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Republic FC claimed their first clean sheet since June 18 Saturday, shutting out Phoenix Rising FC in a tough assignment on the road. The scoreless draw gave Sacramento a crucial point in the table coming off a tough loss at home to Birmingham on July 16 at home.

Welcome to the Show

Sacramento’s matchday roster featured a bevy of changes from last week’s contest. Most notably, however, academy products Tiago Suarez, Pepe Venegas and Michaelaaron Ortez found their names on the list, with Suarez in the starting XI. In their first taste of first-team action, Venegas and Suarez performed well, with the latter leading the squad in successful one-on-one duels. The duo’s minutes in Phoenix make them the 10^th and 11^th players developed through Republic FC’s academy system to appear in a first-team match, and the second and third this season to make their first team debut.

“They were amazing tonight,” said goalkeeper Carlos Saldaña of the youngsters’ performance. “…We knew it was gonna be a little bit of work. But they did their thing… they were courageous, they went out and [had a] huge, huge, huge double debut. That’s a huge zero to start with and [it’s] only up from here for both of them.”

Seven for Saldaña

As a part of Mark Briggs lineup shuffle, Carlos Saldana was penciled into the lineup for the first time since June 18. The Vallejo native put in an excellent performance, taking on a staggering 26 shots from the hosts and not letting even one go through. He tallied seven saves – setting a new career high, and recorded his third clean sheet in as many performances dating to May 8 against New York Red Bulls II.

“I thought Carlos [Saldaña] was fantastic. He stepped up in big moments and made big saves for us which was what we needed,” said Head Coach Mark Briggs. “I thought he was also very good with possession with the ball at his feet. So I’m over the moon for Carlos to get the minutes and show the quality he has.”

Inches From the Win

While Republic FC may have been bested on the stat sheet – just one play may have kept Sacramento from taking a victory. A 74^th minute attack for Sacramento with numbers in transition eventually put the ball at the feet of Rafa Jauregui, who rocketed a right-footed shot towards the top corner after surveying his options. The 18-year-old’s clean strike beat the goalkeeper, but in a turn of tough luck bounced away after hitting the left post. It’s the second match in a row that the woodwork has stood in the way of a game-changing goal, and the sixth time this season a Sacramento player has hit the post.

A foe new to Heart Health Park touches down in the Capitol City this week. Birmingham Legion FC, one of the top clubs in the Eastern Conference since their 2019 debut in USL comes to town for the very first time on their first-ever trip to California. The match pits Sacramento against a squad much like their own, which should create for a tight, well played contest as each side looks to regain the strong form they showed in June.

The squad’s ready for the challenges the Alabama side is likely to bring – they’re a very organized team with some big-time weapons Sacramento will need to account for. Obviously, with the pair being in opposite conferences there isn’t much history to pull from, but that isn’t keeping the Indomitable Club from being as prepared as they possibly can.

“It’s going to be a difficult game,” said Mark Briggs on Thursday. “They [Birmingham] are well coached and a team we can’t take lightly. We have to fully understand what we don’t want to give them.”

A win against Legion would be big for the club as the prep for a busy schedule to close out July. After this week, Sacramento stares down one of their toughest stretches on the schedule this year, including the Open Cup semifinal. To take three, a strong effort will be required, and the club knows it as no rewarding task is ever easy.

“These are always important points,” said Matt LaGrassa. “I think they [games] are all important right now and we want to start building momentum toward a lot of things we have coming up, and get on back on the right track of winning games at home.

“It’s about making sure we’re ruthless and have that killer edge as a team and as a group, we keep the ball out of our own net and put the ball in the opposition’s,” Briggs continued.

A victory also keeps Sacramento unbeaten at home this season – one of their biggest goals entering the year. Republic FC enters the match as the last club unbeaten on home turf this season, and they narrowly avoided defeat with a thrilling last-second equalizer against Oakland Roots SC last weekend. With the State Fair in the background and the environment it provides, the club feels like they have a good chance to continue the streak.

“We haven’t lost at home this season and we’re very proud of that,” said LaGrassa. “We’re a team that’s not going to quit and will fight until the very last play.”

“I think every team wants to be undefeated at home. If you can win your home games, you’ve got a good chance of staying high in the league [standings],” said Nick Ross. “We have the fans behind us, and it makes a big difference.”

Republic FC’s second contest of the season with Oakland Roots gave fans plenty to cheer for. The 3-3 draw saw the two NorCal squads trade punches for 90+ minutes, providing all kinds of fireworks. Before Luis Felipe headed in the equalizer at the death, however, a few things stood out to put Republic FC in a position to steal a point from their East Bay foes.

