By Michael Willis
September 23, 2024
Week 22​
Give a warm welcome to our new USL1 Correspondent Michael Willis, here to provide far more incite into USL1 soccer than the rest of us at IHYC provide on...well...anything.
#1
Other than a hiccup against Spokane a few weeks ago Omaha winning has been status quo of the summer and now into the fall. Really good win against a good Knoxville team sees Omaha remain atop the table and atop the power ranking.
Richmond - Spokane - Lexington - South Georgia - and CVF to finish off the season. I don’t think they’re going anywhere.
#2
Dominating win to build momentum and confidence into the midweek Cup Final vs NoCo. I watched this entire game expecting an upset and instead I watched one team put 10 shots on target and the other put zero. Good win for Madison who need the points with a tough run of games to finish out the season.
#3
The red card at the end of the first half killed this game and with Omaha scoring before the red was given this was always going to be a tough ask for Knoxville who are defense first. Its a tough loss but Knoxville will be fine.
#4
A win would have put them in second and though 3rd isn’t a bad spot to be in, allowing a team to erase. 3-1 deficit in ten minutes is very much a bad spot to be in. No team in the top half of the table needs a win more than Charlotte.
#5
A month ago NoCo win this game by 3+ and though a spot in the playoffs is all but solidified, a draw to Chattanooga is unacceptable. We’ll act as though they had one eye on the Cup Final midweek.
#6
What a win. Absolutely massive win from the Kickers who had two children dominating Lexington attackers. Sneddon making the goalie kit his own and Ryan Sierakowski proving his worth down the stretch has Richmond sitting in the final playoff spot. It’ll be a battle to keep it but we'll enjoy this one.
#7
South Georgia players read the review last week. They got their feelings hurt after being called out for not winning a league game all season against a team not in the bottom half of the table. 2 goals after the 85th minute to erase a 3-1 deficit sees the points split against a top half team but more importantly keeps them in the hunt for the playoffs.
#8
Zero shots on target. Zero. Good things happen when you put the ball on net and Spokane decided they just weren’t going to do that. I said it last week this team stink but they’re probably too far away from the teams below them to drop out of the playoffs.
Sorry not sorry Greenville supporters but this team stinks. You might be fourth in the table and firmly in the playoffs but thats more to do with the inconsistency of this league and less to do with your performances which have been inconsistently bad. Without the Own Goal from CFV Greenville drops three points to a team bottom of the table. You’ll make the playoffs but you’ll be the first team to bow out. Bookmark this.
#9
#10
I should move them up the rankings for getting a much needed draw at the weekend. Barring an own goal they would have left South Carolina with all three points but that midweek game at Lexington is hard to shake out of the memory. All credit to this team for quickly getting that 7-1 pumping out of everyones mind but here at IHYC we don’t forget. This teams off field organization is worse than their on field organization. Off season cant come soon enough.
#11
Lets wind back to the midweek game against Central Valley where Lexington dropped a full touchdown on their opponents from California. That was a great win to put them a win away from the playoffs. Fast forward to Saturday where they played Richmond who sent this Lexington team 5 points off bottom of the league. Cant play Fuego every week and for as good as that midweek victory was, the rest of this Lexington season has been bad and Saturday was no different.
Greenville _ Omaha - Charlotte - Chattanooga to finish off their USL League One tenure. Going to be tough.
#12
Back five formation with a holding mid is a recipe for classic route 1 footy. Luckily for the Red Wolves, NoCo hit their hot streak a few weeks back otherwise this could have been ugly. This team doest want the playoffs. Five teams could realistically grab the last spot but Chattanooga could not be less interested. First points addition since in two months but what does it mean?