Colorado Springs, CO (March 24, 2018) – The Switchbacks fell 0-1 to Portland Timbers 2 in their second match of the 2018 USL campaign at Weidner Field.
After last week's 2-0 victory over LA Galaxy II, short-handed Switchbacks FC were looking to get a consecutive victory against the Pacific Northwest Side. With Shane Malcolm gone on International Duty with Guam, and Saeed Robinson suspended, Marty Maybin and JJ Tambe took their places. Unfortunately, Maybin's start didn't last long as Toby Uzo came on for him in the 10th minute because of an apparent non-contact injury. Portland got off to a strong start, pushing the attack into the Switchbacks final third, but nothing came of any of their chances thanks to Man of the Match, Jamal Jack, and the rest of the backline. The Switchbacks had a couple of opportunities but off-target shots and effort's by Portland's Attinella in goal kept the game a scoreless draw going into the locker rooms.
The Switchbacks got off to a better start in the second half with Jordan Schweitzer and Aj AJeakwa getting early opportunities, but missed chances and strong defensive efforts from Portland kept the Switchbacks at bay. The came also got a little chippy towards the end of the second half, as four yellow cards were issued in the second half. Portland finally caught their break in the 82nd minute as Steward Ceus' initial save went back out and Williams put it away to give Portland their lead. Despite six minutes of stoppage time and a total of 15 shots, the Switchbacks were unable to find their equalizer and fell 0-1 to Portland for their first loss of the season.
"Obviously you can look at us missing a couple of guys," said Head Coach Steve Trittschuh after the match. "Marty going down early hurt us as well, but the guys have to step up and play. For me, the intensity of the game coming out to start the match wasn't what it was last week. We need to look and see what we can do better this week because St. Louis will be a tough game to start a two-game road trip. We've got to get back to the drawing board so we can get at least one win from our two-game road trip."
"It was a disappointing result," said Jamal Jack. "We gave up a late decisive goal. Overall it was a great defensive effort from us, but we came up short in the end and we need to work harder to get better going forward."
The Switchbacks will now travel to Missouri for a pair of away games against St. Louis FC (Saturday, March 31st), and Swope Park Rangers (Wednesday, April 4th). The Switchbacks return home Saturday, April 7th to face Rio Grande Valley FC Toros for 2000's Night and the first poster series night of 2018, courtesy of Kneaders. Tickets start at just $12 and are available here. Fans can also get $1 Beer for the first 30 minutes after the gates open at 5:00 PM.
Colorado Springs, CO (March 24, 2018) – The Switchbacks fell 0-1 to Portland Timbers 2 in their second match of the 2018 USL campaign at Weidner Field.
After last week’s 2-0 victory over LA Galaxy II, short-handed Switchbacks FC were looking to get a consecutive victory against the Pacific Northwest Side. With Shane Malcolm gone on International Duty with Guam, and Saeed Robinson suspended, Marty Maybin and JJ Tambe took their places. Unfortunately, Maybin’s start didn’t last long as Toby Uzo came on for him in the 10th minute because of an apparent non-contact injury. Portland got off to a strong start, pushing the attack into the Switchbacks final third, but nothing came of any of their chances thanks to Man of the Match, Jamal Jack, and the rest of the backline. The Switchbacks had a couple of opportunities but off-target shots and effort’s by Portland’s Attinella in goal kept the game a scoreless draw going into the locker rooms.
The Switchbacks got off to a better start in the second half with Jordan Schweitzer and Aj AJeakwa getting early opportunities, but missed chances and strong defensive efforts from Portland kept the Switchbacks at bay. The came also got a little chippy towards the end of the second half, as four yellow cards were issued in the second half. Portland finally caught their break in the 82nd minute as Steward Ceus’ initial save went back out and Williams put it away to give Portland their lead. Despite six minutes of stoppage time and a total of 15 shots, the Switchbacks were unable to find their equalizer and fell 0-1 to Portland for their first loss of the season.
“Obviously you can look at us missing a couple of guys,” said Head Coach Steve Trittschuh after the match. “Marty going down early hurt us as well, but the guys have to step up and play. For me, the intensity of the game coming out to start the match wasn’t what it was last week. We need to look and see what we can do better this week because St. Louis will be a tough game to start a two-game road trip. We’ve got to get back to the drawing board so we can get at least one win from our two-game road trip.”
“It was a disappointing result,” said Jamal Jack. “We gave up a late decisive goal. Overall it was a great defensive effort from us, but we came up short in the end and we need to work harder to get better going forward.”
The Switchbacks will now travel to Missouri for a pair of away games against St. Louis FC (Saturday, March 31st), and Swope Park Rangers (Wednesday, April 4th). The Switchbacks return home Saturday, April 7th to face Rio Grande Valley FC Toros for 2000’s Night and the first poster series night of 2018, courtesy of Kneaders. Tickets start at just $12 and are available here. Fans can also get $1 Beer for the first 30 minutes after the gates open at 5:00 PM.
