RootsBlog

The Oakland Roots' season came to an end on Saturday, November 13 at Championship Stadium in Irvine, falling 6-5 in penalty kicks to Orange County SC after a full 120 minutes completed without a goal being scored.  Oakland came in with a specific game plan to stop OC's Ronaldo Damus, and they did so up until the final penalty attempt. Roots' keeper Paul Blanchette stopped Damus' initial try but was called for encroachment, resulting in the Haitian National burying his kick.  Damus was repeatedly called for offside throughout the 120.  "Penalties, I love penalties. I look at penalties and say that’s our game. I’ll continue to think that way even though things didn’t go our way tonight. We had a good game plan and created some good opportunities. I certainly think that we did enough tonight to be stepping into the Western Conference Final, but that’s knockout football," reflected technical director and interim head coach Jordan Ferrell.  "You play to PKs an...

Oakland Roots' technical director and interim head coach Jordan Ferrell had one message to the organizations around the USL which have doubted them, "keep doing it."  "They can keep doing it, I don’t really care. What matters is within that locker room right now and the fans that have been supportive of us all of season. People can continue to overlook us and that’s great but we’re not concerned with how other people see us," said Ferrell.  The Roots entered with the odds stacked against them at over 6/1 underdogs. And rightfully so; in addition to El Paso not losing a home match in 470 days, Oakland started the first two months of the season 1-3-8 without a home match at Laney. Things obviously took longer to jell than initially hoped for. "I think for us as a group, not having been a team for a long time, the early part of the season where we didn’t find success, there were a lot of challenges. It’s very easy when you come together and start winning and e...

Source: Oakland Roots SC The Oakland Roots won 1-0 over Sporting Kansas City II on Saturday night, but its match was only partially over at the time. The squad gathered at midfield, staring intently at the Laney College Stadium screen as Orange County and Los Angeles Galaxy II continued scoreless in the 65th minute.  The Blog's Aaron Lawson recapped the win this morning, highlighting Oakland's goal and pointing out the "shambolic nature" of KC's shoddy backline when Chuy Enriquez scored in the second minute, while detailing the excruciating torture watching OC and Los Dos carry on.  Here's a link to Lawson's article.  Reader, years were taken off my life on Saturday. We informed you pregame that Sporting KC II’s back line was…more of a beaded curtain than a wall, and its shambolic nature revealed itself early: Kai Greene lofted a ball over the top to Quincy Amarikwa. Sporting’s back line lost all resemblance to a line, allowing Quincy to sneak in on goal. ...

Source: Oakland Roots SC What a roller coaster that was.  The Oakland Roots, while down a man, defeated the San Diego Loyal 4-3 at Torero Stadium to keep its playoff chances alive after Tacoma Defiance got the job done in a 3-2 win against fourth-ranked LA Galaxy II.  After relinquishing a 3-1 lead, Roots' technical director and interim head coach Jordan Ferrell believes the team made it harder on themselves in the end.  "We made it emotional, more than anything. The two goals we conceded in the second half were highly unnecessary. At minimum, I’m proud of the guys for fighting all the way through and getting the three points. That’s huge," said Ferrell, via the team.  It sets up a monumental regular-season finale at Laney College on Saturday, October 30 against Sporting KC II at 7:00 p.m. KC II, notably, holds a last-place 4-8-19 record in the Central Division. Los Dos, meanwhile, faces second-seeded Orange County at 7:30 p.m.  Back on the roller coaster. ...

The Oakland Roots drew 0-0 on Wednesday night on the road against Tacoma Defiance, bringing their record to 9-8-13. Roots SC has now gone scoreless in its last three matches. It was a critical time for the Roots to take three points after LA Galaxy II lost 3-1 to Charleston Battery earlier in the day. Oakland is still four points back of Los Dos and will require the SoCal side to drop its final two matches. Roots must defeat San Diego Loyal on Sunday to keep itself alive.  Oakland's lack of finishing in the first half came back to haunt them; it's been similar note to the 1-nil loss to Orange County.  Roots had at least four good chances at net in the first half; Matias Fissore started the action with a shot on target in the 7th minute after Memo Diaz played a nice pass through the legs of Tacoma's defender.  In the 19th, Kai Greene played a perfect long ball over the top to Johnny Rodriguez--but his first-touch shot wasn't on target. Soon after, Chuy Enriquez could...

