Despite tie, RSL moving forward

On a local radio station earlier this week, Real Salt Lake coach John Ellinger said his team would likely need to win seven of its final nine regular season matches to claim the Western Conference's final playoff spot.

Following Wednesday's 1-1 exhibition result against Jamaican club Harbour View, in which RSL knocked the ball around as efficiently as it had all year, the team could be heading in the right direction.

From its midfield possession to its defensive shape against the quick Jamaican players, Salt Lake looked to be in top form Wednesday in front of 6,240 at Rice-Eccles Stadium, rallying for a draw in its second international friendly of the season.

"It was one of the better games I've seen this team play all year in possessing the ball," said RSL midfielder Clint Mathis, who played 71 minutes with the full squad for the first time since his three-game suspension.

With a little better finishing, Salt Lake would've crushed the Jamaican side.

Salt Lake outshot Harbour View 19-4, including 11-2 on goal, but only Nelson Akwari's header in the 64th minute actually found the netting.

Eight minutes after Lovel Palmer put Harbour View ahead 1-0 in the 56th minute, Akwari latched onto a corner kick by RSL newcomer Robert Scarlett — a former Harbour View player — and buried the shot past keeper Leighton Murray.

In Real's other international friendly this year, a 3-2 victory over Chile's Universidad Catolica, Akwari scored the game-winner on a similar header late in the game.

"Nelson's been playing well lately," said Ellinger.

Just seconds before Akwari's finish, Jamie Watson was cruelly denied by Harbour View's keeper who fully extend himself to make a diving save on Watson's acrobatic 10-yard volley on a cross from Andy Williams.

Ten minutes after tying things up, Harbour View's Marcelino Blackburn was sent off after receiving his second yellow card on a tackle from behind on Williams in the 75th minute. A few minutes earlier, the second-half substitute received his first yellow after colliding with RSL keeper D.J. Countess after he'd already corralled a ball in the box.

Despite the man advantage and fresh legs with five second-half substitutes, RSL failed to capitalize on its many scoring opportunities.

"We created a lot of chances. Jamie had two or three himself in the second half he's got to put away," said Ellinger. "We had chances, we've just got to do a better job."