By Niall McCusker

If this was a regular season game the crowd would have gone home frustrated by KC’s late equalizer and Portland’s inability to get a second goal while on top. But it wasn’t, and the drama that followed probably surpassed anything seen before by most Timbers fans.

The home team came out strong and should have scored in the first twenty minutes, but after that Kansas, as they like to do, made it a battle. Portland were still getting most of the chances and after 327 minutes of drawing a blank against Sporting this season Wallace finally broke the deadlock. The visitors upped their game but never looked overly threatening until Ellis rose highest to finish Zusi’s excellent cross with just a few minutes left in the ninety.

When Nemeth gave the visitors the lead in extra time with his second wonder goal at Providence Park this season the Timbers looked like they might have run out of ideas. But just as the crowd was becoming resigned to the end of the season it was Portland’s turn to get an unlikely equalizer. Two substitutes, Asprilla and Urruti, combined to send the match into a penalty shoot-out.

The story of that tie-break looks set to become the stuff of legend.

Here are the individual ratings:

Adam “Ice-Cold” Larsen Kwarasey 8.5: If you’re wondering if he should have come for Zusi’s cross, he was probably wondering the same thing – which means it was a well delivered ball. He maybe should have done better, but then he wouldn’t have had the chance for his later heroics.

PKs: Aye! A big save on Dwyer and later kept his own kick nice and simple before making the winning stop on fellow net-minder Kempin. He allowed himself a brief dance in the manner of a house-wife who has just secured a nice picture of some kittens on E-bay before quickly recovering his Scandic detachment. As Andre-3000 once put it:

Now what’s cooler than bein’ cool?

Kwarasey!

I can’t hear ya’

I say what’s, what’s cooler than bein’ cool?

Kwarasey!

Whooo…

Alright, alright, alright, alright

Alright, alright, alright, alright

Alright, alright, alright, alright

Alright, alright.

Alvas Powell 6.5: When Nemeth drifted out to his wing he beat Powell a couple of times and there are not too many attackers who can boast that this season. He has often been criticized for head-down, no-thought offense – but his run and through-ball to Adi after 37 minutes was as fine a piece of attacking as he has put together this year. He also had the chance to pick out Adi late to put Portland two up, but his cross was too close to the keeper.

PKs: Nay! Speaking of head-down attacking if he had looked up he would have spotting Kempin cheating to his left way early.

Nat Borchers 9: This was perhaps his best game of the year, he knows better than anyone at Portland what it takes to win play-off games and raised his performance accordingly. He stayed up to win a second phase header after a Portland corner had been cleared and that led to the opening goal. On the night his all round defending was excellent, an interception and great ball to Wallace near the end was one highlight as was his vital block in injury time when Kansas were looking for a winner.

PKs: Aye! Power and placement – the best Timbers penalty.

Liam Ridgewell 8: He might still be wondering how his 5th minute header was cleared over the bar, he hit it perfectly, low and right in the area between the keeper and the man on the post that usually leaves them colliding or both standing looking at each other as it goes in the net. Dwyer was, to put it pleasantly, ‘a handful’ throughout the game, he got a couple of shots off but Ridgewell contained him well. He was unlucky to pick up a very soft yellow and it only takes two to earn a suspension in the play-offs so that could be costly. The defense was well marshaled against a good side – the two center-backs will need to continue to show all their experience for Portland to progress in the play-offs.

He could maybe have tracked Ellis’ run better on Sporting’s first goal, but it was a great ball in and a fine header.

PKs: Aye! Not quite as good as Borchers, but coolly taken.

Jorge Villafaña 7.5: The left back just keeps doing his job, Zusi did not contribute much – his assist came after a set-piece.

PKs: Nay! He didn’t look too confident and Kempin guessed the right way.

Jack Jewsbury 7: It was a big ask to fill the boots of Chara as the single defensive midfielder, but Jewsbury did a decent job. He started the game very well but could perhaps have done more to help Portland maintain control at times during the second half and extra time. He was one a few Timbers who could have done better with headers from corners, his near post effort in extra time should have been on target.

PKs: Nay, Nay and thrice Nay! His effort was right up there (literally) with Kris Boyd’s against Cal FC some years back. He saw the funny side later.

