Let the Celebration begin

So I can’t think of any thing to describe what I am feeling right now, so I am just going to share some info with you all:
First up is the image that should be on your phone, your computer, hell anywhere you can put it.

CHICAGO (Saturday, November 14, 2009) –
Real Salt Lake returns to the Wasatch Front Sunday afternoon at approximately 12:40 p.m. MT at Salt Lake City International Airport fresh off tonight’s penalty-kick victory in the Eastern Conference Championship against the Chicago Fire. Real Salt Lake’s next stop is MLS Cup 2009 against David Beckham, Landon Donovan, former RSL players Chris Klein and Dema Kovalenko and the West champion Los Angeles Galaxy at Qwest Field in Seattle, WA next Sunday, Nov. 22 at 6:30 p.m. MT. Stay tuned for MLS Cup ticket information at www.MLSnet.com.

Fans and media are invited to welcome home the team at the base of the escalators in Terminal One baggage-claim area, as the team’s Southwest Airlines flight touches down.

I say if you can make it out to the airport then bring it one, let’s show the team how much they mean to us, and help them celebrate their first Conference Championship. Here is the info released after the match:           

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. (Saturday, November 14, 2009) – A year after suffering a bitter defeat in the Conference Championship round of the MLS Cup Playoffs, Real Salt Lake made its return trip to the postseason’s final four pay off on Saturday night, as the Utah side claimed the Eastern Conference Championship after defeating the Chicago Fire
5-4 in penalty kicks following a 0-0 draw played in front of a raucous crowd of 21,723 at Toyota Park. With tonight’s result, Real Salt Lake advances to its first MLS Cup final next Sunday, November 22, at Qwest Field in Seattle, where it will square off against fellow Western Conference foe Los Angeles Galaxy for the right to lift the Phillip F. Anschutz Trophy (6:30 p.m. MT, live on ESPN).

While both teams had more than their share of chances during 90 minutes of regulation and the 30-minute added time period, neither side could crack the goaltending combo of Real Salt Lake’s Nick Rimando and Chicago’s Jon Busch, who combined to make 14 saves on the night. Those two would take center stage in penalty kicks, but it was Rimando that would ultimately rise to the occasion, saving three attempts by the Fire, including DF Brandon Prideaux’s seventh-round try. That would set up Chicagoland native and 123^rd minute substitute MF Ned Grabavoy, who buried his spot kick off of Busch’s hands and into the left side-netting to continue Real Salt Lake’s run through the postseason.

Match Stats

Real Salt Lake (3-0-0) vs. Chicago Fire (1-2-0)
November 14, 2009 — Toyota Park
Scoring Summary:
None
Penalty-kick shootout:
CHI — Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Goal)
RSL — Clint Mathis (Goal)
CHI — Brian McBride (Goal)
RSL — Javier Morales (High)
CHI — Wilman Conde (Goal)
RSL — Robbie Findley (Goal)
CHI — John Thorrington (Saved)
RSL — Kyle Beckerman (Goal)
CHI — C.J. Brown (Goal)
RSL — Will Johnson (Goal)
CHI — Logan Pause (Saved)
RSL — Fabian Espíndola (High)
CHI — Brandon Prideaux (Saved)
RSL — Ned Grabavoy (Goal)

Real Salt Lake — Nick Rimando, Robbie Russell (Ned Grabavoy 123+), Nat Borchers, Jamison Olave, Chris Wingert, Andy Williams (Clint Mathis 69), Kyle Beckerman, Javier Morales, Will Johnson, Yura Movsisyan (Fabian Espíndola 72), Robbie Findley.

Substitutes Not Used: Jean Alexandre, Tony Beltran, Pablo Campos, Chris Seitz

Chicago Fire — Jon Busch, Brandon Prideaux, C.J. Brown, Dasan Robinson, Daniel Woolard (Wilman Conde 95), Chris Rolfe (Justin Mapp 109), Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Logan Pause, John Thorrington, Marco Pappa (Patrick Nyarko 78), Brian McBride,

Substitutes Not Used: Mike Banner, Calen Carr, Andrew Dykstra, Austin Washington

Post match comments

REAL SALT LAKE HEAD COACH JASON KREIS
On the 3 hour long match:

“I thought that I was watching a game sometime last year.  Obviously we were having a really good game.  Chicago was creating chances against us, and I felt like most of their chances were coming off dead ball situations.  So it was hopeful that we’d end up winning the game.  Obviously we’d like it to come a lot earlier and with a lot less drama.  The first penalty kick where we could have won the game would have been a lot better for my heart.  It’s truly a special night, a special moment for this club and for everyone involved.”

