Real Salt Lake tries new direction on road

CARSON, Calif. — A few weeks ago Real Salt Lake coach Jason Kreis hinted a more conservative approach on the road might be more suitable for his team. He followed through on his hunch Saturday night at the Home Depot Center.

For the first time this season RSL utilized a more conservative 4-5-1 formation against Chivas USA in hopes of upsetting the league leaders. It was more than just a mild adjustment for a team that customarily utilizes a 4-4-2 formation.

Yura Movsisyan served as the lone striker, with Clint Mathis dropping into a holding midfield role next to Kyle Beckerman. The adjustment also enabled rookie Raphael Cox to make his first professional start at left midfield.

Cox made substitute appearances two other times this year. In his native Washington he played the final seven minutes of RSL's season-opening loss at the expansion Seattle Sounders. Two weeks later he played a much more prominent role in the final 31 minutes of RSL's 2-1 home victory over D.C. United.

A naturally left-footed player, Cox has impressed RSL's coaching staff since the start of training camp and they reiterated their trust in him with Saturday's start.

GOOD TO GO: When RSL defender Nat Borchers turned his ankle in the second half of last Wednesday's match with Los Angeles, he had no idea how severe it might be. He was replaced shortly after the injury, and following the match he guessed he could be out just a couple days or a couple weeks.

Fortunately for Real Salt Lake it wasn't the latter.

The club's iron man was back in the starting 11 against Chivas USA, a welcome sight for the coaching staff. A year ago Borchers played the full 90 minutes in 29 of 30 matches, missing one late-season match with a neck injury.

Including Saturday, he's now started every match this season.

NOT A ONE-HIT WONDER: Following an impressive rookie season with Chivas USA last year, Salt Lake City native Justin Braun is once again a major contributor for coach Preki's team this year. The Skyline High School graduate was in the starting line-up for the Goats Saturday night, his fifth start of the season in nine matches.

Last weekend he scored his first goal of the season in a 1-0 victory at San Jose.

In Chivas' five combined regular season and playoff matches against RSL last season, Braun appeared in four including scoring an 83rd minute goal in the second-leg of the conference semifinal playoff series.

E-mail: jedward@desnews.com