Richardson the missing piece?

The Carolina RailHawks, through an offseason coaching change and a lot of player shuffling, have put together a club that's amounted more league wins (10) than any other in franchise history -- and we've still got a month and a half to go.

How far can the team, which currently sits in fourth-place, go in their third year of existence? That may be determined by the latest addition, newcomer Gregory Richardson.

For a team that's lamented missed opportunities in front of the net, the Guyanese forward gives the team a bona-fide finisher. In two games, Richardson is already tied for the team lead in goals with four.

In his latest action, a home game against Miami FC on Sunday, Richardson was a man among boys -- no, a MLS player among USL-1 -- as he became the third RailHawk in team history to net a hat trick.

"He has a lot of confidence," teammate Luke Kreamalmeyer said. "He's a great dribbler and played very well, he deserved the goals."

That much is true. Richardson has made a habit of spinning defenders like dreidels and blowing by them as they reel backwards on one leg.

"Obviously, he showed he can finish. There's a lot of guys that can finish on our team and he had a great day. He's a great addition." 
 
Luke is partly correct in that last quote. There are a number of RailHawks who can finish on the team, as evident by how 12 different players have scored 20 goals this season. But few players on the RailHawks, maybe even the USL-1, are as good at finding the back of the net when given a chance.
 
"He can score on his own," Rennie said. "At this level, there's not too many guys like that and it's good for us to have him."
 
Rennie said his team is constantly working on finishing off the scoring chances it creates. Carolina has out-shot opponents 204-178 this year, but have been out-shot in four of the last seven games and have given up 10 or more shots in seven of the last eight.

No matter how you approach those numbers, the need for someone to force shots and keep the ball on the RailHawk half of the field has been evident over the last month and a half. And when that someone has four goals on seven shots, pairing him with the likes of Daniel Paladini, Luke Kremalmeyer, Sallieu Bundu and Brian Plotkin bodes well for the rest of the season.
 
And the best parts of this recent development may be that Richardson A) is still not fully fit after going months without playing a game, and B) still has a chip on his shoulder after being released by the Colorado Rapids despite just playing in one game.
 
"It's a way to prove a coach wrong, you know?" Richardson said of his hat trick. "They played me one game in the MLS and I'm trying to prove them wrong now."

If Richardson continues this level of play, the RailHawks can thank Colorado for providing them the last piece to a postseason run.