The sense the bad old days were back for Las Vegas Lights FC were unavoidable in recent weeks.

A run of five consecutive defeats in all competitions and only one goal in six games had taken its toll. Worse, it looked like there wasn’t much fun being had by the side in the style of play Head Coach Antonio Nocerino had installed since his arrival in the offseason. 

As the underlying numbers caught up with a club that had received some major breaks to pick up points early in the season, Nocerino was shown the door and 28-year-old assistant coach Giovanni Troise was given the task of lifting the mood around Cashman Field.

After Saturday night’s 2-0 victory against Monterey Bay FC, consider the Lights’ first post-Nocerino test passed.

• EARLY SCARES: Make no mistake, it wasn’t all plain sailing for the Lights against a Monterey Bay side that entered on a three-game winning streak of its own. Danish midfielder Anton Søberg went close to a Goal of the Week contender with a free kick that rattled the crossbar early as the visitors created the better chances in the opening half-hour.

• SETTLING IN: After emerging that spell unscathed, however, the Lights found their way. Shawn Smart almost put the hosts ahead in first-half stoppage time as a close-range finish trickled agonizingly wide of the net, but the energy and momentum the side took into the break carried through into the second half.

• HERE’S JOHNNY: It was there that Johnny Rodriguez came into his own. The only player to have found the net for the Lights in the prior six games, the preseason acquisition came to life and put home both goals. The first came through a piece of good fortune as his effort into the six-yard area took a deflection which saw it loop into the net, but his second was a perfect header to knock home Gennaro Nigro’s well-flighted free kick that iced the game.

“He’s a classy number nine – when he doesn’t score, he’s a little bit sad,” said Troise of Rodriguez. “But, everybody believes in him. He’s our number nine, and we know that he’s important for us. I try to, with him and others, to explain that he’s important even when he doesn’t score. Of course, when these nights arrive for him, it’s amazing.”

There’s a lot more work to do for the Lights to build on this performance and result. While Rodriguez starred, it wasn’t a vintage night for one of the club’s stars in 2024, Valentin Noël, who it feels like will be an essential part of the attack after being restored to a more attacking role by Troise on Saturday night.

After a week in which Troise tried to lift the weight that had become a burden, though, this felt like a step in the right direction.

“I think it was Coach Gio telling us to be a little more aggressive and play a little more free,” said Rodriguez on what had made the difference. “We have nothing to lose, so just go for it. We’re at home, we have the fans behind us, so just go for it. That was the biggest change we made.”

In a Western Conference that continues to be wide open – with the win, the Lights jumped back above the playoff line to end the night – the opportunity is there to be grasped.