Rio Tinto a tough venue for opponents

SANDY — Maybe it wasn't the clamoring, intimidating setting Real Salt Lake wanted. But the message came across nonetheless: Crowd or no crowd, Rio Tinto Stadium still has some mojo.

So it's back to business for RSL, which happens to be the business of home. Couldn't get it going in Seattle, last week? There's a cure for that.

As Lennon and McCartney put it, "Get back to where you once belonged."

Real is now 3-1-1 all-time at Rio Tinto.

RSL's road anxieties showed up last Saturday in a 2-0 season-opening loss to Seattle, but the good news for the club is that things look pretty slick back in Utah. Thursday night it took all of a minute and 50 seconds to establish that. So it's settled. Real is relaxed and comfortable around the house — its own. That was evident in a 4-1 trouncing of defending MLS champion Columbus.

The road?

They're working on it.

Thursday's match, an ESPN2 televised game, wasn't exactly played to a capacity crowd. Only about 7,000 of a hoped-for 20,000 showed up for the home opener, though 11,806 tickets were sold. Thank you, Mother Nature.

Those that stayed home missed an eventful night. Forward Robbie Findley notched RSL's first-ever hat trick. Every time the Crew turned around, there he was, lurking like a mall cop. The first Findley goal, in the 2nd minute, was before everyone was seated. The next was on a startling mistake by Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer, who tried to clear but instead kicked it straight back to Findley, who scored an empty-netter.

The third was on a header in the 62nd minute.

By then the Crew was flinching every time Findley went "Shoo!"

The win marked RSL's first-ever Rio Tinto Stadium season-opener and highlighted a match against the defending champion — not to mention Mother Nature. Yet RSL ended up hammering both.

Now another season is here and a major question is this: Will Rio Tinto become a nightmare for opposing teams? That depends mostly on RSL and partly on attendance. And perhaps whether the good vibes from those Eagles and Kenny Chesney concerts carry over.

RSL harbors the hope that its stadium becomes a place opponents fear. Nobody liked battling Pedro di Toledo at the Castle of Baia, nobody wants to have a sing-off with Tony Bennett at the Fairmont San Francisco, and nobody should be able to challenge RSL at RTS.

"If you know anything about the international game, you know why it's so difficult to win on the road," said coach Jason Kreis. "And what that means is you've always got to take care of business at home. If you can put them both together, you'll be a very strong team."