The Four Corners rivalry returns to Weidner Field in downtown Colorado Springs on Saturday evening as the Switchbacks host New Mexico United. Gates open at 6pm on Small Business Night presented by the Better Business Bureau, with tickets available HERE!
New Mexico United make their way north from the Land of Enchantment after a 2-0 win over Monterey Bay F.C. at Isotopes Park behind goals from Chris Wehan and Tabort Etaka Preston. The Switchbacks defeated high-flying Tampa Bay Rowdies 1-0 last Saturday at Weidner Field courtesy of a 66th minute strike from Jairo Henríquez.
What the Switchbacks Say:
Switchbacks Head Coach and General Manager Brendan Burke: “That was a massive win. [Defensively] I thought it was a gutsy performance, but we also had pockets of good passages of play, so I was really happy just for the guys to feel that relief and that connectivity again that was hard to come by during that summer schedule.
“It’s great having a full week to prepare and to train the way we were at the beginning of the season, and hopefully it helps us click back into gear on a regular basis. Just [having] the week to prepare affords us the opportunity to rest a guy an extra day or two. You don’t want to be going into a scrap without fresh legs, and both teams will have that this weekend. [Zach] Zandi could even be on the bench this weekend, and other guys who have been away from it for a while are getting closer to [being back with] the team.”
Goalkeeper Jeff Caldwell: “We’ve been waiting on that win [against Tampa Bay] a little longer than I think we would have liked, but [it was] obviously a massive result for us and a good way to get the ball rolling back in the direction we’d like it to. We have to look at last week as a building block, not an end point. For us, we approach [Saturday] the same way, and we improve and build on things – especially with our quality – and make last week’s result a part of our identity and not a one-off. We have a real opportunity to capitalize on this environment [at Weidner Field] – it’s been fantastic all year, through the really good at the beginning and the not so good in the middle, and we’d like to end with good again and give these fans what they deserve.”
Coach’s Take on New Mexico United: “[New Mexico United] is a rivalry game and no one is hiding from that,” said Brendan Burke. “It’s a very different type of team [from the Rowdies] – New Mexico are a lot more direct than Tampa. They’re very good on set pieces and they have very good player personnel up and down the roster with huge selection variability or luxury, which I guess is the best way to put it. They’re difficult to prepare for in that way. They’ve played out of a couple different shapes, but we’ve talked about our identity and doing the things that we do well consistently and that’s what we’ll be focused on this weekend. Justin Portillo is a phenomenal distributor of the ball. Kalen Ryden is one of the better center backs in the league. They’ve brought in guys like [Will] Seymore and others that have really contributed along their back line, and then they have a whole slew of forwards that have had 15-goal seasons in this league. It’s a very good roster – it’s well put together and they present a lot of problems on an individual basis if you allow yourself to get isolated. My favorite in their group is [Amando] Moreno. I think he’s absolutely dynamic and one of the best [number] 10’s – if not the best 10 when he’s on – in this league.”
Vargish’s View: Against Tampa Bay, the Switchbacks stood taller than a Tibetan skyscraper. Another massive performance is needed on Saturday in a rivalry contest that demands recent form be ignored. New Mexico United have a deep roster that includes three former Switchbacks in Josh Suggs, Sam Hamilton, and Kevaughn Frater. The Switchbacks should gain massively from another late night at a packed Weidner Field, and if they’re able to replicate the performance from last weekend, three points on Saturday is well within their reach.
