Sounders vs. Colorado - Aftermatch Aftermath: Fate Conspires

Following Saturday's Seattle Sounders victory over the Colorado Rapids, a brief glance is afforded toward two players whose destinies are intertwined.

By Ethan Swenson Apr 20, 2015, 10:00am PDT

For the skies foretold a power so great as to topple empires

Fate brought them together again. Fate and luck. Too long had they been apart, two souls destined for greatness, together. It had been many a long year since the two last saw themselves as more than just individuals, since they saw themselves as a "we". It was a year ago that saw their paths cross once more, but it wasn't until recent that saw what truly would forge their paths to be written in the stars for all future humanity to benefit from their nightly vigil.

But before we move on to the future, we must look back to the past. For you see some years ago The Sheriff and Air Marshall first crossed paths, not as foes on a battlefield, but as friends, a part of a whole, and that whole did great things, magnificent things. The duo were merely conduits through which their individual contributions generated outcomes wholly pleasing to their collective whole. However, those efforts each made were made alone. At the time the two knew naught of what Fate had in store for them. Sadly for the pair the brilliance their contributions wrought was fleeting, just a flash of light in the distant memory of Time.

Time is an unforgiving beast. It continues unabated, uninterrupted, leaving behind all stragglers and the uninitiated. Fate, in its merciless wisdom, sought to separate The Sheriff and Air Marshall, and Time did its part, sowing unfamiliarity and new memories bereft of the lost and forgotten. Air Marshall, himself a legend previously showered in accolades, stayed in his land of familiarity, of former glory, struggling with the effects of Time. The legend he cultivated in that land fell stagnant, a shade that haunted him, reminding him of what was, of what could be, should Fate allow.

Yet greener pastures called for young The Sheriff and he answered its siren song. Unbeknownst to him, Fate brought him to a wonder of a place he could call home, a place where his own legend would grow. "Don't be sad--B-Rad," his message would read. Though adversity and Time conspired to keep him down, he was B-Rad. He epitomized that mantra and in doing so, saw his own rise occur. Little did he know what Fate lay in waiting, what event would shake the foundation of his present and future. Could The Sheriff persevere through even further adversity and the reintroduction of a celestial body of great renown?

For as Fate would portend many years prior in their dalliance with cooperative play between The Sheriff and Air Marshall, that was no mere chance meeting. Instead it was a test, a taste of the future unknown to the two, and so when Air Marshall ferried to the land of wonder that beckoned The Sheriff all those years prior, the tapestry Fate had begun to weave before Time tore them asunder now had the fibers of their beings intertwined, completing the circle.

That was a year ago, and still Fate devised to keep them apart, Time playing its role in keeping the greatness that was set to unfold at bay. Though with crossed paths the pair again reached great heights as part of a whole. Only twice had The Sheriff and Air Marshall been gifted the opportunity for reaching the pinnacle together, and again they took it. Victors risen among a sea of the departed, who Fate deemed unworthy and Time neglected and left for rot.

Now, today, with their paths overlapping, the two, to the surprise of no one, burn so bright. No longer are they simply The Sheriff and simply Air Marshall: now they are The SAM. They are as one, an individual duo whose glory knows no bounds; an individual duo whose stars are yet to be written in full; an individual duo who fought Time and who Fate desired to heights yet unreached. They are The SAM, now and forevermore. Bear witness to their story, spread tales of their splendor as their deeds expand and grow. Fate has brought them to the here, to the now, and on this path they lead. Where they lead, I follow. Onward and upward.

A Few Notes

Since the fateful October 2013 match against Colorado Rapids that saw the Seattle Sounders lose 5-1, the Sounders have won five straight matches against the Rapids, including playoffs. In those five games they've scored 14 goals while conceding only 3, good for a +11 GD in those matches.
Good ol' Marcelo Sarvas decided that stomping on Clint Dempsey and his crotch was a good idea. This isn't new news to anybody, surely, but I don't want this to be forgotten until the Disciplinary Committee comes back with a suspension for the maligned midfielder.
I don't know what it is with Lamar Neagle and playing at high altitude, but the lack of oxygen seems to serve him quite well, what with his spectacular goals he scores regularly at Rio Tinto and now at Dick's.
Stefan Frei was beastly in this game, doubling his season's save totals.
Colorado had only allowed two goals this season prior to Seattle showing up into town.
Seattle currently has the second best Goal Differential in the league, buoyed by the tied-for second fewest Goals Allowed and tied-for second most Goals Scored.
Once a Sounder, Always a Sounder, right James Riley?
Pablo Mastroeni looks like a musketeer.
That Obafemi Martins goal was unreal. He's an unique talent in a sea of footballers and I'm tickled pink he's on the Sounders.
Andy Rose got the start over a healthy Gonzalo Pineda. I wonder if this will turn into a regular rotation.
Chad Marshall had a bit of a down game by his standards, but that just meant he was merely an above average MLS centerback.