Cila gets chance to shine

Jordan Cila finally gets his chance.

With starting forward Jason Kreis suspended, Real Salt Lake's coaching staff is turning to the 23-year-old Cila to pick up the scoring slack in tonight's game against CD Chivas USA at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

"We all know Jason is a great player, but hopefully I can fill in well enough that we don't lose too much," said Cila.

This isn't just an ordinary Week 8 game he's stepping into either. Revenge is very much on the minds of RSL's players and coaches after losing to Chivas USA 1-0 on May 7 in California.

"We're still a little bitter about how we lost that game," said RSL coach John Ellinger.

Eleven days ago, Chivas scored the game's only goal on a controversial first-half penalty kick as the two expansion teams squared off for the first time. Salt Lake didn't exactly help itself with a terrible first-half effort, but it played well enough in the second half to perhaps deserve a tie. In that game as well, RSL keeper D.J. Countess left the game in the 80th minute with a sprained shoulder, which forced him to miss last Saturday's home match against Los Angeles. He's expected to return to the starting line-up tonight.

Real is looking for much more than a draw in tonight's rematch.

Despite a mostly lackluster season so far, playing at Rice-Eccles Stadium has been anything but frustrating for RSL. The team hasn't tasted defeat (2-0-1) on the FieldTurf at the U., including a win over the Western Conference's most dangerous team last weekend, 2-1.

The team accomplished much more than just winning a game, it flashed moments of brilliance for Ellinger.

"What happened in the second half against L.A., (my team) kind of raised the bar as far as fighting on every challenge, and not just getting back on defense but getting forward as well," said Ellinger. "We've seen it now, and we kind of liked it, and the challenge now is if we can do it for two halves."

Some of that responsibility falls on Cila's shoulders. He isn't nervous, though; he's been in this situation before.

As a rookie with the Colorado Rapids last year, he saw limited action until late June. Then an assortment of circumstances thrust him into the starting line-up, and he didn't squander the opportunity. During the final three months, he scored four goals and recorded two assists.