Rhode Island FC 3 – Hartford Athletic 0: 3 Hartford Thoughts

Following a brief spell of more encouraging results, Hartford Athletic returned to form with a dispiriting 3-0 loss away at RIFC on Saturday. Wasted opportunities in a reasonably balanced first half gave way to a second period totally dominated by the hosts and the Latics return to Trinity Health Stadium with whatever good feeling had been generated in the last few weeks having totally evaporated. 

Here are three thoughts on the performance and what it says about where the club is right now.

1 – Nobody Consistently On The Same Page

One major source of Hartford’s problems on Saturday night — and most nights — is that they don’t seem to have quite come together as a team in any phase of the game. It was visible defensively in Rhode Island both from open play — where it was far too easy for RIFC to work the ball into the box — and from set pieces where again it was simply too easy for the hosts to get a free header. Going the other way, the players seemed to be on different pages more often than the same one, leading several promising transitional opportunities to be squandered as the ball was played to nobody or a runner was missed.

Part of this is almost certainly due to the lack of a settled first eleven; without consistent competitive minutes together it’s difficult for any group of players to really settle in. The reasons for this unsettled-ness are varied.

Injuries have played a role, but the club has already dispensed with three players — Romario Williams, Jay Chapman, and Rece Buckmaster — who were presumptive starters at the beginning of the season, and the turnover has also contributed to the problem. 

2 – Profligacy Continues To Be Problem

It’s no surprise that this side would waste valuable opportunities as that’s been another theme all season. On Saturday it was Deshane Beckford and Mamadou Dieng who spurned golden chances and the game might have looked very different if either had converted and the teams had been level at the half.

In this case, it’s tempting to say that it’s unsurprising: Beckford has never been a truly clinical finisher and it may very well be that Dieng will never develop that instinct. It’s not merely one or two players.

Nobody has seemed particularly confident or comfortable in front of goal all season, including the now-departed Romario Williams who had previously been one of the most consistent and efficient scorers in the history of the league. On some nights, Hartford struggles to generate meaningful chances but on others the chances are there and the players are simply unable to convert them. Even a league-average attack would put this club in a much better position and the inability to be even league-average — particularly given Brendan Burke’s track record — is deeply concerning.

3 – What Happens Now?

The season isn’t truly over — the hallmark of lower division football is that teams collapse or go on hot streaks from seemingly nowhere and with 12 games to play it’s too early to entirely turn out the lights — but it is a big mountain to climb. Absent a sudden run of results that mountain might become insurmountable over the next few weeks and it’s fair to ask what the Latics are going to do next. It seems likely — at this point — that Brendan Burke will return for 2025, in which case there’s a real need to finish this season with an eye toward the next. Significant changes will be needed to this roster (once again) but the players who are going to be back should gobble up the bulk of the minutes.

It’s perhaps also worth seeing if Dantouma Toure, Pele Ousmanou or Ian Shaul has anything to offer. The squad is rather light at the moment to talk about offloading any more players but if there are opportunities to move on from veterans who are not going to return in 2025 it would make sense to do so. It’s equally unlikely that there will be a chance to acquire anyone with a view to next year but if an opportunity presents itself, it would also make sense to seize it.