While it may not have come in the way that they wanted, Sacramento Republic FC earned a draw against Colorado Springs Switchbacks with a dramatic late rally. The exciting performance dug the defending USL Champions out of a hole they had dug themselves with a first-half collapse and overall poor performance.

The Lineup

The starting XI for Sacramento against Colorado Springs Switchbacks was: Patrick McLain, Emrah Klimenta, Mickey Daly, Nemanja Vuković, James Kiffe; Ivan Mirković, Rodrigo Lopez, Danny Barrera; Kaleemullah, Thomas Stewart, and Justin Braun.

The match marked the first ever start in league play for Kaleemullah, and the first start under Paul Buckle for Justin Braun. They replaced Max Alvarez and Joaquin Rivas, who were relegated to the bench.

The substitutes for Sacramento were: Dominik Jakubek, Derek Foran, Agustin Cazarez, Gabe Gissie, Max Alvarez, Cameron Iwasa, and Joaquin Rivas.

The Match

In a strange similarity to the first match between Sacramento and Colorado Springs, the visiting team took control of the game early with a well-struck goal. This time around it was the Republic taking the lead in the 2nd minute through a fantastic goal from Thomas Stewart.

Something to note on the goal (which you can see in gif form courtesy of vanillacokee if you click the link above) was how completely wide open Stewart was on the entire play. Although the work by Justin Braun to occupy two Switchbacks defenders and the move from Danny Barrera to get space for the assist were both good, the most interesting thing about the goal remains the acres of space that Stewart was allowed to work with. The only time a Switchbacks player got near him is when he had already received Barrera’s pass and was preparing to shoot.

While things seemed set for Sacramento to stay comfortably in the driver’s seat for the rest of the 90 minutes, a rare mistake from the usually solid veteran Nemanja Vuković brought the Switchbacks back into the game. Vuković’s handball in the box allowed Colorado Springs captain Luke Vercollone to smash home an equalizer from the penalty spot in the 21st minute and erase the advantage that Stewart’s early goal had brought.

The Switchbacks pulled ahead not too long after the equalizer, taking full advantage of a poor turnover from Rodrigo Lopez to take the lead 2-1. While the turnover itself was a poor play, with Lopez misreading a run and passing the ball to nobody, it was also indicative of the Republic’s play for most of the match. The team turned the ball over much more regularly than normal, often in dangerous positions. As the first half went on the Switchbacks got more and more opportunities to score, eventually taking 6 shots on goal and forcing Patrick McLain to make four saves, including this beauty.

The beginning of the second half was not a vast improvement on the end of the first, with Sacramento still making poor passes in midfield and Colorado Springs frequently finding dangerous amounts of space.

That flow of play culminated in the Switchbacks’ third goal of the night, scored by Chandler Hoffman in the 78th minute, in which the Republic defense was cut through like butter.

The Republic’s fortunes changed just a few minutes later when Mickey Daly powered in the second goal of the match for Sacramento after pouncing on a loose ball in the box.

Despite Daly’s goal coming in the 82nd minute, the match’s action was far from over. A hard challenge at midfield led to a scuffle and some shoving, which led to Colorado Springs’s Davy Armstrong getting sent off with a straight red card.

The man advantage paid off for Sacramento late in stoppage time, when a hopeful ball played in from midfield by Ivan Mirković missed everyone in the box and found the net for the equalizer. It was Mirković’s first goal for Sacramento Republic and his first goal in his professional career. It was something that many Republic fans had been looking forward to, although not something that they necessarily expected since Mirković had only ever taken 6 shots prior to Friday’s match.

The reaction, it is safe to say, was intense.

IVAN MIRKOVIC WITH THE GOAL. FINISH YOUR DRINK, POUR TWO MORE AND FINISH THOSE TWO.

— Evan Ream (@EvanReam) August 15, 2025

 

The Mirković goal sealed the draw for the Republic, earning them a much needed point on the road against a difficult opponent.

Man of the Match

Mirković may be capturing attention with his first professional goal and Stewart may be getting some well earned praise for a good performance, but the Man of the Match for Sacramento Republic against Colorado Springs was goalkeeper Patrick McLain. McLain had a club record of 9 saves to help the Republic earn the draw, keeping them in the game until the dramatic comeback. It was hands down the best performance McLain has put in for the Republic.

What’s Next?

With the draw in Colorado Springs, Sacramento move to 6th place in the USL Western Conference, 1 point above 7th placed Orange County Blues and 5 points behind the 1st placed Switchbacks.

Next up for the Republic is a trip back to Bonney Field, where they will face last place Real Monrachs, who have been somewhat of a problem for Sacramento in the past. Although the Monarchs have been solidly at the bottom of the Western Conference for most of the season, they are currently undefeated against Sacramento, taking 5 out of 9 possible points from the Republic.

If Sacramento is going to continue to enjoy life as a potential playoff team, they are going to need to do what they have not done all season and get all three points against the Monarchs.

For a preview of next week’s game, as well as an in-depth look at Friday’s draw against Colorado Springs Switchbacks, be sure to listen to this week’s Beeman’s Republic, the only Sacramento Republic FC podcast and the official podcast of Indomitable City Soccer.