The USL Championship Playoffs don’t officially begin until the weekend of Oct. 31, but to ask the Hounds, their sense is that every match the rest of the way has a postseason feel.
With three matches to play, beginning with Saturday’s home contest against Indy Eleven, the Hounds have everything to play for, from securing their eighth consecutive postseason berth to the chance of making a late push for a home playoff match.
The stakes aren’t lost on the Hounds, who would make their playoff status official with a win over Indy.
“I wouldn’t say there’s more pressure on us right now, but we know we let an opportunity slip in Miami. We have to move past that and get ready for Indy this weekend,” center back Sean Suber said. “We’re going to attack training hard and go out and try to clinch playoffs this weekend. But also, we’re trying to get a top-four spot, so we think every game is win-or-go-home, trying to get into that playoff mode.”
The team’s 3-1 setback in Miami proved to be a missed opportunity to move upward with both Loudoun and North Carolina losing on the weekend. But the weekend as a whole showed there will be no easy points in the final month of the season, as wins were claimed by each of the bottom four teams in the Eastern Conference entering the weekend: Rhode Island, Tampa Bay, Birmingham and Miami.
For the Hounds, the biggest thing is taking the lessons from Miami and correcting errors for the most important time of the season.
“You look back on the (Miami) game, but you don’t want to look back on that one too long. There’s a lot we could have taken from that first half, a lot of good things minus not finishing the chances. … And then not a lot to take from the second half,” midfielder and captain Danny Griffin said. “Talking to the guys, we know to reset, we know to refocus, and now the focus is Indy. We know they’re a good team, but we’re at home, we’ll have the fans behind us, and we’ve got to take the three points.”
Griffin’s comments underline the biggest change the team hopes to make. While small tweaks to execution of tactics and finishing in front of net are items on the agenda, the largest issue in the minds of the Hounds is turning dominant stretches of play — such as their first half in Miami, when they outshot the hosts 15-1 — into 90-minute-long matches on the front foot.
“We have to stay locked in the whole time,” Suber said. “We had a great first half in Miami, and whether we thought it was going to be easy in the second half or what, they had a good first 10 minutes and scored the goal. Then momentum completely shifts, we’re away from home, and we’ve got to respond better after their goal, and even in the second half coming out.”
Suber went on to highlight other matches where the Hounds have let points slip from a winning position, which has been the case in three of their past four defeats: home vs. Charleston, at Tampa Bay, and now, at Miami.
The Hounds can take heart in knowing that they have shown the ability to go toe-to-toe with any team in the Championship, even presumptive Players’ Shield winners Louisville in a 0-0 draw earlier this season in Kentucky. And the players who were on the team last year know full well what a late winning streak can do after the club won its final four matches of 2024 to jump from 10th to seventh and make the playoffs.
Now, with nine points available and the margin for error slim — the Hounds are four points out of third place but also only five points clear of the playoff cutoff — there’s a playoff feel even before the actual playoffs begin.
“A lot of guys who were here before have experience in those types of environments, and for sure, that helps,” Griffin said. “Pretty much every game here on out, you’re getting every team’s best effort. Teams are fighting to keep a playoff spot or fighting to get a home game, so you’re not going to get an easy match, regardless.”
“We still feel like we have a higher ceiling than we’ve put together all year,” Suber said. “If we can make those strides in these final three games and hit the ceiling we think we can hit, then we’ll be able to have a good run in the playoffs and try to bring some silverware home to the club.”
Fans can take advantage of a special offer to be at Saturday’s match against Indy, with $11 Supporters’ Section tickets available until 10 p.m. Wednesday through this special ticketing link. Other sections and tickets after the special offer closes can be purchased through Ticketmaster or by calling the Highmark Stadium Box Office at 412-865-GOAL.
