Houston had not beaten the Galaxy in Los Angeles since 2007, a span in which it has gone 0-6-1. The last two visits to Los Angeles though were the most painful for the Dynamo, as they finished as runners up to the Galaxy in the 2011 and 2012 MLS Cup Finals, played at the Home Depot Center.

However, a new season brings a fresh start and a chance to write a new story, and the Dynamo did just that on Sunday night, as keeper Tally Hall denied Landon Donovan at the penalty spot in the first half and Andrew Driver’s one-time volley on the run of play in the second half were the key plays in the Dynamo’s 1-0 win over Los Angeles on Sunday night.

“Overall, we’re very pleased,” Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear said. “The defending was good, we took our chance very well and still created some other chances as well.”

The first key moment came in the 24th minute. Donovan sprung striker Jose Villarreal for the penalty area, Hall left his line to beat Villarreal to the ball, but he ended up taking down the striker just inside the box and referee Allen Chapman whistled for the penalty spot. Hall was fortunate to avoid the same fate that befuddled Chivas USA keeper Dan Kennedy earlier in the day when Kennedy was sent off for impeding Sporting Kansas City’s Claudio Bieler from behind after the striker had evaded the keeper inside the penalty area. Hall further amends for his mistake a minute later, as he guessed correctly on the penalty. Donovan shot right and Hall parried the shot away.

“At the end of the day, it’s not really as easy as it used to be because goalies are now more prepared than they used to be, but the reality is that I got to make them,” Donovan said regarding the penalty.

The Dynamo then broke through in the 57th minute. Center Back Bobby Boswell sent a long ball for Giles Barnes, who chased the pass down from the right side into the LA penalty area and withstood the challenge from LA Center Back Omar Gonzalez. Barnes then crossed a ball, which went to the tip of the box, but Driver, who was trailing the play, swooped in from behind and unleashed a powerful one-time volley that snuck past Galaxy keeper Carlo Cudicini, beating him near post to put Houston ahead.

“From there, it was just a gamble,” Driver said of the strike. “I tried to catch up with the play, the ball fell to me and the rest is history.”

Houston maintained the lead throughout the second half, though the Galaxy thought it should have had another penalty in stoppage time, when a volley by Marcelo Sarvas off a corner appeared to have glanced off near the hand area of Houston’s Jermaine Taylor, but Chapman let play continue despite the Galaxy’s plea for a handball.

“We played poorly tonight and deserved to lose,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “We weren’t good in all phases of the game tonight.”

Not that those were the only chances the two teams created on the night. LA had the first good look at goal eight minutes in when Mike Magee curled a volley towards the left post, but the shot barely missed, while Houston’s best chance at a first half goal in the 15th minute, as Boswell headed Oscar Boniek Garcia’s corner right at goal, but Cudicini parried away the chance.

Sunday’s game is the start of a busy week for the Dynamo, as they travel to the nation’s capital to face DC United on Wednesday, followed by a home match against Kansas City next Sunday. The Galaxy meanwhile will look to pick themselves back, as they begin their own three-games-a-week span on Saturday with a trip to Philadelphia to face the Union at PPL Park.

Yet the drama displayed by Chivas and the Quakes at the Home Depot Center on Saturday night was just as intense and entertaining. Chivas answered Chris Wondolowski’s late first half strike with goals from Marco De Luna and Tristan Bowen early in the second half, only to see San Jose’s Cordell Cato snatch the win away from their grasp late in the second half and the two teams settled for a 2-2 draw on Saturday night.

“A little disappointed, but at the same time, we’re happy with the draw,” Chivas midfielder Jorge Vllafana, who had a hand in both goals, though he was credited with an official assist on just the second goal. “Nothing’s easy, three points would’ve been better, but we’ll take the point and just keep working.”

The Earthquakes opened the match scoring in the 40th minute. Striker Steven Lenhart won a free kick deep on the left side of Chivas USA’s side of the field. Midfielder Shea Salinas delivered the set piece into the Chivas penalty area and Wondolowski leaped to head the ball past keeper Dan Kennedy into the back net.

