Louisville City FC earned a point from a grudging defensive battle against Nashville SC, drawing 0-0 with the Music City club in front of nearly 10,000 fans at Slugger Field.
What happened?
A physical first half saw the hosts pressing one of the USL’s stingiest back lines in Nashville SC with the “Boys in Purple” having difficulty coming within striking distance early in the match. The best of the first half opportunities came in the 44th minute from midfielder Devon “Speedy” Williams, whose shot far post nearly snuck past the Nashville back line and into the back of the net.
Seconds later, it was Oscar Jimenez’s cross to forward Luke Spencer which nearly saw Spencer tally his first goal since his return from injury but came up short to Nashville keeper Matt Pickens.
Both clubs were held scoreless headed into the break.
Just minutes into the second 45, Pickens spilled another shot from “Speedy” Williams just inside the penalty box, opening another opportunity for George Davis IV who was unable to finish.
The visitors nearly opened the scoring sheet in the 57th minute after Nashville forward Tucker Hume snuck past defender Sean Totsch, a move which led to SC’s Brandon Allen shot just wide of City goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh.
After a back-and-forth second half of empty opportunities, both sides left Slugger Field with a point after a scoreless draw. Louisville City hit the road for a match against Charlotte Independence in Matthews, NC in the second of five games within a two-week period. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, August 22 at the Sportsplex at Matthews.
The Key Points:
- Luke Spencer made his first start since his return from a knee injury suffered during the June 9 road match against Bethlehem Steel.
- After holding Nashville scoreless for the full 90, goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh has now recorded seven clean sheets on the year.
- In his coaching debut with Louisville City, head coach John Hackworth used just one of his three substitutes, the only one being Shaun Francis’s relief of Luke Spencer in the 70th minute.
- With games in hand on the rest of the Eastern Conference, City heads into Wednesday’s match against the Independence sitting fourth in the standings.
John Hackworth’s post-match press conference:
Opening statement:
“It’s not the result that we wanted. I think everybody in that locker room is as disappointed as I am. We wanted three points. We have areas where we have to improve. At the same time, we’ve had a team that had chances to score goals with headers in the box and some dangerous attackers, we were able to shut them down. One point is not what we want at home, at all. It’s unacceptable and the guys in the locker room know that. They know that my expectations are that we finish the game. I thought we were a little fatigued there at the end and made some really silly decisions both on the ball and away, we missed a couple opportunities at the end. That’s something that we have to correct. At the same time, we have to focus on the positives and correct a couple small things and get better.”
On being at home for the first time as head coach:
“Yeah, that part was fantastic. The fans were awesome. The welcoming they’ve given me all week long, but when I walked out on the field it was really overwhelming, to be fair. And that’s fantastic. I would’ve loved nothing more than to reward those fans with three points tonight, and they’re great walking in the hall. This is a great city, and I’m proud to be a new member of it. I’m looking forward to games where we can get you three points and they can cheer a little louder.”
On learning from dealing with the short roster for the first time:
“They’re tough, and I knew they were tough. I think we have a lot more quality than we showed tonight. Look, we had a couple really good opportunities, and we missed them. And when you’re short-handed and you don’t have a big bench, you know, I think Luke is probably going to look back at two headers he missed and wanting those back, and nine times out of 10 he’ll finish that. George (Davis IV) had one in the first half. We had some chances, but we had to get on the board, had to put the ball in the back of the net, and needed to make that play. Unfortunately, we didn’t.”
Injury Report:
OUT – Magnus Rasmussen (Knee Sprain)
OUT – Richard Ballard (Stress Fracture)
Louisville City FC 0:0 Nashville SC
Saturday, August 18, 2018
Slugger Field | Louisville, KY
85 degrees / partly cloudy
Attendance: 9,684
Scoring Summary:
None
Disciplinary Summary:
LOU – Sean Totsch 68’
NSH – Ropapa Mensah 84’
LOU – Shaun Francis 90’+3
Starting XI (4-2-2-2): Greg Ranjitsingh (GK); Oscar Jimenez, Sean Totsch, Paco Craig, Kyle Smith; Paolo DelPiccolo; George Davis IV, Devon “Speedy” Williams, Niall McCabe; Cameron Lancaster, Luke Spencer (Shaun Francis, 70’)
Bench: Chris Hubbard, Tim Dobrowolski, Pat McMahon, James Sands, Brian Ownby, Ilija Ilic
