Written By:  Charlie Corr
             East Region Contributor

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With the WPSL national postseason stage on the horizon for Metropolitan Conference-winning Downtown United SC, it is easy to look at the club’s unbeaten record and make the assumption it was smooth sailing the entire summer.
 

The truth of the matter is DUSC had to fend off quite a few potential, and worthy, playoff hopefuls in conference play to reach this stage.

 

“I thought the players really responded well to how we wanted to play,” Paul O’Donnell, first-year DUSC head coach, said. “It was a difficult conference, and it became very competitive as we progressed through the season.”

 

O’Donnell’s mission since joining the DUSC last year has been to enforce an up-tempo style of play across all age levels within the organization. At the WPSL level, the players clearly have delivered.

 

“We’re just really defining our clear identity of how we want to play in and out of possession,” O’Donnell said. “We want to be aggressive, and the biggest thing for me with our pressing and counter-pressing is to play at a tempo and intensity that other teams can’t handle.”

 

More times than not, DUSC maintained control of this approach. But even for an unbeaten squad, there were a few bumps in the road that served as important learning moments.
 

Metro runner-up and 2022 expansion side Brooklyn City FC in particular was a team that made it difficult for DUSC’s attack.

 

“They’re [Brooklyn City FC] very organized and very difficult to break down, and for a team like us that scores a lot of goals, it’s easy to get frustrated in those types of games,” O’Donnell said. “For me, the message was to stick to the game plan, create chances, and if the goals don’t come, keep the same mentality of plugging away.”

 

The Metro season wrapped up Wednesday, with Brooklyn City winning the conference finale against New Jersey Alliance FC. DUSC (6-0-2, 20 points) and Brooklyn City (5-1-2, 17 points) finished top-two in the standings, and five of the seven Metro teams finished the season with winning records.
 

DUSC led the Metro in goals scored (49), defensively conceded the fewest number of goals (7) and for a second straight season has posted an unbeaten WPSL campaign. DUSC hopes to continue that run of form in the national playoffs.
 

 

The nucleus of DUSC’s roster has run deep, from leading goalscorer Bella Sember controlling the midfield and build-up play to Sydney Urban’s steady demeanor on the back line, and Shea Moyer’s leadership as the club captain. Along the way, a number of other players grew during the summer, including midfielders such as Alexa Jindal and Teresa Deda.

 

“Alexa came to us in a tryout, and she was the best one there so we signed her,” O’Donnell said. “She really surprised us all year. And Teresa Deda, she wasn’t necessarily a starter in and out, but when she got in, she was consistent, effective and efficient with her touches. She’s got great vision, and at Bucknell, being one of the leaders in the country in assists, we saw that with her – she always finds the killer pass.”

 

For all of the success stories, O’Donnell has found himself managing a group that sets a tremendously high bar for itself, especially if it was a stretch of play or set of conditions that wasn’t to the players’ liking. One eye-opening moment for DUSC was a late-season draw against the New York Athletic Club, in which NYAC overcame a three-goal deficit under windy playing conditions.
 

O’Donnell said the players’ frustration even reached a point where some thought the league title was out of reach. Rather than let the situation simmer, DUSC went right back to work, and the response was impeccable: Back-to-back shutout victories against Brooklyn City FC and STA – two teams that at some point were still in the running for the top of the Metro Conference.

 

“Knowing this league, that the results would be up and down, we said to control the controllables and move on to the next game,” O’Donnell said of the NYAC matchup. “Focus on what we can do to get better and grow. Learn from this. And credit to them, because after that NYAC game, we got shutouts against two very good teams and really shut them down.”