The Colorado Springs Switchbacks had their chance for a decisive win this season.
First, at best, in the USL Championship of the Western Conference New Mexico, then, at best, in East Louisville City FC.
Both times the Switchbacks showed they can compete with the league leaders, and both times they narrowly missed out on victory. But both games were away games.
Can the Switchbacks perhaps pull off a decisive win at home against one of the league’s best teams, where Colorado Springs has dominated so far, that will catapult them into the final weeks of the regular season and into the playoffs?
They will get their chance on Saturday when they face New Mexico again, this time in front of their home crowd at 7 p.m.
Colorado Springs coach James Chambers reiterated his and the team’s excitement to be back downtown on Thursday.
“We played away against the leaders of the East and West and we did well. We should have gotten a result in both games. But would-be, could-have-beens don’t count,” Chambers said. “It’s like, ‘Yeah, we can hang with them and be better than them sometimes. But that doesn’t matter.’ You have to be able to get results and that’s where we are now. So it’s a home game, a derby in the US, so we’re definitely looking forward to it.”
The Switchbacks are on a roll this season. The club has a 7-2-2 record at Weidner Field and those two losses came early in the season, meaning Colorado Springs is undefeated in its last nine home games. The Switchbacks have a 9-9-5 record overall.
United will put this series to the ultimate test. New Mexico is well ahead of the rest with a record of 14-6-3. New Mexico’s 45 points are seven more than the Western Conference’s second-seeded Sacramento Republic FC with 38 points.
The visitors from Albuquerque will bring a strong offensive to Interstate 25, having scored three goals in each of their last three games. However, the club has conceded six goals in the same period, showing some vulnerability.
The last game between these two teams there was decided by a single goal: a penalty for New Mexico in the 90th minute.
While Chambers acknowledged that both teams have changed since the June 22 game, he believes his team has excelled on defense for most of the season.
“The game against North Carolina is (unique). Honestly, I feel like we’ve been pretty consistent defensively. We’ve got to make sure we do that and continue to try to get better in front of the goal, that’s where we are,” Chambers said.
The challenge of scoring more goals was made even greater by news on Friday when the Switchbacks announced the transfer of forward and assist provider Maalique Foster to Indy Eleven. Foster’s four goals were second most on the team. And he was the Switchbacks’ leading player with 34 scoring chances.
With Foster gone, the club needs other players to step in. While Colorado Springs has a variety of attacking options, none have been more obvious in recent weeks than Jamaican midfielder Tyreek Magee, who has scored two goals in the club’s last three games.
“He’s scored two goals that weren’t Tyreek Magee’s. The one here against Phoenix, he reads it 12 yards from the goal and slams it in. Then the other night, it’s just difficult to run into the box. He’s there to get a rebound. So he’s scoring goals that he probably hasn’t scored in the past, which says a lot about him, his mentality and his character,” Chambers said. “He’s nowhere near where he could be. He’s a special kid, a special talent and he’s got a lot more to offer.”
The team’s other goalscorer from last week, defender Delentz Pierre, buried a header in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time to secure the tie for Colorado Springs, and he expects there will be a chance on Saturday.
“Securing this win and these three points would be great. It would be a big statement for us and it would be a big statement to the rest of the league that we can do it and compete with the big guys,” he said.
Striker Ronaldo Damus is Colorado Springs’ leading scorer with nine goals. The club’s new assist provider is midfielder Zach Zandi with three goals.
United striker Greg Hurst is the most successful New Mexico player with nine goals. Midfielder Marco Micaletto is the most successful player with four assists.
