Oakland Coliseum: Five straight losses across all competition. A stunning 72% ball possession with zero shots on target… Let me repeat that. ZERO shots on target in a game in which you controlled the ball 72% of the time. That is unacceptable at any level. That is Gavin Glinton ball and I thought I wouldn’t see it again for the Oakland Roots, but it appears I was mistaken. The Oakland Roots sit in 11th place in the Western Conference and are on the edge of rapidly unwinding. Less than two months ago, the thought of the Oakland Roots not making the playoffs was laughable… Well I am no longer laughing.
Ryan Martin said postgame that internally they still proceed forward with the phrase “Keep Pounding The Stone”, referring to ongoing attack on the Golden Zone and good things will eventually happen for the Roots. I would argue that Albert Einstein was onto something with the phrase “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
I truly believe that Ryan Martin is the head coach for the future for the Roots, but I would point out that Martin is rapidly approaching the same record Benny Feilhaber had last season and we all know how that one ended.
The Roots will return this Wednesday on the road against the Las Vegas Lights.
Here are our top-10 player ratings from the 1-0 defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
1. Neveal Hackshaw, 7.6
You can tell how bad Saturday went just by Neveal Hackshaw being on the top of this list. Hackshaw wasn’t good against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds and had two critical failures on the lone goal allowed on Saturday. Luckily David Garcia should return to the starting lineup shortly. Save us from the madness. Hackshaw was the 19th player ever to reach 20,000 regular season minutes in the USL Championship.
2. Florian Valot, 7.5
The Battle of Waterloo… The Battle of Trafalgar and Florian Valot versus Father Time. Three historic battles that all resulted in losses for the French. Valot isn’t a bad player, but clearly the Frenchman has taken a step back and as a key offseason signing, that is a rough pill to swallow. Valot could have a solid chance to start in the defensive midfield for the injured Tommy McCabe.
3. Michael Edwards, 6.9
Nearly gave up a second goal on a costly gamble of a challenge. Was only accurate on 1-of-7 long ball passes, but a large amount of this statistic is caused by the Riverhounds bunkering down. He may just be a solid USL Championship level player and that is ok.
4. Keegan Tingey, 6.9
I have a feeling that Keegan Tingey will either become a top level USL 1 player or an Aussie Rules Football player and no real inbetween. Tingey hasn’t been able to bring the spark that Mark Fisher brought in his limited action to start the year before being hurt for nearly the whole season. The next few games will be key for Tingey.
5. Tucker Lepley, 6.6
It will be hard to take the image of Tucker Lepley being man handled into the side boards and crushed on header out of my brain. Lepley is a GOOD player, but I am just not sure the Roots have the pieces to maximize his potential. Maybe a chance to start Lepley to replace McCabe?
6. Jesus de Vicente, 6.5
An average game for Jesus de Vicente, but I will still buy all your stock if you’re selling it. Tried to help Hackshaw after the veteran missed the eventual goal scoring build up. I am excited to see how de Vicente will meld back with David Garcia. I still believe in the Wolfgang Prentice and de Vicente left side.
7. Bobosi Byaruhanga, 6.4
This upcoming week could be a make or break time for Bobosi Byaruhanga, as Tommy McCabe should miss at least Wednesday with concussion symptoms. This is the time for Bobosi to show the Roots what he can do in the Ryan Martin system while being the main focus of the midfield. The worrying sign on Saturday was that Bobosi really didn’t stand out when McCabe left with injury.
8. Faysal Bettache, 6.3
Faysal Bettache came on for the injured Danny Trejo… more on that below, but Bettache was solid overall in limited action. I do wonder if Bettache could be used in a need-for-need type USL Championship trade. He likely doesn’t have a future with the Roots, but is probably a starter somewhere in the Championship.
9. Tommy McCabe, 6.2
First off, I hope Tommy McCabe is ok. The team captain left the game after a head injury in the 34th minute and I wish him a speedy recovery. Tommy McCabe is the second head coach on the field for the Oakland Roots, but has the key offseason signing added much outside of possession. I do find it a little worrying that McCabe leads the league in passes, but doesn’t even have one hockey assist on the year? How is that even possible? This will be something to monitor when he returns.
10. Danny Trejo, 6.2
So long, farewell… Auf Wiedersehen, good night. Danny Trejo was only on the pitch for 13 minutes before pulling his hamstring on a failed breakaway opportunity. This potentially ends the season for one of the more disappointing striker runs in Roots history. From 19 goals in 2023 with the Phoenix Rising to just 1 goal this season for Oakland. Father time is truly undefeated.