It is time. El Clamico III. RIFC (along with a large contingent of fans) will travel about 80 miles west for a matchup with Hartford Athletic at Trinity Health Stadium on Saturday night. And after two feisty back to back matches at Centreville Bank Stadium last month, the stage is set for another intense evening. So let’s get right to previewing this fierce rivalry.
The first meeting of the season was largely dominated by RIFC in the stats. But as always, the only one that really matters at the end of the day is goals and neither team put the ball in the back of the net.
The biggest moment in the match came after the final whistle, when Hartford goalkeeper Antony Siaha celebrated like he had won a trophy, something his team and their fans know nothing about.
The second match had much more excitement on the field and Hartford got their first ever lead against RIFC with a late first half goal from TJ Presthus. That lead would only last 4 minutes as Amos Shapiro-Thompson scored an equalizer early in the 2nd half. Maxi Rodriguez put RIFC ahead in the 79th but Adrian Diz equalized in the 83rd and the match ended in a draw. Penalty misses from Marc Ybarra and Aldair Sanchez would cost RIFC and hand Hartford a spot in the Jagermeister Cup Quarterfinals.
Current Outlook
RIFC are in the midst of only their second 3 game unbeaten streak this season. The first one came from May 10-17, when RIFC drew Monterey Bay at Tidewater and won at Birmingham and Tampa Bay. The hope for RIFC is that this current 3 game stretch will continue into a run through the end of the season. But it’s one game at a time and the priority is making sure the momentum continues on Saturday.
Key Questions
- Will Busy Start?
- Dwayne Atkinson looked exciting in his first appearance against Loudoun United and followed that up by making the difference off the bench against Birmingham with the decisive goal in the 1-0 victory. In the post match presser, Khano alluded to needing to see more from Busy during training in order to guarantee a start. That certainly applies to the entire squad, but it’s good to see Khano holding Busy to a certain standard because he definitely has the ability to be great in this league
- Where is Clay?
- Clay Holstad last started against Detroit City. He came off the bench late against Loudoun and did not play on Wednesday against Birmingham. It’s only been a couple of games, so it isn’t something to be that concerned with yet. But it’ll be interesting to see if he is in the 11 in Hartford. And if he does start, will it be out on the right? It seems that lately Amos and Clay have been relegated to playing right wingback in the absence of other options like Frank Nodarse (injured) and Dani Rovira (ability…?)
- Will Possession Lead to Chances?
- RIFC won the possession battle in both prior meetings with Hartford Athletic this season with 59% in the league game and 57% in the cup game. They also had 63% possession last time out against Birmingham. I think this is a good thing, probably because I’m biased to that style of play. I’m a fan of playing out from the back and even passing in your own half of the field. It’s a way to control the game and limit chances for your opposition. However, you have to get the ball forward and create some chances for yourself or the style doesn’t work. We know all too well how poor RIFC have been going forward this season, but I think there have been positive signs lately. Still, the team has a lot of work to do in the final third in order to get on track and make a run
Hartford are currently on a 7 game unbeaten run, but I really just wanted to focus on the last 3. They’re all good results. Birmingham are near the bottom of the conference, so beating them resoundingly is a positive. FC Tulsa are one of the top teams in the league this season, so a draw there is solid. And a 2-0 win at San Antonio in the Jagermeister Cup sets Hartford ended up setting them up for a home meeting with Greenville Triumph of League One in the semifinals.
Key Question
Yes, that’s question (not plural), because there’s only one major talking point for Hartford heading into this one:
But seriously……
How Does Hartford Adjust?
With Mamadou Dieng, the team’s leader in goals and goal contributions this season heading to MLS, Hartford are going to need to figure some things out. At the very least, this will affect the derby but it could potentially derail Hartford after this run they’ve been on. They have other good attacking players, like Michee Ngalina and Kyle Edwards (8 league goals), but Dieng was really the only true center forward. He was the player who when he wasn’t scoring, would occupy the opposition center backs and help create space and opportunities for his teammates. Hartford will really miss that part of his game in addition to the goals.
I think the loss of Dieng will be a big issue for Hartford to overcome on Saturday. And I feel that the style of play in this one will be something to watch. Hartford don’t want the ball. They don’t have enough the creative or technical players to play that way. Their recent success has come from getting goals in transition. RIFC will need to be wary of that, but I have faith that our defense (4th fewest goals conceded in the league) will be up to the task. I also feel that JJ Williams in particular will be really up for this game. What I’ve seen from him and Atkinson lately has been encouraging and hopefully we get to see them play together up top and cause all sorts of problems for Hartford’s defense.
Up Next
The 5 of us who blog and/or pod will be heading out to Hartford for the game on Saturday. I will try to find a nice spot in what will be a raucous traveling section to whip out my phone and get the Riptide Report done for right after the game. Don’t worry, I will still be enjoying the atmosphere and watching the game. I’ve learned to multitask this year. There will also be a pod and player ratings to take a deeper look into what we hope ends up being a massive win. For those who are able to travel, I will see you in Hartford. And those who aren’t going, we will miss you there. Until next time, UP THE TIDE!
Tide Talk 
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