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2024 USL Championship season has kicked off, high time for a new thread. I don't have any fancy analysis, but here are the leagues in no particular order: USL: https://www.uslsoccer.com/ USL Championship: https://www.uslsoccer.com/usl-championship USL League One: https://www.uslsoccer.com/usl-league-one USL League Two: https://www.uslsoccer.com/usl-league-two USL Super League: https://www.uslsoccer.com/usl-super-league USL W League: https://www.uslwleague.com/ NISA: https://www.nisaofficial.com/ NPSL: https://www.npsl.com/ UPSL: https://premier.upsl.com/ UPSL Division 1: https://division1.upsl.com/ Canadian Premier League: https://canpl.ca/ League 1 Canada: https://league1canada.ca/ Canadian Soccer League: https://canadiansoccerleague.ca/ However, superLINUS does have some fancy analysis from the 2023 thread, so I am yoinking that because I'm lazy af; hopefully he does not mind: quote:superLINUS
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Mar 11, 2024 02:54
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Results from USL Championship first weekend.
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Mar 11, 2024 03:02
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 DCFC's 2024 kits are... a decision. I like the goalie alt kit and our third kit (the black one) but the rest... they sure are kits!
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Mar 11, 2024 14:18
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Weekend round-up... USL Championship The 2024 campaign got underway with a pair of early kick-offs on Saturday, as New Mexico United beat Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1-0, and Memphis 901 overcame the rebuilt Las Vegas Lights 2-1 in Tennessee. Scottish striker Greg Hurst was on the mark for New Mexico in front of 11,000 fans at Isotopes Park, with the Riverhounds clearly missing the attacking options provided by the departed Albert Dikwa and Tola Showunmi, while Dennis Sanchez’s time in charge of the Lights got off to a great start when Valentin Noel put last year’s basement boys ahead. However, Sam Carreaga and Nighte Pickering grabbed 2 quick goals to give Memphis the lead at half-time, which is how it stayed. The Miami FC have also undergone something of a revolution, staff and players-wise, and it seems to be paying dividends so far, with Andrew Booth and a Manuel Botta penalty giving them a 2-0 win over a lacklustre Colorado Springs Switchbacks at FIU Stadium. No crowd was reported but attendance looked sparse again and it will be good when Miami get to play at the smaller soccer stadium next door. North Carolina started life back in the second tier with a visit from last year’s runners-up Charleston Battery and won’t be unhappy with a 0-0 draw that showed the move up isn’t beyond them. Over in Texas, San Antonio welcomed the young turks of Loudoun United to Toyota Field with a crowd of over 7,000 in attendance to see Lucas Silva give them the lead after 14 minutes. The ever-lively Zach Ryan levelled for Loudoun 4 minutes later, but the visitors were dealt a blow midway through the half when Christiano Francois was given a red card for a headbutt on Mitchell Taintor. Juan Agudelo restored the Texans’ lead 3 minutes into the second half, but Loudoun showed character and found an equaliser 4 minutes into stoppage time through Florian Valot. Across state, El Paso Locomotive started their 2024 season with the visit of Hartford Athletic, another of this year’s crop to have undergone serious surgery in the off-season. Brendan Burke has brought in a slew of players to turn the Connecticut club’s fortunes around and they got off to a great start with a 1-0-win, courtesy of a Romario Williams penalty. Reigning champions Phoenix Rising had what looked to be a straightforward home opener against Birmingham Legion, with a crowd of over 8,000 welcoming new head coach Danny Stone. However, it was the visitors who came away with the points after a strong performance from Matt van Oekel in the Legion goal kept them at bay and a John Scearce own goal midway through the second half gave Birmingham a 1-0 win. Oakland Roots began their fourth USL Championship campaign with a home opener against Indy Eleven and were 2-1 winners, with Jeciel Cedeno putting them a goal up after just 3 minutes in Hayward. Jack Blake equalised for the visitors just before half-time, but a Bryan Tamacas strike 5 minutes into the second half gave Roots the points. There was all kinds of drama in Sacramento as last year’s top 2 in the Western Conference clashed at Heart Health Park in front of the week’s biggest attendance of 11, 569. New signing Trevor Amman was making his Sacramento Republic debut and grabbed 2 goals in superb style either side of Seth Casiple’s strike for Orange County, and it looked very much like the 2-1 scoreline would give Republic the points. In the 96th minute, however, an OC corner was met by the head of goalkeeper Colin Shutler – up to try and grab a last-ditch leveller – and flew into the net to cap a fantastic display of second tier soccer. USL League One Entering a new era under head coach Rick Wright, with John Harkes stepping away, Greenville Triumph welcomed expansion side Spokane Velocity to their horrid gridiron-marked pitch at Paladin Stadium, one of 3 USL League One games on Saturday. The visitors scored first when Josh Dolling converted a 13th minute penalty, only for Zion Scarlett to head Triumph level 5 minutes later. That’s how it stayed at the break, and it was the home side who took the lead a few minutes into the second half with Evan Lee puncing on a rebound. Velocity continued to attack but Triumph settled things with a cheeky Leo Castro backheel for a 3-1 win. Also on the football markings down in Georgetown, Kentucky, Lexington SC and Northern Colorado Hailstorm drew 0-0. In the evening’s final game. South Georgia Tormenta hosted last year’s bottom side Central Valley Fuego in Stateboro and found themselves behind early on courtesy of a Ernesto Espinoza penalty. Fuego brought in new head coach Jermaine Jones in the winter, and he has completely reshaped their side to the extent that Ashkanov Apollon’s second on 21 minutes wasn’t too much of a shock. Still, Tormenta were champions in 2022 and are made of stern stuff, firing themselves back into the game through Gabriel Rodriguez 7 minutes from time, but were ultimately unable to spoil Jones’s night, the Fuegos deserved 2-1 winners.
