FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – With a new coaching staff in place and several new faces on the roster, it was difficult to know exactly what to expect from the New England Revolution in 2018.
Now halfway through the regular-season schedule those expectations are coming into focus, as Brad Friedel and his new-look Revs have put together the club’s best first half in a decade.
Currently riding a six-game unbeaten run the Revs (7-4-6) sit on 27 points, their highest point total at the season’s halfway mark since the schedule moved to 34 games in 2011, and the most they’ve had through 17 games since 2008.
New England are currently six points above the playoff line in the Eastern Conference, but more to their focus, they’re just five points back of second place.
“Coming in with a new coaching staff and a lot of new faces on the team, we talked about how we wanted to do well this year,” said Andrew Farrell, who leads Revolution field players with 1,510 minutes played. “We’re midway through and we’re in a great spot, but we can’t be complacent and happy where we are.”
That seems to be the buzzword as the Revs prepare to kick off the second half of the schedule on Saturday night against Seattle Sounders FC: complacency. While players and coaches are willing to acknowledge a level of satisfaction with how the first 17 games have unfolded, they’re also quick to point out that they’ve left points on the table, and there’s much more work to be done in the coming months.
“We want to be one of the top teams in the East, to have a home playoff game in front of our great fans,” said Farrell. “We’ve got to keep putting the work in, getting three points, and making sure we’re taking care of business.”
As for the possibility of complacency creeping into the Revolution locker room, Friedel and his staff will be having none of it.
“My staff and I won’t allow complacency,” he said. “If we feel that’s creeping in with individuals or collectively, we’ll try to put an end to it. In any sport, complacency is a dangerous thing to have happen … That’s something we’ll try to eradicate at all costs.”
Kelyn Rowe said that’s partially accomplished by daily competition on the training ground, as players know that any dip in effort or form will see them spending increased time on the sidelines.
“You’re not able to take a break, you’re not able to take a game off,” said Rowe. “If you have a poor performance, you’re going to find yourself on the bench. That’s very good competition-wise throughout the week, and very good for us on Saturday because everyone’s out there being their best.”
As for the expectations throughout the second half of the season, Friedel and the Revs have reason to believe that they can make some noise in the Eastern Conference, and with positive results in seven of their nine matches against current playoff teams, they’ve proven that they can compete with the best.
“My staff and I feel that we’re in a pretty good position,” Friedel said. “We have to stay focused and maintain a lot of hard work … I think we have a good enough team to win any game, anywhere in this league. It’s just up to us to go out and prove it, and show the consistency.”