Chivas USA came out firing to start the second half, tying the match two minutes in as Villafana’s cross into the San Jose penalty area was shot at goal by De Luna, keeper Jon Busch denied the defender’s shot but the ball went back to De Luna and he fired the rebound chance past Busch into the back post area for the equalizer.

The Goats weren’t done yet, as they pulled ahead in the 51st minute. Villafana sent in another cross from the left into the penalty area and stayed there until Bowen charged in and volleyed a chance past Busch into the back net to give Chivas the lead.

“We pushed it,” Bowen said of Chivas’ start to the second half. “The guys responded to what Chelis asked for and we were lucky to get the first goal and from there, the second goal just came.”

Chivas USA maintained the lead into the 76th minute, but the Earthquakes eventually came back with an equalizer of their own, as Salinas crossed a ball from the left into the Chivas penalty area and Cato came in and one-timed a ball past Kennedy far post to level the match one last time.

“I thought we could’ve had five to six goals tonight,” Earthquakes head coach Frank Yallop said. We had some really good looks and some really good chances. It was a frustrating night for us.”

Chivas will be on the road the next two weeks, starting next Sunday afternoon against Sporting Kansas City. San Jose will return home next Saturday night for host the Montreal Impact.

The Galaxy did just that on Saturday night, and their top performer was a familiar face, as Landon Donovan set up LA’s first goal in the first half, then found the back net himself in the second half as the Galaxy brought red-hot Kansas City back down to Earth woth a 2-0 win at the Home Depot Center.

“A more complete match for us,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “We were pretty solid for 90 minutes, obviously not perfect, we haven’t closed games the right way this year, haven’t played well the last 15 minutes of games and tonight, we changed that.”

The LA win maintais an early-season tie with Real Salt Lake for second place in the Western Conference after the latter had defeated Chivas USA 1-0 in a hotly contested affair at Rio Tinto Stadium. Sporting Kansas City meanwhile saw its six-match unbeaten streak come to and end and also its shutout streak, which had lasted 545 minutes, the fifth longest shutout streak in league history.

“They were good tonight,” Sporting Kansas City head coach Peter Vermes said of the Galaxy’s effort. “They were good from front to back and I thought their energy was good.”

The Galaxy relied on the counteratack for most of the night and its first goal came on a counter, as Donovan forced a Sporting giveaway and broke for the Sporting penalty area. Sarvas sent a ball to the left side for a sprinting Donovan, who then raced into the penalty area, withstood defender Aurélien Collin’s attempt to defend him and played a ball into the six-yard box and Sarvas swooped in and tapped in the point-blank shot attempt. The Galaxy though were fortunate to avoid a handball call against them prior to the goal that was apparently missed by referee Jair Marrufo when Oriol Rosell tried to win a loose ball, Rosell’s sliding tackle saw the ball go off Sarvas’ hand, but play continued, much to the dismay of Sporting Kansas City.

“He (Sarvas) should’ve just palmed it,” Joked Vermes regarding the missed handball call. “He should’ve gotten an immediate foul  for palming.”

The Galaxy made it a two-goal lead in the 74th minute and it also came via the counter. After clearing out a dangerous ball in their own penalty area, Sarvas fed a ball towards striker Robbie Keane, and the striker made a crafty spin move that forced his marker, midfielder Paulo Nagamura, to slip, thus freeing himself to chase down Sarvas’ ball. Keane’s long sprint into the SKC penalty area drew out keeper Jimmy Nielsen, Donovan had joined Keane on the counter and Keane chose to play the ball to Donovan, and with Nielsen scrambling to get back to his position, Donovan finished the open net chance.,

“I was debating whether to actually make the run,” Donovan said. “I just decided to go, I don’t know if Robbie saw me, I didn’t think he saw me to be honest, and the pass he made was more difficult than people think. The pace was perfect and he made it real easy for me.”

