After the best regular season in USL history, PRFC stands 4 wins from franchise’s first ever championship

#8 Austin Bold F.C. defeated #9 LA Galaxy II to Advance to the Western Quarterfinals 2-0

The Story So Far

Phoenix Rising Football Club (24W-6D-4L, 78 Pts) comes into the 2019 USL Championship playoffs for the first time in franchise history as the undisputed, cross-conference league-wide favorites to win their first ever USL Cup – after an incredible regular season where PRFC set league records for wins (24) and overall points (78) en route to a Supporters Shield award for the best record in the league – along with home field advantage throughout the entire USL Championship playoffs – including a possible USL Cup Final – nationally televised on ESPN2 on Sunday, November 17th.

The Rising are especailly trying to reach the 2019 version of the USL Cup Final given the painful way they fell just short of regining as 2018 USL Champions – losing 1-0 on the road to defending champion Louisville City on a 69th minute Luke Spencer goal. Falling just a goal short in captain Didier Drogba’s final game while missing leading scorer Chris Cortez was a bump in the road for the players that remained on the 2019 side – perhaps the reason for the focus on clinching home field advantage throughout the entire playoffs. The Rising have lost one time at home this year, and are 21-0-0 when scoring first against the other side.

While there is no reason to be anything but confident in such an incredibly well-rounded side, the fact is, the Rising must be on top of their games from start to finish for all 90 minutes in a single elimination tournament like the USL Championship playoffs. While they defeated Austin 6-0 on Dollar Beer Night earlier this year, the Bold also were the first team to hand the Rising an outright defeat with MF Sonny Guadramma scoring the sole tally in a 1-0 win on April 17th at Bold Stadium.

The Bold have an emotional reason to come out hard – the recent death of talented and beloved Nigerian national team striker Issac Promise just under two weeks ago. His shock death certainly shook up the Bold, but they responded with an emotional 2-0 win in a play-in round game at home against LA Galaxy II to secure their ticket to Phoenix tonight.

The Bold will be missing team captain Kleber, who earned himself a 4 match suspension in the final game of the regular season for spitting on an oppposing player. His 11 goals were second on the Bold to Andre Lima’s 14, and make it even more likely that we’ll see the Bold try to play bunker ball and hope to force this game into penalties.

The last time the Bold visited Casino Arizona Field, they came out fairly strong, conceding only once in the first half, but after a 2nd half goal from James Musa put the Rising up 2-0, the flood gates opened and PRFC won 6-0 over a 10 man Bold side – defender Edson Braafield received a straight red for a kick to forward Joey Calistri’s chest late in the game – which lead to a free kick from just outside the box that was perfectly placed by Jon Bakero to put Phoenix up 5-0.

The Rising closed out their season with a comprehensive 3-1 win over the Oklahoma City Energy at Casino Arizona Field – a game where the scoreline could have been far worse if not for some unlucky bounces and solid goaltending from OKC. PRFC started what will be very close to their starting playoff XI – and the offensive rhythm and flow developed throughout the game and was truly top-class in the 2nd half.

What To Watch For

The Rising have the added benefit of experience. The expansion Bold have played in only one “play-in” post season game, last Wed. against LA Galaxy II. The Rising have now qualified for their third consecutive year, going 3-1-1, with a full time loss to Louisville City in the 2018 USL Cup Final, and a loss in penalties to Swope Park Rangers in the 2017 playoffs.

If Austin has any shot at winning this one, discispline is key. They were 2nd in the USL Championship in yellow cards given, 3rd in total fouls, and their progressively worse and worse attitude lead to a nasty Edson Braafield foul on Joey Calistri that showed him a straight red at CAZ Field earlier in 2019.

Austin is 2-1-2 in their last 5 matches, however, that decent run of form may be negated by a terrible road record, 3-8-6, grabbing only 17 of a possible 36 road points. The Rising are 13-1-3 at home in 2019, and have sold out their last 20 matches at Casino Arizona Field.

How It Goes Down

This one won’t be easy, and it will be physical. Austin played about even with PRFC in the first 45 at Casino AZ Field earlier this year before collapsing in the 2nd half. The Rising need to get on the board first and use the early energy of both the team and fans to do so – a Austin goal first would reduce this game into a bunker-fest where the bold stick 10 men in the box and pray the Rising can’t finish. However, with Kleber out – the team captain – and out of shape Andre Lima leading the front line – I would expect to see a defensive combination that includes Corey Whelan dominate the Bold front line and effectively distribute out to Dia and Dumbuya to create opportunties for players like Flemmings and Solo. Expect to see some extra motivation from PRFC due to the chippy nature of the first game at CAZ Field in additon to an emotionally charged atmosphere – given the fact that this time, anything less than the USL Cup would be a failure for such a talented side. Here’s how I see PRFC lining up:

Prediction: Austin scares the Rising a bit early but the team stays focused and plays incredible offensive ball to get past the intial 10-in-the-box strategy Austin employs to scored twice in the first half on the way to a 4-0 win and a 2nd round date with either Real Monarchs or OCSC.