Lucas Melano (off in 85′) 7: Play-offs? What are those? Thankfully some-one explained that they are basically a cup competition. Lucas likes cup competitions, banging three goals for Lanus as they won the Copa Sudamericana in 2013. In this game he didn’t really do much of note on the attacking side, but he defended very well, got some tackles in and fought hard.

Darlington Nagbe 7.5: Portland were probably a little nervous going with one defensive midfielder that was not called Chara, so it was maybe understandable that Nagbe pulled deep often in this game. Those runs into his opponents penalty area were gone as Valeri assumed the attacking mantle. It all makes sense on paper – but on current form which player is more dangerous near the opponents goal?

He did make one foray in the opposing penalty box in extra time, released by Asprilla he looked to have time to even take it onto his right foot, but he took it to a tighter angle and shot with the left. (He did not score.)

PKs: Aye! He smacked it into the corner with surprising authority given he kept his head under a towel not looking for the rest of the shoot-out!

Diego Valeri 7.5: Firstly he was lucky not to be hurt in the tenth minute by a classic ‘over the ball’ challenge from Ellis, yes it was early in the game but that was a red in 1985 never mind 2015. Kansas did a good job closing down his passing options, but he worked hard and did well to keep the ball alive for Portland at the edge of the box to get his assist for Wallace’s goal. The best part of Portland’s new system is when Valeri gets free in the middle and sees three passing options ahead of him while he and Nagbe (please Darlington) are available for secondary runs. It didn’t happen much in this game – but it will lead to goals.

His set-pieces deserve mention, a series of excellent corners and one nice short free-kick to give Nagbe a shot from the edge of the box. That training ground move was interestingly signaled by a kissing motion, which sources tell me is one of many signs used to cheat at the card game ‘truco’. Valeri doesn’t look the card-sharp, but you always have to watch those choirboys types

PKs: Nay! He likes the sneaky penalty were you go high down the middle and hope the keeper just dives out of the way, he hit the bar with his last one and the goalie was not fooled this time. Get it in the corner, or at least throw him off with some truco señas.

Rodney Wallace (off in 99′) 8: A bit of a role reversal as Rodney was the most active midfielder offensively and left some of his normal defensive chores to the others. He signaled his intentions with a shot in the first minute, but it took him until the second half to poke in the opening goal. That was a classic Wallace type finish, but has been too rare this season. In trying to add to his tally shortly afterwards he picked up a yellow for catching the Kansas goalie Melia with a stray boot, but it looked accidental.

Fanendo Adi (off in 105′) 6.5: This was the big man’s quietest match for some time, Besler kept him in check very well. Wallace set him up six yards out just ten minutes into the game, but the ball got stuck under his feet, later he returned the favor releasing Wallace with a nifty flick. His strong hold-up play was missing though at times when Portland could really have used it.

Substitutes:

George Fochive (on in 85′) 6: Portland kept their subs late in this game, maybe the thought was that they were holding Kansas reasonably effectively with the players on the field. They were unlucky to leak the goal right after the first change was made – but the more defensive look then seemed to keep them on the back foot for large parts of extra time.

As in the Colorado game Fochive was not a very effective substitute, it is a tough position to go into cold for an inexperienced player. He should have been looking out for Nemeth’s cut-back onto his right foot for the second goal as the Hungarian had used that exact move several times on Powell earlier in the game. The youngster did give Kansas back a couple of the hard challenges they had dished out during the game. But if Johnson is looking at all sharp in training he may be the one to come off the bench in the next game.

PKs: Aye! He didn’t look like a tenth place kicker when he banged his shot in, throwing in a stutter step for good measure.

Dairon Asprilla (on in 99′) 7: Another great showing from the bench. He set Nagbe up for a shot and then got off a great turn and cross for Urruti to save Portland.

PKs: Aye! He hit it with plenty of power, no messing around.

Maxi Urruti (on in 105′) 7: He doesn’t get a lot of time and maybe should have had some more in this game – but it was enough. An excellent finish. Maybe a start against Vancouver?

PKs: Aye! There are no log slices awarded in the shoot-out but we now know that imaginary arrows will still be loosed by Urruti, shoot-out or not.