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Mar 11, 2024 16:35
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USL League One preview USL League One was established in 2019 as a third-tier league to give the USL representation at that level after it regained division II status in 2017. 10 teams competed in its inaugural season, 3 of which were MLS reserve sides, and those clubs – and more – continued to compete alongside USL clubs until the establishment of MLS Next Pro in 2022. Of the original 7 standalone clubs, 5 still play at this level and this season will again see 12 clubs line up. Along with the National Independent Soccer Association and MLS Next Pro, it is one of three division II leagues sanctioned by US soccer and all clubs are professional and average crowds range from just 700 in Fresno for Central Valley Fuego to almost 5,000 for Richmond Kickers. Reigning champions North Carolina FC have been promoted to the USL Championship, although it wasn’t a formal promotion as such as they’d already accepted the elevation before the title was secured. To counter the loss of the champions, expansion side Spokane Velocity will begin play this season, the first Pacific Northwest club to play in the USL at this level. Central Valley Fuego began play in the 2022 USL League One season, replacing the former Fresno FC club which had moved west to Monterey, and has thus far struggled to match the bigger clubs in the East. New head coach Jermaine Jones, a former US international who spent a decade in the Bundesliga, is in for his first managerial job and will hope to corral his charges into producing some kind of form, at least at home. He’s retained just a handful of last year’s squad, with top scorer Alexis Cerritos having joined MLS Next Pro side Huntsville City, and has made 16 new signings, including goalkeeper Carlos Avilez from Chattanooga Red Wolves, midfielder Chris Hecklenberg from South Georgia Tormenta, and striker Shavon John-Brown, a former El Paso Locomotive player who has spent most of his career in New York’s Cosmopolitan League. I’m not sure it will be enough to make the play-offs but with such wholesale changes you never know! Charlotte Independence were founded in 2015, having purchased the franchise rights of Charlotte Eagles, who subsequently dropped down to the amateur leagues. After 2 seasons in the third-tier, they moved up when the USL Championship was given division II status and stayed there until the 2022 season when they moved back down to USL League One. The move saw an increase in attendances but last season they fell back to their regular level of around 1,800 per game. Coach Mike Jeffries has been with the club since 2019 and relies upon former Manchester United man Gabriel Obertan to spark his side. Finishing fourth last season, they dispatched Greenville Triumph and Union Omaha on their way to the play-off final, losing out to local rivals North Carolina on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Jeffries has retained the spine of his side, with goalkeeper Austin Pack, centre-back Nick Spielman, midfielder Miguel Ibarra, and last year’s top scorer Tresor Mbuyu providing some consistency, and has brought in defensive reinforcements in the shape of Montreye Bay’s Hugh Roberts and Anthony Sorenson from Philadelphia Union II. As always, they’ll be there or thereabouts come season’s end. Ever-presents in USL League One since its – and their – formation in 2019, Chattanooga Red Wolves had a disappointing season last year after finishing runners-up in 2022, especially with cross-city rivals Chattanooga FC topping the NISA table and accepting a sideways move into MLS Next Pro. Head coach Scott Mackenzie took over midway through last season and immediately improved their record, and has set about shaping the club to his liking with the signing of 18 players in the close season, shipping out 19 in the process. 5 of last year’s regulars have stuck around, though, including joint top-scorers Ropapa Mensah and Chevone Marsh, with midfield signings Ricky Ruiz (from the shuttered Rio Grande Valley Toros) and Lucas Coutinho (Greenville Triumph) expected to make a big difference in the centre of the park. All things being equal, Red Wolves should have a much better season than last and it wouldn’t be a shock to see them make the top four. It’s also the sixth season for Greenville Triumph but their first without head coach John Harkes, who has stepped away from soccer for the time being. Winners in 2020, and losing finalists in 2019 and 2021, last season’s exit in the first round of play-offs was relatively disappointing. They play at Paladin Stadium, a college football stadium with off-putting gridiron markings, although they have been promising a stadium of their own in nearby Maudlin for 2 years now. A number of 2023 regulars have followed Harkes through the exit, including Jared Mazzola (to USL-C heavyweights Sacramento Republic) and Allen Gavilanes (The Miami FC), but veteran top scorer Leonardo Castro has stuck around, along with Noah Pilato, Evan Lee, and Tyler Polak. Chapa Herrera has come in from El Paso Locomotive to bolster the midfield and young striker Zion Scarlett arrives from Columbus Crew, and moving out of Harkes’s shadow might be the making of former assistant Rick Wright. One Knoxville started life in the semi-professional USL League Two, moving up to League One last year when they missed out on the play-offs by 5 points but averaged over 2,000 fans at the Regal Stadium, home of the University of Tennessee’s women’s team. Goals were an issue for Mark McKeever’s side and he’s brought in Kempes Tikiela from the Luxembourg top flight, Rudi Castro from San Jose Earthquakes II, and Rwandan international Innocent Nshuti to try and arrest that, as well as bringing in Norwegian centre-back Sivert Haugli to shore things up at the back. Lexington SC are another side which plays on the hated gridiron markings, and not even in Lexington but in Georgetown, twelve miles north. This is only their second season, though, and they are building a stadium for both this side and their women’s team (which will debut in the new USL Super League in the Fall) near I-75 on the outskirts of the city. Former Inter Miami assistant Darren Powell (who managed San Antonio in USL-C from 2016-19) is in charge for 2024, replacing Spaniard Nacho Novo who failed to take the Boys in Green to the play-offs last time out. Top scorer Ates Diouf has stuck around, but it’s the capture of Cameron Lancaster that has set tongues wagging, especially after the striker scored 9 goals at USL-C level last year. With Maltese midfielder Yannick Yankam also in from Birkirkara, Lexington should be worth watching this year, if you can stand the pitch markings. Another USL-1 club playing their sixth consecutive season are Forward Madison and coach Matt Glaeser has managed to keep all but a couple of his most regular starters from 2023, when they grabbed the last play-off spot, going down to Northern Colorado Hailstorm in the first round. Top scorers Christian Chaney is back for more alongside Derek Gebhard, and newcomers include midfielders Devin Boyce and Jimmie Villalobos from One Knoxville. With average crowds of over 4,000, they’re one of the league’s top clubs but have rarely proved it on the field. Northern Colorado Hailstorm play at the soccer specific Future Legends Complex in Windsor, an hour north of Denver, and will start look to kick on this year after making the USL-1 play-off semi-finals last year. Head coach Eamon Zayed has been the club’s only coach since their formation and he was dealt a huge blow in the off-season when top scorer Trevor Amman – 26 goals last season - upped sticks for Sacramento Republic in the Championship. Utility man Arthur Rogers has also stepped up – with FC Tulsa – while Nortei Nortey has moved to Union Omaha, but goalkeeper Lalo Delgado, defender Lucky Opara, midfielder Jackson Dietrich, and striker Billy King will still provide a decent spine. Ivorian winger Brahima Ouattara has arrived from Auda in Austria, along with Chelo Martinez (Forward Madison) and Danny Garcia (North Carolina), and the Hailstorm should be there or thereabouts this season. Union Omaha’s late charge last season saw them finish top of the League One table, although they ultimately fell to runners-up Charlotte Independence in the play-off semi-finals. They began play in 2020 and call Werner Park - a baseball stadium in Papillon, Nebraska - home, although they have plans for a soccer-specific stadium in downtown Omaha. Half of last season’s regular XI have departed over the winter, with Alexis Souahy and John Scearce stepping up with FC Tulsa and Phoenix Rising, respectively, while Conor Doyle has moved on to South Georgia Tormenta, but top scorer Steevan dos Santos is still around and will look to add to the 13 goals he scored last year. Head coach Dominic Casciato has brought in 3 players with extensive USL-C experience in Haitian defender Mechack Jerome (from Indy Eleven), Brazilian playmaker PC (San Antonio), and striker Aaron Gomez (El Paso Locomotive), while the brilliantly named Nortei Nortey has switched from Northern Colorado Hailstorm, and Omaha have to be one of the favourites to pick up where North Carolina left off. The league’s oldest and best supported club – they were formed in 1993 and averaged 4,786 fans a match last year – is Richmond Kickers, with a trophy cabinet that includes the 2006 and 2009 division III titles and the 1995 US Open Cup. They are currently the sole tenants of the City Stadium in Richmond and this will be their 30th season at the ground. Of last season’s regular starters, only Akira Fitzgerald has gone, moving up to USL-C with North Carolina, with plenty of quality coming in. German midfielder Adrian Billhardt (at Detroit City last year), the former South Georgia Tormenta pair of Arthur Bosua and Pablo Jara, and English defender James Vaughan - last at Welling United in the National League South – will all add to long-time coach Darren Sawatzky’s options as he looks to improve on last year’s 11th place finish. Champions in 2022, South Georgia Tormenta failed to make the play-offs last year, which is more like regular service than an exception, but head coach Ian Cameron will be hoping that the club can weather the loss of top scorers Kazaiah Sterling and Mukwelle Akale to USL-C sides Pittsburgh Riverhounds and New Mexico, respectively. In fact, just 4 of last year’s regulars have been retained - Nick Akoto, Pedro Fonseca, Preston Kilwien, and Jackson Khoury – with Cameron bringing in a mix of youth and experience, led by Argentinian full-back Aaron Lombardi (from Chattanooga Red Wolves), former Union Omaha man Conor Doyle, and Scottish midfielder Daniel Steedman. It doesn’t look enough and it might be business as usual for the Statesboro side. First announced in Spring 2021, Spokane Velocity are the first professional soccer side in eastern Washington state and will play at the purpose built One Spokane Stadium, a 5,000 capacity arena that will also be home to Spokane Zephyr of the USL Super League. Head coach Leigh Veidman has experience of coaching OKC Energy in the USL Championship in 2021 (before that club went on hiatus) and was latterly an assistant at Charleston Battery. He’s put together a side that starts with goalkeeper Carlos Merancio from the defunct Rio Grande Valley Toros club, and a defence that includes Marcelo Lage (with Las Vegas Lights in 2023), Derek Waldeck (One Knoxville), and Belgian full-back Romain Metanire. The midfield will be built around former Hartford Athletic man Andre Lewis, Collin Fernandez (last with FC Tulsa), and Luis Gil (Union Omaha), with goals expected to come from English striker Josh Dolling, signed from New Mexico United, and ex-MLS man Kimarni Smith. It’s all a shot in the dark for the new side, especially as both 2023 debutants failed to make the play-offs, but you never know…
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Mar 12, 2024 07:26
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USL Championship preview There's just the one game in the USL Championship tonight as El Paso Locomotive welcome Monterey Bay to west Texas having already lost at home to Hartford on Saturday. Monterey Bay didn't play at the weekend but, given El Paso's dreadful home record of late, they must be eager to get started here. - - - I've also written a preview of the MLS Next Pro 2024 season, but only from the standpoint of following the independent clubs. If you're interested, it's here.
