Republic FC’s 2025 Season Exposes Growing Pains Under Neill Collins
A closer look at Neill Collins just 10 games into a frustrating 2025 season.
Sacramento Republic FC is a club built on ambition. From a championship in its inaugural USL season in 2014 to deep playoff runs in the 2020s, the club has rarely settled for average—and neither have its fans.
Which is why this season feels different.
After 10 matches under new head coach Neill Collins, Sacramento finds itself adrift. The team’s 3-4-3 record, while not catastrophic on its face, falls well below expectations. The numbers are middling. The performances are inconsistent. And perhaps most concerning, the trajectory feels uncertain.
This was never supposed to be a transition year. Sacramento entered 2025 with an experienced core, largely intact from the 2023 squad that reached the USL Championship Conference Final and the 2024 team that scored 46 goals in the regular season. Instead, the club has taken a step backward.
A New Coach, A Familiar Roster — A Different Outcome
When Collins was hired in December 2024, he inherited more than a squad—he inherited a standard. His predecessor, Mark Briggs, guided Republic FC from 2020 to 2024, crafting a team identity built on structured defending, efficient possession, and opportunistic attack.
Under Briggs, Sacramento’s average finish was well above league average. They reached the playoffs in every season besides 2021, consistently challenged top teams, and appeared in one final (2023). The roster that Collins took over was not in need of a rebuild—it was in need of refinement.
Instead, results have slipped.
On raw numbers alone, it is easy to see the drop. But the more revealing comparison comes in style.
Possession Without Punch
Under Collins, with just 10 games in charge, Republic FC has leaned heavily into a possession-based system. With an average possession of 51.76%, the team has been able to control matches on paper. Pass accuracy has improved slightly over last year (up to 76.64% overall, and 67.44% in the opponent’s half).
But what’s the use of possession if it does not produce goals?
For a deeper look at Sacramento’s high-possession, low-output struggles, check out Valor Nash’s Tactical Analysis breaking down the tactical patterns of the club:
Despite 125 shots in their first 10 matches—not far off their pace under Briggs—only 34 have been on target. That’s a shooting accuracy of just 27.2%, compared to over 32% in 2024. Fewer chances are dangerous. The goals have dried up.
The problem is not creativity—it is execution. Sacramento’s movement is predictable, their finishing erratic. Players who thrived under Briggs are struggling to find rhythm in Collins’ system. The intent is there—the output is not.
Defensive Stability? Slipping.
Republic FC’s defensive record under Collins is not disastrous — 11 goals conceded in 10 matches—but it is no longer a backbone. The hallmark of Briggs’ teams was a stingy defense that made few errors and protected leads. In 2024, Republic FC gave up just 0.94 goals per game over the season. In 2025 so far? 1.1 goals per game.
That might sound like a small jump. But in tight matches, it is the difference between holding a 1–0 lead and walking away with a 1–1 draw. Sacramento has already dropped points from winning positions three times this year.
The Coaches Before Collins
To understand where Collins stands, it is important to understand who came before him:
Collins, it must be said, came in with a strong resume. His success with Tampa Bay Rowdies established him as a thoughtful, tactically modern coach. But in Sacramento, results matter more than pedigree. And right now, his team simply is not delivering.
A Defensive Overhaul Without an Offensive Answer
One of the most telling aspects of Sacramento’s offseason was its roster movement—or rather, the imbalance of it. While many expected the club to build on back-to-back playoff runs by adding attacking firepower, the front office instead prioritized the back line. Six defensive-minded players were added: Aaron Edwards, Rayan Djedje, Freddy Kleemann, Ryan Spaulding, Michel Benítez, and Dominik Wanner. Only one true forward was signed—Lewis Jamieson.
Kleemann and Benítez have become staples of the starting lineup, appearing and starting in all 10 league matches so far. Wanner has featured in eight, starting six, and Spaulding has made six appearances with three starts. Edwards and Djedje have both come off the bench—six and three times, respectively—but have not broken into the starting XI.
Up front, the additions were minimal, and Jamieson has carried that weight along with the core team from previous seasons. The Scottish forward has made eight appearances, starting five, scoring just twice—with both goals coming in matches he started—and contributing no assists. While his work rate and movement have been serviceable, the lack of a clinical edge or a consistent strike partner has left Sacramento struggling to finish the chances they are generating.
It is also worth noting that many of these signings occurred before Neill Collins was appointed as head coach. That matters. Collins inherited a roster that was defensively deep but thin up top and creatively limited—conditions that can define a season before the first whistle blows. Still, the club’s regression in output and results demands more than just contextual understanding. It demands solutions.
Why It Matters
Sacramento Republic FC is not a mid-table club content with mediocrity. With a brand-new stadium coming, ambitions beyond the USL, and one of the most loyal and energized fanbases in American soccer, expectations aren’t just high—they’re foundational. This is a club that markets itself as elite, that talks about culture and vision and legacy. And yet ten games into the Neill Collins era, the product on the field has looked anything but.
Collins didn’t walk into a rebuild. He inherited a veteran core fresh off two deep playoff runs, a team that under Mark Briggs scored 45 goals in 2024 and reached the USL Final in 2023. The bar was clear. Instead, the club has stumbled out of the gate—just 13 points from 10 matches, dropping points in six of the last seven. The team dominates possession, strings passes together, and often looks technically superior. But none of that has translated into dominance where it matters: the scoreboard.
And this isn’t just about the head coach. General Manager Todd Dunivant must also face scrutiny. The offseason roster decisions heavily favored the back line, bringing in six defensive-minded players and just one forward—Lewis Jamieson—to reinforce an attack already in need of more punch. That approach has backfired. Sacramento has become predictable, toothless in the final third, and increasingly frustrated in matches they control but cannot close.
This is not about panic. But it is absolutely about accountability. In Sacramento, winning isn’t a hope. It’s a demand.
The Path Forward
There’s no denying it—something has to change. Quickly.
Neill Collins is out of the grace period. He has a roster with experience, leadership, and talent across the spine. He has fullbacks who can attack, midfielders who can dictate tempo, and at least three players with the potential to score 8–10 goals. But the system isn’t clicking. The shots are coming, but the goals aren’t. Possession is high, but productivity is low. The question now is whether Collins has the tactical adaptability to fix it.
And if he doesn’t, it’s on Todd Dunivant to intervene. A mid-season attacking signing may be a necessity. Sacramento needs a player who can thrive in the current system or force a new one to emerge. Someone who can break games open with a single chance. Because right now, Sacramento looks like a team waiting for something to happen, instead of making it happen.
The margin for error is narrowing. If the Republic wants to remain in the upper tier of the USL, it can’t afford to drift through another month of empty possession and missed opportunities. The front office built this squad. Collins was trusted to lead it. Now both must deliver. The clock is ticking.
Once again, a spot-on article.