Every day this week, we’re looking back at memorable moments from Louisville City FC’s 2016 season. Weigh in with your own stories on our Facebook page.
By the time a United Soccer League side makes it to the season opener — and Scott Goodwin guesses some people don’t realize this — players have labored through offseason conditioning, preseason training and a number of exhibition games.
The way Louisville City FC opened its 2016 slate made all the work worth it.
Goodwin, the goalkeeper, made a diving save on a late penalty kick to deny the Charlotte Independence before forward Cameron Lancaster scored on a free kick at the death for a 1-0 road victory March 26 in North Carolina.
The win was sweet for a number of reasons, among them validation that a new-look LouCity lineup could produce the same as the inaugural bunch, which advanced to the USL Eastern Conference Final.
“We knew we had some strong guys,” Goodwin said. “But you never know how it’ll all come together. That was a satisfactory moment to realize that all of the hard work is paying off, and we’re going to see results out of it.”
Goodwin’s heroics came in front of family and friends, as he’s a Raleigh native and University of North Carolina graduate. Lancaster’s strike followed a year away from the game; the Tottenham Hotspur product suffered a season-ending knee injury that required extensive rehab upon arriving to Louisville.
The moment also proved valuable for Kyle Smith, the eventual USL Midseason Rookie of the Year who made his debut against Charlotte.
“That was big for us because it just as easily could have been a draw or a 1-0 loss,” said Smith, a Cincinnati native and Transylvania University graduate. “That really brought us together at the time, and for me it was so memorable because it was my first professional game.”
Players mobbed Lancaster, and coach James O’Connor even jumped in on the celebration on a night his side tallied 18 shots and controlled possession. Both became hallmarks of his 2016 club that also eventually made it to the conference final.
“Obviously it was an incredible strike from Cameron, and the timing of Scott’s save was important,” O’Connor said. “For us in that particular game, it was one where obviously we felt as if we could have maybe played a little bit better. We had lots of possession and nothing necessarily to show for it.
“…It was fantastic to get three points and out of there. It was really, really pleasing.”