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Mar 13, 2024 18:35
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USL Championship There was just the one midweek game in the USL Championship this week as El Paso Locomotive staged their second home game in five days, this time welcoming Monterey Bay to west Texas. Monterey didn't play at the weekend, when Locomotive lost at home to a reshaped Hartford Athletic side, and the slight match-fitness advantage looked to be telling when Amando Moreno put the home side ahead after just three minutes, delighting the near-5,000 crowd in attendance at South West University Park. Still, this is El Paso at home and it inevitably couldn't last, and so few could have been surprised when Tristan Traeger fired into the top corner with three minutes left to play. Week two of the Championship begins with El Paso Locomotive's third home game in a row as they welcome Louisville City to west Texas at 7pm. The Locos have lost one and drawn one so far, while Louisville - already one of the league's heavyweights - are starting their season having recruited well in the off-season. An hour later, the youngsters of Loudoun United face promoted side North Carolina FC at Segra Field in Leesburg, VA, and it should be a treat for fans and neutrals alike. United have a good crop of young players, while the Wings made a decent start to life back in the second tier last week with a 0-0 draw at home to Charleston Battery. Also at 8pm, Memphis 901 host Indy Eleven after a win and a loss on opening day, respectively, while expansion side Rhode Island FC host the first professional soccer game in the state for thirty-three years when they welcome New Mexico United to Beirne Stadium. The newcomers have brought in some tap talent for their debut season, including 2023 USL-C MVP Albert Dikwa, and it will be interesting to see how quickly they can gel. After a winning start at home last week, The Miami FC are back at FIU Stadium again for the visit of Sacramento Republic. Miami's side is much-changed this season and will face a tough test from a Republic side that gave a debut to striker Trevor Amman last week and were rewarded with two goals. They also conceded a header from the opposition goalkeeper in stoppage time to draw their home opener, though, so mixed results. That's an 11pm kick-off, as is Pittsburgh Riverhounds' home opener with Orange County SC, scorers of that last-minute goalie goal. The Riverhounds look short on striking power, having lost Dikwa and Tola Showunmi over thw winter, but a Bob Lilley side can never be counted out. Pittsburgh's biggest rivals in the Eastern Conference last season were Tampa Bay Rowdies and they get their 2024 campaign off to a tricky start with the visit of San Antonio FC, who were held by the Loudoun kids last week,to St Petersburg at 11.30pm. Rowdies need to recapture the form they found under Neill Collins and still have Cal Jennings to score goals, and both teams will be there or thereabouts at the end of the season. Colorado Springs Switchbacks versus Detroit City is one of two games that kick off at midnight, and Le Rouge will be looking to take advantage of the home side's away defeat in Miami last week. It's the season opener for Detroit, who have new head coach Danny Dichio in charge for the first time, but the Switchbacks are usually good value in front of their own fans. The other witching hour start is FC Tulsa's season opener at Las Vegas Lights, a much-changed side from the Lights who finished bootom last season. Tulsa have a lovely new kit and have been recruiting right up to this week under their new head coach Mario Sanchez. The week's final games are 2am kick-offs from California, as Monterey Bay stage their home opener against reigning champions Phoenix Rising, and Oakland Roots (who beat Indy Eleven 2-1 on the opening weekend) welcome Charleston Battery. Monterey under Frank Yallop are always formidable opposition and Rising looked a shadow of last season's winners in their home defeat to Birmingham last week, while Charleston travel well and will give Roots a challenge in Hayward. USL League One The second week of USL League One begins tonight as Lexington SC host Chattanooga Red Wolves. It's the season opener for the visitors, while Lexington drew 0-0 at home with Northern Colorado Hailstorm on week one. It's an 11pm kick-off if you don't mind gridiron markings. There are four games on Saturday, with the pick of them being Spokane Velocity's first ever home match at 10pm. They welcome league giant Richmond Kickers to east Washington state after going down 3-1 at Greenvile Triumph last week, but they looked lively in doing so and will give the visitors - who are always well-organised and have Argentinian striker Emilio Terzaghi ready to add to his 55 goals in 94 matches - a good early test. An hour later, Charlotte Independence and One Knoxville start their 2024 campaigns in North Carolina. Independence were runners-up last time out to promoted state rivals North Carolina and still have Gabriel Obertan pulling the strings, with Steeven Dos Santos doing the same for the visitors. Having lost at home to a rebuilt Central Valley Fuegos side last week, South Georgia Tormenta will be hoping they can catch Forward Madison warming up as the latter visit Statesboro for their season opener. Although they won the title in 2022, Tormenta are more than often than not found in the lower reaches of the USL-1 table but hope springs eternal. Madison qualified for the play-offs for the first time in four season last year and have brought in some strikers to take the pressure of Chrstian Chaney up front. The weekend's final game in a 2am kick-off from Fresno as Central Valley Fuego look to capitalise on that surprise win in Georgia last week. Their opposition is Union Omaha, regular season winners last year and 2021 champions, who can never be underestimated and will be looking to find the chinks in Jermaine Jones's armour.
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Mar 15, 2024 12:01
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The new premium stand on the east end of cashman field for Las Vegas is very nice, great way to use up the extra old baseball space. Might be iffy come later in the year when the sun is up later, but we’ll see. Pity they’re down 0-2 to Tulsa after a half hour. 
