Talley's time goes to Lancos

COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Chris Lancos started and played 90 minutes Wednesday night, something he better get used to.

Real Salt Lake learned Tuesday that starting holding midfielder Carey Talley has a small fracture in his right leg, and it will be at least four weeks before he can start training again.

That opens the door for first-year MLS player Lancos, who appeared in his third MLS match in Wednesday's U.S. Open Cup qualifier against Colorado.

"He's now going to get lots of opportunities; he needs to take them," said RSL coach Jason Kreis, who believes Lancos played better in Dallas last Sunday.

Lancos was pressed into the lineup early against Dallas on Sunday when Talley went down in the second minute and was eventually subbed out in the 10th minute with what was originally called a lower right leg contusion.

X-rays taken Tuesday in Salt Lake City, however, revealed more extensive damage, and one of RSL's ironman players is now out until early July. Prior to the injury, Talley had played every minute of Real's six games this year.

Last year Talley started and played 90 minutes in 27 of RSL's 32 regular season matches.

Lancos knows this is a great opportunity to impress the coaching staff.

"Any time you get a chance you want to give 100 percent," said Lancos, who played one season in Germany before joining Real Salt Lake. "This is a chance for me, and I'm just trying to make the most out of it."

Overall, Lancos thought he played well in terms of covering ground with his work rate, but he wasn't happy with his passing and possession. He's not sure if the cold, wet weather played a role, but he admits he wasn't sharp and it must get better.

GETTING SERIOUS: When Real Salt Lake and Colorado met in a league match on May 10 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the referee didn't hand out a single yellow card — an astonishing occurrence considering the intensity of the rivalry of the past two years.

Things definitely got a little chippy on Wednesday with five yellow cards.

In the last seven minutes of the first half, Atiba Harris was shown a yellow card for an off-the-ball foul on Nick LaBrocca. Rapids' captain Ugo Ihemelu took offense to the foul and quickly shoved Harris, resulting in another yellow card.

Over the next three minutes, Colorado's Nico Colaluca and Stephen Keel also picked up yellows as the intensity heated up.

Surprisingly, things calmed down in the second half as Lancos picked up the only other yellow card in the 86th minute.

GETTING THE NOD: With Kreis juggling his line-up Wednesday night, defender Jean-Martial Kipre was rewarded with his first career Real Salt Lake start.

He made his first appearance as a substitute on May 10 at Colorado, and then played the entire second half of Sunday's game in Dallas replacing injured teammate Willis Forko.

Kipre had a decent outing against the Rapids this time around, but it was obvious he's still getting used to some of his teammates tendencies.

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E-mail: jedward@desnews.com