Without a doubt the NISA Legends Cup was a success. The level of play, the professionalism of the coverage, from day one to the final match, it was fantastic. So after two amazing weeks of action in the Legends Cup, we are taking a look back over the matches and asking ourselves “what did we learn?”

Detroit is so much better than everyone else. - It’s easy to look at the 0-0 match that kicked off the tournament against Cal United Strikers and say that DCFC “struggled.” The reality is that if you pair that shutout with the three that followed on the way to the championship, suddenly there’s a good pattern instead of a negative one. Detroit marched through the Legends Cup and in the process made the best scoring team in the competition, Chattanooga FC, look listless in the final. CFC never once looked to seriously threaten the entire match and, on the flip side, Detroit’s backline was smooth as butter the entire match.

Wait, Detroit can score?!? - So it would seem and, oh boy, NISA teams should be sweating. After the shutout against Cal United, DCFC put two goals in against Stumptown, one against ‘04 in the semis, and then three against Chattanooga FC. But more than just the goals, it was the smoothness of the attack that should have everyone worrying. DCFC has always been so solid on defense, it was the scoring that was questionable. It looks like City has that under control now and is ready to pummel the rest of the league.

Apparently Mr. Underwood has a plan. - If you listen to our show, Knights Who Say NISA, it was a constant question for debate: how bad would Stumptown be? While Rod Underwood has a resume that would impress every level in the American soccer system, the cards were stacked against him going into this tournament. A month of prep time, no players, nothing. But after watching a couple of weeks of soccer, it’s clear that Stumptown will not be the league’s punching bag this season. After losing its first match against eventual champion, DCFC, Stumptown drew Cal United and beat New Amsterdam. Hard not to feel hopeful about what we might see from this club by the end of the season.

Cal United has been cursed, right? - John Howard Fusco loves him some Cal United Strikers, heralding an offense that...has yet to show up in important matches. The roster is brimming with attacking talent but the goals failed to show up during group play, leaving the club looking at the semis from the outside. Against the Bobcats, the goals finally broke loose, but at the expense of giving up two from the opposition. All of that is to say, this season will be interesting for the club, particularly as they open regular season play against Chattanooga FC (5/2). CFC has proven it can put goals in (except maybe against DCFC) and Strikers will have to match those. It’s time for the talent to step up and prove itself in matches that matter.

What do we make of Chattanooga FC? - It’s hard to read this club as the Legends Cup wrapped up this weekend. In group play, CFC looked like worldbeaters, scoring seven goals and only giving up one. The attack, with the addition of Tate Robertson (from Stumptown), looked menacing in CFC’s first two matches, but then came the offweek, a stretch of nine days off that seemed to cool the attack considerably. Against DCFC, CFC looked desperate and out of sorts, rarely threatening throughout the match. It was a shocking turn around for the Blues and leaves a host of questions unanswered heading into the spring regular season. Thankfully for finishing runners up in the Legends Cup, Coach Fuller can focus on finetuning his machine heading towards the Spring final.

Welcome to the pros, Maryland. - The Maryland Bobcats were arguably the lower league team of the year in 2020. Halfway through the year the club was fast tracked to join the pro ranks as their star continued to rise. Much was expected of the club as they built a talented, deep roster which kept the club’s core while adding players mostly from the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan areas. But, the Legends Cup showed both how far the Bobcats had come while also uncovering much work still needing to be done. The team looked badly outmatched in the first halves of two of their three games and had to attempt to come from behind in all three matches. While the talent on the club is obvious, their backline has been prone to massive gaffes allowing a seeming barrage of easy shots on goal. We’re watching a club that moved up competitive levels go through a steep learning curve in real time. And, it’s on the technical staff to figure out the best path forward to be competitive in NISA. But the Bobcats don’t have much time as their first match of the spring season finds them traveling to Keyworth Stadium this Saturday to take on Detroit City FC.

Three’s a crowd. - New Amsterdam looked much more poised and in control during the Legends Cup than they did when they hit the field last summer and fall. While they lost all three of their matches, the club never looked in danger of being completely blown out as they often did in 2020. While they still are struggling offensively they do look good in set pieces and should find the back of the net more often as the spring season progresses. But, New Amsterdam does need to figure out how to stop opposing clubs from scoring on them regularly. Even though the defense is no longer in the disarray shown during most of the fall, the club somehow continues a trend of giving three goals on a regular basis.

More of the same from Michigan. - Interesting couple of weeks for the league darkhorse, Michigan Stars. The club hit our radar when the entire team decided to skip the voluntary EDI event, earning a lot of criticism from soccer twitter, many of those accounts from Michigan, of course. On the field, the type of play we’ve come to expect from Stars was on display: aggressive defense, lots of fouls, and counter attacking just enough. However, the team struggled to win the matches it needed to get into the playoff, ending group play with 2 points. The Stars did win their consolation match, 2-0, but too little, too late. It will be interesting to see how this club intends to approach the political criticism moving forward. The current strategy seems to be to just ignore it. Which is all well and good for management, but is EVERY player in line with the politics of the Juncaj family? Just given the demographics of the country, you have to figure there are some players biting their tongues. Do they do it all season? What happens if they speak out?

- Protagonist Staff