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Mar 17, 2024 01:46
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Lol I love that DCFC won on THAT goal. I'll post a replay once its out
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Mar 17, 2024 03:03
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USL Championship The USL Championship weekend began in Texas with El Paso Locomotive's third home game in eight days, welcoming heavyweights Louisville City for the visitors' first game of the season. El Paso just can't get it together at home and so it proved again when Wilson Harris scored the only goal of the game for Louisville, despite Locomotive enjoying the better chances. Loudoun United continued their bright start to 2024 with a 3-1 win over promoted side North Carolina FC. They have two of the league's best young strikers in Kalil ElMedkhar and Zach Ryan and both found the net, either side of a Mikey Maldonado goal for the visitors. Oalex Anderson was bright for North Carolina but Abdellatif Aboukoura put the game to bed with 5 minutes remaining to put United top of the table. Memphis 901 won a scrappy game against a revitalised Las Vegas Lights team last week but found a more organised Indy Eleven a hill to far to climb at home on Saturday. A Jack Blake penalty and a Douglas Martinez strike put the visitors 2-0 up just before the half, with Oscar Jimenez seeing red for 901 in first half stoppage time. The home side did manage to pull one back right at the death through Abdoulaye Cissoko but then were reduced to 9 men just before the final whistle when Akeem Ward was sent off. Rhode Island FC opened their season - and their club history - at home to New Mexico United on Saturday and looked lively throughout in front of a capacity crowd of 5,252. After a goalless first half, it was the visitors who went ahead when Talen Maples scored from close range, but the newcomers managed to grab a draw when a dangerous cross found Chris Gloster putting through his own net, the first scorer in RIFC history being Own Goal. The Miami FC began a new era for the club in smart fashion last week with a 2-0 win over Colorado Springs Switchbacks but couldn't repeat the feat at home to Sacramento Republic. Just over a thousand were in attendance at the cavernous FIU Stadium to see Trevor Amman grab his third of the season to give Republic a 1-0 win, his step up from USL League One looking like the signing of the season already. USL Players' Shield holders Pittsburgh Riverhounds started their season with a loss in Albuquerque last week and will have cast an envious eye at their former MVP Albert Dikwa lining up for Rhode Island. They could have done with him against Orange County SC on Saturday when they simply weren't at the races, down on firepower and vulnerable at the back, Brian Ilovski and Cameron Dunbar ensuring the points went back to California with the visitors. Tampa Bay Rowdies never quite recovered from the loss of coach Neill Collins to Barnsley midway through last season but started 2024 brightly at home to San Antonio in front of 7,500, the weekend's biggest crowd in USL-C. The mercurial Cal Jennings put the Rowdies a goal up after just 3 minutes and that's how it stayed until Manuel Arteaga doubled their lead with just 18 minutes left on the clock. 2022 champions San Antonio are no easy pickings, though, and they fought back for a 2-2 draw thanks to goals from Bura Nogueira and Carter Manley. After defeat in Miami last week, Colorado Springs Switchbacks would have loved to have steady the ship with a home win over Detroit City but Le Rouge - playing their season opener - had other ideas when Elvis Amoh put them ahead in the 11th minute. Matthew Mahoney equalised for the home side just after half-time but it was City who claimed the points thanks to an 89th minute winner from Connor Rutz. Even in defeat at Memphis last week, Las Vegas Lights looked a different side to the one that finished bottom last year and their home opener - with a new stand occupying former baseball outfield territory - against FC Tulsa looked like they should continue that. However, Tulsa had other ideas and took a 3-0 lead through Stefan Stojanovic, Philip Goodrum, and Milo Yosef. Riki Alba pulled one back but the Lights revival will have to wait. The final two games on Saturday came from California, where Monterey Bay FC beat champions Phoenix Rising (who have now lost two out of two) with a first-half goal from Rafael Baca, and Oakland Roots drew 1-1 with Charleston Battery. Nick Markanich had given the visitors a 1-0 lead at half-time but Ilya Alekseev hit back to secure a point for Roots to add to last week's home win over Indy Eleven. USL League One The third-tier USL League One began their second week of games on Friday night, when Lexington SC hosted Chattanooga Red Wolves on the gridiron markings in Georgetown, Kentucky. The visitors had much the better of the game but it was the home side's Yannick Yankam who scored the game's only goal to put Lexington top at this early stage. There were four games on Saturday, starting with Spokane Velocity's home opener against Richmond Kickers, the league's newest club against its oldest. A sell-out crowd of over 5,000 were barely in their seats before former Minnesota United man Romain Metanire's cross floated into the top corner of the net to give Velocity a lead which was doubled by Ahmed Longmire's first professional goal on the quarter-hour. Adrian Billhardt grabbed one back for the Kickers five minutes later, setting up a game of cat and mouse for the remainder of the match, but Velocity withstood heavy Richmond pressure to secure their first win. A year ago, One Knoxville were the newcomers and they travelled to Charlotte Independence for the first game of their sophomore season. Heavy Knoxville pressure failed to result in a goal before the half but they didn't let up after the break and finally got a breakthrough in the 51st minute when Frank Ross curled one into the top corner. Charlotte forced an equaliser with 15 minutes left on the clock when Clay Dimwick scrambled a loose ball over the line but it was the visitors who came away with all 3 points after Angelo Kelly-Rosales's winner three minutes later. 2022 champions South Georgia Tormenta started with a defeat last week at home to Central Valley Fuego and looked to suffer a repeat of that when Devin Boyce put Forward Madison ahead after 69 minutes in Statesboro. However, Tormenta kept plugging away and finally got their reward in the 6th minute of stoppage time through Niall Watson, a 1-1 draw just about right in the end. The weekend's final game came from Fresno where a new look Central Valley Fuego opened their home season against Union Omaha. Fuego are a different prospect under Jermaine Jones this year but fell behind in the 18th minute to an acrobatic strike from centre-back Blake Malone. That's how it stayed until the 62nd minute when Omaha doubled their lead through substitute Josue Gomez, and although Fuego pulled one back through the lively Shavon John-Brown, it was the visitors who took the win. NISA The (very much) third third-tier league announced that they would delay their opening weekend - scheduled for next Saturday in Georgia - two weeks to allow the four new clubs more time to prepare for their first professional seasons.
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Mar 18, 2024 16:38
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Has anybody ever gone to an MLS reserve league match? What's the atmosphere like? I'm going to start since tickets are cheap and there's a stadium within walking distance of my house
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Mar 18, 2024 20:31
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USL Championship preview Week three of the USL Championship starts early, with a 6pm (GMT) kick-off in Connecticut as Hartford Athletic face Birmingham Legion. Legion won away in week one and sat out last week, so will be looking to continue that form, but Hartford are a different side this year under Brendan Burke this year and it should be an open game. There's a pair of games two hours later when the exciting youngsters of Loudoun United travel to Detroit City, and perennial heavyweights Lousville City open their home season against Eastern Conference rivals Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Having lost key players in the winter - one of whom, Tola Showumni, is now at Louisville - the Riverhounds looks lacklustre so far but you can never count a Bob Lilley side out. There are also two games at 11pm, with Indy Eleven opening their home season against the powerhouses of Sacramento Republic, and Tampa Bay Rowdies visiting North Carolina FC for the first time in some years after the Wings' promotion in the off-season. Half an hour after those games start, unbeaten Charleston Battery kick off against a New Mexico United team that have looked good value so far this year, which might be a game for the neutrals if you can't stand the huge jaguar occupying the Indianapolis centre circle. The stroke of midnight finds Las Vegas Lights - still looking for their first points under new owner Jose Bautista - hosting El Paso Locomotive (who have just one point from three home games so far this season), with 2022 champions San Antonio at home to Colorado Springs Switchbacks at half-past. Saturday's penultimate game comes at 2am when Orange County SC welcome The Miami FC to Irvine, with champions Phoenix Rising against Oakland Roots following at 3am. There's just the one game on Sunday this week and it comes from northern California, where Monterey Bay face expansion side Rhode Island FC, a 10pm kick-off. USL League One After almost perfectly negotiating the first round of the US Open Cup in midweek, eight USL League One clubs are in action tonight, with Richmond Kickers versus 2022 champions South Georgia Tormenta kicking things off at 10pm, while Lexington SC - the only USL-1 club to be knocked out by lower division opposition this week - travel to One Knoxville for a 10.30pm start. Greenville Triumph's horrible gridiron markings welcome Forward Madison at 11pm, with expansion side Spokane Velocity playing their second home game on the trot, hosting Northern Colorado Hailstorm and hoping for another big crowd and another good win. MLS Next Pro preview Both independent clubs are in action this week after differing fortunes in the US Open Cup in midweek. Chattanooga FC are at home tonight - a 7pm kick-off - to FC Cincinnati 2. Chattanooga were knocked out of the Open Cup by lower-league opposition in the week and will want to put that behind them as quickly as possible. Carolina Core, however, won their Open Cup tie with NoVA FC last night, their first ever home game. They're on the road again this weekend, travelling to Massachusetts to play New England Revolution II on Sunday, an 8pm kick-off.