Speed Kills

Making just his second start of the season, forward Maalique Foster gave Oakland’s back line fits all night with his raw speed and ability to break lines with ease. Foster alone accounted for a 0.83 goals expected rating – higher than all but Oakland’s Magnus Karlsson who netted two scores – and exited the match in the 80th minute after creating three chances. He also assisted the club’s first score, sending along a recovered ball to Rodrigo Lopez at the top of the penalty box.

No better were the Jamaican’s best attributes shown off just before halftime when Duke Lacroix poked away the ball from an Oakland player’s feet and put Foster in a footrace. Even with a near 10-yard handicap to Emrah Klimenta, Foster still left the defender in the dust before punching in his team-leading fourth goal of the year.

Put the Pressure On

Republic FC wasted no time putting the Roots on their heels – a pair of chances within five minutes of the opening whistle nearly resulted in the opening score. Luis Felipe was just a hair late to a ball snagged by Oakland’s keeper, and Jack Gurr nearly netted his first of the year after shooting from distance.

That pressure set the tone for how Sacramento would play, as they’d have Oakland on their heels for nearly the entire contest. Great work by Douglas Martinez to box an opposing defender into the corner resulted in Sacramento’s first score, while the remainder of the squad combined for seven shots on target – tied for the second-highest tally by the club all season long. 11 of Sacramento’s 14 shots came from inside the penalty area, and the club nearly doubled their previous season-high of big chances created with 7.

Stop after Stop

Mark Briggs’ Men may have conceded three scores for the second straight match, but if not for the performance of Danny Vitiello in goal, Saturday could have ended a whole lot differently. Oakland pressed Sacramento hard all night, posting 10 shots on target. Tough luck for the keeper resulted in two of Oakland’s three goals, with one coming off the rebound of a tremendous save to stop a rocket from distance and another putting him in a tough spot, going just past his fingertips after a deflection. But the Albany alum performed admirably despite what was thrown at him, tallying seven stops for the match to set a new career-high for saves in a single game.

This week, Oakland Roots SC comes to town in Republic FC’s sixth regional derby match of the season. The two clubs last faced off in May, with each looking to keep the good times going on the heels of big wins. This time, both are looking to get back in the win column following tough losses against Western Conference foes.

There’s a lot at play in this match for Sacramento. But bigger than anything else for the squad is returning home to Heart Health Park, where they are unbeaten this season. Saturday’s match is their first at home in three weeks – the longest stretch of the season – and hearing the cheers of the home crowd once again could be just what they need to return to the level of dominance they showed in June.

“It’s going to be good to play at home again,” said Mark Briggs on Thursday. “To be able to get back home, get in our home stadium – it’s somewhere where the players have been excited to play and produce.”

“It’s going to be great to be back in front of the fans,” said Dan Casey. “I think they’ve been behind us all year. Hopefully, they can come out in numbers and we can give them something to cheer about.”

The club’s had an intense week of preparation, taking full advantage of their first normal week in almost a month. Bouncing back is paramount for the club as they still have plenty to improve on in league play so they can move up the table; the club sits just three points removed from sole possession of fourth place.

“It wasn’t us in Colorado,” said Briggs. “I feel like June caught up with us, to be honest. That happens when you’re playing on two fronts, but it’s important we bounce back and show what we’re all about.”

“Colorado was a different game for us,” said Luis Felipe. “I think that we have a great opportunity to bounce back this week in front of our fans.”

A local derby match brings a bigger spectacle to the contest. This season, Sacramento’s played every foe in the region at their level and above, taking wins over all but one – Oakland. Since the Bay Area side’s inaugural USL season in 2021, the rivalry matches between them have always been tight and it’s expected Saturday will be no different.

“The games against Oakland are always fiery, there’s always an extra bit of spice and it’s because we’re local rivals,” Briggs continued. “It’s a local derby. We’ve got to make sure we match that tenacity.”

“Oakland is a very good team,” Casey continued. “But we have full confidence [that] if we do what we need to do we can beat anybody on our day.”

Sacramento’s Friday trip to Colorado didn’t go the club’s way, as the Quails suffered their first defeat in six weeks. Republic FC fought hard, but great execution from Colorado Springs Switchbacks’ dangerous attacking unit resulted in three scores against Sacramento for the first time all season. Mark Briggs’ Men were unable to find the net in the contest for just the third time this year.

Not Their Day

Although Sacramento was kept scoreless, they had their fair share of chances to get on the board during the contest – Republic FC actually held a narrow advantage in expected goals. But as sometimes happens they just couldn’t get one over the line.

A pair of well-placed crosses in the first half provided great chances to get on the board – with Rodrigo Lopez serving up a great ball from the left flank on a set piece and Zeiko Lewis doing the same from the right. Substitutions to bring on Rafa Jauregui, Luther Archimede and Maalique Foster resulted in more opportunity in the second half, including a great look in the 68^th minute. But good work in the box, an offside flag, and perhaps some tough luck kept them out of net and club would finish the match with just three attempts on target.

