The Riptide Report: Rhode Island FC vs Miami FC - 9/19/2026

Rhode Island FC fell to Miami FC 2-1 tonight at Tidewater. Arney Rocha and Denilson Milanes got the goals for Miami while Karifa Yao got on the board for RIFC. It was an extremely frustrating result, so stay with me for my rant at the end. But first, here's how things went down:

Arney Again

After scoring against RIFC earlier this season Miami FC forward Arney Rocha was at it again tonight, getting the opener:

Jojea got beat there by Al Zubaidi who made the cross for Rocha. It only furthers the point that we here at Tide Talk have been making forever: Jojea Kwizera is not a left back. I honestly don't understand why Khano continues to play him there over a natural LB in Aldair Sanchez or even a natural defender like Frank Nodarse. Jojea has been great this year on the right wing. There's absolutely zero reason to move him out of that spot.

Karifa Equalizes

I highlighted Karifa Yao in the Prematch Lookout for his defensive ability and what he could bring the team. And while I thought he was good on that end of the field, his best moments came when he scored off a corner:

It's nice to see Karifa back and getting a contribution on the attacking end.

Comical way to lose

With the game tied 1-1 at halftime, I had confidence in the team to take care of business and come away with the three points. Instead, this is what we got:

Beaten by a guy who was playing 6-on-6 soccer earlier this year. Honestly, going through on goal like that was probably a pretty comfortable position for him coming from the Baller League. Credit to Grant I guess for getting the initial block but in the end it wasn't enough.

Unacceptable Result

I write this blog so I can give my immediate thoughts. So here we go. There's no sugarcoating it: this was an embarrassing result. While this isn't the historically bad Miami FC of 2024, they still are a team RIFC should easily be able to handle. Especially at home. Miami hadn't won a game since July 15th. But the team came out tonight and absolutely blew it.

For me, this result brings into question what this team wants to be. They supposedly want to be able to compete with the best in the league but yet again we're getting to late September and we're barely above the playoff line. With (presumably) the money the team spends, along with the stadium/facilities, we should be near the top of the conference. And honestly, I don't even want to hear about players leaving mid-season. It isn't an excuse. The team was behind were they should have been even with those guys available. Something needs to change, and quick.

We'll have the postmatch podcast and player ratings tomorrow where we can commiserate over a terrible game. It promises to be good therapy. I'll be back later in the week with the Prematch Lookout to preview RIFC'S trip to Charleston. Until then, no matter what, UP THE TIDE!