Despite being outplayed for a good portion of the match, which could be attributed to fatigue as a result of having to play the Red Bulls 3,000 miles away in New York back on Wednesday, Sporting Kansas City did have some good looks in the first half, the first coming when CJ Sapong, with help from a teammate, pressured Donovan into a giveaway, took the ball and broke for goal, but shot was saved by keeper Carlo Cudicini. SKC’s best chance however came in the 20th minute off a set piece. Graham Zusi touched a ball to Nagamura, who then touched it back to Zusi. The midfielder then launched a dangerous volley towards the upper part of the goal, but the ball instead bounced off the crossbar.

“We turned them over quite a few times before their goal,” Vermes said. “All of a sudden, we start chasing, then it sits in your mind, you start to get fatigued and we get opened up.”

The Galaxy will next get their shot at Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto next Saturday evening while Sporting Kansas City will return home to face the Portland Timbers, also on Saturday evening.

Unfortunately for Chivas, the bad luck that had plauged the squad the previous three seasons came back to rear its ugly head on Saturday night. Whether it was squandering chances in the penalty box, or conceding a penalty, then missing a penalty themselves later in the match, Chivas’ good fortune turned out to be just brief, at least for the moment. Deshorn Brown’s penalty in the seventh minute was all the Rapids need to take home the three points as the Rapids ended the Goats’ unbeaten streak at four matches with a 1-0 win over Chivas at the Home Depot Center.

“I lick my wounds; we were crap,” Chivas USA head coach Jose Luis “El Chelis” Sanchez Sola said.“This is not about having opportunities or being worthy or merited. That’s how it is. Today wasn’t for us.”

Colorado drew the first chance of the match beginning in the 6th minute when Dillon Powers played a ball forward to an unmarked Brown, who collected the ball and made his way into the penalty area. Chivas midfielder Eric Avila came from behind to challenge Brown, but ended up taking Brown’s legs out from under him and referee Kevin Stott immediately whistled for the penalty spot. Brown converted the penalty in the 7th minute, as he went left while keeper Dan Kennedy went to his right.

“Deshorn did a good job drawing the PK,” Rapids striker Edson Buddle said of Brown’s effort. “As a young player and a rookie, he stepped up and and felt like he could conver the PK.”

Chivas immediately pushed for the equalizer, and thought it should have gone to the penally spot themselves int he 33rd minute when Jorge Villafana tried to fight off Atiba Harris’ challenge in the Rapids’ penalty area. Villafana looked to have been taken down by Harris and Stott did blow his whistle, but instead of a foul on Harris and a trip to the penalty spot, Stott called Villafana for diving and gave him a yellow card for it.

Stott did send Chivas to the penalty spot around the 35th minute when Shane O’Neill wrestled down Jose Correa in the six-yard box as the two tried to get to a ball sent in by Laurent Courtois. Correa stepped up to the penalty spot, but the striker instead sent his penalty off the crossbar and a long rebound attempt by Carlos Alvarez outside the box was parried away by keeper Clint Irwin.

“We were unfortunate,” said Alvarez. “The effort wasn’t there, so I’m sure that’s what coach is referring to. He’s a talented coach, so he knows what he’s saying.”

Chivas had another shot just before halftime, as Eric Avila crossed a ball into the six, Villafana’s header went in the air, but stayed in the six, Tristan Bowen tried to head the ball himself towards goal to no avail, though he did get to the ball befoer it crossed the endline. Bowen laid a ball back to a charging Courtois, but the midfielder instead sent his volley over the framework.

“We weren’t very decisive, we weren’t very convincing compared to our last games,” Chelis said.  “Sometimes we hit the jackpot, today we didn’t. We know the road ahead of us is a tough road, but it’s the only road we have.”