It was a rough night for the Oakland Roots in its 1-nil loss to Orange County SC at Laney College Stadium on Saturday, October 16, evident by coach Jordan Ferrell's postgame interview--voicing clear frustration that reflected with his body language. "It's a tough one. We did it to ourselves. We had some good chances, Paul [Blanchette] even almost scored. Obviously, we were pretty stretched going down to 10 men, but we're not just gonna pack it in. We're going to go after it and we had some chances. That was a tough one," said Ferrell after the loss.  The loss brings Oakland's record to 9-7-13, clinging onto fifth with 34 points. With eyes on the table, Los Dos faces El Paso while Sacramento squares off with Tacoma on Saturday. An El Paso wins keeps LA in striking distance of Oakland, while a Republic-Defiance draw would bring both clubs to 34 points--Roots hold the tiebreaker against both clubs.  Orange County scored in the 25th minute after Ronaldo Damus ...

Photo credit Oakland Roots SC The Oakland Roots took a narrow 1-0 loss to Phoenix Rising on Saturday night at the Rising Soccer Complex at Wild Horse Pass in... Chandler... On the outskirts of Phoenix without a wifi signal.  The loss brings Roots' record to 9-7-12, still with 34 points and one point behind LA Galaxy II for a fourth-place qualification spot. Meanwhile, Tacoma sits with 33 points after defeating Sac Republic 4-1 last night.  The Roots had its chances, including a shot from Lindo Mfeka that rang off of the crossbar and ricocheted a foot in front of the end line. But so did Phoenix Rising, particularly in the first half, controlling the action in the opening 45 minutes to have 15 shots compared to Oakland's five.  Roots SC was able to make their presence felt in the second half, finishing the night with 14 shots, four on target, 11 chances created, and three big opportunities. Goalie Paul Blanchette was critical for the Roots, recording seven saves on the nig...

The Oakland Roots brought home three points with a 2-1 victory over Sacramento Republic on Wednesday night at Laney College. The win improves their record to 9-7-11 and catapults the club into fourth place with 34 points, three points behind OCSC.  Oakland now prepares for an away match at Phoenix on Saturday, while LA Galaxy II can do Roots' a favor by losing Vegas on Friday. OCSC and Tacoma also play on Oct. 9. It was a chippy and physical affair between Oakland and Sacramento all night, with the Roots' claiming the NorCal Derby season series with a 1-3-0 record. It's the formula for a budding California soccer rivalry, and the June 19 mishap was undoubtedly still on the minds of players, coaches, and front office members.  "It's a good way to wrap up the series against them. Obviously, every single game is a battle. I think the majority of our squad was healthy and available for the first time; it makes a big difference. We also showed better mentality tonight t...

  This feels like a game Oakland will eventually rue as a lost opportunity. Oakland came out in their now-expected 4-2-3-1-slash-4-1-4-1. They played an unusually high line in this one, and the fullbacks (Diaz on the right, Takahashi on the left) were given all kinds of license to get forward. The end result was a lot of open space for Las Vegas to run into, and it looked, in the first half, as though Oakland were willing to give up that space in order to put pressure on Las Vegas’s backline. And I understand the bet: if you were betting which of the two backlines would hold up best, you are absolutely putting money on Emrah Klimenta and Kai Greene. This is especially true when you have guys like Jeremy Bokila and Quincy Amarikwa on the pitch, two lads who seem to attract outsize attention and who give USL defenders fits. But the amount of space on the pitch meant a very free and open game, which may not have necessarily played to Oakland’s comparative strengths. Vegas regularly ex...

Oh, how the Beautiful Game can be cruel. The Oakland Roots were able to claim a point in its 2-2 draw with Las Vegas Lights on Saturday night at Laney College, but a late goal while holding a man-advantage in the 89th minute prevented Roots from claiming three points.  With an 8-7-11 record, Roots SC is in sixth place one point behind the Sacramento Republic and LA Galaxy II in fifth and fourth.  Oakland conceded a goal in the fifth minute after Julian Vazques found Danny Trejo for a tap-in goal on a pass across the face. The inconsistency in which the USL uses an assistant referee is peculiar, especially with a focus on this goal.  Per the replay, Trejo appeared at least one full stride ahead of Oakland's last defender, Memo Diaz, when Vazquez plays the ball.  . @lvlightsfc sprints out to the early lead 🏃💨 #OAKvLV pic.twitter.com/q3wKDJebmI — USL Championship (@USLChampionship) October 3, 2021 Similar to the Roots' 2-1 loss to OCSC in its previous match, the hom...