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Mar 23, 2024 11:46
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DCFC home opener today! Got 4" of snow yesterday, so the FO put out an all hands on deck to clear the pitch of snow this morning. Lady bagmo's birthday is tomorrow and we're doing brunch with some friends so I have to skip checking off that bucketlist item. I'll post pics once I'm there tho
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Mar 23, 2024 14:23
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Lousville won, no surprise there. Detroit made Footy Scran, congrats fellas https://twitter.com/footyscran/status/1771681189620768869?s=46&t=Jl91I_6B7i5oyOtlhhpf1w
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Mar 24, 2024 13:37
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oh hell yeah that's Paradise Street Eats, good poo poo. I was fed pierogi by multiple people yesterday its how I'm still posting we won and it was great and I cannot wait for us to dominate ANOTHER league
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Mar 24, 2024 14:45
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Holy poo poo. Vegas won a game.
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Mar 25, 2024 08:34
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USL Championship round-up There wasn't a single away win in the eleven USL Championship matches this weekend, although several sides did manage creditable draws on the road. The weekend's action started in Connecticut where Hartford Athletic welcomed Birmingham Legion to Trinity Health Stadium. Almost 3,000 fans were in attendance to see the reshaped Athletic side dominate the game in terms of sheer chances, their eleven shots on target dwarfing Legion's three. That meant Matt van Oekel had to be in good form in the away goal, but even his acrobatics couldn't prevent Michee Ngalina scoring the game's only goal to make it two wins from two games for Brendan Burke's side. Athletic are joined at the top of the Eastern Conference by two other sides with 100% records, both of them winning their home openers on Saturday. Detroit City faced the youngsters from Loudoun United at Keyworth Stadium and went behind after just fourteen minutes when Wesley Leggett finished a smart move for the visitors. That's how it stayed until eleven minutes into the second half, when Abdoulaye Diop levelled for Le Rouge, and Maxi Rodriguez's strike fifteen minutes later gave the home side their second straight win. Louisville City won away in El Paso last week and followed that with another win, this time over Pittsburgh Riverhounds in front of over 9,300 at the Lynn Family Stadium. There were plenty of chances in the first half but it took until the fifth minute of time added on for Wilson Harris to open the scoring for City, sending them into the break 1-0 up. Heavy Pittsburgh pressure paid off just before the hour when Edward Kizza found an equaliser but parity lasted just five minutes before Illal Osumanu fouled Ray Serrano in the box, allowing Sean Totsch to put the home side back in front with a converted penalty. Riverhounds pressed for an equaliser but wound up conceding a third from Serrano to go away 3-1 losers and with no points from three games this season. Indy Eleven also played their home opener on Saturday, welcoming the powerhouses of Sacramento Republic to the Michael A Carroll Stadium, for whom Trevor Amman has been in stunning form so far. They managed to keep Amman fairly quiet but went behind to a Callum Chapman-Page own goal just after the half-hour, meaning Augustine Williams's strike three minutes later was an equaliser, the game finishing 1-1. North Carolina FC have acquitted themselves well after stepping up from USL League One over the winter and they faced a lively Tampa Bay Rowdies at Wake Med Soccer Park in Cary on Saturday. Chances were at a premium and it took an own goal from Mikey Maldonado to give the Rowdies the lead in the 63rd minute. Rafa Mentzingen, who played for the club in USL-1 last season, fired into the top corner twelve minutes later to draw the Wings level, and that's how it stayed through to full-time. Across the border in South Carolina, Charleston Battery looked to recover from a shaky start so far this season against a New Mexico United side who have looked like title contenders. Of course, the script was flipped and Battery scored four without reply, begun by Nick Markanich in the 17th minute, with Arturo Rodriguez, Aaron Molloy, and Jackson Conway also on the scoresheet. Las Vegas Lights were taken over by former MLB star Jose Bautista in the winter and have begun a rebuilding process after a terrible 2023. Despite two losses to start the season, they've looked good value under new head coach Dennis Sanchez, and their efforts were finally rewarded on Saturday when a Javier Garcia own goal gave them a 1-0 win over El Paso Locomotive at Cashman Field. 2022 champions San Antonio FC welcomed Colorado Springs Switchbacks to Toyota Field and had the best of the game even before Lucas Silva opened the scoring in the 75th minute. Hugo Mbongue, on loan from MLS side Toronto FC, added a second in stoppage time to complete the job and send the Texans joint top of the Western Conference. Five thousand fans came to Championship Soccer Stadium to cheer Orange County SC on against The Miami FC on Saturday but were given an early disappointment after twelve minutes when Allen Gavilanes opened the scoring for the visitors, another side who have overhauled their squad in the off-season. Ashton Miles equalised just past the half-hour mark but Gavilanes found the net again in first-half stoppage time to give Miami a 2-1 lead at the break. OC poured on the pressure in the second half and were rewarded when substitute Thomas Amang scored their second leveller in the 70th minute, with Miami happy to hear the final whistle after more OC pressure, 2-2 the final result. Saturday's final game came from Arizona where reigning champions Phoenix Rising were looking for their first points of the season against Oakland Roots. Rising dominated things from the off, forcing Paul Blanchette in the Roots goal into multiple saves, and the away side didn't manage a single shot on target. In the end, Panos Armenakas's 49th minute strike was all that separated the teams. There was just a single game on Sunday, with expansion side Rhode Island FC playing their first road game, travelling to California to play Frank Yallop's Monterey Bay. Last season's USL-C MVP Albert Dikwa opened the scoring for the Seals in the 41st minute and looked to have given them a first-half lead, but the home side hit back right on half-time through Carlos Guzman to send the sides into the break at 1-1. Dikwa struck again eighteen minutes into the second-half with a close-range goal to give the visitors the lead but Monterey equalised once more, this time through Tristan Trager, setting the stage for a heady finish with twenty minutes to go. Prince Saydee missed a good chance to give Rhode Island all three points eleven minutes into stoppage time but the game ended all-square, a fair result after a good contest. USL League One round-up There were just four games in the third-tier USL League One on Saturday, starting in Virgina where Richmond Kickers hosted 2022 champions South Georgia Tormenta at City Stadium. Both sides were looking for their first wins of the season and Tormenta struck first, going ahead in the fourth minute through former Derby County and DC United man Conor Doyle. The 4,500 crowd got behind the Kickers going into the second half but it was Niall Watson - signed from Southport in the off-season - who doubled the away side's lead in a fast break goal ten minutes after the restart. Richmond pressed to get back into the game and finally got a reward when they forced Preston Kilwien to put through his own net in stoppage time, but the search for an equaliser left them vulnerable to a Tormenta third, scored by Mason Tunbridge with the final kick of the game. One Knoxville began their second season in USL-1 with a win away in Charlotte last week and followed that with a 2-0 home win over Lexington SC at the Regal Soccer Stadium. The game was goalless until the 70th minute when Rodolfo Castro Jr finished a smart move for the home side, with Stuart Ritchie - signed from Columbus Crew 2 over the winter - adding a second with two minutes to spare. Greenville Triumph are still playing on the gridiron marked pitch at Paladin Stadium, where 1,600 saw their scoreless draw with Forward Madison, during which Leandro Castro had a dubious penalty saved by visiting 'keeper Bernd Schipmann on the stroke of half-time. In the final game of the weekend, Spokane Velocity staged their second home game in eight days after last week's sell-out win over Richmond. Northern Colorado Hailstorm were the visitors this week and another good crowd of 3,376 came out to see Velocity win again, courtesy of a 35th minute penalty by Luis Gil, conceded through a foul by David Garcia on Gil. Hailstorm managed just one shot on target and will have better days, while the Velocity train pulls into Charlotte in midweek for a clash with the Independence. MLS Next Pro round-up The two non-MLS reserve sides that compete in this MLS reserve league were both in action over the weekend, with Chattanooga FC hoping to bounce back from a midweek defeat in the US Open Cup to Miami United. They faced FC Cincinnati 2 at Finley Stadium and two goals from Jesus Ibarra and a third from Mehdi Ouamri gave them their first three point win of the season in what looked like a decent crowd. Carolina Core won in midweek but were brought back down to Earth with a bang when they travelled to Georgia to play Atlanta United 2 at Kennesaw State University Stadium yesterday. A nine-minute hatrick from Luke James Brennan gave United a 3-0 lead after just 33 minutes and there was no way back into the game for Core, conceding a fourth from Karim Tmimi to cap a miserable afternoon.