Chivas will try to boucne back next next Saturday, though it won’t be easy, as they travel to Utah to face Real Salt Lake. Colorado meanwhile returns home to face the Seattle Sounders, also on Saturday April 20.

Hosting Mexico’s C.F. Monterrey in the first leg of its semifinal matchup of the CONCACAF Champions League Tournament, LA got a first half strike from AJ DeLaGarza and took the lead well into the second half. A one-goal lead going into next week’s second leg in Monterrey seemed to be well in hand for the Galaxy.

Monterrey however displayed the fortitude that had enabled them to win this tournament the last two years inside the final 10 minutes, as goals from Humberto Suazo and Aldo De Nigris propelled them to a comeback 2-1 win at the Home Depot Center on Wednesday night and thus makes LA’s situation a whole lot tougher going into the second leg.

“We actually played a very good game tonight,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “A little more experience and a little more quality and we win this game by a couple of goals. Credit to Monterrey for their quality and playing the full 90 minutes.

LA grabbed the lead in the 28th minute when striker Jose Villarreal sprinted into the 18-yard box, then played a ball to fellow striker Robbie Keane. Keane then floated a ball into the six-yard box towards midfielder Mike Magee, whose header then went to AJ DeLaGarza and the Right Back flicked a ball off his back-heel past keeper Juan de Dios Ibarra into the back net.

LA took the lead deep into the second half, but just when it looked like Los Angeles would take an all-important one-goal lead into Monterrey next week, the visitors erupted. Monterrey pushed across the equalizer in the 82nd minute, as De Nigris headed a ball towards goal, it was denied by keeper Carlo Cudicini, but the ball went to the feet of Suzao, who immediately shot for goat. Suazo shanked a first attempt, but the ball stayed at his feet and the striker did not miss a second time, sending the ball past Cudicini to even the score.

“We were tired and they (Monterrey) were pushing numbers forward,” DeLaGarza said. “They were getting after it, they knew they had to get a goal back, and all that wore us out.”

Monterrey wasn’t done yet, and pushed ahead just as stoppage time loomed, as Luis Guillermo Madrigal sent a ball into the penalty area, De Nigris brought the ball down, then sent a shot past Cudicini into the back net for the go-ahead goal.

“You just have to be able to find the right time to turn it around on the field,” Monterrey head coach Victor Manuel Vucetich said of Monterrey’s comeback. “It’s not like you concentrate all your efforts on one part of the actual match, you have to play the full 90 minutes to win the match.”

The Galaxy played well in the first half, getting its first chance in the 18th minute, as Magee bended a ball towards goal, but was parried away by Ibarra. LA had chances to add to its lead, the first coming in the second half as Keane laid a ball just outside the six for midfielder Sean Franklin, but could not convert the point-blank chance. LA had another chance to make it a two-goal game in the 67th minute when Magee took a Michael Stephens thrown-in, sprinted for the penalty area and laid a ball for an unmarked Keane, but Ibarra just managed to parry away Keane’s shot.

The momentum though began to swing towards Monterrey, starting in the 61st minute when midfielder Juninho had to leave the match after a hard collision resulted in an injured ankle, not that Monterrey wasn’t already pressing before then. Monterrey was almost gifted a goal in the 52nd minute, as Suazo pounced on a giveaway and broke for goal. Suazo fired away, but was turned back by Cudicini. De Nigris also had a chance at goal, his coming in the 75th minute, but his header just missed the back post.

Real Salt Lake defeated Western Conference rivals Seattle Sounders with a 2-1 win at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday. The home team scored through Robbie Findley and Luis Gil in the first half, whereas as the visitors pulled one back through Brad Evans.

Both teams were going into the game with poor form by their standards. Although Alvaro Saborio was out with a  knee injury, Real Salt Lake was able to welcome back Kyle Beckerman, Tony Beltran and Nick Rimando, all of whom missed the previous game due to international call-ups. Seattle Sounders started with the much-anticipated strike pairing of Eddie Johnson and  Obafemi Martins.

