Game 2 of Louisville City FC’s USL Championship restart isn’t a must-win occasion, but that’s how coach John Hackworth is treating it with the stakes a bit higher Saturday.
The boys in purple host longtime rival Saint Louis FC at 8 p.m., marking the start of “Group E” play. Four games apiece are on the remaining regular-season schedule against Saint Louis, Indy Eleven and Sporting KC II to limit team travel and contact amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The top-two finishers in each USL group advance to the playoffs this fall.
After a 3-1 loss Sunday to Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC in its Lynn Family Stadium opener, LouCity will be looking to rebound. So too are the visitors to Louisville, with Saint Louis FC on the wrong side of a 2-0 decision last weekend at Indy Eleven.
These Kings’ Cup rivals, as the series is coined, will play in front of another crowd projected in the range of 30% of Lynn Family Stadium’s 15,304-fan capacity due to physical distancing and other safety protocols.
All in attendance will be season ticket holders. Other fans can catch coverage on WBKI/The CW, News Radio 840 WHAS or the live streaming service ESPN+.
Coach John Hackworth says…
“These games, because of the aspect of only the top two advance, are like six-point games. Especially coming off of Sunday, where we don’t have the kind of result that we want… both teams, having lost on the weekend, are coming into a position playing their first divisional opponent.
“This game has added importance because of that. Neither one of us can afford to fall even further behind. In particular for us that this is a home game puts that much more emphasis on the fact that we get three points on this one.
“…We really feel that we didn’t represent ourselves in the right way, and that’s the most frustrating part. We pride ourselves on a team that fights till the very end and we don’t think we showed that. We don’t think we showed so many aspects of what we really do well.”
Key players
LouCity: Consistent service led to Indy Eleven’s win over Saint Louis FC. The boys in purple will look for more of the same from the left back Oscar Jimenez, who pushed up to factor in the attack against Pittsburgh, completing an impressive 86% of his passes, with 13 of those deemed “long” balls by Opta statistics.
Saint Louis FC: Former Pittsburgh goalkeeper Kyle Morton, key to last year’s regular-season Eastern Conference championship run, is between the posts for a new club in 2020. Morton made seven saves last weekend against Indy Eleven, keeping his club within range of earning points as the defense bent and then eventually broke.
Follow along
For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Also find us at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.
On the TV/streaming call: Josh Easter (play by play) and Devon Kerr (color)
And for radio: Jeff Greer (play by play) and Casey Whitfield (color)
By the numbers
2 — In its five-plus-season history, LouCity has only once lost consecutive home games.
65 — LouCity’s percentage of possession against Pittsburgh evidences the boys in purple controlled the game outside of a six-minute span on either side of the half when the Riverhounds scored their trio of goals.
120 by 80 — This time, LouCity will look to take advantage of its pitch size with Lynn Family Stadium a major upgrade from the 105 by 75 surface at the club’s former home, Louisville Slugger Field.
LouCity links
• ‘We can’t play with fear’; LouCity gets Lynn Family Stadium encore
• Watch: Coach Hackworth, Souahy preview Saint Louis FC game
• WDRB: LouCity preparing for high-stakes game against Saint Louis FC
• Courier Journal: LouCity sets sights on first Saturday night showdown
Notes to know
About the visitors: Saint Louis FC is led by coach Steve Trittschuh, in his first year there after a switch from Colorado Switchbacks FC. Midfielder Russell Cicerone has led the attack thus far, scoring twice in a 4-1 win back in March when the club began its season. LouCity’s Kings’ Cup rival also features two familiar faces in midfielders Guy Abend and Kadeem Dacres, who both came on as substitutes last weekend.
In the stands: LouCity’s attendance of 4,850 on Sunday marked the highest number of people to attend a team sporting event in the United States since the COVID-19 pandemic put sports on pause. Club officials are following local government guidances and the Venue Shield plan devised by stadium operator ASM Global that calls for wearing masks in the stadium, physical distancing and temperature checks, among other measures to keep fans safe.
Feeling at home: The Pittsburgh loss marked just the first of eight straight LouCity games played at Lynn Family Stadium as the USL Championship restarts. The league’s Board of Governors previously allowed unbalanced scheduling that favors clubs who are able to host amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, 11 of the club’s 16 regular-season games are scheduled for Lynn Family Stadium.
Speedy scores: Midfielder Devon “Speedy” Williams wrote himself into the Lynn Family Stadium history books Sunday when a Brian Ownby cross was deflected and redirected to Williams near the top of the box. The Jamaican international grounded an 18th-minute shot past the Pittsburgh goalkeeper to score the first goal inside the new facility, after which he said: “It is a historic moment, and I’m glad I was the one who scored that goal.”
Defensive lapses: After Williams’ strike, the wheels fell off for LouCity in a rematch from the 2019 playoffs. The Riverhounds scored three times in six minutes on either side of the half, first by finishing a lob pass that caught the purple back line sleeping, then twice after LouCity surrendered possession in its own half. LouCity out-shot and out-possessed Pittsburgh, but there was no coming back from that scoring spree.
JoGo’s debut: Youth international Jonathan Gomez, who has represented both the United States and Mexico, checked in during the 83rd minute of Sunday’s Pittsburgh game to mark his LouCity debut. The 16-year-old left back — in Louisville on a professional contract — is a player to watch bringing in some first team experience with FC Dallas system and with USL League One side North Texas SC.
