After scoring the opening goal just four minutes in, Cristian Roldan finished the first half with cotton hanging out of his bloodied nose.
It was that type of Saturday afternoon at CenturyLink Field, where on-pitch muggings were as commonplace as they can be in some neighboring Pioneer Square alleyways after dark. The Sounders notched a 1-0 victory over their arch-rival Portland Timbers and matched them pound-for-pound in the knock-down, drag-out scorecard as well.
Roldan scoring the earliest goal the Sounders have notched all season, completing the latter half of a corner kick that was double-headed — first by Chad Marshall and then by Roldan, re-directing the ball past keeper Jake Gleeson to electrify the crowd of 47,362.