Tampa Bay Rowdies players celebrate in front of their fans. | Photo courtesy of Tampa Bay Rowdies/Matt May
So, as soon as I open my big mouth, the opposite happens. Last week I was baffled by Indy Eleven and their inability to score at home and they have a huge come back win, scoring two against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC to get an important home victory. The other team I apparently have jinxed is Fresno FC. I mentioned that I was high on them and that they should be further up the power rankings, and then they went and laid an egg in Colorado Springs against the Switchbacks. So maybe I should take a poll to see which teams I’m going to jinx in this week’s power rankings write-up.
I guess I could just start with Phoenix Rising FC, who had a bye and stayed steady at 6th place. Their very next home game is the next of their famous $1 beer night games. They are currently perfect on those Friday night games, so maybe my jinx will break that streak.
The next team I can jinx is the #1 ranked team, Tampa Bay Rowdies. The Rowdies are still the only unbeaten team left in the league, and they look like they will just keep winning. New Mexico United sit 2nd as they did not play, but they have two home games this week. They look like they will probably be 6 points richer by the end of next weekend.
The other team that is starting a good run of form is Louisville City FC (2-0-2 in their last 4), who crushed Charleston Battery, and now finds themselves rising up the power rankings. Their next match should be an easy win against Loudoun United FC, so they may find themselves challenging for a top 5 spot soon.
Also, for the first time in a long time, there are 4 western conference teams in the top 10 with Reno 1868 FC taking the 10th spot after knocking off Las Vegas Lights FC. That capped a pretty terrible road run for the Lights, but was Reno’s second win in three matches.
North Carolina FC (1-1-3 in their last 5) and Ottawa Fury FC (3-2-0 in their last 5) are the next two, and they are for sure heading in contrary motion. NCFC had to come back against Hartford to earn a draw, where Ottawa won pretty handily at home against Charlotte Independence.
El Paso Locomotive FC (4-0-3 in their last 7) has been playing very well of late and have found themselves at 13th. This may be a little low given their current form. Locomotive FC find themselves just ahead of recently falling Fresno, which brings us to our beloved Orange and Black. Orange County SC, after Saturday, are probably more black and blue. Saturday was a crazy game that saw the officials trying to make orange with all the yellow and red being shown. OC gets some well deserved recognition for their tremendous defensive and get rewarded for their ability to finish a game out. They are unbeaten in their last six matches, but 4 of those have been draws.
OC is followed by some pretty good teams including Charleston, Austin Bold FC, Pittsburgh, OKC Energy FC, Sacramento Republic FC, and Tulsa Roughnecks FC who are ranked 16 through 21. OC also knocked RGV FC down to 22. San Antonio FC is surprisingly having a rough time, they have not had any luck on the road, dropping too many points and it looks like only a really strong home record and a good second half can save their season. They are currently ranked 31st. Sorry Harry.
Next Saturday, OC takes on the number 25th ranked team in Las Vegas Lights. Las Vegas has yet to loose a home game in league play, and have scored 13 goals in 6 matches. The only team that has beaten them at home this year is the other team from OC in the Open Cup, so hopefully the team gets some pointers and brings that good feeling to Vegas on Saturday. It’ll be tough without Aodhan Quinn and Darwin Jones who both received red cards last game, but it may give other players an opportunity to step up.
The teams ahead of OC in the power rankings have some tough draws this weekend, so with good form, and a little luck, OC can see themselves push for a top 10 spot and keep them in the hunt for a home playoff game.
Check out the full USL Championship Power Rankings here.
What are your thoughts? Do you agree with our assessment of this week’s Power Rankings? Let us know in the comments below.