Oakland Roots’ first night back at the Oakland Coliseum in 2026 came with exactly what the home crowd wanted: a win, a fast start, and another step forward under new head coach Ryan Martin.
Roots beat New Mexico United 2-1 on Saturday, improving to 2-0-0 to open the season — the first 2-0-0 start in club history — and doing it in front of nearly 15,000 fans in Oakland.
Oakland struck early in the 7th minute after a sharp stretch of possession in the final third ended with Mark Fisher delivering a pinpoint cross from the right side. Wolfgang Prentice met it with a floating header that dropped into the top-right corner to make it 1-0.
New Mexico settled in after the early punch and began controlling more of the ball, but the visitors didn’t turn that possession into many clear chances. United’s recap noted they controlled much of the tempo in the first half, and goalkeeper Kris Shakes came up with a big one-on-one save on Peter Wilson to keep it at a one-goal game heading into halftime.
Roots went into the break still ahead, with goalkeeper Raphael Spiegel extending what the club called his fifth straight clean half dating back to last season.
The match stayed tense until Oakland found breathing room late. In the 80th minute, Roots doubled the lead when a rebound from a Jackson Kiil attempt fell perfectly for Peter Wilson, who nodded a wobbling header across the line for 2-0.
New Mexico responded immediately to make it a real finish. In the 82nd minute, Jake LaCava slipped a quick pass to Justin Rennicks, who finished from close range for New Mexico’s first goal of the season, cutting it to 2-1.
Roots’ back line held off a late United push, and the final whistle locked in a second straight win to start 2026.
After the match, Martin described the night as a special moment for the city and the club, pointing to the energy in the building — even noting the halftime atmosphere — as part of what made the home opener feel bigger than just Week 2.
Roots will try to keep the early momentum rolling next weekend when they travel to face Phoenix Rising FC on March 21.
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