Match Briefing for 12.B.01: At Harrisburg City Islanders

Match #: 12.B.01

Opponent:
Harrisburg City Islanders
4th place ULS 2nd Division

Six Word Novel Preview: Islanders look to spoil like Richmond

TV: None

Radio: Kyle Sheldon said that the game would be available at dcunited.com, 7:30 PM

Previous Meeting: Have not met in a competitive match this season

The Stakes: Its the US Open Cup. Winner moves on. Loser goes home.

Previews from the DCUniverse: Soccer Insider
Previews from IslanderNation: I don't know if he will get a preview up but check out Upper 90 for you Islanders news.

Expectations: United should win. I don't know if they will, but they should. DC will mostly be playing reserves with a few starters sprinkled in, but has beaten Harrisburg in friendlies with those players. That said, this is not a friendly. The Islanders will be looking at this as the biggest game in their season. United will find it tough to match that intesity but hopefuly their talent can shine through.

What to look for?

• Who plays for United? This is a game to watch the reserves, who starts above who in a competitive match will give us a good idea what the depth chart looks like.
  
• Do the reserves play like the starters? Not with the same skill but with the same style. It is important because United will never push the whole reserve team up, instead individuals will have to mesh into the starting line-up. United has been very good at this in the past few years, hopefully it continues under Sohen. I don't see why it wouldn't considering that the fans have seen most of the reserves in MLS matches anyways, but it is still important to look for.


• Individual performances. Just as above, hopefully the entire team does well, but when you look at the reserves you should be looking for indivduals to step into MLS games. The US Open Cup is a legit tournament, as a team the players will be going for the win and have a little bit more pressure.


• US Open Cup information. This is a tournament that has been severely hamstringed by the USSF. Hopefully some day in the future it will be promoted as it should be. For now, United should try to get all the hardware it can. I agree that they should play thier reserves here, but I think I put a bit more importance on the Open Cup than most.