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MLS Colorado Rapids

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May 8, 2006 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Colorado Rapids News Release


Rapids vs. Crew Head-to-Head

The Rapids have a 14-5-5 all-time regular season record against the Columbus Crew and split the season series last year with each team winning on their home pitch. Colorado has outscored Columbus both at home and on the road 40 goals to 29. The Rapids' record when playing in Ohio is 6-4-2 and an overwhelming 8-1-3 record in Colorado, including a 4-0-2 record at INVESCO Field.

Colorado-Columbus Connections

There are several connections between these two charter MLS clubs, in the player, coaching and even broadcast areas. Current Rapids Assistant Coach John Murphy spent one season (2004) with the Crew before joining the Rapids in 2005. Current Rapids players Eric Denton, Matt Jordan and Chris Wingert played with the Crew, while Columbus defender Ritchie Kotschau spent five seasons with the Rapids. Finally, current Crew TV personality Robin Fraser spent 3 seasons in Colorado.

World Cup Send-Off

The Colorado Rapids held a special send-off ceremony for Team Captain Pablo Mastroeni that took place at halftime of their match against DC United last Saturday, May 6. On behalf of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, Rapids VP and Managing Director Jeff Plush presented Mastroeni with Colorado and USA flags to take with him on his trip to Germany. Clint Mathis presented him with a framed US National Team jersey that had been signed with good luck wishes from all his Rapids teammates and the Rapids coaching staff, and members of the Rapids' Supporters Clubs presented Pablo with a giant banner that read "Good Luck Pablo: Do Colorado and the USA Proud"! The banner had been out for fans to sign at the supporters clubs' pregame tailgates at the last 2 home games and was decorated with hundreds of good luck wishes.

In the Scoring Race

Rapids forward Jovan Kirovski has scored four goals in five Rapids games, setting him in second place of MLS's Golden Boot race. Kirovski is second only to Houston's Brian Ching, who has scored 7 goals in 6 games, five of them against Colorado.

Assist Man Terry Cooke

Englishman Terry Cooke's four assists in five games have him tied for first place in that department in the league. The top spot is shared by Cooke with Houston's Dwayne DeRosario and the Galaxy's Landon Donovan. The former Manchester United midfielder is currently tied for the Rapids record for the most assists in one game, along with Colombian international Carlos Valderrama and former Rapids stalwart Ross Paule.

Local Talent Gets Playing Time

Continuing with their constant efforts to identify and develop local talent, the Colorado Rapids have already had two local players on the pitch representing the club this year. Fort Collins native Colin Clark, who played at all levels in the state of Colorado, made his MLS debut with the Rapids on Saturday, April 29 in the 1-0 loss to the Houston Dynamo. Another local talent, Danniel Wasson, who grew up in Colorado Springs, made his debut this past weekend in the 2-1 win over DC United. The Rapids have the third most local players in their roster of all the six Western Conference teams, and the fourth most in Major League Soccer. The Galaxy and Chivas USA lead the pack, followed by the Red Bulls. Here is the count of local players with their respective club: Chivas USA (10 players born in CA); Los Angeles Galaxy (9 players born in CA); Red Bulls (6 players born in NY/NJ); Colorado Rapids (5 players born in CO); DC United (4 players born in DC metro area); Chicago (2 players born in IL), New England (2 players born in NH and RI), Dallas (2 players born in TX), RSL (2 players born in UT); Houston (1 player born in TX), Kansas City (1 player born in MO) and Columbus (1 player born in OH).

DC & Columbus Go Winless All-Time at INVESCO Field

With the 2-1 win over DC United last Saturday, May 6th, the Rapids have closed another page in the team's history. With their victory over DC, they assured an all-time undefeated record against United at INVESCO Field at Mile High. Saturday's game was the last time United will ever play at Invesco Field, with the Rapids moving to their new stadium next season. The Rapids never lost to DC at Invesco, recording a 4-0-2 record against DC and outscoring them 7 goals to 3 since 2002, the first year of the Rapids' occupancy at the stadium. The Rapids hold the same record against the Columbus Crew, having never dropped a game to that Eastern Conference team either at Invesco Field.

Rapids All-Time vs. Opponents at INVESCO

The Rapids will be opening their new stadium in Commerce City in April 2007, and as they close their final season at INVESCO Field, the numbers tell the story of a home field advantage that will only increase at the new facility. DC and Columbus have already played their final games at the stadium and the records will be updated as opponents play their final games at the mile high venue this season.

Rapids Final All-Time Records vs. Opponents at INVESCO Field:

vs. DC United (4-0-2)

vs. Columbus (4-0-2)

Karanka's Debut

Spanish central defender Aitor Karanka made his official debut with the Rapids in Saturday's 2-1 win over DC United. Karanka, who began his professional career in 1992 and spent a total of seven seasons with Athletic Bilbao before being sold to Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid in 1997, played a solid game, going the full 90 minutes in the match. During his five year stint with Real Madrid, Karanka played in all European competitions, winning 3 European Champions League Trophies (1997-1998, 1999-2000 and 2001-2002), 1 Intercontinental Cup (1998), 1 League Cup (2000-2001) and 2 Spanish Super Cups (1997-1998, 2000-2001)

Rapids Reserves This Week

The Rapids Reserves, who won their second game in a row to start the season 2-0 over the Houston Dynamo Reserves on Sunday, April 30th, will play two games in the next six days. The team will take on the Boulder Rapids Reserve PDL side this Tuesday, May 9th at 5:00pm (MT) at Pleasant View Fields in Boulder, CO in an exhibition match. The team will then travel to Columbus, where they will take on the Columbus Reserves on Sunday, May 14 at 9:00 am (MT). While the Rapids Reserve side maintain their unbeaten status (2-0-0, 6pts), the Crew's Reserves (0-2-0. 0pts) have yet to win a game in this year's MLS Reserve Division. Newly acquired Rapids forward Thiago Martins leads the Reserve Division in scoring, with 3 goals and one assist in two games played, one of them for his former club, Red Bull New York.

One-On-One: Mastroeni and the Rapids

Colorado Rapids Team Captain Pablo Mastroeni is the star in the current edition of Altitude's show "One on One". The show, which is hosted by Mike Haynes, is designed to show the real person behind the public figure and allow fans to get to know their stars in a more personal way. The show began airing on Altitude last Friday, May 5th and fans can currently catch it in Altitude's rotation.

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