On Nick Rimando’s 3 penalty kick saves:
“He was superb.  Superb.  I think if you look back you’ll find Nick making a lot of saves on penalty kicks.  No surprise to any of us.”

On getting Ned Grabavoy in the game and involved in penalty kicks:
“Yes, it was planned.  [Robbie] Russell was cramping up really bad and we looked at our bench and thought who is a good penalty kick taker and who has experience and who won’t waver in a situation like that and Ned was our guy.”

On Chicago’s low pressure:
“Was surprised [about that].  Was surprised that they played that way.  I don’t have all the information and what that was all about; they have a few injured players and they might have been looking to save some legs.  I thought they’d be pressing the ball more to be honest.”

On how satisfying it is to be reach the MLS Final:
It’s very nice.  I think in some ways it’s a little bit justified now because of last year’s situation.  Last year was a little bit of a laugher because we were so much better than New York and ended up not getting to the final.  We have to feel good about our chances next week as well.

On reaching the MLS Cup Final after being an MLS original:
“I’ve never been to the final.  After 11 years playing and three years coaching, it’s my first opportunity.  I feel awesome, I feel fantastic; I feel rewarded for all the hard work that’s been put in.  It’s funny because looking back on my career it’s kind of a block right now because as a player and as a coach, it’s all kind of all the same thing.  To finally get here now is awesome.

On what he told the team after showing the critics they belong in the playoffs:
We have a very tight knit locker room and a very tight knit team and we believe in ourselves.  On too many occasions, there are many people who don’t believe in us.  We’ve taken an approach that it’s us against the world and I think it doesn’t change.  There will be a lot of people that will turn sides and talk about how good we are and it’ll be the same people that said bad stuff about us two weeks ago, so it’s interesting. 

REAL SALT LAKE GOALKEEPER NICK RIMANDO
On coming into a hostile environment:
“We love coming into places like this.  We like getting good results on the road and it feels good to prove that we belong after our win last week.”

On guessing where the penalty kick taker is placing the ball:
“I can’t give away all of my secrets but it’s something that I feel comfortable with.  I was happy with the saves and I knew my teammates were going to make the ones they needed to make.  Here we are.”

REAL SALT LAKE MIDFIELDER NED GRABAVOY
On their luck on the road switching:
“You look at our team and we couldn’t really find a way to get wins on the road that much this year and all of a sudden we’re playing great on the road so hopefully we can keep this going to next week.” 

On being in a one-on-one penalty kick situation:
“It never really goes past five [penalty kicks] most of the time and I knew we were on seven.  When Fabian Espindolda stepped up I thought 100% it was over because we’ve been working on penalty kicks over the past few weeks and he hasn’t missed one.  Nick [Rimando] made a huge save.  I think it was a huge momentum shift back our way [once Rimando made the save on Brandon Prideaux’s kick] and I just went up there and [Jon Busch] almost got to it and I’m just happy it went in. 

On whether he was nervous:
“Not really, maybe a little bit.  But it’s more of a good nervous feeling.  Being in that moment and obviously after it went in; it was a great moment for the whole team.  It felt really good to do it right in front of family and friends, right near where I grew up. 

REAL SALT LAKE CAPTAIN KYLE BECKERMAN
On their mindset approaching the game:
To just come out and play our best game.  We feel like when we play our best that we can beat any team, any where.  We strive to play our best.  I thought we did tonight.  We just didn’t score. 

On whether he thought the game was going to kicks from the mark:
No, I thought we were going to score a goal.  We had a lot of chances and I thought we’d get one goal.  I did say before the second half that if we go into kicks from the mark that we’d be fine because we have the best goalkeeper in the league and he’ll keep us in the game.  I thought we were going to score before that. 

On what Coach Kreis said after the game:
He was really happy for us.  The big thing here for this team is that we don’t have any stars, the team is the star.  And today we played a team that has a star in Blanco and the team that didn’t, won. 

On what it means to make the MLS Final
It’s awesome.  We’re really excited.  It’s just a great feeling.  We worked hard this year.  We earned it making the playoffs, just like everyone else did.  We seemed to get into a good form at the right time, and we’re riding on it.  We’ll see what happens. 

Heading to Seattle????

Well you can get tickets online now at http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0F004328C95577D0?

But tomorrow the information about the RSL section at Qwest Field should be released and as soon as I know it, it will be here.

OFF MY SOAPBOX
You have earn the trip, now it is time to earn the star

This entry was posted on November 15, 2009 at 4:27 am and is filed under The soapbox. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.