Coming off their 3-1 win over Swope Park Rangers on Tuesday, Sacramento Republic FC will look to lock up three points Saturday evening and creep back into third place within the Western Conference when they travel to Weidner Field for a 5:00 p.m. kick against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC.
Ahead of the match, refresh your knowledge on the Switchbacks.
KEY PLAYERS
After Mois Pouaty’s start in Switchbacks FC’s 1-1 draw with OKC Energy last week, Steward Ceus will be getting the nod for this weekend’s match with Sacramento. The 31-year-old Haitian goalkeeper has made 12 starts this season between the posts, racking up four clean sheets on the season. He’s worked to a 0.92 goals against average in his 1080 minutes on the pitch and is good for a 71.1 save percentage on the season.
Joining the team in time for this weekend’s match will be Nicholas Amoako. The 20-year-old forward comes from the Kalonji Soccer Academy in Atlanta, Georgia where he helped the KSA ’98 team bring home a National League title in 2014. He and his six younger sisters arrived in the United States in 2011 as refugees from Ghana and will look to bring fire power for the Switchbacks frontline and assist with his dynamic style of play.
Coming off their 3-1 win over Swope Park Rangers on Tuesday, Sacramento Republic FC will look to lock up three points Saturday evening and creep back into third place within the Western Conference when they travel to Weidner Field for a 5:00 p.m. kick against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC.
Ahead of the match, refresh your knowledge on the Switchbacks.
KEY PLAYERS
After Mois Pouaty’s start in Switchbacks FC’s 1-1 draw with OKC Energy last week, Steward Ceus will be getting the nod for this weekend’s match with Sacramento. The 31-year-old Haitian goalkeeper has made 12 starts this season between the posts, racking up four clean sheets on the season. He’s worked to a 0.92 goals against average in his 1080 minutes on the pitch and is good for a 71.1 save percentage on the season.
Joining the team in time for this weekend’s match will be Nicholas Amoako. The 20-year-old forward comes from the Kalonji Soccer Academy in Atlanta, Georgia where he helped the KSA ’98 team bring home a National League title in 2014. He and his six younger sisters arrived in the United States in 2011 as refugees from Ghana and will look to bring fire power for the Switchbacks frontline and assist with his dynamic style of play.
Last time they met
Sacramento Republic FC downed the Switchbacks 2-1 at Papa Murphy’s Park back on April 18 thanks to goals from team-leading scorer Cameron Iwasa and midfielder Villyan Bijev. After going down 1-0 on a 28th minute set piece, and trailing into the half, Sacramento came out firing in the final 45 minutes of play. Iwasa, who nearly equalized eight minutes into the second half, finally found the back of the net in the 64th, beating the defense at the far post with a right-footed strike for his second goal of the season. Bijev completed the comeback victory in the 73rd minute with brilliant ball work, dribbling past defenders before finally slotting the ball through the five-hole for his first goal of the season.
2018 SEASON So Far
Following the teams’ mid-April matchup, Colorado Springs built upon their 3-4-0 record with a 4-5-4 stretch over their next 13 matches, helping them move above the line into playoff positioning. Over a stretch of five matches from April 21 to May 19, the Switchbacks saw their games end with one or fewer total goals scored in the game. Colorado Springs was shut out in four of those five matches before earning a positive result with a 3-0 win against Saint Louis FC on May 26. A 4-1 win against Portland and 1-0 shutout of Fresno on June 17 and June 23, respectively, pushed Switchbacks FC’s win column to 7 but they have remained winless since then, losing once and playing to a pair of 1-1 draws over their last three games.
Home and Away Splits
Colorado Springs has fared better at Weidner Field this season, playing to a 5-3-3 record (18 points) at home as opposed to their road record in which they’ve collected a mere seven points, with a 2-6-1 line.
Saturday’s MATCH
Saturday’s match between Republic FC and Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC will kick off at 5:00 p.m. at Weidner Field. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
Updates will be provided via Twitter at @SacRepublicFC or using #COSvSAC.
Last time they met
Sacramento Republic FC downed the Switchbacks 2-1 at Papa Murphy’s Park back on April 18 thanks to goals from team-leading scorer Cameron Iwasa and midfielder Villyan Bijev. After going down 1-0 on a 28th minute set piece, and trailing into the half, Sacramento came out firing in the final 45 minutes of play. Iwasa, who nearly equalized eight minutes into the second half, finally found the back of the net in the 64th, beating the defense at the far post with a right-footed strike for his second goal of the season. Bijev completed the comeback victory in the 73rd minute with brilliant ball work, dribbling past defenders before finally slotting the ball through the five-hole for his first goal of the season.
2018 SEASON So Far
Following the teams’ mid-April matchup, Colorado Springs built upon their 3-4-0 record with a 4-5-4 stretch over their next 13 matches, helping them move above the line into playoff positioning. Over a stretch of five matches from April 21 to May 19, the Switchbacks saw their games end with one or fewer total goals scored in the game. Colorado Springs was shut out in four of those five matches before earning a positive result with a 3-0 win against Saint Louis FC on May 26. A 4-1 win against Portland and 1-0 shutout of Fresno on June 17 and June 23, respectively, pushed Switchbacks FC’s win column to 7 but they have remained winless since then, losing once and playing to a pair of 1-1 draws over their last three games.
Home and Away Splits
Colorado Springs has fared better at Weidner Field this season, playing to a 5-3-3 record (18 points) at home as opposed to their road record in which they’ve collected a mere seven points, with a 2-6-1 line.
Saturday’s MATCH
Saturday’s match between Republic FC and Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC will kick off at 5:00 p.m. at Weidner Field. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
Updates will be provided via Twitter at @SacRepublicFC or using #COSvSAC.
