Postseason Kickstarter or Further Pitfall?
The late season situation that Orange County finds themselves is one they are not known for in the USL sphere. Orange County are a high table team looking to avoid sliding down the standings. Typically we see Orange County do the opposite of that with late season surges that carry well into the postseason. All of a sudden it is the Oranges who desperately need a win in every sense of the matter.
I will be the first one to argue that OC did play miles better in their last game than some people will give them credit for. They were a bad offsides call and an Alex Rando blunder away from a 2-0 victory on the road no less. Oakland definitely have their fair share of troubles so a win over them would have been a very likely outcome but here we stand. Orange County as of the days leading up to September 5th are third place in the Western Conference with 8 games remaining in their schedule. There are no more weekday games, only 3 more road games, but their postseason spot is far from guaranteed. The West is so congested that a team in 3rd place in September is only four points above the cut line. Unless New Mexico implodes then the number one seed in the West is a long shot so that just leaves OC with really some home field advantage to play for.
What is in their favor is their ability to control their own destiny. Virtually every team is at about the same number of games played so add on the multiple remaining home games, the schedule should theoretically favor Orange County. OC are tied on points with only Tulsa and San Antonio who are all chasing New Mexico and El Paso. There is a slight gap from that group of teams with the fringe playoff teams like Colorado Springs, Lexington, Las Vegas and Phoenix. Oakland is still technically alive as well with only Monterey Bay the only team really eliminated; maybe next season otters.
Of the 8 remaining games for Orange County, 7 of them are against likely playoff contenders including the lone Eastern Conference team in the reigning USL champions Pittsburgh. We are in for a two month stretch of each game being real 6-pointers.
THE OPPONENT - SACRAMENTO REPUBLIC FC
Orange County SC has had a varied history with rivalries. They are in a weird period of time where they do not have a true local derby. There was a point in which Orange County SC would face off against both LA Galaxy II (which is a rivalry that goes deeper than just soccer) and San Diego Loyal which could get nasty at times too. I do not count AV Alta in this regard quite yet just because of the different leagues. Then you get the historical rivals which Phoenix would definitely fit the mold for with plenty of matchups in the postseason and numerous players making the switch between teams. But if you were to take a team like Phoenix in terms of animosity and increase it, then you get Sacramento.
Orange County and Sacramento are two of the truly original Western Conference USL teams with both teams being founded before 2015. Both teams are USL champions with one title being won more recently than the other. Add to this its own fair share of playoff games with even more notorious moments that both fanbases will use to gloat over the other. I like to think the soccer gods gave us the Colin Shutler goal with a certain penalty kick this season going in favor of Sacramento. Regardless it has actually been quite some time since these two teams have played each other. We have to go all the way back to early May when OC would travel up North. Sacramento did not get off to a good start but have found themselves back in the middle of it.
Sacramento in recent form have been fine in that they have been a hard team to beat. Which is what I would have said until last week when Monterey Bay of all teams took 3 points from them. Sacramento do not have a very easy schedule ahead of them either with matches against New Mexico, San Antonio, Detroit and El Paso all coming up. Sacramento has a very sturdy defense thanks in part to good goalkeeping with the offense not being too shabby either. They should be a postseason team but whether or not they will go that far will be up for debate. What does not help is the fact that Sacramento have only won twice this season on the road.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
One similarity between the two sides are their offenses both have a lot of different players pitching in. The leading goal scorer this season for Sacramento has only scored 6 goals in 19 appearances. One of the more underrated USL veterans, Kyle Edwards in his first season with Sacramento has had a pretty respectable campaign. This is Kyle’s third different USL team with previous stops at Hartford and Rio Grande Valley and it was with Sacramento that he eclipsed the 100 game mark for USL appearances. He is on pace to have his second best season statistically. He is good for about a goal every three or four games and wouldn't you know it OC is about to be that very opponent.
On the orange side of things, where would OCSC be without Yaniv Bazini? What was originally signed as a depth piece from a unfortunate situation of a team folding, Bazini has not only taken the starting spot but also has become one of OC’s best goal scorers this season. A real poacher in front of the box it was Bazini that scored the game tying goal last week in Oakland. Orange County SC is the highest team that Bazini has played for but he is definitely earning a spot to hopefully stay. His positive play has been the best surprise of the season in one where OC has not gotten much offensive output from its forwards. It should not be a surprise that since his return from injury he has gotten the start in 6 consecutive games.
PREDICTED STARTING XI
I was one that was not that disappointed with the performance that OC displayed last week in Oakland. It was a bit unlucky really that OC could not come away with a win but they did show the capability to still win games. But I was not impressed with every performance on the pitch so while not making too many changes I would like to see the likely postseason lineup start getting some minutes together.
Jaylen Lindsey should get the start at right back. After he came on as a substitute last week he immediately made a positive impact. His previous USL experience is a positive as well. Nico Benalcazar has been a staple of the team for the entire season but I can definitely see him being one to sub in later in the game wherever the side needs him the most. Whether this is the midfield or defense we shall see. As such we have often seen Efren Solis get some starts too so why not another one. Lyam MacKinnon and Yaniv Bazini are somewhat similar players in that their goals come from defensive mistakes in front of the net but fortunately for them they have a midfield that can put the ball in dangerous areas of the box.
THE MATCHUP
For the 34th all time game between Orange County and Sacramento we are going to see a late season middleweight bout. This is definitely a game that should favor Orange County. Sacramento Republic since Championship Soccer Stadium has opened have had a very hard time playing there. The Republic are just 2-3-4 all time in the venue and have only won once since 2019. The last time these two teams played was a very entertaining high scoring matchup with a flair for the dramatic. Definitely something that we have become accustomed to when these two teams meet. Orange County will be looking to snap a 4-game winless streak which is already their second longest such streak this season. What positively cannot happen is OC cannot afford to lose this game. If OC were to lose for a fourth consecutive time at home that would only be the second time in club history for it to occur. You have to go all the way back to 2014 to find the only other occurence where funny enough it was Sacramento who were a part of that skid too. This game is also special because it will be starting an hour earlier than initially scheduled due to a TV broadcast. All postseason runs have to start at some time.
WHAT TO KNOW
Game - vs Sacramento Republic FC (USL Championship)
When - September 5th, 6:00 PM PST
Where - Championship Soccer Stadium (Irvine, CA)
OCSC Form - DLLLW
SRFC Form - DDWDL
All-Time Series - 14-6-13 (34 Games)
TV - KCAL 9, ESPN+