Rio Tinto Stadium – 7PM
After a lengthy, broken laptop fueled absence, the gameday post has returned.
The Riverhounds find themselves standing in front of a HUGE weekend that will dictate how this season will finish. Currently sitting at the bottom of the table, yet only six points shy of a playoff position, the six points available this weekend could be the difference between the final couple of games being playoff-esque fixtures or just kicking the ball around until the 2014 season gets Old Yeller’ed.
For the Hounds, three wins from the last four games has given hope to notion that the season isn’t a lost cause. With a team that has (finally) started to control possession and move the ball with intention, Niko may have a roster of guys that could live up to the pre-season hype. The biggest reasons for this surge has been four fold;
1) Dan Earls finding his touch on the corners and set pieces
2) Joe Ngwenya being able to play more minutes and getting pushed higher up the field allowing him to shake a defender (or two), create space, and gets balls into the top of the six yard box
3) Finally getting bodies, lots of bodies, into said six yard box to receive the balls from Earls or Ngwenya
4) The defense and keepers sharply cutting down on woefully terrible unforced mistakes
The question for tonight, and possibly Sunday, is what role, if any, will the newly-acquired Mackenzie Pridham play for the Hounds. The first-thought after Collins John jumped ship was that Miro Cabrillo might see an increase in minutes. That didn’t happen last week, and Pridham’s arrival seems to shut the door on that possibility. Has Mackenzie gotten enough time with the club to see himself starting one of these two games, or will his minutes all come from of the bench?
(Also, hot off the random twitter search, Andrew Ribeiro. FCKYA?)
For RSL, there isn’t much to know when it comes to these reserve teams. The first team played last night, at home, against MLS basement dwellers, Impact de Montreal. It is safe to assume that players that rode the bench last night should be available for selection today. As a reserve team, RSL hasn’t taken the field since they played to a scoreless draw against Richmond on the sixth of the month. In all, the reserve team has only played four matches, winning one and drawing the other three.
WATCH PARTY
We invade Hough’s once again to watch the match. As always, Carlsburg specials will be going and the tater tots will be ready for your consumption. A couple SA faithful are also planning on getting there early and taking advantage of their awesome happy hour specials (4-6pm) and making a full afternoon of it. If you’ve got the time, show up early and explore the beer menu at a reduced rate.
#UNLEASH
