Khano Smith, the Rhode Island FC coach, hopes to end the season on a glorious note when his team do battle with Colorado Springs Switchbacks in the USL Championship Final at Weidner Field on Saturday.

Colorado prevailed 3-1 against Rhode Island in the only meeting between the two rivals during the regular season and Smith expects another tough battle in the upcoming final, which will be televised live on CBS Sport.

“It’s an incredibly satisfying achievement to make a final but we are not satisfied just being there,” the former New England Revolution winger told The Royal Gazette.

“They are a good team and in the final for a reason. They have some exciting players, some international players and are a well-run club.

“I think this is their tenth season in the league so they are certainly an established team and they are always in and around the post season. Obviously they haven’t won it yet but they are a good team with some good players.”

Rhode Island edged Charleston Battery 2-1 in the USL Championship Eastern Conference final at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium last weekend to become the first expansion team from their conference to advance to the USL Championship Final in their inaugural season and the first overall in eight years.

“It’s special and it’s what you do it for, to win things, to be in finals and play to be the best in your respective league, so it’s nice to be in a final,” Smith said.

“It’s obviously incredibly difficult to do and we certainly wanted to be in this moment.

“In our wildest dreams did we expect to be here? I don’t know and I try not to look at outcomes. I try to enjoy the journey and process of being in the environment and developing as a team and developing players.

“Everybody has the same goal I am sure, but I think for a first year club we’ve certainly exceeded expectations, but whose expectations? Our own, other people’s? I don’t know.

“I always envisioned us being here but doing it is a different thing and certainly we had some luck along the way and we’ve been fortunate. We’ve been unlucky in the beginning so we got lucky at the right time.

“Everybody is obviously so proud and has played their part. It’s not just us as the players, it’s people that started this project five years ago, and I think it puts the club in a really good position going forward.

“We’re not in our own stadium right now, that will be done next year. So whatever happens it’s really good momentum going into next year when we will be in our own building.”

Reflecting on last weekend’s win over fellow Bermudian Zeiko Lewis’s former team Charleston in the conference final, Smith said: “We were on the road and obviously we want to be more difficult to play against and we played a good team that’s good in possession.

“They certainly had more of the ball than us but we limited them in their chances and shots on target. I don’t think they were incredibly dangerous.

“They scored a wonderful free kick but outside of that they probably didn’t have too many chances, and we had the better chances.”

Smith’s team finished fifth in the regular season and have taken the hard route in the postseason, winning games on the road against Indy Eleven and Louisville City before prevailing against Charleston.

“Obviously we didn’t do well enough in the regular season and is the cards that we were dealt,” Smith added. “We were just short of doing well enough to host a home game so we are going to have to do it on the road.

“But it’s not impossible because the team that won it last year did exactly the same thing. Phoenix played every single game on the road last year.”