Last Saturday, Sacramento Republic FC saw their late season momentum halted in a scoreless draw against Arizona United at home. A combination of sloppiness in front of goal and a great performance by United’s goalkeeper made the Republic’s final regular season home match a bit of a disappointment. However, there is still a chance to end the season on a high note.

There and Back Again

Tomorrow, Sacramento Republic head down to Irvine to face Orange County Blues in the final match of their regular season campaign. The match was originally planned to be played last Wednesday, September 16th, but was postponed due to poor field conditions brought about by rain.

The team had already made the trip down to Irvine by the time the decision to postpone the match was made and many fans who had been planning to make the trip down on gameday had already bought tickets and made plans for the trip down. To say it was an unpopular decision in Sacramento would be an understatement.

Paul Buckle talked a bit about his unhappiness after the team’s recent match against Arizona, saying “to arrive there and be sent back without even a pitch inspection the next day or even a contingency was poor.”

We just hope someone remembered to check the forecast this time.

Battle for Top of the West

Wednesday’s match against the Blues is without a doubt one of the biggest matches of the Republic’s season. Not only is it a match between two of the Western Conference’s top teams, but the number one spot in the West is up for grabs.

By the time Tuesday’s match is over, one of the two teams will have won the Western Conference and taken possession of the top seed in the playoffs. Orange County will win the West with either a win or a draw, while Sacramento’s only chance at the top seed is to get all three points. If Sacramento does not win, they will finish the season in 4th place and host LA Galaxy II at Bonney Field in a first round playoff match this Saturday. With the final two regular season matches of the season coming just 3 days apart, the Republic would surely prefer the bye week promised by a 1st place finish to the first round match that comes with the 4th seed.

The Republic come into tomorrow’s match unbeaten in 6 matches and with a 3 game win streak. During that period they have outscored their opposition 12 to 6 for a goal differential of +6 and a goals scored average of 2.4. They have also seen key contributors like Justin Braun step up with 4 goals in the last 3 games, as well as some clutch performances between the pipes from backup goalkeeper Dominik Jakubek.

Orange County come into Tuesday’s match in even better form than Sacramento, with a record of 7-1-3 in their last 11 matches. The Blues have taken 73% of their possible points in that time frame for an average of 2.18 points per game.

In order to better understand what is at the root of the Orange County Blues’s recent form, we spoke to Alicia Rodriguez, Managing Editor of The Goat Parade. Here is what she had to say:

“To me, it seems like the core of the Blues’ form of late has been head coach Oliver Wyss. He rebuilt the roster following a poor 2014 season, and even with the improved reinforcements this season, he’s continually rotated his lineups and is finding quality throughout the past couple months. Even in cases where starters go down injured or are suspended, less experienced players are stepping up and getting the job done, which has been impressive. On top of that, I think the team has found its style of play, in pressing early and trying to hold onto possession until they grab a lead, and then prioritizing defense and switching to a counterattack system to see the result out. It’s been working, and much of the credit goes to Wyss.”

Given Sacramento’s historic susceptibility to the counter-attack and Orange County’s tendency to sit back and counter when they get a lead, the Republic will likely do everything they can to stop from conceding the first goal on Tuesday. The fact that the Blues only need a draw to win the west also makes it seem likely that they will be quicker to adopt a more defensive and conservative posture, which would make things difficult for the Republic.

A Familiar Face

When Sacramento Republic go down to Anteater Stadium to face Orange County Blues, they will be going up against a familiar face in forward David Estrada.

Estrada left Sacramento Republic by mutual consent in mid-August and was quickly picked up by the Orange County Blues. In a post-match interview with ICS after his first start with the Blues, Estrada made it clear that he enjoyed his new club but did not harbor any negative feelings about the Republic.

Estrada was an immediate starter for the Blues, actually starting in a match before his signing was announced by the club. To get a better idea of how Estrada has fared at his new club, we once again turned to Alicia Rodriguez, Managing Editor of The Goat Parade:

“Estrada’s been terrific for the Blues so far. He basically went straight into the lineup after being signed, and has been one of the very few players to feature in every single match since. I think his workrate and skill set compliment the team well, and he does a lot of hard work in trying to connect the midfield and striker(s), and it’s paying off. Instead of putting his head down after joining his fourth team in 14 months, he’s embraced his new club and it appears to be mutually beneficial for player and team alike.”

Players to Watch

The two Sacramento Republic players to watch against the Blues are Justin Braun and Dominik Jakubek.

With the exception of last Saturday’s match against Arizona, Braun has been on fire recently. He has scored 4 goals the past 3 games, bringing his total league goals to 8, double his total in 2014. The Republic will need to see Braun’s great form return if they are to get all 3 points out of Wednesday’s game and win the west.

Dominik Jakubek will get his biggest test of the season on Tuesday against a quality OC Blues team. Since replacing the injured Patrick McLain in the starting lineup two weeks ago, Jakubek has started in three matches for Sacramento. During that time he has conceded only a single goal and made 7 saves. Although the Blues are not the most potent offensive team in USL, Jakubek will need to continue playing at the top of his game in order for Sacramento to have their best shot at winning Tuesday’s match and taking the top spot in the west.

How to Watch

Sacramento Republic FC kick off against Orange County Blues on Tuesday at 7:30pm PDT. It can be viewed, as every USL match can, live on YouTube.

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