped transition the ball to the offensive side, but didn't look as comfortable with Creavalle in front of him as he usually does with Boniek. His highlight of the match came in the 62nd minute when he jumped in front of Ned Grabavoy preventing a great cross which allowed Hall to recover the ball.
Jermaine Taylor (5.5) - Taylor was pretty quiet overall against RSL. He looked to get involved in the attack here and there and was caught too far forward at least once. He made his fair share of tackles and marking, but nothing really stood out about the performance.
Bobby Boswell (6) - Boswell kept the defensive line from falling apart which had a tough time dealing with RSL's 4-3-3 formation. He was a big reason why the Dynamo only allowed one goal.
Corey Ashe (6) - Ashe also had a relatively quiet night, but he made up for it by being in the right places at the right times. He was quick to adjust to RSL's quick counter threats and was able to get the ball up to Davis well.
Ricardo Clark, MotM, (6.5) - Clark was doing a lot for the Dynamo. He pushed the ball up, created dangerous counter attacks after dispossessing RSL, and was quick to get back on defense. Clark could have put a few of his shots on target, but every shot the Dynamo had ended up either in Rimando's hands or to the side/over the goal.
Adam Moffat (5) - Moffat really struggled with RSL's formation. His passing didn't look impressive, and he looked lost at times after getting passed around. His "foul" that led to the penalty did not look like much of anything, but sometimes if you give someone an opportunity to go down in the box they'll do it regardless of how much contact there was.
Warren Creavalle (6) - Creavalle took Boniek's place at RM due to a late injury, but Creavalle also found himself playing up top when the Dynamo switched to a 4-3-3 formation after RSL's goal. Creavalle played pretty well in this position, but couldn't transition back to defense quickly.
Brad Davis (6.5) - All of the Dynamo attacks really came through Davis or Clark. Davis pushed the ball well, and looked calm over the ball, but in the end the offense just couldn't find the net. Davis was also guilty of over doing it with the long balls from time to time.
Giles Barnes (6) - Barnes looked strong early on and really pressed the ball and counter attacks well. As the game wore on, his striking partner disappeared, and so did Barnes. Barnes too frequently drifted into his natural midfield position, usually to help defend, but by doing so he left Bruin on a lonely island up top.
Will Bruin (5.5) - Maybe the dancing bear hasn't returned to form after all. Very often he looked lost and really didn't look threatening. The addition of new DP Alex Lopez and the return of Carr should help this team or at the very least help Bruin.
The Subs:
Jason Johnson (5.5) - JJ came on for Warren Creavalle and looked to help spark our 4-3-3, but this change didn't amount for much and gave up a lot of the defensive work Creavalle put in. Johnson will get more playing time as our schedule becomes tighter and hopefully he'll find the net soon.
Cam Weaver (6) - Weaver came on for Bruin and he ended up tracking back a lot to help recover in the midfield. Weaver didn't look all that threatening, but put in his usual off the ball work that helps push things forward.
Oscar Boniek Garcia (-) - This game could have been completely different had Boniek not been injured and started.
Coach Dominic Kinnear (6) - I don't think Kinnear saw RSL's formation switch coming, but he did his best to stop it. Let's think about it. RSL is the top team in the league currently, and they won 1-0 on a soft (at best) penalty kick. A lot of things went right: defense being in the right position, transitioning to offense/counter attacking, and moving the ball. A lot of things went wrong: we outshot RSL and couldn't find the net, transitioning to defense/defending against the counter in the midfield, and tactically it is unwise to strand bears up top. Overall we really missed Boniek's creative abilities and his defensive tenacity in the midfield.