The home team played the near perfect first-half, starting off with an early chance for Devon Sandovall from a low cross from Abdoulie Mansally. The forward’s first touch wasn’t perfect and his shot was saved by the Seattle keeper Michael Gspurring.

The goal came in the 8^th minute after a persistent Robbie Findley scored from a scrap after the Sounders defense failed to clear their lines amidst some battering physical presence from Devon Sandoval. The goal settled some early nerves for RSL, who, until that point, haven’t scored in the last 408 minutes against Seattle and haven’t had a goal-scorer other than Saborio this season.

The goal set the pace for the half as Real Salt Lake allowed the opposition very little time on the ball and kept winning challenges high up the pitch. Luis Gil’s second attempt at the ball found Joao Plata in the box in the 26^th minute, whose low shot went wide of the goal. Sandoval continued to out-muscle the Sounders defense and in the 32nd minute he flicked-on to Gravaboy, who couldn’t find the net.

The home team did suffer a setback following the goal as the goal-scorer Findley hobbled off the pitch with a left abductor strain.

As effective as Sandoval’s physical game had been up to that point, his finishing was found wanting as he couldn’t extend the lead in the 34^th minute from a Mansally cross. The rebound found Gil, whose shot was saved by Gspurning.  However, the visitors’ luck ran out when a resulting short corner found Luis Gil,  whose composed header found the bottom rightft-corner in the 35^th minute. RSL continued to press for a third throughout the remainder of the first-half. Joao Plata, who came in for Findley, could have killed the game when he found Gspurring in a one-on-one situation from an innocuous long ball. His effort was saved by the Seattle keeper.

Despite their lackluster first half-performance, the sheer pace of Obafemi Martins and Eddie Johnson was always a potential threat for the RSL defenders, who were playing a high line for most of the half. The best Seattle chance came in the 41^st minute when Martins ran past the RSL defense, but his shot at the near post was saved by Rimando.

The second-half started out as a more even contest, with the visitors beginning to get a foothold in the game. Sounders created a good chance in the 54^th minute when a cross from the left flank was headed towards goal by Brad Evans, but was ably saved by Rimando. The hosts had a good chance of their own when a flick-on from Sandoval released Plata for another clear-cut opportunity. Gspurring kept the Sounders in the game with another save.

The Sounders finally found a breakthrough in the 57^th minute from a Yedlin cross which deflected off Tony Beltran and sat up conveniently for Evans. The midfielder’s well-placed volley beat Rimando in the bottom corner.

RSL reacted positively after conceding the goal and rather than protecting their one-goal lead, the home team and increased the tempo and kept the pressure on their opponents. Although he couldn’t finish off from any of the one-on-one chances, Plata’s movement and ability to take on defenders created half-chances throughout the second half.  The Ecuadorian forward was well-complemented by Sandoval, whose ability to hold up possession in opposition territory ensured that Plata as well as RSL midfielders could make threatening runs into the Sounders box.

The away side, however, had an opportunity to level the score in the 72^nd minute against the run of play when a fortuitous ball into the RSL box caught the Sounders attackers by surprise, who had anticipated an offside call. The referee’s flag stayed down and Sounders’ poor reaction to the situation allowed RSL to get away with the defensive lapse.

As the game progressed towards the latter stages, the Sounders seemed to run out of steam and despite seeing more of the ball in the last 10 minutes with RSL defense predictively dropping deep, they created no clear-cut opportunities. In fact, it was the home side who should’ve had a deserved third goal when Sandoval set-up the returning Javier Morales into space. The midfielder was challenged by Jhon Hurtado when he seemed on-course for goal and there were loud claims from RSL camp who believed that he might have been clipped by the Seattle defender inside the box. The referee turned down the appeal and RSL were able to see through till the final whistle without letting the decision have too much bearing on the outcome.

