I only was able to catch the second half of the match unfortunately, but still came away with some random musings:

• I had a sneaky feeling that it would be a lackluster performance. It just seemed that, especially with the weather conditions, we wouldn't be able to perform as well.
• That said, I was quite disappointed with the decision not to play Paulo Jr. The young Brazilian seems to have more of a "game-changer" quality about him, and I think his energy definitely could have helped. Espindola is good but today he just wasn't able to impact the match.
• Columbus, in terms of the tie, won't be happy with the result. However, over the course of the season I think they can be pretty happy that they out-played RSL with such a new squad, and a couple of players missing. They're not in as bad a shape as some thought.
• The red cards... I didn't see Beltran's first booking, but the second one looked fair. As for the fight and the Borchers/Renteria reds, well, I didn't really get a good look. But as Denz said, it must be frustrating to be officiated by a guy who always seems eager to become the centre of attention. The loss of Borchers especially could hurt in the second leg, but they'll miss Renteria as well.
• I had my heart in my mouth when Cunningham nearly scored. That would have hurt. 
• Big, big, big match in a week. Huge for RSL, I expect a sell-out crowd. RSL should definitely win, but you never know. Either way, I'm looking forward to being there.