Well everyone, as it turns out, FC Tulsa could not do it on a cold, rainy night in Smithfield. RIFC overcame a slow start to grab all 3 points Saturday night, defeating FC Tulsa 2-1. The win put a swift end to our 2 game losing streak and keeps us above the playoff line with 5 games left on the season. So how did we get all 3 points in this game? What is the playoff picture looking like? And what can we take from our performance in this match? As always, I’ll do my best to answer those questions. But no promises.

To begin with, we didn’t start this one well. We weren’t able to get any foothold in the game for the first half hour. It was sloppy for both sides and the conditions almost certainly were a factor. It was difficult for either team to keep possession for any significant spells and play largely consisted of transitional moments and 50-50 balls. With neither team able to gain any control, it was in one of those transitional moments where FC Tulsa would take the lead in the 8th minute.

As you can see there, the ball kind of bounced around between both teams after a Koke goal kick. Tulsa ended up with it and midfielder Faysal Battache played a great ball through to forward Aaron Bibout who split the defense and produced a great finish. It was a frustrating goal to concede because it seemed avoidable. And after it went in, there was a sense of concern permeating through the stands.

The only other really notable moment in the half was a penalty shout for us in the 34th minute. Both JJ Williams and Frank Nodarse went down in the box following a corner. It was hard to tell if there was contact on Nodarse, but I think we should have been awarded a penalty for a foul on JJ. An FC Tulsa defender went right through his back and brought JJ to the ground, making no attempt to play the ball. I feel like defenders are often given a little more leeway in the box, but even taking that into account I think this should have been called.

Things really turned around for us in the second half, as we took control of the game and created several chances. We kept the pressure on FC Tulsa and broke through with our first goal in the 69th minute:

Noah Fuson, who had tried a similar shot earlier, fired this one in at the far post to bring us level. Fuson found himself out on the left, where he and Kwizera have developed a great partnership. When both are at their best, our attacking left side is a nightmare for opposing defenses.

FC Tulsa goalkeeper Johan Peñaranda made some good saves to keep us from taking the lead and came close to getting his team out of Smithfield with a point. I called him out as a player to watch in the Prematch Lookout, so credit to me. I definitely didn’t bring up another player for Tulsa who didn’t even see the field in this game. Just trust me on this one. No need to fact check me. Anyway, Peñaranda wasn’t able to stop everything and Albert Dikwa would come through with a scrappy goal in stoppage time to secure us the 3 points.

Dikwa produced a great finish into the roof of the net here. These are the kinds of goals that I envisioned him scoring when he signed. We don’t need anything flashy, just some tenacity and good finishing in the box. The goal was another magical moment at Beirne Stadium that all of us who chose to brave the cold, wet conditions, will always remember.

As always, we need to take a look at our starting 11. And it was a somewhat surprising one. Here is what coach Khano Smith chose to go with:

It looked something like this, anyway. When I saw the announcement in the parking lot before the game, I was concerned that Clay Holstad would be playing RWB. And sure enough, that is where he ended up. I feel like I’ve gone over this several times, but I really prefer Clay to be in central midfield. Clay is such a versatile player, and we’ve seen him in our back 3 and at wingback this season. While that’s a great quality to have, I think to get the most out of him we need him to play centrally.

It was also interesting seeing Albert Dikwa on the bench. We had failed to score in our last two matches (both ones where Dikwa got the start) and the last time we had scored, JJ Williams had a goal and an assist. So that makes me wonder if there was a message being sent here. If so, Dikwa must have gotten that message because he came through when we needed him most.

In the Prematch Lookout, I had suggested this lineup:

The main reason for this suggestion was that I didn’t think having two attacking midfielders and one striker worked for us. I preferred us to have one attacking midfielder with 2 strikers in front of him. Interestingly, after our subs in the 65th minute, we almost played this exact lineup. The only difference was that Noah Fuson played the number 10 role instead of Jack Panayotou. Noah would go on to score our first goal just 4 minutes after our those subs came on.

This all leads me to address the question: what can we take from our performance? For me, the big takeaway is that Noah needs to be starting over Jack P. While I can pat myself on the back for suggesting the 1 attacking mid/2 striker set up, I have to call out my own error here in calling for Jack P to be that lone attacking mid. I don’t want to be too harsh because I think we’ve seen what Jack P can do with the ball at his feet. He’s the most skilled player we have in the squad in that respect. But since coming back on loan, I don’t think he’s dealt with the physicality of this league well enough.

It’s funny in a way because early in the season, we were all desperately crying out for a number 10. It was the big missing piece for us. And Jack Panayotou seemed like the answer to our prayers. But he only ended up playing 4 games before being recalled by the New England Revolution. Once he left, Noah Fuson rose to the challenge and really took over that role in a way that he hadn’t previously done. Then, we had the opportunity to bring Jack P back and we took it. You always want good players in your squad so it was obviously a no-brainer. But I think it has caused an issue as far as where he fits in. For now, I think he needs to be an option off the bench.

Yes Jim, we’re talking about the playoffs. We did just win a game after all. Assuming that the USL’s very own website has the correct standings (a sentence I didn’t think I’d ever be writing), here is where we stand:

7th place right now isn’t too bad. The notorious midweek, heavy rotation game against Indy Eleven a couple months ago does mean that they have the tiebreaker on us. We’re also still 3 points ahead of Hartford Athletic, who, as much as it pains me to say, are currently on a 7 game unbeaten run. Their last loss did come against us though, so maybe their manager Brendan Burke has used that embarrassment of a performance in Smithfield as motivation for his team.

RIFC are making the trip to Texas to take on San Antonio FC on Saturday night. I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you that this is another massive game for us as the season winds down. I’ll be back later this week with the Prematch Lookout to preview the matchup. Until then, UP THE TIDE!