Wednesday’s mid-week matchup with Colorado Springs presents a few opportunities to Republic FC. The club knows the result in Monterey on Saturday wasn’t what they wanted, putting a rebound performance firmly on the brain of the entire squad and coaching staff, especially against an opponent that bested them earlier in the year. To challenge the Switchbacks, and move up in the standings, an uptick in intensity will be needed to return to the high standard the club’s been holding all season.
Coming back home, they’ll face off with a club that’s been among the most dangerous all season but hasn’t seen the results go their way in the last few matches. After a tough loss, it’s a great chance to get back into form with a win in their second match of the week.
“We’re motivated in every game we play, and we’ve got to keep our standards and get back to our standards,” said Mark Briggs on Monday.
“Especially being at home in front of our fans, it’s a great opportunity to bounce back,” said midfielder Luis Felipe.
Colorado Springs enters the match as one of the most potent attacking teams in the league, led by a trio of forwards that have been near automatics to find the net in recent weeks. They had their way with Republic FC in their last meeting in July, but this time, the club knows they’ll need to take the challenge head-on and put in a clean effort to emerge superior in the final match with the Rocky Mountain side.
“They’re a good team, and they beat us when we were on the back of a brutal schedule,” Briggs continued. “It’s going to be a good game. You want to test yourself against the better teams and they’re certainly one of the better teams in the league. There’s nothing for us to fear – we’ve got to come out and bounce back from Saturday.”
As the season continues, it’s almost natural to begin putting a closer eye on the standings. With matches ahead against every team at the top of the table still on the schedule, picking up points now is as critical as it will be all year – and the team knows it. With a game in hand on Colorado, Wednesday’s match is even more important.
“It’s huge. It’s something that we have to look forward to, especially the way some other games have gone in our favor [across the league],” Luis Felipe continued. “I think we have to take those chances and win games and move up the table.”