“[It was] just one of those days we could have played until next week, and we wouldn’t have scored,” said Head Coach Mark Briggs after the match. “[We] just need to learn from it, move on and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Too Much Space

After the hosts opened the scoring in the 14^th minute, 2021 Golden-Boot winner Hadji Barry netted two scores to extend the Switchbacks’ lead. Just after the half-hour mark, Colorado Springs won the ball in the air and played across the middle unchallenged to Barry with just one man in front of him, and no pursuers from behind. The striker took one touch to the right before punching through an easy look from the top of the box.

Barry’s next score came just after the break – after he again made his way into unclaimed space in the middle of the pitch unmarked. One touch forward and a well-placed shot just inside the left post put his club up 3-0.

Lots to Account For

Republic FC was given a slight taste of their own medicine during the match, as the Colorado club was lethal in transition and put Sacramento in conflict on defense well. The club’s first score came on the run, after Michee Ngalina broke past the back line and, for what may seem like the first time all season, beat Dan Casey one-on-one before dishing forward to Elvis Amoh for the score.

Colorado had Sacramento on their heels more than once after that, as a result of holding a high line on the attack. In addition, Switchbacks took advantage of two wins of possession in the attacking third to put even more pressure on the visitors.

Republic FC will look to keep their recent roll going under Friday night lights this week against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC – a foe they haven’t faced since 2019.  The Colorado club will be hungry to turn things around after two straight losses, making Friday’s match one fans won’t want to miss as both squads give their all. Sacramento has a chance to tally its sixth straight victory, stay unbeaten since mid-May, and prove that they can continue to beat top tier competition.

Sacramento’s recent run of form has provided a jolt, as well as an expectation to win entering each and every match they play. To sweep last week’s set of fixtures specifically was quite the accomplishment, and has had a ripple effect on the squad that the coaching staff couldn’t be more thrilled about.

“It breeds confidence. The conversations the players are having amongst themselves in training now are very different than they were at the start of the year,” said Mark Briggs on Wednesday. “There’s a confidence about the group at the moment, due to results.”

Of course, Sacramento knows that they’re still in for a challenge. Colorado Springs enters the matchup second in the Western Conference, and with one of the best attacking units in USL. Even with their recent tough luck, the club will still give Republic FC a run for its money, and the Indomitable Club knows they need to stay at their best.

“We’ve got to approach the game how we approach every other one,” Briggs continued. “Attacking, they [Colorado Springs] are very sharp and have dangerous players all over the field. We’ve got to be defensively solid and understand how to exploit some of their weaknesses.”

“They’re a top team, said Jack Gurr. “It’s down to us to go over there and turn them over because if we want to win everything in the end we’re going to have to beat the best teams.”

Getting a win will rely on the squad’s strong belief in one another, something that’s been constant all season but was reinforced after last Saturday. That mindset will need to continue and stay as strong as ever both for success now, and for success later in the season when the postseason begins to occupy a place in the back of every player’s head.

“The togetherness of the squad has got us this far, we believe in each other’s quality and in whoever comes in,” Gurr said of the squad’s mindset and camaraderie. “I think it’s just stick together, do what we’ve been doing, and hopefully keep winning games. We’ve got to keep the momentum going.”

A win over Monterey Bay FC at Cardinale Stadium kept Republic FC’s perfect June run going on Saturday. Super-sub heroics from Maalique Foster, who netted his first career brace, brought Sacramento back from down a goal to take all three points and sweep a big week of matches across both league and Open Cup play while the squad stayed strong through the challenge of a third match in eight days.

Super Subs

Through the hour mark, Sacramento was in a good place – the club was putting constant pressure on Monterey Bay to open the second half. However, they just couldn’t find a way to break through. As the club generated a few chances in succession, Mark Briggs knew they needed a bigger threat up top and reached for Maalique Foster, Rodrigo Lopez and Damia Viader off the bench. The trio came in and flipped the match on its head, and within ten minutes, Sacramento had the lead.

Foster’s two scores represented the forward’s first career brace, his 14^th and 15 career scores, and the first multi-goal performance by a Republic FC player in league play this season. Entering the club’s next match, Foster will now have scored three times in six appearances since returning from injury at the start of May.

Mental Toughness Wins Out

Coming into the match, the club knew another collective performance would be needed to take their fifth victory on the month. Saturday marked the club’s third match in eight days, and coming off of Tuesday’s Open Cup win they were likely to still be heavy-legged. But it didn’t matter, as the club rebounded from an unlucky own-goal to put them down, stayed mentally strong and didn’t let the challenge get the best of them

“I said to them at halftime that being tired is just a mental thing. You’re not tired and you have more in your body. You have more in your legs to give,” said Mark Briggs after the match. “And second half they certainly had a little bit more and they certainly pulled out that little bit of energy that we needed to gain a bit of momentum to turn the results.”