The Cedar Rapids soccer community had an outpouring of joy on social media last night as the first year PLA franchise clinched a berth in the PLA Playoff Semifinals with a 4-2 win over Minneapolis City. This blog alone saw a spike of dozens of visitors after the Sunday Night Spotlights aired on KCRG had announced the team had made the playoffs (and we haven't been active in months1). Facebook Likes, Shares, and congratulatory comments came from hundreds of fans via posts from coaches, players, and media. It's a great achievement for a first year squad, but its only the first seasn-long goal in the books. As anyone who has climbed a mountain knows, its the last push to the summit that is the hardest, and each step up gets more and more difficult to take. The summit of the PLA Playoffs will be no different. It will be a next-level challenge the team has yet to face. Let's look at the opponents and the significant challenge each poses...
RWB Adria - Undefeated champions in the league a year ago, this Croatian-American club out of Chicago has won national amateur titles in three recent years (2011, 2013, 2014). They've been there, and done that. Two seasons ago they made a great run in the Open Cup to knock off some bigger clubs, and this year suffered a first round loss in penalties. They will be hungry to return to the Open Cup to avenge the loss. They will not be wide-eyed or timid coming in.
Toledo United - If one team has a case to be even a tougher match-up, it is Toledo United. As if being the regular season champions weren't intimidating enough, Toledo has bested RWB twice this season, AND get the massive boost of having home field advantage. They have to be the favorites to win it all, but there's pressure in that. Expect Cedar Rapids to go for the win this weekend over Minnesota United FC Reserves so as to avoid a semifinal match-up with Toledo, but it's pick your poison from the East.
Milwaukee Bavarians - Another club that has been doing this for over half a century, Milwaukee is the one team that has seen CR up close and suffered their only loss of the season to date to Rampage United. The revenge factor makes the Bavarians a scary prospect in the final, as they will be fired up and confident, having beaten one of the two teams above.
So there you have it. Cedar Rapids are the Leicester City of the bunch, but sometimes it's the big boys who are out-"foxed". The dream is that the final friendly match with AAC Eagles is turned into a championship homecoming party, complete with a confetti-throwing trophy lifting ceremony that turns Clark Field into a mini-King Power Stadium.
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