Lower Alabama Report: April 9
There were very few games on the docket last weekend, and many of those saw postponements due to severe weather. The upcoming week will be much busier.
All times listed are Central Time
Image credit: Fubo
Birmingham Legion FC
Legion were off last week, and they're looking to see some players coming back from injuries. Additionally, they did sign a new midfielder, Australian Sam McIllhatton, who has been practicing with the team and will be available for the upcoming game against El Paso.
El Paso Locomotive comes to town for the CBS Network game this week that kicks off Sunday April 13 at 4:00. Birmingham is looking for any kind of momentum, and their first win of the season. Two strong showings in draws against Louisville City and Detroit City have been offset by losses to Loudon and Pittsburgh. Injuries have been a factor, but they haven't gotten the boost they expected from big off-season signings and an expanded roster.
El Paso has shown improvement from the team that finished in last place in the West for 2024. So far, they've gotten good goal production up front, and lead all of USLC with 10 goals scored. Legion will need to put the brakes on that attack while finding some answers on the offensive end, where they've scored just 4 goals in 4 matches this season. Legion need this win badly, and it could come down to them being rested and getting some players back from injury. They have the pieces, they just need them to come together.
Huntsville City FC
Huntsville was also off last week, with a 16 day gap between matches when they take the field next. They've had a better start to 2025 than they did 2024 and are currently in the middle of the table for NextPro's Eastern conference.
The boys in blue will be on the road at Crown Legacy Sunday April 13 at 6:00. Early results this season have generally had Huntsville giving more possession to opponents and looking to score on the counter. Legacy has generally had more possession in their games, and haven't found the back of the net as often as Huntsville. Crown is looking for their first win of the season. This should be a close match, and I lean towards Huntsville finding the win on the road.
FC Birmingham
(Credit FC Birmingham)
FC Birmingham has been competitive so far this Spring in a tough conference. They dropped points against Fountain City last weekend, with Fountain getting a last-minute goal to make it a 1-1 draw. They're just below the middle of the table.
This week FCB goes on the road into the Adjacency to face FC Columbus Elite Saturday April 12 at 2:00. Elite continues to struggle in the Premier division after being very strong in Div 1 last year. They've been greeted rudely by the top teams in the conference, and are sitting on a -20 GD at the bottom of the table. They had two weeks to prepare for FCB, and despite the rough start this is one to watch for an upset.
FCB2 is coming off of a 1-0 win against Albion Atlanta, and will have the week off.
UMA FC
Both UMA teams saw last week's games postponed due to weather.
UMA FC's first team will be on the road to face Filial Pachuca Sunday April 13 at 4:00. UMA sits just above Filial Pachuca in the table, but this match could be a trap game. Filial is historically very strong in the league, but have lost a couple of close games. If UMA has an advantage it's that they've been a little bit more balanced on both sides of the ball.
UMA2 will be away against AFC Lightning Sunday April 13 at 3:00. These two teams would have played against each other last week, in the game that was postponed. AFC has two wins this season, but one of those was a 2-1 victory over Limeno 3. A win is a win, but the expectation would have been for Lightning to dominate. Look for an UMA2 win here.
The Adjacency (Clubs on the Georgia Side of the Border)
Fountain City FC will host Soccer Saves Lives Sat April 12 at 6:00. Fountain is coming off a draw against FCB and is looking for a breakthrough to start getting more points. SSL has been an anomaly so far this season. They're below Fountain in the table, but managed a draw against Filial Pachuca. This is the kind of match that may turn out to be high-scoring, and a coin toss for who comes out on top.
As recapped above, FC Columbus Elite will face FC Birmingham Saturday April 12 at 2:00, at home.
Columbus Knight Eagles will be at home vs FC Atlanta Sunday April 13 at 5:00. The Eagles saw last week's game postponed, and will come into this match well rested. CKE should be favored in this game, but shouldn't expect it to be an easy time. Atlanta has been tight defensively so far this season, and have two solid wins. Eagles forward Abubakar Tahiru has five goals this season, and they'll be looking for him to strike early.