It’s all been perfect so far for LouCity. Two wins at home to start the year were followed by an impressive away win at FC Cincinnati to kick off our 2018 campaign.
The “Boys in Purple” have only gotten started, though, and a weekend visit from the Richmond Kickers stands in the way of what could potentially be LouCity’s best start ever through four games.
When & Where
LouCity hosts the Richmond Kickers for Black Out Night at 7:30 p.m. in our home confines of Slugger Field. The Kickers enter off the back of earning four points in their last two matches.
Local station WBNA will air this weekend’s match on your screen while 840 WHAS AM carries the action over the airwaves. Fans can also follow the match live on Twitter & Instagram.
TV: WBNA
RADIO: 840 WHAS AM
STREAM: ESPN+
DOWNLOAD: LouCity app for iOS | LouCity app for Android
Last Time Out
Louisville City FC defeated FC Cincinnati, 0-1, in front of a crowd of over 25,000 at Nippert Stadium on Saturday night.
After a little persistence in the attacking third, the “Boys in Purple” broke the deadlock just 13 minutes in. As FCC failed to clear a loose ball in their penalty area, forward Cameron Lancaster came sweeping in to fire home from close range with his left foot. At the break, LouCity led, 0-1.
In the end, another steadfast performance from LouCity saw them earn all three points in the Dirty River Derby. Behind the 1-0 win, LouCity moves to 3-0-0 (9 pts.) on the season, while goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh earned his third consecutive clean sheet.
WATCH: This is City – Pat McMahon
KY Lottery Kees to the Game
As LouCity looks to stay unbeaten, a few Kees to the Game presented by Kentucky Lottery:
1. Back Home Again
After a 0-1 road win at FC Cincinnati, LouCity returns to Slugger Field looking to use their home environment for good in search of a fourth straight win.
2. Mark Shriver
Richmond forward Brian Shriver has been involved in every goal the Kickers have scored so far, scoring, assisting, and drawing a penalty in their four games so far.
3. Feed the midfield
LouCity has had major success early on when pushing the ball through midfielders like Kyle Smith, Paolo DelPiccolo, “Speedy” Williams, Oscar Jimenez, and others.
From the Gaffer
On seeing growth:
“I think even longer term, you’re always trying to educate and always trying to be better. We enjoy working with our players and we want them to be here. Whether it’s the start of the season or middle or end of the season, we’re always trying to plant seeds for the future and make sure people have understandings of expectation and teaching. My job more so as a coach is to teach and make sure people have a good understanding of what we’re trying to get across to them.”
On reaching the team’s potential:
“There’s loads of things we can work on. I literally spent the last four-and-a-half hours working on things with the guys as regards to ‘that was good, that we can be sharper with’. For us, the 3-0-0 record—I have no interest in any of that. I’m dialed in to Richmond and making sure our guys are zoned in as to what they need to do against Richmond. In regards to the most pleasing aspect, when I sit with one of our players, there’s a desperation for them to get better. They don’t sit and think ‘oh, I’ve played like Pele today’, they sit and go ‘okay, what can I get better at?’ and want to get better. They want to grow. Some areas of the game, they can get coaching on, and it’s really, really great that we have players like that. If you have players that come in satisfied with performances that maybe you aren’t as a coach, that’s probably where you have a problem.”
On returning home:
“[Richmond head coach] Leigh (Cowlishaw] is someone who I have tremendous respect for. He’s done a phenomenal job with Richmond and is a very, very good coach. It’ll be nice to see Leigh and [defender] Conor [Shanosky]. Obviously, Conor played for us as well. It’s great to play in front of our supporters, that’s the biggest thing. To get home and play in front of our supporters is something we always look forward to and are excited about.”
On different goalscoring options:
“It’s pleasing. It would be more pleasing if we scored 14 and not four, but it’s great that we’ve got guys that are capable of scoring goals. We know our lads are capable of scoring goals.”
Team News
OUT – Richard Ballard (stress fracture, out for foreseeable future)
