An always-spirited NorCal rivalry resumes on Saturday night when Republic FC faces off with Oakland Roots SC. The third matchup between the two squads in 2023 closes out a busy stretch for Sacramento with three games in eight days.
It’s a big contest for the Quails, who are in a tight race for the top spot in the West and have a chance to claim the season’s series against their rivals. Oakland enters in strong form as winners in five of their last eight. The match will have playoff implications for both teams, who sit eight points apart from each other in the Western Conference table.
“Obviously with Oakland these are usually exciting, intense games,” said Briggs on Friday. “So, an opportunity for our guys to bounce back from two performances that don’t really show who we are as a team and who we are as a group. We’ve got to get back to our identity, back to who we are, and back to our values.”
Sacramento enters the match after consecutive losses for the first time this season. As a result, Saturday provides the club an opportunity to close out a tough stretch on a high note and get back to what’s made them a top team in the league this season.
“It’s a big game for us. Obviously, we lost last two games,” said Jack Gurr. “We’ll be looking to bounce back and go into the break on a high.”
“We need to perform. We’ve lost two on the bounce, and we don’t want that to become a third,” said Briggs. “We’ve got to go there and be hard to beat, go there with the right attitude and mentality against the team that are in form. So we’ve just got to make sure that we turn up and we show what we can do.”
Sacramento has claimed two victories over Oakland this season. On April 26, Republic FC eliminated the Bay Area side from the U.S. Open Cup behind a second-half curler from Nick Ross. Three goals a month later on May 20 gave Sacramento another victory in league play as Keko, Russell Cicerone, and Sebastian Herrera each found the net. In each game the rivalry atmosphere had an impact on the result.
“It means a bit more,” said Jack Gurr of the regional derby. “They’ll be up for the fight. We’ve got to match that and ensure our quality.”