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Mar 25, 2024 12:18
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--cries in yinzer--
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Mar 25, 2024 13:01
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USL Championship Action in the second-tier begins tonight in Cary as promoted side North Carolina FC - looking for their first win of the season - welcome the reshaped and unbeaten Hartford Athletic to WakeMed Soccer Park with an 11pm (GMT) kick-off. Saturday's action starts at 8pm when Louisville City play Birmingham Legion at the Lynn Family Stadium. City are two from two so far this season and are always good value for a tilt at the title, whereas Legion - with one loss and one win from their two games this season - are a curious orange and you never know what you're going to get. There's a pair of games at 11pm, beginning with Indy Eleven versus Detroit City at Michael J Carroll Stadium in Indianapolis, where Le Rouge will be hoping to go back to Detroit with their third win from three games this season, and continuing down in Florida as a rebuilt The Miami FC host Charleston Battery at the cavernous FIU Stadium. Also in Florida, but with an 11.30pm kick-off, is Tampa Bay Rowdies versus expansion club Rhode Island FC, and both sides have drawn both their matches so far this season; Rhode Island, however, had 2023 USL-C MVP Albert Dikwa find the net twice last week in Monterey and that's got to be ominous for the hosts. Just before the clocks change at half-past-midnight is 2022 champions San Antonio versus Frank Yallop's Monterey Bay at Toyota Field. Both sides have a win and two draws so far this season but the Texans are good value at home and can be relied upon to grab some goals in front of a decent crowd. With the closk going forward at 1am, the California games revert to their usual 3am (BST) start time and there's three of them this week as Oakland Roots host a Las Vegas Lights side who won their first match in nine last week, in-form Orange County SC welcome FC Tulsa to Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine, and perennial powerhouses Sacramento Republic take on Memphis 901. The weekend's final game - at 3.30am - sees reigning champions Phoenix Rising and New Mexico United clash in the "unsuitable places for human habitation" derby. Rising beat Oakland 1-0 last week after opening their title defence with two defeats, while United were beaten badly at Charleston, but this should be a fine advert for USL-C soccer. USL League One The third-tier USL League One started its weekend early when expansion club Spokane Velocity visisted Charlotte Independence last night, where a disappointing crowd of just 686 fans at American Legion Memorial Stadium saw the home side record their first win of the season thanks to goals from Joel Johnson and Luis Alvarez, with Martin Gil having briefly restored Velocity to parity in between. There's a pair of games tonight, with Lexington SC opening the gates of their gridiron marked Toyota Stadium in Georgetown for the visit of Greenville Triumph at 11pm (GMT), and Forward Madison making the trip to Fresno, California, to face Jermaine Jones's rejigged Central Valley Fuego side, with a 2am kick-off. There should have been another two games tomorrow but Chattanooga Red Wolves versus Union Omaha is off after the Red Wolves pitch needed work. Instead, the lone game sees top of the table One Knoxville host 2022 champions South Georgia Tormenta at 8pm and the visitors are beginning to get their groove back. Should be a decent third-tier encounter. MLS Next Pro Newly arrived independent club Chattanooga FC continue to be unbeaten in regular time in MLS Next Pro, although they lost a shootout at New York City FC IIon Wednesday night and take just a point from that game to leave them on six points from three games. The newbies took the lead through Taylor Gray after eight minutes and held onto that advantage until Jonathan Shore equalised for the Baby Pigeons ten minutes into the second-half, with the game finishing 1-1. That means they have this weekend off, but the other independent side in this third-tier MLS reserve league - Carolina Core - are away at New England RevolutionII on Sunday, an 8pm kick-off if you're at all curious to see if they can earn their first win of the season.
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Mar 29, 2024 10:14
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Just catching up on lower-division shenanigans, I hope Phoenix gets hosed for letting Danny Trejo out of the country. Also: "The 'Mingos of Forward Madison now include striker Wolfgang Prentice and Jimmie Villalobos, both on loan from Oakland and Knoxville, respectively." Nice of USL-1 to give Bentai someone to cheer for. 
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Mar 30, 2024 22:02
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USL Championship The USL Championship weekend started on Friday night in Cary, where North Carolina FC welcomed unbeaten Hartford Athletic to WakeMed Park. Oalex Anderson has yet to fully emerge since his elevation with the WIngs over the winter but looked lively throughout, earning a penalty when Anderson Asiedu brought him down in the box in the 24th minute. Louis Perez stepped up to convert the spot kick and give the home side the lead, which was doubled by "Goalex" himself on 35 minutes after a smart through ball by Rodrigo da Costa. Hartford were in the game throughout and got one back eighteen minutes from time through Jay Chapman, but North Carolina held on for their first win since their promotion back into USL-C. Saturday's games started in Kentucky where Louisville City met old enemies Birmingham Legion. City, perennial play-off competitors, had played two and won two so far this season and continued where they left off against Pittsburgh Riverhounds last week, opening the scoring through Jake Morris in the 13th minute. Wilson Harris added a second shortly before the break and Legion looked all at sea. That was something they never recovered from, conceding another Harris goal 11 minutes into the second-half, and then two more from Taylor Davila and Ray Serrano to complete a 5-0 rout. Like Hartford and Louisville, Detroit City had also won two out of two but faced a short trip to tough opposition when they faced Indy Eleven at the Michael A Carroll Stadium in Indianapolis. Sebastian Guenzatti put the hosts ahead midway through the first-half just after Maxi Rodriguez had a shot saved for the visitors, and it stayed 1-0 through to the 55th minute when Ali Coote levelled for Le Rouge. Rodriguez made amends for his earlier miss by giving Detroit a third win on the trot with just two minutes left on the clock, and Detroit look like they mean business this season. Charleston Battery are also looking dangerous after a shaky start, having demolished New Mexico United 4-0 last week. They travelled to the reshaped The Miami FC, who delighted the 1,100 in attendance with an opener from Allen Gavillanes in the 9th minute. That lead lasted just two minutes before Nick Markanich drew the visitors level and that's how it stayed until the 82nd minute, despite some heavy Battery pressure. Inevitably, though, Matt Myers popped up with the winner for Charleston, a close range effort following Juan Torres's saved shot. Elsewhere in Florida, Tampa Bay Rowdies were looking for their first win of the season after two draws on the last two weekends and faced a Rhode Island FC team in a similar position. 