RIFC Recap: A Tale of Two Halves Against Tulsa
RIFC Recap: A Tale of Two Halves Against Tulsa
It was the best of halves, it was the worst of halves.
It was the best of halves, it was the worst of halves.
Yes, Rhode Island FC snapped their first-ever losing streak and yes, they did it in a come-from-behind victory that would have been unimaginable during the first half of Rhode Island’s season but the win also showcased every single problem that has shadowed them in recent weeks. Let’s start with what happened during the lead-up to the match itself.
Head Coach Khano Smith has been tinkering with the lineup in recent weeks. Tonight, he dropped both defender Stephen Turnbull and striker Albert “Chico” Dikwa from the starting XI and replaced them with midfielder Zachary Herivaux and striker JJ Williams. This resulted in midfielder Clay Holstad being shunted out wide to play right wingback, where he struggled until midfielder Marc Ybarra was subbed off for Turnbull, allowing Holstad to return to his rightful place in the midfield. Jack Panayotou featured on the right wing, where he looked a little lost himself. Some of these changes are understandable, but the performances of those subbed haven’t justified the given changes and tinkering with the starting lineup this late in the season — and in the middle of a playoff push — doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.
It wasn’t until the lineup reverted to its normal character after subs were made in the second half that RIFC got its stuff together and managed to score. That may be a coincidence but watching how absolutely lost the team looked on the pitch during the first half, it’s hard to believe there isn’t something more to it.
The problems started early for Rhode Island FC. It was only the eighth minute when FC Tulsa tore the defense apart to take an early 1-0 lead. FC Tulsa took three of their four shots on the night in the first half, and Rhode Island FC barely managed to play in the opponent’s half at all. By the end of the first half, RIFC looked completely lost and defeated, and they went into the locker room down 1-0.
The second half was completely different. I don’t know what Smith told his team in the locker room at halftime but the Tide came out with a vengeance. The tempo only increased after Smith brought Turnbull and Dikwa on.
Winger Noah Fuson in particular took several shots on goal, scoring on an assist from left wingback Jojea Kwizera, which curled around Tulsa goalkeeper Johan Peñaranda to tuck right in just behind the right goalpost and tie the score at 1-1 in the 69th minute. Rhode Island FC were far from done and in stoppage time following a Fuson corner-kick, Herivaux managed to slide the ball over to Dikwa who thunderd the ball into the top of the net for his eighth goal on the season and a 2-1 lead. Rhode Island FC saw out the final few minutes for their ninth win of the season in dramatic fashion despite the rocky start, and their fans left happy.
Despite the victory, however, those worrying signs I mentioned before are still there. Dikwa had multiple good chances where he simply failed to take the shot, and as a whole, the team seemed perfectly happy to pass the ball around the net looking for the perfect shot which led to them taking a lot of shots that the opponent simply blocked before they could ever reach their goalkeeper. “They always try to walk it in” is an old cliche at this point, but for Rhode Island FC, it’s one that continues to ring true.
Still, RIFC now stands in fifth place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference and are back in action next Saturday, September 28, at 8:30 pm ET, as they play away at San Antonio FC for their first-ever meeting with the Western Conference club. RIFC then returns home to Smithfield, Rhode Island, on Saturday, October 5, to play Tampa Bay Rowdies at 7:30 pm ET. RIFC last played Tampa Bay in their third-ever match — and first-ever loss — in a 4-1 drubbing on March 30. Rhode Island FC will be looking to avenge that loss, but unless they can fix their scoring woes, it may yet be more of the same.