SANDY, Utah -- A host of bad memories lingered with Real Salt Lake after New York made its first visit to Rio Tinto Stadium last month.
The Red Bulls spoiled Real's inaugural game in their brand new stadium by forcing a 1-1 draw. In a game bombarded with hype and emotion leading up to it, RSL seemed uncharacteristically passive for much of the 90-minute match.
Midfielder Will Johnson thinks RSL cannot afford to repeat such a scenario when New York returns to Utah to decide the Western Conference Championship and the final spot in MLS Cup 2008 on Saturday.
"We just got to put in a lot more energy," Johnson said. "We were flat that game."
Energy really should not be much of an issue this time around. RSL are flush with a degree of success few people inside or outside the organization thought possible before the season began.
And the Utah side has gotten this far by not getting complacent. Even after taking a 1-0 lead in their two-game aggregate series against Chivas USA, RSL amped up the attack when it traveled to southern California.
Real ultimately forced a 2-2 draw and claimed a 3-2 series win by pushing into the final third like a team possessed and forcing Chivas back on its heels throughout the match. It is that kind of mentality that players like starting defender Chris Wingert hope to see materialize again this weekend.
"There's no substitute for hard work and I think that's the reason we've been successful," Wingert said. "But, at the same time, we realize there's a huge opportunity in front of us and we can't be satisfied at this point. There really should be no talk of a championship at this point. All of our focus should be on this weekend and the conference finals and that's it."
Indeed, RSL must realize the Red Bulls offer a hefty challenge to any continued postseason survival. New York eliminated two-time defending MLS champion Houston with ease during its aggregate series with the Dynamo.
The Red Bulls offer a pair of dangerous playmakers in Dane Richards and Juan Pablo Angel. Richards had a hand in creating all three goals in New York's 3-0 second-leg rout of Houston and Angel found the net during both legs of the aggregate series. Slowing both of them will be a key for Real generating any sustained attack on the other end of the pitch.
At the same time, RSL must find a way to ignore its recent history against the Red Bulls. The Utah side is an underwhelming 0-2-6 in eight meetings between the clubs and New York remains the only MLS team that RSL has not yet defeated.
Real coach Jason Kreis sees this as a perfect opportunity for his players to show how far they've come since the last time they faced the Red Bulls.
"It's fresh in our minds," Kreis said of the draw versus New York in October. "I think our guys were overly emotional. I think our guys became frustrated with the fact they couldn't create as many chances as they were used to. And here you go. Here's a chance for them to show what they've learned."
One could argue that RSL is due for a letdown after relying on late game dramatics -- particularly from Yura Movsisyan -- to get them this far. But for Real, the way they have been able to finish out games is simply a testament to a growth in confidence and the result of team-wide hard work.
"You definitely make your own luck," Wingert said. "Sometimes you get a lucky bounce or an unlucky bounce for sure. But the better teams tend to shine through in the end."
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