The Jägermeister Cup returns as RIFC are set to host Portland Hearts of Pine on Friday night. It’s the 3rd of 4 matchdays in the group stage, which sees only the top team from each group guaranteed to advance. RIFC are currently top of the group with 6 points and Portland are 3rd with 3 points. Needless to say, this match will go a long way towards seeing who advances. As we look ahead to Friday night, here is what to look out for from both teams:

RIFC come into this game having lost 2-0 to Sacramento Republic last time out. It felt like a major step back for a team that had finally gotten their first home win the previous weekend. As always, context is important when trying to analyze these games and RIFC were shorthanded in midfield last weekend with multiple injuries. But even with that taken into account, the performance simply was not good enough.

Heading into Friday night, things need to change. Another poor performance will see this team lose and significantly harm their chances of moving on in the competition. As for what could change lineup-wise, I don’t think there’s a lot. The players need to prove that they’re good enough. The “difference-makers” have to make a difference. Here is what I could see Khano going with:

• Goalkeeper
  • Jackson Lee stays in goal with Koke Vegas still sidelined
• Defense
  • Frank Nodarse comes in on the left, where he had his best 45 minutes of the season in RIFC’s win over North Carolina FC. Aldair Sanchez gets a well deserved break. Mabika and Yao continue their pairing in the middle and Rio Hope-Gund plays on the right where he’s been so reliable
• Midfield
  • Due to uncertainty around Amos Shaprio-Thompson and Zach Herivaux’s availability, Taimu Okiyoshi starts alongside Clay Holstad. Maxi Rodriguez plays in front of them in a more attacking role
• Forwards
  • Kwizera and Fuson start out wide with Dikwa up top. Kwizera looked better last time out, though he’s still not near his best form from last season. Fuson has a long way to go to recapture his form, but I don’t see a better option than just trying to let him play through it

Keys to the Game

• Protect Your Backline
  • RIFC’s midfield had trouble with defensive responsibilities last game. This was especially evident on Sacramento’s 2nd goal. Without a true 6 back there, RIFC need to adjust. If Amos and Zach are both out, Taimu Okiyoshi needs to step up big time
• Attacking Urgency
  • The same thing gets written and spoken about every week. But until things change, I’m going to keep doing it. The team needs to create more chances. Making quicker decisions and being more direct is the most obvious way to make this happen. Too often play has slowed down in the attacking third. This allows the opposition to get adequate numbers back and position themselves in a way that makes it that much harder to create good opportunities. This must change
• Set Pieces!
  • Another area I’ve covered before, but it’s still as relevant as ever. This team needs to do better on set pieces both attacking and defensively. Mabika, Yao, and Nodarse are all strong enough in the air to be able to score or at the very least, head the ball into a dangerous area. When you’re struggling to create chances from open play, this could be a way to make up for it. Defensively, half RIFC’s goals conceded this year have come from set pieces. It’s imperative that the team improves in this area if they want to turn things around

Portland come into this game having drawn 1-1 at AV Alta last time out. They currently sit 10th out of 14 teams in USL League One, although they’ve played fewer games than all but one team in the league.

Portland have received a lot of praise in New England for their marketing, supporter’s group, and play on the field. I think the first two have been fantastic but the play on the field hasn’t been as good as many think. The team has won just 4 of 15 games in all competitions after 90 minutes (I’m leaving out the win on penalties against Hartford). One of those games was also against an amateur team. The other 3 wins came against Union Omaha, FC Naples and Detroit City FC.

I bring this up not to say that the team isn’t going to be dangerous on Friday night, but just to give a clearer picture on how their season has gone overall. The unfortunate thing for RIFC is that Portland always seem up for the big games. When these two teams met in Lewiston back in April in the US Open Cup, Portland gave RIFC everything they could handle. 2 goals in 3 minutes gave RIFC a 2-0 lead going into halftime, but Portland fought back hard probably deserved to at least send the game into extra time.

Players to Watch

• Kashope Oladapo (GK)
  • Hunter Morse has been the regular starting goalkeeper, but Oladapo started the last Jägermeister Cup game, a 4-2 win over Detroit City FC
• Nate Messer (DF)
  • Former RIFC player, puts in great service from the left
• Jay Tee Kamara (MF)
  • Dangerous right sided player, had his best game of the season in their last Jägermeister Cup game providing 2 assists
• Ollie Wright (MF/FW)
  • Plays wide left in front of Messer. On a good run of form with 4 goals and 2 assists over his last 5 games, including a hat trick against Union Omaha
• Azaad Liadi (FW)
  • Leads the line up front and is first on the team with 6 goals in all competitions. Did not play against RIFC in the Open Cup due to red card suspension

Keys to the Game

• Attack Down the Left
  • Portland are strong down the left with Nate Messer and Ollie Wright. When they have opportunities to get forward, they need to use that area and allow Messer to get forward and put in good service
• Counter Attack
  • RIFC haven’t shown they can effectively break teams down when they have the ball.  Portland should be comfortable ceding possession and hitting on the counter
• Ride the Away Support
  • Despite the game being on a Friday night, Portland is expected to have strong travelling support. The team has performed in big games this season they’ll need to do the same here in order to get a result. The fans making the 2 & 1/2 hour trip down from Portland should spur the team on to strong performance

I think RIFC takes this one. It isn’t going to be easy and Portland are going to come to play. They will play with a lot of energy. But I think RIFC respond to a poor performance last week. I’m also officially predicting that RIFC score from a set piece. It did technically happen the last time these two teams met, when a long free kick from just inside Portland’s half ended up bouncing around the box and Frank Nodarse put it in the back of the net.

Despite all the bad vibes after last weekend’s loss, I’m looking forward to being back at Centreville Bank Stadium. I’m really, really hoping that this team can turn things around. Anything other than a strong performance signals a bleak summer ahead. Regardless of what happens on the field, we will be there supporting the boys in amber and blue. UP THE TIDE!