April 7, 2023 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC News Release
It’s Sea of Cyan Night at Weidner Field as the Colorado Springs Switchbacks host the Pittsburgh Riverhounds on Saturday evening in downtown Colorado Springs. Capelli Sport will be sponsoring a mini soccer ball giveaway, and tickets for the match remain available HERE.
The Switchbacks defeated Loudoun United 1-0 on April 1st in Leesburg, Virginia behind a 5th minute goal from Jamaican striker Romario Williams after some brilliant work by compatriot Deshane Beckford on the right wing that saw Beckford notch his club-leading third assist of the young 2023 season.
What the Switchbacks Say:
Deshane Beckford: “A goal [for me] will come but right now assists are coming – but the goal is pretty near too. It was a very important [win in Loudoun] coming from a loss [at San Antonio]. We needed it and we got it on the road. The home crowd [at Weidner Field] is always that 12th man and we always do [well] at home so we are really looking forward to this one [against Pittsburgh on Saturday].”
Switchbacks Head Coach Stephen Hogan: “The game plan came full circle [against Loudoun] for the first five minutes. The way we moved the ball, how we pressed, how we re-pressed, the pass from Matt [Mahoney] to Becky [Deshane Beckford] to Romario [Williams] was literally one or two patterns that we practiced on Friday in Loudoun. After that [goal] we sort of went into some sort of shell and there are a lot of things that we need to make a lot cleaner. And then to finish out the game after the [lightning] break – everyone is saying it about how you professionally finish the game out with 11 or 12 minutes of injury time is phenomenal. That’s a new part of [the players’] mindset in terms of clean sheets – the players are really excited about that. We just need to improve within that ball-work frame through the middle third, and if that happens consistently well I think we’ll be taking a lot of chances.”
Peek at Pittsburgh:
“[The Pittsburgh Riverhounds] is [Head Coach] Bob Lilley,” insisted Stephen Hogan. “It’s the way he sets them up, the way he reads the game, and the way he reads in a game – it’s phenomenal. He’s one of the best and that’s why he’s been doing it for so long. The idea behind them is the structure of their defense and the structure of how they play is so in-sync that it’s actually very good to watch. And then how fast they can hit you on the break. When there are…