Southern Harm: Memphis 901 FC @ Birmingham Legion Preview

Memphis 901 FC’s season got off to a bright start with a 2-1 win over the Las Vegas Lights. But what was once a bright start has quickly faded as the Beale Street Boys have now lost five straight games in league play (though they did pick up a win in the US Open Cup). Things might not look great at the moment, but neither Assistant Sporting Director Caleb Patterson-Sewell nor Head Coach Stephen Glass are ready to hit the panic button yet.

“Unlucky if you had to sum it up in one word.” said Patterson-Sewell. “Eighteen shots on the weekend so in general not overly concerned. Not the start that we wanted, but not concerned in the sense of we’re creating a ton of chances. I think we’re top five in chances created in the league.”

It was a sentiment echoed by Glass.

“The adjustment is almost keeping things similar and not diving in to making changes and drastic things that I don’t think we need to do.” he said. “The perception from the outside might be that we’re not doing great. I think points wise we’re not doing great. In terms of performance, players have been very close to where they should be. I think the players have been brilliant, the staff have been working hard to try and get us back on board. But I think if the players believe in themselves we’ll get back there quickly.”

One thing that both Patterson-Sewell and Glass pointed out was that the reigning USL champion Phoenix Rising had a similar start to their season last year and were able to close strong and bring home a trophy.

“We sat here and talked about how good Phoenix were.” Patterson-Sewell said. “They just made it into the playoffs last year. So in any sport in America it’s not how you start, it’s going to be how you finish and where you pick up points along the way. We’re not naive. We can’t just think we’re going to turn up next week and it’s just going to be different. But we truly believe we’re doing the right things on the pitch and the results will show that over a period of time.”

Glass expressed a similar line of thinking.

“I think we refer to that a little bit. Again, the perception from the outside would be that Phoenix were unbelievable last year. If you sat back and looked at it, they were a wee bit fortunate to get in the playoffs and then you win the right five games and you win the whole thing. So, our players believe that we’re capable of doing better than we have done. The evidence is there.”

To get back on track, Memphis must find a way to get a result in a place that has proven to be a house of horrors for them over the years. Since moving to Protective Stadium for the 2022 season, Birmingham have yet to lose a game there against 901 FC. It’s a place that Caleb Patterson-Sewell described as, “not a place that’s traditionally easy for us to go and get points.” In fact, Memphis has played the Legion there three times and only been able to get a result once. Their first trip in 2022 was a heartbreaker as they lost 1-0 on a 90th minute goal. They managed a draw in league play there last season but were also thrashed 3-0 in the US Open Cup in the same stadium earlier in the year.

For their part, the Legion have been a bit of a mixed bag so far this year. They lost two of their first three games (including a 5-0 bludgeoning at the hands of Louisville City) but have gone unbeaten thus far in the month of April. That stretch includes a 3-1 win at home over Loudoun United, a 1-1 road draw with North Carolina FC, and then a 1-0 win away to Miami FC.