The final match of the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) season is here for Colorado Rush and boy have them put themselves in a pickle to close it o
The final match of the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) season is here for Colorado Rush and boy have them put themselves in a pickle to close it out. The top four teams in the Colorado conference all earn playoff berths and each of the top four spots have been spoken for. Normally that could make for a bit of a snooze fest for the last game of the season but the top four teams are only separated by one game.
This means that depending on the results of the final games, Rush who is currently sitting in the fourth spot, could very well see themselves at the top of the conference with a win and a bit of help from some other teams. The top two teams in the conference will play host to the first round of the playoffs which is obviously ideal and is what Rush will be hunting for against the last place team Logrones.
How does Rush get to the top of the conference, try and keep up: No matter what Rush will need a W in their last game, if they lose they stay in fourth. Colorado Springs FC and FC Boulder are sitting in the top two spots and if they both drop their last games Rush will jump to first. If Springs and Boulder both win and if Rush wins they will take the third spot and will be traveling the first round of playoffs. If Boulder draws and Springs takes a loss, Rush would finish in the second spot and would host the first round of the playoffs.
If all of that wasn’t exciting enough for the final match of the regular season, Rush will be taking the field missing five of their key players. Captain Nic Hartman and Colin Clark are both out serving their one game red card suspensions from their battle against Club El Azul in their previous game. Youngster phenom Griffin Dorsey who has been on a tear recently is away at the U18 National team camp. Stalwart middy Ciaran O’Brien and defender Brad Gorham are also unavailable for the game.
From the outside looking in it would appear that it would be a miracle for Rush to jump to the first spot in the division or even take second and host a playoff game. That’s where they have you fooled. Rush is a very talented team and have a deep pool of players that are ready and will be looked towards to fill the missing nearly fifty percent of their starting eleven.
Logrones has had a difficult go at it this season and have found themselves in the last spot in the conference and have only chalked up one win on the season. The first time these two teams met they finished in a 2-2 deadlock after a hard fought match. Even though Logrones is in last place they are a very talented side and will come in hungry for a win and be looking to end the season on a high note.
What to watch for:
With a bunch of pieces missing for Rush look for midfielder Charlie “Chuck” Caswell and forward Andrew White to be the difference makers in this match. Chuck and White have developed great chemistry on the attacking side of the ball and have created some magical chances recently. Look for them to put something clever together against the Logrones back line.
The Rush Women’s United Premier Soccer League (WUPSL) will be playing an exhibition game against Colorado Springs FC right before the men’s match. The women’s season doesn’t get started until the fall but the ladies are getting tuned up and ready for what will be an exciting WUPSL season.
Both of these games are home for Rush at Shea Stadium with women’s kickoff at 4:30pm and the men’s kickoff at 7pm on June 25th.
