Photo courtesy Isaiah J. Downing
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC entered the final weekend of the USL regular season with a chance to claim the top seed in the Western Conference.
After a 4-0 defeat to Orange County Blues FC, those hopes were swept away, leaving the Switchbacks with what could be a much tougher path to a championship than it might have had. Despite that, though, the side has quickly refocused ahead of Friday’s Western Conference Quarterfinals, which sees Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 visit Switchbacks Stadium.
“We have to,” Coach Steve Trittschuh told gazette.com’s Joe Paisley. “We must find a way to play our game because we play a team we match up well against. I think we have a good game plan but [Vancouver] can be dangerous.”
The Switchbacks proved to be one of the sharpest teams in the league – particularly at home – when on their game, but the propensity for the side to suffer surprising results when it appeared to be getting into a rhythm proved costly during the run in. Road defeats to non-playoff sides like Saint Louis FC and Seattle Sounders FC 2, twice, saw the club’s second season undergo ebbs and flows.
Compared to the relative consistency shown by No. 1 seed Sacramento Republic FC, which battled to an 11-game undefeated streak to end the regular season, those missed opportunities came back to haunt the Switchbacks in the final order. With that in mind, while some like goalkeeper Devala Gorrick and captain Luke Vercollone can rest assured of a place in Friday’s lineup, the battle for starting positions this week is likely to be an intense one.
“After that loss I told everyone that their positions are up for grabs,” Trittschuh told Paisley. “We’re hoping for a good week of [practice] to show who deserves to start and who will be on the bench.”
Photo courtesy Isaiah J. Downing
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC entered the final weekend of the USL regular season with a chance to claim the top seed in the Western Conference.
After a 4-0 defeat to Orange County Blues FC, those hopes were swept away, leaving the Switchbacks with what could be a much tougher path to a championship than it might have had. Despite that, though, the side has quickly refocused ahead of Friday’s Western Conference Quarterfinals, which sees Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 visit Switchbacks Stadium.
“We have to,” Coach Steve Trittschuh told gazette.com’s Joe Paisley. “We must find a way to play our game because we play a team we match up well against. I think we have a good game plan but [Vancouver] can be dangerous.”
The Switchbacks proved to be one of the sharpest teams in the league – particularly at home – when on their game, but the propensity for the side to suffer surprising results when it appeared to be getting into a rhythm proved costly during the run in. Road defeats to non-playoff sides like Saint Louis FC and Seattle Sounders FC 2, twice, saw the club’s second season undergo ebbs and flows.
Compared to the relative consistency shown by No. 1 seed Sacramento Republic FC, which battled to an 11-game undefeated streak to end the regular season, those missed opportunities came back to haunt the Switchbacks in the final order. With that in mind, while some like goalkeeper Devala Gorrick and captain Luke Vercollone can rest assured of a place in Friday’s lineup, the battle for starting positions this week is likely to be an intense one.
“After that loss I told everyone that their positions are up for grabs,” Trittschuh told Paisley. “We’re hoping for a good week of [practice] to show who deserves to start and who will be on the bench.”