Lets see, from left to right: Kalif Alhassan (bored), little girl in front row (bored), Peter Lowry (bored), Kenny Cooper (pretty standard), Lovel Palmer (amused) and Bright Dike (slightly intrigued).
  • Thearon W. Henderson/Getty
  • Let's see, from left to right: Kalif Alhassan (bored), little girl in front row (bored), Peter Lowry (over it), Kenny Cooper (pretty standard), Lovel Palmer (preparing to land) and Bright Dike (only slightly intrigued).

Portland coach John Spencer called it "one of the most boring games of soccer I've seen in a long time."

If you're a Timbers fan, you could've done for even less action: Portland took the lead on an honest-to-goodness Kenny Cooper(!) goal(!) in the 23rd minute on Saturday, but allowed San Jose the equalizer in the 67th in a 1-1 draw that left Portland publicly disappointed but (probably) privately pleased.

It was a "flat" but serviceable performance on the road for a team still clinging to playoff hopes and clamoring for more meaningful matches.

"I thought the boys battled well," said Cooper, who hadn't scored since April 30(!!). "As long as it’s still possible, we’re going to keep battling and keep fighting, and the goal is to make the playoffs.”

So can they? With the toughest part of its schedule behind and a three-match unbeaten streak in tow, Portland now preps for a trio of games in seven days next week, including two away (Aug. 14 @ Houston , Aug. 17 @ KC) and the first MLS Cascadia Cup derby with Vancouver (Aug. 20 @ the House of Pane).

Those 270 minutes will indicate how badly the Timbers want a strong finish, and whether or not the Rose City will be entertained by postseason pageantry or bored to tears if PTFC's inaugural MLS season remains, well, just regular.

More thoughts on the match and Portland's outlook after the jump, plus actual videographic evidence of Cooper's goal and other highlights to keep you shaking with exhilaration.

Man, KFC needed that one.

Cooper hadn't scored since spring and after being yanked from the lineup following a less-than-inspiring performance at Dallas on June 25, a guy brought in to be a major cog in Portland's offense(/payroll) was relegated to the bench. Then, Cooper was suddenly the starter in Portland's 3-0 whoopin of Los Angeles (Spencer said it was Coop's best match as a Timber) after Eddie Johnson went down with a freak soccer-ball-to-the-head concussion.

On Saturday, Cooper was unmarked after the Earthquake defense figured Jorge Perlaza would be called offside chasing a tidy Jeremy Hall pass. Like he has all season, KFC stuck his head down and stayed with it, finishing a cross from the top of the six-yard box before stoically collecting hugs from Spencer and fives from teammates.

The Timbers had chances to put even more pressure on San Jose, including a 45th-minute header by Eric Brunner that drifted just over the net (and would've been a dagger before halftime), a 52nd minute attempt by Perlaza (that was a better first touch away from putting Portland firmly in command) and an 89th-minute flurry that nearly swiped some much-needed points.

"We talked about coming out in the first half strong like we did at home and we just didn't have it tonight," said keeper Troy Perkins, who wore the captain's armband for the second straight match in the absence of Jack Jewsbury. "I think front to back we were just too flat-footed. We didn't have that spark."

Still, the Timbers' defense stood up to some heavy pressure after allowing a 67th-minute equalizer to Alan Gordon (who admitted post-match he was playing with a double hernia) with a new-look lineup sans midfielders Jewsbury (hamstring) and Diego Chará (yellow-card suspension). They earned their fifth point in eight days, and at the very least showed three-match weeks are nothing to lose confidence over.

And if they want to feel even more poised for a playoff run, the Timbers need only preview their remaining opponents: Of Portland's final 12 matches, 10 are against clubs outside of the top three in each conference, including two meetings with Cascadia rival Vancouver (2-11-9). If the Timbers are going to climb in the table, they'll have a few footholds. Five of their final matches are against teams within a victory of them in the standings and their final home games are against the Whitecaps (cellar-dwelling out west), Chivas USA (28 points, 6th west), New England (21 pts., 7th east) San Jose (25 pts., 8th west) and Houston (28 pts., 5th east).

The opportunity is there for Portland in a re-vamped MLS' playoff structure, which pairs the top three auto-qualifiers in each conference with four "wild card" teams from either conference playing for a chance at what would essentially be a berth in the MLS Cup quarterfinals (Confused? Of course you aren't!).

With positive signs emerging in Timberland (Kenny Fucking Cooper! An acceptable defense! Darlington Nagbe smoothness! Bright Dike returns!), Portland carries its first real bit of summer momentum heading into a crucial stretch.

Can they do anything with it? Now that could be exciting.

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