The Opposition Report: Westchester SC
Their biggest player on the pitch is their captain, defensive midfielder and leading goal scorer.
The Opposition Report — MD7 vs Westchester SC
Fort Wayne Football Club hosts Westchester SC for the third match at Ruoff Mortgage Stadium, with momentum after a Wednesday win, against a side that has been winless on the road in 2026.
Saturday, May 9 | 7:30 PM ET | Ruoff Mortgage Stadium, Fort Wayne, IN | ESPN+
The Profile
This is year two for Westchester SC, and the first under new head coach George Gjokaj. The club fired its inaugural staff after a last-place 2025 finish, and Gjokaj has rebuilt accordingly; starting eight new faces on opening day. The result is a team still figuring out who it is, a process typically reserved for expansion clubs.
Westchester wants the ball. They build through the middle and attack from settled possession; they press hard to get it back. They’ve been a different team at home than on the road in 2026. Three straight league defeats on the road where they’ve struggled to get on the scoresheet.
Westchester’s Conor McGlynn is the headline. The 6’4” captain plays defensive midfielder and leads the team in goals. He takes the penalties. He volleyed in his second of the night against Corpus Christi. He’s the brother of Houston Dynamo’s Jack McGlynn and son of Westchester assistant manager Paul McGlynn. The family soccer business is fully on display.
Dean Guezen, a Dutch attacking midfielder signed from Polish second-tier side Zaglebie Sosnowiec in 2025, can beat you one-on-one and is one of Westchester’s more dangerous attacking players on the pitch. Noah and Samory Powder are brothers from Edison, New Jersey, both feature this season and bring stability to a roster that had quite a bit of turnover from last season.
The Matchup
Pressure creates diamonds.
Westchester in 2026 has proven to break under pressure. Their high press is real when it functions. When it gets broken, the back line drops deep into its own half, and the chances they concede tend to be high-quality ones.
The evidence is concrete and recent. In Boise three weeks ago, the home side pressed them high, pinned them deep, and ran out 4-0. In Richmond two weeks later, the Kickers used long balls and a late-arriving central run to win 1-0. The pattern was the same both nights. Press high. Pin them deep. Win the second ball. Arrive late in the box and be prepared to put a shot on target.
If our press does get beaten, Westchester is not built to punish us the same way other clubs can. They’ve generated three fastbreak attempts in seven matches. They settle for long-range shots. They do not have the counterattacking weapons to make us pay for committing high.
The risk centers around Conor McGlynn arriving late from the defensive midfield. He’s produced almost a third of his side’s league goals from a position not built to lead the team in scoring. Whoever in our central midfield tracks him from deep, and whoever marks him on dead-ball entries to the box, controls Westchester’s biggest player on the pitch. While Ryan Becher appears injured (he was in the stands last Saturday), he might be the type of Fort Wayne player to challenge McGlynn in central midfield.
A few variables decide this match. Westchester arrives in Fort Wayne on fresh legs, after more than a week off. Fort Wayne FC turns around for Saturday on three days’ rest, with Wednesday’s Portland momentum in hand. Wednesday’s win builds confidence, but can also create overconfidence. Our youth fits the style this game demands; whether the bench supports ninety minutes of pressing intensity falls to Mike Avery and his staff. If they manage it well, this match adds to our unbeaten home record and boosts our winning mentality. Don’t underestimate Westchester. Avoid the trap game. Do that, and we can secure another 3 points at home.
Always FWD