With their place in the USL Championship Playoffs clinched, the Switchbacks welcome Phoenix Rising to Weidner Field on Saturday for Cyan Night in the final regular season match of 2023. Tickets remain available HERE, with the first fans through the gates at 5pm receiving rally
towels.
Unbeaten in their last six matches, the Switchbacks defeated the Las Vegas Lights 3-2 last Saturday in Sin City, courtesy of goals from Jairo Henriquez, Maalique Foster, and Romario Williams. The Switchbacks stand in 5 th place in the USL Championship’s Western Conference at the time of writing and are mathematically unable to catch San Diego Loyal who currently occupy 4 th place. Phoenix Rising are two points behind the Switchbacks after falling 2-1 to New Mexico United last Saturday in the Valley of the Sun. Romario Williams will be unavailable for the Switchbacks on Saturday evening after being called up by the Jamaican National Team. Williams opened the scoring on Thursday evening for the Reggae Boyz in their 4-1 win over Grenada at Kirani James Athletic Stadium in Grenada’s capital, St. George’s. Jamaica will play Haiti in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday.
Thoughts of Switchbacks Head Coach Stephen Hogan:
“It’s part of our mindset now in this program [to have players called into their national teams]. This progression of individuals you know helps – it helps the organization grow [and it] helps me recruit. [Romario] has done fantastically well. I think he’s just matched his all-time league goalscoring record [in a season], so you can’t really complain that he’s being called up. “It’s unbelievable [to clinch a third straight berth in the USL Championship Playoffs]. We’re potentially only two points off last year’s team which is fantastic – and the lads deserve it. I think clinching [a playoff place last weekend] is what [was] expected in our mind [and] in the locker room’s mind. [It’s] a little bit upsetting that we actually didn’t get the home playoff game which would have been a fantastic achievement, but we’re in [the playoffs] so let’s see what happens.
“The atmosphere here [at Weidner Field] is a lot louder than what you think. When you’re standing on the sideline you know and these two – [Switchbacks assistant coaches] Chambo and Alan always get frustrated because they can’t sometimes get coaching points across, which is just testament to how good the fans are in supporting the team over the last three years. It helps that you have this fantastic stadium – it’s growing and it’s growing every year – and hopefully we’ll continue now and [it will] be as loud as possible against Phoenix.”
Peek at Phoenix:
“Things [lineup wise] will change obviously with different opponents and [Phoenix will] have to change to us,” continued Head Coach Hogan. “But the understanding is the energy levels of what we need is very, very important to not just [the match against] Phoenix, but the first round [of the playoffs].
“[Saturday will be the] same from [Phoenix]. They’re very good in terms of tactical distribution with the ball [and the] understanding of movement of players [and] where they want to play. Me and [Rising Head Coach] Juan [Guerra] are close friends, so we’ll have a beer after the game, obviously. It’s going to be a very tactical battle – which I enjoy. Can we get after a team that really wants to possess the ball, and can we be aggressive at home which, you know, we normally are? If the energy is right and the aggression is right – and [with Phoenix] trying to play out [from the back], it could be a fantastic game to watch for neutral.”
Vargish’s View:
Saturday’s match affords Switchbacks fans a great opportunity to see their team one final time at Weidner Field before the playoff push begins. Phoenix presents a unique challenge –Saturday’s visitors are able to leapfrog the Switchbacks in the standings with a win on Saturday evening. Nothing separated Phoenix and the Switchbacks in a 1-1 draw on July 22nd in Arizona, and Saturday’s match will likely be just as close. Both teams will make lineup changes on Saturday, and with the current form of the Switchbacks, another three points – and with it a guarantee of finishing the regular season in 5th place – are well within reach.
