In its first six seasons, Louisville City FC won almost everything there is to win in the USL Championship. Almost.
There were two league titles, three Eastern Conference championships and an appearance in that national semifinal game each year from 2015-2020.
But as the boys in purple continue to wear their way through another successful season, another goal has emerged. LouCity is for the first time looking to finish the regular season atop the entire 32-team league.
“It’s the one thing we’ve yet to achieve as a club in everything else that we’ve won,” said midfielder Niall McCabe, a member of the club since it launched. “It’s just something that we haven’t achieved, and we want to achieve it. It’s game by game, but the ultimate goal at the end of the season is to win championships and trophies. If there’s a trophy for that, we want to win it.”
The boys in purple sit on 39 points — the current highest total in the USL Championship with a 12-3-3 record. Close on their heels are the Western Conference’s El Paso Locomotive (38 points) Phoenix Rising (37). Those clubs have played one game fewer than LouCity, which is six points clear of all its Eastern Conference rivals in the regular season race.
“It’s certainly a motivation for the group in there,” head coach Danny Cruz said.. “It’s something we’ve talked about often and it’s important that us as a group. We can’t take any games for granted.”
Ultimately, clubs are playing for playoff positions within four USL Championship divisions — the Atlantic, Central, Mountain and Pacific — for a spot in the 16-team playoffs. The top regular season record, though, would ensure a home final should LouCity advance there again.
The club has thus far out-performed its 2017 and 2018 predecessors that won league titles. The 2017 team was on 35 points through 18 games and the 2018 team on 32.
Coming off his team’s fourth straight victory last Saturday, a 2-1 win over FC Tulsa, winger Brian Ownby acknowledged the unfinished business this year.
“We’re excited. This is four in a row with the (opposing) goal late, but in the end it’s a win,” Ownby said post game. “We have a goal this year to win the regular season, which we haven’t done since I’ve been here (in 2017) and I don’t think we’ve ever done it as a club. That’s one of our main goals.
“Obviously, other teams have to deal with their stuff. But if we control our own business in the end, I think it’ll put us there.”
The boys in purple have lost just once since June 12 while playing the bulk of their games at home, where they’ve only dropped points twice in 12 games. However, the back half of the season will be played mostly away, including an upcoming stretch of seven in eight games.
Cruz has full confidence in his team getting the job done on the road, he’s well aware of the weight that playing in front of an average of 10,000+ fans at Lynn Family Stadium carries.
“Our goal is to finish at the top and when you finish at the top you know when you’re winning your playoffs games, everyone has to come here,” Cruz said. “This is a place where we’ve had success this year and last year and we want to continue to make this place a fortress.”
