Colorado coach Fernando Clavijo may have surprised some when he left Terry Cooke out of their weekend line-up, but he claims stand-in Jacob Petersen's performance in a win over D.C. United proves that the Rapids are a team to be reckoned with no matter who is on the field.

Petersen netted a goal in the victory, which was also obtained without regular Jose Burciaga in the starting eleven.

"We are very pleased to have such a talented roster right now, and it give us choices that not many other teams have," Clavijo told the Class IV blog.

"Peterson is a different player than Terry Cooke," he explained. "We were looking for someone to take people on, and force defenders to defend, Peterson's speed helps us not only in the midfield, but also breaking forward in quick counters."