Louisville City FC and the Richmond Kickers, a pair of teams on the top half of the USL Eastern Conference table, will play Saturday for improved playoff seeding on Hispanic Heritage Night at Slugger Field.
The game marks LouCity’s second-to-last regular-season date, with the start time set for 7:30 p.m. Tickets remain available.
Team Records
LouCity: 15-4-8 (53 points) in 27 games; 2nd in the USL’s Eastern Conference standings.
Richmond Kickers: 12-6-8 (44 points) in 26 games; 13th in the USL’s East.
Follow Along
Saturday’s game will air, as with other LouCity games, live on Youtube with play-by-play from Jim Wombwell and color commentary by Bob Valvano.
For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Find us at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.
Vote for LouCity’s Modelo Man of the Match starting at the 75th minute on Twitter.
Links
- LouCity looking to secure postseason date at Slugger
- Video: Coach O’Connor previews Richmond game
- Videos: LouCity’s Kaye and Morad preview Richmond
- Montano spreads his culture on Hispanic Heritage Night
- Know the foe: Richmond Kickers
- LouCity surging back up USL power rankings
Notes
Home playoff clincher: LouCity has posted a pair of 1-0 wins since an Aug. 19 defeat to New York Red Bulls II, moving the club into position to solidify an opening-round home playoff game should it defeat Richmond on Saturday. The top-four teams in both USL conferences host in the first round, though LouCity could be guaranteed two at Slugger should it hold at No. 2 on the Eastern Conference table.
Standings tighten up: If the season ended today, LouCity would open with a playoff game against the Charleston Battery on the first weekend in October. But in a close race for spots behind New York and LouCity, only four points separate the seventh-place battery from No. 3 FC Cincinnati. Louisville sits seven points — more than two wins — clear of its next-closest competition.
Hispanic Heritage Night: LouCity’s first celebration of local Hispanic culture kicks off at 5:30 inside the West Gate at Slugger Field, where traditional food, drink and dancing will converge at the Fiesta Latina (normally known as the el Jimador Pitch Party; it moved indoors due to rain in the forecase). During Saturday’s game, some public address announcements will be read in Spanish as well.
Giveaways: The first 500 through the gates Saturday can collect el Jimador water bottles and margarita-scented chap sticks. Additionally, club partner el Jimador has donated three Mexican National Team jerseys (enter to win at the Fiesta Latina) and three backpacks (enter to win at the stadium ticket booth on the concourse).
Quinn honored: Midfielder Aodhan Quinn’s set piece goal, the game-winner in last weekend’s win over FC Montreal, helped secure him a spot on the USL’s Team of the Week. LouCity’s captain, Quinn also “led a strong midfield display,” according to the league. The club dominated shut out a Montreal team that entered with 16 goals in its last five games.
Abend cleared: Another central midfielder, Guy Abend, will be available for selection Saturday after missing the trip to Montreal. Abend suffered a concussion when he collided with an opposing player in LouCity’s Aug. 27 game against Bethlehem Steel FC. Abend did finish the play by scoring a game-winning for his fifth goal of the season.
Morad on the move: Paolo DelPiccolo, LouCity’s other central midfielder, also sat out the Montreal game due to yellow card accumulation. In response, coach James O’Connor shifted Tarek Morad up from the defense. He shined in the new role, helping LouCtiy dominate possession on the road.
Shanosky will sit: LouCity released second-year defender Conor Shanosky last week to make him available to the Richmond Kickers, but Shanosky won’t play against his former club Saturday. O’Connor said LouCity and the Kickers have a “gentleman’s agreement” that Shanosky won’t be part of the lineup. He’d be eligible if the teams meet in the playoffs.
Rasmussen returns to 10: Offseason hip surgery led Magnus Rasmussen to miss LouCity’s preseason and more. The attacking midfielder — also Louisville’s top returning scorer from 2015 — caught up on his conditioning enough to earn his first start of the year against Bethlehem. He figures to keep the spot with Niall McCabe battling an injury.
Top scorers: Striker Chandler Hoffman continues to challenge for the USL’s Golden Booth award a year after Matt Fondy, who scored 22 goals in 28 regular-season games, also claimed it for LouCity. Only Jack McBean, a former LA Galaxy II star now on loan in Europe, has more goals than Hoffman’s 14. FC Cincinnati’s Sean Okoli scored twice last time out to also total 14.
Ranjitsingh’s experience: LouCity has posted back-to-back clean sheets, one with Greg Ranjitsingh in goal and the next with rookie Tim Dobrowolski filling in. Ranjitsingh temporarily left when called up to be with Trinidad and Tobago’s Senior Men’s Team during recent World Cup qualifiers. T&T drew with Guatemala to advance before dropping a game to the United States.