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Eastern Conf. Notebook — North Carolina Rivalry Renews

By CHRIS HOCKMAN - chris.hockman@uslsoccer.com, 04/13/18, 10:34AM EDT

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Rowdies look for revenge in New York; Indy, Nashville coming into form ahead of clash


Photo courtesy Rob Kinnan / North Carolina FC

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The rivalry between the Charlotte Independence and North Carolina FC might be a new one in the USL this season, but the fact that the sides have squared off in each of the past three seasons in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup means the first league meeting this Saturday at the Independence's home at the Sportsplex at Matthews already has some backstory to it.

As it stands, the match pits two teams with very different records through the first month of the season, with Charlotte managing seven points in four matches, and NCFC still looking for its first point after three consecutive losses. But North Carolina is optimistic results will come after putting together positive passages in all three prior outings.

“We’ve played three games and had good performances over long periods of time, but not the victory we feel we’ve deserved or warranted,” said NCFC Head Coach Colin Clarke. “We’re sitting with zero points and so it’s important that we get points on the board. This game adds a little bit of extra spice. It’ll be a good place to go and get our first points.”

NCFC has held the edge in the three previous meetings, taking emphatic victories in each of the past two years in the Open Cup after the Independence claimed victory in 2015 when the teams first met. That has North Carolina's players looking forward to getting a memorable result against new league rivals.

“Obviously, we take things one game at a time, but this one is marked on our calendar. It’s a rivalry and we love to hate them and they love to hate us,” said NCFC defender Steven Miller. “We’ve played them in the Open Cup in the past and had the better of them the last few years, but every game is tough when we play against them. It’s always entertaining and a dogfight. It’s amplified with the results last weekend for both teams. It’s going to be tough, but we’re looking forward to it.”

NCFC's play has produced some positive numbers despite the results, with the club sitting second in the league in possession (59.64 percent) and third in the league in passing accuracy (81.94 percent). That means that there is no complacency in the Charlotte camp.

“It's a little deceiving that they're winless. They've played tough teams. They've been in every game and created chances and had opportunities,” said Independence Head Coach Mike Jeffries. “They're a very good possession team. They move the ball really well and have dynamic guys wide and in attacking roles. They push outside backs high into the attack and have abilities of playing wide, so we're going to have to manage that quite well.

“For us, finding a balance of when we pressure and when we just keep our shape is going to be huge. Defensively, they keep games tight. They work hard and do a good job pressuring, so we'll have to play through it. They've not gotten results, but the games have been tight and they haven't given up goals.”

After a strong start to the season, the Independence are now looking to bounce back from the first loss of the season last Saturday night against Nashville SC. Having a derby immediately afterward to bounce back should be useful, with no excuse from the players for not being up for the battle.

“The storyline that lies within the season is how we respond to moments of adversity and how we learn how to play on the road a new group,” said Independence defender Bilal Duckett. “I thought we did that as the game stretched on in Nashville. I thought we were a bit unfortunate to not get the first goal back, and then the second one comes as a result of us pressing to get the equalizer.


“We're taking that disappointment and using it as a positive emotion to push us forward. We've had two really sharp sessions heading into the weekend.  We're still confident. The goal is three points. It's a derby match.”

ROWDIES AIM FOR POSTSEASON REVENGE: Last season’s Tampa Bay Rowdies season ended at the hands of New York Red Bulls II in the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2017 USL Cup Playoffs, so this week’s trip to the Red Bull Arena presents a great chance for the Rowdies to get some revenge for that defeat.

“Not just from that playoff game last year, but the two games previously, they were entertaining games, lots of goals scored but they also had a little bit of needle to them, both teams wanting to win and they were entertaining games,” said Rowdies Head Coach Stuart Campbell. “That playoff game we felt unfortunate to get beat there and their goalkeeper had the game of his life we want to go out there and get a good result on Saturday.”

The match comes at an ideal time for the Rowdies, coming off a 5-0 win against Ottawa Fury FC last Saturday at Al Lang Stadium, which helped erase some of the memories of the club's first loss of the 2018 season to Louisville City FC the previous weekend.

“It comes at the right time because we lost two weeks ago, and we want to recover from that and try to win three points. We have the confidence of scoring goals because we won 5-0,” said Rowdies forward Georgi Hristov, who enters Saturday's game only one goal back of the club's all-time scoring record held by Derek Smethurst.

The important thing for the Rowdies is to keep on moving forward from that win, focusing on the next opponent but taking confidence from that success.

“It was a good overall team performance last week but that’s in the past, right now all the focus is on the Red Bulls II. It’s been a good week of training so we're looking forward to a good game,” said Rowdies midfielder Leo Fernandes, whose three goals in four games have him tied with Hristov for the team lead. “They’re a good team, they press high, so it should be exciting.”

INDY, NASHVILLE AIM TO BUILD MOMENTUM: Bringing a multitude of new pieces together over the course of an offseason and preseason can be a tough task for a club, but as Indy Eleven and Nashville SC prepare to square off on Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium both sides appear to have managed the learning curve well to get out to solid starts to the season. Both teams have two wins, with Nashville having won two in a row after its 2-0 victory against the previously undefeated Charlotte Independence last Saturday at First Tennessee Park and Indy having picked up a 1-0 road victory against North Carolina FC in its last outing. 

Now the key for both clubs is going to be building momentum for the rest of the season.

“Every week we’re learning and improving. We’ve been together for a little over nine weeks, so we’re still a team that’s growing,” said Indy Head Coach Martin Rennie. “There’ve been key players that haven’t been available over the last three matches, but we’ll keep getting strong and stronger as the time goes in.”

Both of Indy's victories have come on the road, with the side being edged out by FC Cincinnati in its opener at the club's new home two weekends ago. The goal of a first home win at Lucas Oil Field in front of its fans this weekend is providing major motivation for the Eleven's squad.

“It’s very important. It’s been something we’ve been focusing on all week and working hard towards that,” said Rennie. “We just want to get on a run of winning. We’ve already got a couple wins on the road, so now we want to make sure we do well and focus on getting a win at home.”

In its inaugural professional season, Nashville has not only earned consecutive victories, but is also coming off three consecutive shutouts to move into the top five in the Eastern Conference. That has added confidence to a side that as it looks for a third win in a row.

“I think good results do that [breed confidence] anywhere. Being able to win games and keep clean sheets will do that,” said Nashville SC Head Coach Gary Smith. “Last weekend, we probably gave our most consistent and creative team performances. There is a continual improvement and development in the group. It’s a good place to be with the group we have. We will continue to improve.”

The training has been fierce this week for Indy, in part because of the desire to go on a run of results but also in an effort from each player to keep his place in the squad. With the club's squad containing enough depth to have competition for every player it poses a challenge each day in training to earn a place in the starting lineup.

“With the squad that we have, a squad that’s so deep, the competition in practice is what has kept us going. I think we’ll continue to keep this going,” said Indy midfielder Matt Watson. “This is the first team I’ve been on where I think every single player in the squad deserves to start every week. The work rate and the standard of player that we have here is unbelievable, and I think that’s what’s going to keep us going. Every day in practice you have to give 100 percent or someone is going to take your spot.”

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