SALT LAKE CITY -- Tino Nunez hasn't received the same degree of fanfare as several other players acquired by Real Salt Lake during this past offseason. But the rookie forward is quickly showing he might rival any first-year player on the roster before the season is in the books.
Nunez made a game-turning play in the 60th minute, scoring the go-ahead goal to lift RSL to a 2-1 home victory against the New England Revolution on Saturday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
It was the first career MLS goal for the former California-Santa Barbara star and it helped Real extend their unbeaten streak to five games -- tying a club record.
Nunez barely registered as more than a footnote when the season began, buried deep on the roster behind Kenny Deuchar, Robbie Findley, Fabian Espindola and Yura Movsisyan. But injuries to Espindola and Movsisyan opened up a quick path to daylight and valuable playing time.
When Findley went down with a mild concussion shortly before halftime, Nunez knew his chance to shine had arrived. And he was determined to make it count.
"That's my main focus right now," Nunez said. "Any a little chance I get, (I) just try to make the best out of it. Things are going well so far."
Things especially went well in the 60th minute when the rookie forward snapped a 1-1 tie in dramatic fashion.
Javier Morales collected the ball near the top of the area and let fly from long distance. His shot was deflected and the ball fell right to the feet of Nunez. He drove toward Matt Reis alone and, as the goalkeeper came off his line, rifled the ball behind him into an empty net.
Playing such a crucial role in taking down the Revolution is a satisfying moment for Nunez, who has worked hard in training sessions over the past month to earn the right to move up. It is also a big deal to teammates who feel like he has been rewarded for his dedication.
"No one has worked harder than him," fellow rookie Tony Beltran said. "It's great to see him get a winning goal tonight. He deserved it."
Real could argue for being equally deserving of a much-needed home victory against New England after stringing together a series of strong defensive performances in recent weeks.
RSL kept it going again against New England. Real extended their shutout streak to 283 minutes -- a new club record -- before yielding the match's first goal.
"Statistically, they're No. 1 and we've proven that we can play with the best teams in this league," Real goalkeeper Nick Rimando said.
It was a little bit of a scary moment when the Revs did score early. New England went up 1-0 in the eighth minute when Adam Cristman nodded the ball past Rimando.
New England goalkeeper Matt Reis set the goal up when he sent a long clearance downfield. While RSL defender Nat Borchers backtracked, Rimando came off his line as the ball bounced high into the air. Cristman then slipped inside Borchers and headed the ball over Rimando from the top of the area.
The Revolution did not enjoy their lead for very long. RSL tied it up in the 11th minute when Jay Heaps deflected the ball backward past Reis. Javier Morales swung a free kick into the center of the area to Robbie Findley. Heaps tried to block Findley as he went for a header, but ended up instead heading it past Reis.
Once RSL added a goal of its own to the tally, keeping New England in check turned out to be a simple task down the stretch.
"What's most pleasing about the win tonight was the way we handled ourselves when we had the one-goal lead," RSL coach Jason Kreis said. "It shows that we're learning and we're improving. We finished that game off the way a good team does."
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