It’s almost time everybody. The USL Championship Final. RIFC at Colorado Springs Switchbacks, Saturday at noon eastern. If we’re being honest, I never thought I’d still be writing blogs this late into the season. It’s pretty surreal. I’ve found it really difficult to wrap my head around the season that we’ve had and this playoff run. But as a blogger, it’s my job to try. So as usual, we’re going to take a look at how both teams got here and what to look out for in this final. But first, a quick statement:

I like to think of myself as a blogger of integrity. I write what I see. I try to be reasonable and not throw out too many hot takes. And above all else, I try to be honest. And that is where I have let you all down. Because in the Postmatch Beacon for our last match against Charleston, I wrote that I would not be attending the final. And….

I will be in attendance. Flying out Friday night. I can’t wait. I’ve never been that far west in my life and more importantly, I get to follow this team that has meant so much to me. I get to see my fellow supporters, from all walks of life, who come together with a singular purpose: to live and die with this team. To bang on drums, chant, and put everything we have into supporting the boys in amber and blue. But before we come together for the last time this season, let’s take some time to look at what both teams should be bringing into this final.

What a season it has been. From early season growing pains, to a midseason run of form, to a slight downturn and a return to form at the end of the season. It’s been quite the journey and it all culminates on Saturday. The team has gone 9 games unbeaten as we head into this one. That’s the final 6 games of the season, starting with our 2-1 home win over FC Tulsa, and our 3 recent playoff games.

During this run, we’ve outscored our opponents 25-8. That is obviously a bit skewed due to our 8-1 win over Miami FC. But even if you take those 8 goals away, we still would have scored more than twice as many goals as we’ve conceded. We’ve been able to pair a very solid defense with an increasingly lethal attack.

On the defensive side of things, obviously our goalkeeper and back line deserve credit. The main standout from this group has to be Morris Duggan. He’s been asked to play LWB at times, along with his normal LCB role. Although I was apprehensive about him at wing back at first, I think his defensive qualities have shown through there in a positive way. He is still better among the back 3 however, and his performance last time out against Charleston was further proof of that. He was outstanding and we will need him to be just as good on Saturday.

In attack, I think it’s pretty obvious that Noah Fuson and JJ Williams have made the difference for us over these past 2 months. Noah’s performances earned him the league’s Golden Playmaker award. And JJ has been on an absolute tear, starting with his hat trick against Miami in the last game of the season.

The group that has brought all of this together though is our 3 central midfielders. Ybarra, Holstad and Herivaux. The adult midfield. These 3 have been so crucial both defensively and going forward. Their collective ability to read the game and clog up passing lanes has made it so difficult on our opponents. It’s a tough task to try to break us down and even get at our back line at times. They’ve also done well helping out in attack, with quick turnovers of possession springing quick transition moves. Herivaux has done especially well combining with Noah and JJ in the attacking third.

All of this being said, this is what I’m expecting to see from us on Saturday:

I’m opting to go with the same lineup that we saw in the Eastern Conference Finals against Charleston. The big question coming into this one as it pertains to the lineup is what is the availability of Jojea Kwizera. Kwizera has been away on international duty with Rwanda and last played on Monday. He was a late substitute and only played the last 20 or so minutes. Kwizera will definitely be able to play in this one, but how many minutes he’ll be able to give us is unknown. Because of this, I would bring him off the bench later in the game. However if he does start, he would be in his usual LWB spot and Noah would push up next to JJ, with Dikwa heading to the bench.

I feel like I always say this, but the most important thing for us is to try to win the midfield battle. As we’ll see soon, Colorado Springs have some midfielders that can hurt us. If we make it difficult to play through the midfield, it cuts out a lot of options for our opponents going forward. We’ll also need strong performances from our attackers and will need to take our chances against a tough defense. With most of our players on their best form of the season, I have confidence.

As I usually do, I took a look at how the season as a whole has gone for our upcoming opponents. The Switchbacks started the season with 5 straight losses, including a 2-0 loss at Miami FC to start the season. They quickly turned this around though and went on a 9 game unbeaten run with 6 wins and 3 draws. Their form the rest of the season was a little bit up and down. At one point they had a run of 4 straight wins followed by going winless in 4. But the Switchbacks have now won 5 games in a row, starting with their final two regular season games at Monterey Bay and Sacramento, followed by their 3 playoff wins at home against Oakland, Orange County and Las Vegas.

Colorado Springs conceded the 7th fewest goals in the league this season and scored the 9th most. It paints a picture of a pretty balanced team and that’s pretty much what I expected to see. But the Switchbacks defense has been the biggest factor in their recent run. Over their last 5 games, they’ve only conceded once. That was in their 2-1 win over Orange County in the Western Conference Semifinals. And that goal came from a miscommunication at the back. It is their strong defense that the Switchbacks are going to need to rely on if they are going to win the final on Saturday.

Speaking of the defense, that’s where I’m going to start with their players to watch. I figured I’d give one for every part of the field, so I’ll start with goalkeeper Christian Herrera. Herrera has started every game for the Switchbacks this season and has made some important saves in the playoffs to keep his team in games. He has gotten hot at the right time and he has the capability to alter games on his own.

Moving up to the back line, you have to talk about team captain and first team all league CB Matt Mahoney. He was one of the best defenders in the league this year and is an integral part of their defense. Mahoney’s ability to handle JJ Williams and the rest of our dangerous attack should be a major focus.

In the midfield, it has to be Zach Zandi. Zandi finished the season with 4 goals and 4 assists but has added 2 more goals this playoffs. Both came against Orange County. My concern with Zandi is that he’s great at making late runs to the edge of the box. That’s not something we’ve been great at defending this year. He is also the focal point of the midfield and it will be interesting to see if he gets a similar treatment to Aaron Molloy last week.

Lastly, I need to mention the man who goes by R9, at least per his jersey, Ronaldo Damus. Damus lead the Switchbacks with 12 goals this season and has added one more in the playoffs from the penalty spot. Speaking of penalty kicks, half of his goals came from the spot this season. It still blows my mind how few penalties we’ve won this year. But even if Damus isn’t sccoring, I’d worry about his pace getting in behind. This could be especially relevant if the Switchbacks have to play long to get around our strong midfield.

Overall, the Switchbacks are a very solid team. They have a formidable defense and combine that with an ability to find goals from different sources. They’ve been on a really good run of form and playing at home will definitely be an advantage for them. How much of an advantage remains to be seen though.

As for a prediction…….

This is another really hard one to call. Both teams are on really good runs of form. And while we’ve become the Rhode Warriors with 3 straight playoff wins away from home, the Switchbacks have the advantage of playing at home at altitude. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned about the conditions in Colorado Springs. The weather is supposed to be nice, especially for a 10am local kickoff. And even though we played out there early in the season, the altitude is going to be difficult to adjust to. (Side note, we lost that game 3-1, but both teams are very different at this point in the year so there wasn’t much to take way from that one)

As for the teams on the field, I think something has to give between their defense and our attack. Are they going to slow us down or are we going to continue to bury our chances? I think they’re going to have a difficult time hold us down and therefore, I’m going with 2-1 RIFC. Do you want to bet against us? I don’t. We’ve been on an incredible run and I just can’t see it not continuing.

As I said at the top, I’m heading out to Colorado Springs to see our boys for one last time this season. It’s unbelievable that we’ve made it this far and I can’t wait to cheer us on in the final. If you aren’t heading out there, I would recommend stopping by Providence Brewing for the watch party. I’ll be back with the final blog of the season at some point after the final, depending on when I recover. And now, for one last time heading into a game this season…UP THE TIDE!