With two home wins in a row under their belts, it’s time for the Twos to hit the road again. They’re following the first team this week, heading to Colorado to take on Rapids 2 on Sunday, May 26, just a day after the first-teamers take on the Rapids proper on Saturday.
Last weekend’s result against Tacoma mirrored the first-team’s performance against Portland, as MNUFC2 also came back from a goal down to earn the win on their home turf. A goal from Yu Tsukanome put the hosts behind just after the half-hour mark, but they didn’t stay down for long. Just six minutes later, Patrick Weah leveled the score with his fourth goal in five matches, and momentum swung back to the Loons.
Alejandro Bran’s 60th-minute strike put Jeremy Hall’s men ahead, while defender Finn McRobb’s first professional goal in the 72nd minute was the final nail in Tacoma’s coffin. Britton Fischer contributed two assists on the night, acting as one of the driving forces behind what was a complete performance from the hosts.
Sunday’s hosts are also coming off an exciting victory, a 3-2 win over Whitecaps 2. That win snapped a five-game losing streak for Rapids 2, a slump that saw them fall to the very bottom of the Western Conference standings. With just seven points from nine games, Colorado’s second team has struggled to find form this season, but the addition of several prominent first-team players—including Lalas Abubakar, Darren Yapi, and Jonathan Lewis—seemed to do the trick last time out.
By their very nature, MLS NEXT Pro rosters shift quite a bit from week to week. Even MNUFC2 could field a half-dozen academy players just a week before giving minutes to the same number of first-teamers. We’re beginning to see the league work as it was designed for MLS clubs, bridging the gap to the professional game and giving players the chance to just play soccer.
That said, there aren’t really any stats that can accurately capture how good any individual team is in MLS NEXT Pro because the teams shift so freely and frequently. But that’s exactly what developmental leagues are for. The more time they’ve spent playing together, the more likely they’ll be able to pull off a positive result. If the lineup is changed too much, it might take longer to get going. Such is the double-edged sword of squad rotation.
Both MNUFC2 and MNUFC are riding a wave of momentum into this match; let’s keep it going! To catch this weekend’s game, tune into MLS Season Pass on AppleTV at 7:00 p.m. CT.