The much-needed victory takes Real Salt Lake to seven points from three games as well as momentum carrying into their away game against Colorado Rapids on April 6.  Seattle Sounders continue their woeful start to the season with their third defeat, leaving them with a solitary point from four games and at the bottom of the Western Conference.

Last season, particularly towards the end, Chivas USA lost games and lost them without showing a whole lot of fight. This year however, the fight and more importantly, the results are more than present for the Goats. Led by Carlos Alvarez’s goal and assist, Chivas USA collected points for the fourth straight week courtesy of a 2-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps at the Home Depot Center.

“I thought we could’ve had four goals tonight,” Kennedy said. “The attack looks god for us, and that obviously takes the pressure off our defense.”

The win is Chivas’ third win in its last four games and factoring in its 1-1 draw against the LA Galaxy back on March 17, it is now unbeaten it its last four matches since losing its season opener. More importantly, Chivas USA currently sits in second place in the Western Conference with a 3-1-1 record and 10 points.

“We’ve talked about how important team chemistry is in this league, and the only way to build it is to get positive results,” Chivas USA keeper Dan Kennedy said. “It’s important for us to get these results early in the season and build on it, and we’re doing it, we’re walking the walk.”

Chivas struck in the 12th minute, as Carlos Alvarez had the ball on the left side, took a few dribbles and volley a shot on goal that took a deflection off Vancouver’s Jun Marques Davidson and got past Whitecaps keeper Joe Cannon into the back net to give Chivas the early lead.

Chivas eventually took the lead into halftime, then doubled it in the 55th minute when Alvarez crossed a ball into the box towards Eric Avila and the midfielder sent a one-time volley off his right foot that beat Joe Cannon to the back post. Vancouver did pull one back in the 64th minute when Mattocks touched a ball to Daigo Kobayashi, igniting a Whitecaps counter, Kobayashi played a ball forward to Erik Hurtado on the right side, Hurtado took a few dribbles, then fired a shot on goal just outside the penalty area, Kennedy parried the ball away initially, but the ball went to striker Kenny Miller, who then headed the ball into an empty net, cutting Chivas’ lead in half.

“All the guys in the locker room are great,” Avila said. “Everyone’s on the same page, no one is doing any individual stuff, we’re all working together.”

Energized by the goal, Vancouver pressed for the equalizer, and got its first good look in the 80th minute off a free kick that went to defender Brad Rusin, who then touched a ball for an unmarked Darren Mattocks, who was inside the six. Mattocks however pulled his chance over the framework. The Whitecaps’ best chance at an equalizer came in the 90th minute, when Miller sprung Kekuta Manneh on a breakaway for goal, Kennedy came off his line to contest Manneh and his pressure combined with a bad first touch from Manneh forced him to pull his attempt off wide right.

Chivas’ next match will not be for another two weeks, when it hosts the Colorado Rapids on April 13. Chivas had been initially scheduled to face Seattle on April 6, but it was rescheduled due to the Sounders’ advancement to the CONCACAF Champions League semifinal round against Mexico’s Santos Laguna, which will take place over the next two weeks. San Jose meanwhile will try to redeem themselves against the San Jose Earthquakes next Saturday.

Already playing a man down in the first match against the Los Angeles Galaxy after a questionable red card late in the first half, Chivas then fell behind a goal after Jack McBean had scored late in the second half.

Chivas though got one chance and made the most of it, as Carlos Alvarez scored a minute before stoppage time and Chivas salvaged a point against its in-stadium rival with a 1-1 draw.

“This team’s motto is to fight,” Alvarez said. “We’re just fighting each game, taking it game by game and working hard each day.”

The Galaxy look like it would get the full three points in the 83 rd minute. AJ DeLaGarza played a ball in the box to midfielder Mike Magee, who then sent it forward, but was deflected in the air, though it did remain in the box. Striker Jack McBean jumped and headed a ball towards goal, Chivas keeper Dan Kennedy scrambled to get to the ball and actually did get a touch on it, but not enough to keep the ball from crossing the goal line, giving the Galaxy the lead.

