Real Salt Lake top performers: Nat Borchers

Call him Mr. Reliable.

Real Salt Lake defender Nat Borchers was there every step of the way for the club this season, and his reliability, steady play and leadership were a big reason he was named the defensive MVP.

"He's one of these guys, because he does his job so quietly and goes about doing it well every day, you don't see a lot of spectacular plays and I think as a result a lot of people overlook him," said assistant coach and one of MLS's all-time great defenders Robin Fraser. "But I think if you throw him in that situation and make him battle day in and day out, game in, game out, even at that level you'll see that same level of consistency."

Borchers played 2,679 out of a possible 2,700 regular-season minutes and all 420 minutes of the playoff run to the Cup. He filled in as team captain in the five games Kyle Bekcerman missed for either National Team duty or yellow-card suspensions. For good measure, the 28-year-old central defender even scored his first goal for the club and third of his 173-game career.

While not the flashy Porsche or Ferrari in the back the way central defender partner Jamison Olave can be, Borchers is more like the Honda or Toyota in the garage that you just know is going to run and get the job done. Since Borchers' return to MLS with Real — he spent three seasons with the Colorado Rapids before playing overseas in Norway — he has started 66 of 67 games for the club and been a natural leader for the team.

"The thing about Nat that's amazing is his level of consistency. He's so focused in practice, and he's that way everyday regardless of what the exercise is," said Fraser.

e-mail: mblack@desnews.com