2023 USL-C MVP Albert Dikwa opened the scoring for the expansion club in the 16th minute and it looked for a while that there might be a slight upset on the cards. However, the second-half found Rowdies in full flight,scoring four unanswered goals through Manuel Arteaga, Cal Jennings, Jordan Doherty, and Damian Rivera, the last coming six minutes into stoppage time and finally ending Rhode Island's increasingly slim hopes of escaping with a point. 2022 champions San Antonio FC were at home to Monterey Bay on Saturday, with 7,500 flocking to Toyota Field for the clash. Carter Manley got the party started early for the hosts with a 7th minute shot from a corner, but Union levelled in first-half stoppage time through Mobi Fehr. The hosts were much the best side but had to wait until four minutes from time before Kevon Lambert fired past Gerald Siaha in the Monterey goal and put San Antonio joint top of the Western Conference with eight points from four games. It's a position they share with two California rivals, both of which were in action at home on Saturday. Despite the loss of Milan Illinovski in the winter, Orange County SC have looked good value this year and that was the case again when FC Tulsa visited Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine, with OC taking all three points thanks to Sofianne Djeffal's 27th minute strike. With 9,488 at Heart Health Park, Sacramento Republic had the weekend's biggest crowd in USL-C but didn't have it all their own way against Memphis 901. The visitors defended with spirit but only managed one shot on target themselves, and it looked like a 0-0 draw was on the cards before Jonathan Ricketts scored a winner for Republic with just three minutes left on the clock. The other Californian side at home on Saturday night didn't have such a good time of things as Las Vegas Lights made it two wins out of two when they left Oakland Roots with all three points. Second-half goals from Coleman Gannon, Gaoussou Samake, and Valentin Noel did the damage in a 3-0 win for Jose Batista's club. The weekend's final game in USL-C came from the Phoenix Soccer Stadium where reigning champions Phoenix Rising welcomed near-rivals New Mexico United. United were hoping that last week's bad defeat at the hands of Charleston Battery was just a blip and set about the champs, overwhelming them in sheer goal attempts, if not possession. It took 16 minutes for Dayonn Harris to find the Phoenix net with a smart shot and that's how it stayed, with Dariusz Formella's saved shot two minutes after the goal Rising's only attempt on target. USL League One With Charlotte Independence beating Spokane Velocity on Thiursday night, there were just four games in the third-tier USL League One scheduled for the weekend, cut down to three when Chattanooga Red Wolves versus Union Omaha was postponed due to pitch issues in Tennessee. Friday's two games started in Georgetown, Kentucky, where Lexington SC hosted Greenville Triumph in front of 1,672 fans at Toyota Stadium. The home side took the lead in first-half stoppage time when Isaac Cano fired home, a scoreline doubled by Cameron Lancaster's first league goal for the club twelve minutes into the second-half. At that point, odds were firmly on a home victory but Triumph woke up and hit back, scoring three goals without further reply through Ben Zakowski, Lyam MacKinnon, and a 98th minute own goal, holding on for an impressive comeback away win. Jermaine Jones's rebuilding job at Central Valley Fuego is very much a work in progress and Forward Madison showed them the way to win games with a comprehensive 3-0 win in Fresno on Friday. Derek Gebhard opened the scoring in the 28th minute for the 'Mingos, who added a second through John Murphy on 42 minutes. There was still time, though, for Devin Boyce to score Madison's third, deep into stoppage time, and give the away side a 3-0 lead at half-time, something Fuego just weren't able to come back from, although they did look much better in the second-half. The weekend's final game in USL-1 came from Tennessee, where One Knoxville were looking to make it three wins out of three (plus a cup victory) so far this season. The visitors were a South Georgia Tormenta side looking to be getting their act together after a so-so start and, in the end, it was Angelo Kelly's strike for the home side after 36 minutes that separated the sides at the final whistle, delighting the majority of the 1,813 fans at Regal Soccer Stadium. MLS Next Pro With Chattanooga FC having played on Thursday night, there was just one game featuring an independent club in the third-tier MLS reserve league this weekend. Carolina Core travelled to Foxboro to play New England Revolution II in front of a handful of fans at the cavernous Gillette Stadium. The Revs pressed their home advantage as early as the second minute when Malcom Fry put them ahead, but former Barry University standout David Polanco equalised eight minutes before half-time. It was all for nought, though, as US Olympic hopeful Jack Panayotou - who played twelve times in MLS last year - got the winner for New England, leaving Core still looking for their first 90-minute win of the season.
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Apr 1, 2024 16:34
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I enjoy your write ups and hope you continue, but I’m really curious where “the Wings” comes from for North Carolina FC. I haven’t been in a year or so, but that’s been my local team since they were the Railhawks and I’ve never heard that nickname.
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Apr 1, 2024 17:20
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franks posted:I enjoy your write ups and hope you continue, but I’m really curious where “the Wings” comes from for North Carolina FC. I haven’t been in a year or so, but that’s been my local team since they were the Railhawks and I’ve never heard that nickname. Possibly something I extrapolated when I couldn’t find an official nickname - should I use Railhawks from now on? superLINUS fucked around with this message at 18:20 on Apr 1, 2024 |
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Apr 1, 2024 17:41
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superLINUS posted:Possibly something I extrapolated when I couldn’t find an official nickname - should I use Railhawks from now on? You do you, I wasn't complaining, just legit curious if that was something I had missed. The supporters' group calls them "the Dead Whales" because of some weird thing about whale bones being buried at the site of WakeMed Soccer Park. The story if anyone cares
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Apr 1, 2024 19:49
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Moktaro posted:Also: "The 'Mingos of Forward Madison now include striker Wolfgang Prentice and Jimmie Villalobos, both on loan from Oakland and Knoxville, respectively."  superLINUS posted:The other Californian side at home on Saturday night didn't have such a good time of things as Las Vegas Lights made it two wins out of two when they left Oakland Roots with all three points. Second-half goals from Coleman Gannon, Gaoussou Samake, and Valentin Noel did the damage in a 3-0 win for Jose Batista's club.
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Apr 2, 2024 00:49
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Bentai posted:
It’s a weird season for sure. It took DCFC into June to get 3 wins last season, and they went the entire month of April without scoring a goal. They didn’t have 3 multi-score games until July. This year they’ve won 3 games in a row, all 2-1.