Chivas pressed late for the equalizer, and got its chance in the 89th minute. Edgar Mejia held the ball just outside the Galaxy penalty area, sent a pass into the penalty area to Carlos Borja, who whipped a quick cross and Carlos Alvarez buried the point-blank shot near post to send his teammates and the Chivas fans into a frenzy.

“I just saw Borja and Agudelo playing one-two, then Borja crosses the ball to the back post, I was there and I pushed it in,” Alvarez said.

The rivalry match between the two Home Depot Center tenants featured its usual feistiness, as 30 fouls were called in the match, though Chivas USA had to be feeling sour about the 22 fouls that were called against them. Things looked even more dire for the Goats in the 40th minute when Joaquim Velasquez collided with Galaxy midfielder Colin Clark as the two players looked to win a 50-50 ball. Velasquez was called for the foul and was shown yellow, but then Salazar pulled out the red card, prematurely ending Velasquez’s afternoon. It was believed that Velasquez may have been given a second yellow for dissent, but it was later confirmed that Velasquez was given a straight red for the tackle on Clark.

“He’s already under the spotlight because he’s not a league player, he’s not a player from New York, he’s not a player that came from the league offices,” Chivas USA head coach Jose Luis Sanchez Sola said regarding Velasquez’s ejection. “Tomorrow, they can fine me, they can tear up my passport, but I’m not joking. I’m not a subordinate, I’m not here for this. I came here to coach a serious team, because they give a tremendous effort, what they do is tremendous, I don’t want them to be affected by these type of decisions.”

Even before the man advantage, the Galaxy were the aggressors in the match. Juninho sent a free kick into the Chivas penalty area, Center Back Omar Gonzalez’s header went towards striker Jose Villareal, but Villareal’s header went off the crossbar. LA had another chance in the 50th minute when a header by Magee hit off the left post and the rebound attempt by Marcelo Sarvas sailed over the framework.

“It was a poor performance on our part,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “Bad game, lots of fouls, lot of time wasting, not well played on our part.”

The Galaxy will look to right the ship on Saturday when they host the Colorado Rapids while Chivas USA travels to Chicago to face the Fire.

Even with striker Robbie Keane and center back Omar Gonzalez away on international duty this week, the Los Angeles Galaxy figured to have a pretty easy night against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday night.

The Galaxy certainly created chances, but what they didn’t expect was for Rapids keeper Clint Irwin, currently filling in for the injured Matt Pickens, to make himself a nuisance between the pipes on Saturday night, yet when all was said and done, the Galaxy found a way to get the three points, as Mike Magee’s penalty in the 50th minute was all the Galaxy needed in its 1-0 win at the Home Depot Center.

“If we’re at fault for anything tonight, certainly keeping them around for 90 minutes was a flaw in our performance,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said.

After 48 minutes in which it created numerous scoring chances, but had nothing to show for it, the Galaxy caught a break when Rapids defender Drew Moor delivered and elbow to the head of LA’s Marcelo Sarvas in the penalty area. Moor was issued a straight red card and the Galaxy was awarded a penalty, which Magee converted in the 50th minute.

“I see Marcelo on the floor, I didn’t know what was wrong with him, but it was a dirty play by Moor,” striker Jose Villarreal said of the incident.

The Galaxy were the aggressors throughout the first half, getting its first chance three minutes into the match when Villarreal headed a Juninho corner on target, but was parried away by Irwin. The first year keeper continued to make himself big between the pipes, beating LA’s Jack McBean to a cross in the box from Todd Dunivant in the eighth minute, then turning back shots by Colin Clark and McBean in the ninth and tenth minutes respectively.

“He’s a young guy, he’s been working real hard like many others that came in the game,”Rapids head coach Oscar Pareja said. “Even though we’re disappointed in the loss, I’m encouraged by the play of our young players.

