As the coaching carousel spins in any league, facing a former club as a Head Coach is a relatively common occurrence in the USL Championship.

Already this season, Dennis Sanchez has made his return Las Vegas with New Mexico United, just as last year Orange County SC’s Danny Stone faced Phoenix Rising FC and Hartford Athletic’s Brendan Burke faced Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC.

For current Sacramento Republic FC manager Neill Collins, though, his return to face the Tampa Bay Rowdies at Al Lang Stadium on Saturday night carries something different.

“I think it’ll be a little bit strange,” said Collins this week. “Listen, I’ve been here long enough now, totally focused on Sacramento Republic and being successful here. The only thing that really matters to me on Saturday is winning. But, no question, when you spend seven years with a club, a lot of people that you worked with, a lot of those relationships, it’ll be strange being on the side that wants to beat them, you know?”

• MAKING THE MOVE: There’s no question the significance of Collins in the Rowdies’ modern era. He joined the club as a player prior to the 2016 season, the final stop of an 18-year career on the field, but early in the 2018 season with the side struggling was appointed as its new Head Coach, launching his new pathway.

• TAKE IT TO THE TOP: Collins helped overhaul the club’s squad prior to the 2019 season, making shrewd signings that helped the Rowdies become a consistent challenger for the USL Championship title. Tampa Bay reached the USL Championship Final in consecutive seasons in 2020 and 2021, winning the Players’ Shield in 2021 as Collins was voted Coach of the Year.

• HEADED HOME: Collins’ 94 wins across the regular season and playoffs were the most by an individual manager during his tenure, which ended in July, 2022 when he was appointed as Barnsley FC manager in England. This offseason, he returned to the league with Republic FC, where he’s now surpassed 100 victories in the USL Championship for his career in leading the side to a top-two position in the West in his first campaign.

Inheriting a team that was expected to contend – rather than one that needed to be rebuilt in the way Tampa Bay required seven years ago – Collins has lived up to his side of the bargain. Republic FC has grown steadily since the start of the season and has a realistic chance at two pieces of silverware with next week bringing a Semifinal in the USL Jägermeister Cup at Rhode Island FC in addition to its bid to claim a second USL Championship title.

Currently in pursuit of FC Tulsa for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, Republic FC needs all three points against the Rowdies to try and close the gap in the standings as much as anything. For Collins, that’s the primary objective on Saturday.

“I want to stay focused,” he said. “There are people that have asked if you’re looking forward to coming back, and that’s definitely people that, I think, are not coaches, because when you're a coach, your sole focus is on the game, what do we need to do to win? Because the feeling of going back will really only be enjoyable when we win the game.”

As much as Collins meant to the Rowdies, though, it’s going to be fascinating to see how the emotions of facing some of his former charges plays out, before, during and after the game.