With Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC’s position as the current USL Championship title-holder, the return of former Head Coach Brendan Burke – one of the figures who set the foundation for that success – and a cohort of former Switchbacks players meant Hartford Athletic’s visit to Weidner Field was going to have an additional spotlight on it this season.

The current trajectory of both clubs, however, has only added to the importance of Saturday night’s contest (8 p.m. ET | ESPN+) as the Switchbacks fight for their chance to defend their title in November while Hartford pushes toward its first postseason trip since 2020.

• BUILDING UP: Almost five years ago, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC was set for a new era with the opening of Weidner Field, but it wasn’t going to be with the coach that had led it through the abbreviated 2020 season after Alan Koch’s resignation that November. A month later, Burke was hired, and he brought two of the key figures with whom he’d worked at USL League Two’s Reading United AC and the USL-C’s Bethlehem Steel FC with him in Stephen Hogan and James Chambers.

• OUT OF THE TRAPS: In Burke’s first season at the helm, the Switchbacks breezed up the Western Conference standings, returning to the playoffs as Hadji Barry earned USL-C Player of the Year honors with a 25-goal campaign. The following year, the side reached the Western Conference Final before falling to eventual title-winner San Antonio FC as Michee Ngalina earned Young Player of the Year honors.

• UPWARD MOMENTUM: While Burke departed to become an assistant coach at Houston Dynamo FC – where he helped the side win the 2023 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup – the Switchbacks continued to build. Hogan took the helm in 2023, leading the side back to the playoffs before stepping upstairs to become Sporting Director. That saw Chambers become Head Coach, whereupon he led the side to its first title last November.

Meanwhile, after a season in Houston, Burke returned closer to home. The Massachusetts native became Hartford Athletic Head Coach prior to the 2024 season, and while it might have taken a little longer than initially hoped, Burke has turned the club into a contender.

Since late May, Hartford has taken on the traits Burke’s Switchbacks had, becoming arguably the most entertaining team in the league. Across its past 17 games in league play, Athletic has a league-high 34.68 Expected Goals mark while finding the net 33 times.

That’s not only propelled Hartford into contention for a top-four finish in the Eastern Conference but also secured its first chance at silverware with a berth in next weekend’s USL Jägermeister Cup Final against Sacramento Republic FC. Even the sale of then-leading scorer Mamadou Dieng to Minnesota United FC couldn’t dampen the mood, with Burke having Barry waiting in the wings as his replacement, reuniting the Guinean veteran with Ngalina at Trinity Health Stadium.

By contrast, things have gotten a little bumpy for the Switchbacks.

On Wednesday night, Colorado Springs made a bright start against New Mexico United but suffered a 2-1 defeat at Weidner Field that left the hosts projected to be on the outside looking in when the playoffs begin.

“We're a little bit fragile right now from a psychological state,” said Chambers after the side’s third setback when scoring first this season.

Saturday’s meeting between two clubs with numerous connecting threads was always going to be intriguing.

That the stakes are as high as they are for both clubs in the final stretch of the season simply adds to that.