The Galaxy thought they had pushed one across in the 32nd minute. It started when after successfully defending a corner, Juninho sent a perfect long ball for a sprinting Villarreal, Irwin came off his line to contest Irwin, but Villarreal lobbed a ball over Irwin and the ball seemed certain to go into an empty net, but two Rapids had trailed Villarreal and one of them, Diego Calderon, managed to clear the ball right at the goal line.

“We had a great game (and) we were unlucky to not get goals on the run of play,” Magee said.

The Galaxy will have a brief stopover in Washington D.C. on Tuesday as they will be honored by President Obama along with the Los Angeles Kings for the championships won by both teams last year. Then it’s off to Canada to face Toronto FC on Saturday

Real Salt Lake started their home campaign at Rio Tinto Stadium with a tightly contested 1-1 draw with their bitter rivals Colorado Rapids on Saturday. The visitors scored in the 37^th minute through Deshorn Brown, which was equalized late in the 81^th minute by Alvaro Saborio.

Both teams suffered losses to Eastern Conference teams heading into the Rocky Mountain Cup tie, a derby which generates strong emotion from both sets of supporters.

The home side came off the blocks early in the first half and created early pressure on the Colorado goal. The Rapids suffered a huge blow in the 7^th minute, when Rapids goalkeeper Matt Pickens broke his forearm. The injury is thought to be serious and could keep the keeper out of action for several weeks.

Clint Irwin came in as replacement but was barely called into making a save during the opening exchanges, despite the hosts dominating with more than 65% of the possession. The only real chance came to Robbie Findley  in the 18^th minute from an innocuous long ball thumped by Nick Rimando,  but the forward’s touch let him down. Alvaro Saborio also saw a difficult header from a set-piece go over the bar.

On separate occasions, Brown and Harris looked to pounce on lapses in RSL defense before the visitors  finally capitalized after the hosts conceded possession cheaply in their own half and Deshorn Brown took advantage to net his right-footer past Rimando.

The goal spurred RSL to attack with more urgency. Luis Gil had a shot from the edge of the box saved by Irwins and Velasquez, who looked lively throughout the first half, just missed the goal from the right side of the box.

Stephenson went off at the half time break with a mild knee sprain and was replaced by Ned Gravaboy. The substitution appeared to bring some new energy into the RSL midfield, when a surging run from Gravaboy in the 46^th minute straight into the Rapids half resulted in a free-kick and a yellow for Atiba Harris.

As the second-half progressed, the away side started to drop deeper into their own half, allowing RSL more possession and looking for opportunities through long balls into the channels for their forwards to chase.   However, Kreis’ team enjoyed space down their left flank where Lovel Palmer created a couple of opportunities. The first was an attempted cross which was tipped over by Irwin, whereas the second was a more clear-cut opportunity when the ball dropped kindly to Beltran, whose shot was again saved by the Rapids keeper.  The Rapids themselves were keen on the counter-attack and Nick LaBrocca had his effort saved by the RSL keeper in the 68^th minute.

Coach Jason Kreis introduced Plata and Sandoval, which seemed to have an immediate effect. Plata in particular, looked a threat once again with his movement and his ability to link up with Saborio. The equalizer came in the 80^th minute, when RSL build-up around the Rapids box allowed Plata to slide in Saborio, who finished neatly from a tight angle.

Buoyed by a sell-out crowd, RSL looked to take the momentum and pressed for a winner with late half-chances, including a volley and a header from Saborio going close on two separate occasions. However, it was the visitors who had the more decisive opportunity to score in the latter stages as Harris went through on goal after Schuler failed to deal with a long ball. His effort was comfortably saved by Rimando.

The result is probably a fair reflection of how the teams fared and despite a flurry of yellow cards early on, either side managed to keep eleven players on pitch till the final whistle.  The draw gives the Colorado Rapids their solitary point from three games, as they look to overturn their poor start to the season against LA Galaxy on the road on March 23. RSL, with four points from three,  travel to FC Dallas Stadium on the same day.