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Apr 2, 2024 01:08
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Aggro posted:It’s a weird season for sure. It took DCFC into June to get 3 wins last season, and they went the entire month of April without scoring a goal. They didn’t have 3 multi-score games until July. don't forget we've also trailed in two of those games! and the team is actually fun to watch! Which you couldn't always say about the squads under Trevor
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Apr 2, 2024 01:39
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NEXT OPEN CUP ROUND DROPPED!!!!!! Here's what Sharta (Michigan Stars) had to say about having to play against Detroit City FC at Keyworth
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Apr 4, 2024 18:49
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USL Championship preview, April 5-7 The USL Championship weekend gets underway tonight in Oklahoma as FC Tulsa face 2023 champions Phoenix Rising at ONEOK Field. The Roughnecks have won one and lost one so far this season but meet a Phoenix side that have lost three out of four in their pursuit of a second title, new head coach Juan Guerra still not getting the best out of his charges. Tomorrow's games start at 7pm (BST) with the clash of two clubs who rebuilt their sides in the off-season. Hartford Athletic won their first two games but slipped up away at North Carolina FC last week; visitors The Miami FC have 4 points from four games and have looked both impressive and dreadful so far. Saturday's games continue at 9pm with three games kicking off at the same time. Detroit City, who drew city rivals Michigan Stars in the next round of the US Open Cup, welcome North Carolina FC to Keyworth Stadium for the first time and sit top of the Eastern Conference with three wins out of three so far. New head coach Danny Dichio has got them playing with a confidence they were missing last year but every game is an adventure for the promoted visitors. Also at 9pm (and also with 9 points from three games), Louisville City host an Indy Eleven side that invested in a new attack over the winter and are yet to see proper dividends from that. City are always there or thereabouts come the end of the season but they look to be playing with a swagger this year that should be ominous for their rivals. A six-hour drive away in Memphis, Orange County SC are the visitors to Memphis 901's AutoZone Park in an all-Western Conference clash. OC sit top of the West at present, with 8 points from four games and that's 5 points more than their hosts, who narrowly lost to Sacramento Republic last week. There's a break until the next USL-C game at midnight, between a Pittsburgh Riverhounds side who have uncharacteristically lost three out of three so far and their buoyant visitors, Tampa Bay Rowdies. These two fought it out for the Players Shield last season but couldn't be having more different seasons and - on form, at least - you'd be silly to bet against the Rowdies getting a result at Highmark. Still, surely the 'Hounds have to come good at some point...? Rhode Island FC seem to be enjoying life as the USL's newest expansion club so far, with star signing Albert Dikwa starting to find the net that he troubled so much last season. Unfortunately for them, this week's visitors for the half-past-midnight kick-off at Beirne Stadium are Charleston Battery, who started quietly but have exploded into form in the last two weeks... Colorado Springs Switchbacks are a mystery, capable of winning and losing at the drop of a hat (but are doing nothing but losing so far), and they face perennial Western Conference powerhouses Sacramento Republic at Weidner Field on Saturday, a 1am kick-off for interested viewers (all USL-C and USL League One games are live on YouTube). Republic haven't hit their stride yet but still sit joint top in the West, and Trevor Amman - who moved to Republic from USL-1 Northern Colorado Hailstorm in the winter - will be eager to return from the Centennial State with more goals to add to the three he's scored already this season. Down at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico United are having a decent season so far without uprooting too many trees and won away at champions Phoenix Rising last week. Their visitors at 2am are an El Paso Locomotive team who have just 1 point from four games so far and it will be tough to look past a home win, save for the fact that Locomotive are always better on the road. The sole Californian game from Saturday's USL-C fixtures is a derby match between Oakland Roots and Monterey Bay FC at Pioneer Stadium in Hayward. It's early days but both teams look every bit the mid-table sides they currently are and late-night viewers will be hoping for some derby magic. Saturday's final game sees Las Vegas Lights, whose restart under former MLB star Jose Bautista looks to be coming good, face San Antonio FC at Cashman Field, a stadium they've finally started to make their own. The visitors were champions two years ago and sit joint top with Orange County and Sacramento after their first four games, which should make for an interesting gauge of Lights' progress. There's just the one game on Sunday, an 10pm kick-off in Alabama as Birmingham Legion face the exciting youngsters of Loudoun United. Neither side has gotten going so far this season but both have plenty of threats in the attacking sense and hopefully that will mean goals will flow from the chances that are bound to arise. USL League One Preview, April 6 It's back to league action for the third-tier leagues after US Open Cup adventures in midweek, and the USL League One week starts in Virginia tomorrow night at 11pm (BST) when Richmond Kickers face Central Valley Fuego. The clubs had contrasting midweek fortunes, with Kickers seeing off NISA's Maryland Bobcats and Fuego losing at home to NPSL side El Farolito, and new Fuego coach Jermaine Jones will be hoping to get things firmly back on track. He'll note that Kickers lost at home to South Georgia Tormenta last week but Fuego look a way off Tormenta so far this season. The horrible gridiron markings of Paladin Stadium in Greenville will be in evidence for the midnight kick-off when Greenville Triumph host Northern Colorado Hailstorm. Both sides had impressive wins in midweek, with Triumph beating a previously imperious One Knoxville and Hailstorm winning away at MLS Next Pro Colorado Rapids II, but Greenville has yet to lose in any competition this season and will be confident of keeping that record intact through the weekend. Chattanooga Red Wolves's home tie with Charlotte Independence has been postponed due to problems with the pitch at Red Wolves' CHI Memorial Stadium and so the weekend's final game in USL-1 kick-offs at half-past-midnight with the visit of Lexington SC to South Georgia Tormenta. Having been the sole USL-1 club to lose in the first round of the Open Cup, Lexington had a break in midweek and have an identical league record to Tormenta so far this season. The hosts, however, are beginning to hit their stride, something not yet in evidence in the visitors, and so it should be mostly one-way traffic here. NISA preview It's matchday one for the National Independent Soccer Association's 2024 season tomorrow and it will be a relief for the league's organisers to get underway after a turmultuous winter. I've written a full preview of the season above but suffice to say, there's no defending champions, a clutch of new teams, and some weird goings on down in Georgia. There are just two games this weekend, both hosted by two of the league's more stable outfits as Michigan Stars - who drew city rivals Detroit City in the US Open Cup Third Round yesterday - play Savannah Clovers at Romeo High School Stadium, and the season's first Californian derby comes as Los Angeles Force take on expansion side Irvine Zeta at Long Beach Community College. With Steven Juncaj still available before he moves back to Croatia, Stars should have little trouble with the "under league management" Clovers, but the other clash should be a cracker as Force have recruited well and Zeta have impressed in the Open Cup so far. MLS Next Pro Neither of the independent clubs in MLS Next Pro are in action this weekend. However, the rebranding of MLS reserve sides looks to be continuing, with FC Cincinnati 2 rumoured to be changing their name to Commonwealth United, refelcting the fact that they play in Highland Heights, just over the border in Kentucky (which, of course, is a commonwealth rather than a state...).
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Apr 5, 2024 17:37
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https://www.ussoccer.com/us-open-cup/schedule Next round of Open Cup matches are up on the site, I get to see us play the Stars on my loving birthday!!!!!!!
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Apr 5, 2024 18:44
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okay i am not happy about a lot of things today but i also have to say
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Apr 6, 2024 23:10
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The Indianapolis Elevenses are Very Bad
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Apr 6, 2024 23:11
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WE GOT A POINT WE GOT A POINT
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Apr 7, 2024 03:21
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quote:Scoring Cavalry’s first-ever Champions Cup goal against MLS opposition may have been New Zealand striker Myer Bevan’s last act with the club – though nobody knew it at the time. If I had the choice, I'd get out of Calgary too.
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Apr 7, 2024 21:58
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USL Championship round-up, April 5-7 From start to finish, the USL Championship was so jam-packed with goals and incident that even a pair of 0-0 draws in the middle of it couldn't dampen its fire. Things got off to a rip-roaring start on Friday night in Oklahoma where FC Tulsa welcomed 2023 USL-C champions Phoenix Rising to ONEOK Field. Rising lost their first three of their first four games this season and the home side must have smelled blood in the water, going ahead in the first minute through a Stefan Stojanovic strike following a corner. This Rising team might be missing a few key players from last year's championship side but they still have quality in abundance, something made abundantly clear when Remi Cabral drew a foul in the box on 39 minutes, converting the spot kick that followed, and then put Phoenix into the lead three minutes later with a clever shot. The home side, wearing a shocking pink kit, came out to play in the second-half and missed a couple of chances before an Edwin Ramos header levelled the scores five minutes in, pressing on and going ahead when Alexis Souahy headed in from a corner. That looked to be it for Phoenix, especially as Emil Cuelo was shown a straight red for a foul on Bradley Bourgeois just past the hour, but they received a break eleven minutes later when Bourgeois fouled Papa Boye in the box and substitute Dariusz Formela fired home an equaliser. That was how it stayed and many might have thought they'd seen the game of the USL weekend... Saturday's action got underway with a pair of games at 7pm (BST), both featuring sides with a collection of wins this season. Hartford Athletic lost away at North Carolina last week but had two wins out of two before that. The Miami FC were their visitors on Saturday and they've looked better than their results this season after a winter of rebuilding. The first-half was relatively quiet until Deshane Beckford was brought down in the area and a penalty awarded to the home side, but Romario Williams's effort was saved by Miami 'keeper Danny Gagliardi. It looked like the visitors might keep it scoreless at the half only for Hartford to hit them on the break right before the whistle, Beckford finishing off a breakaway move. Athletic went further ahead ten minutes into the second-half when Williams made up for his penalty miss with a close-range effort from a corner and both sides missed chances to add to the scoreline before Gabriel Cabral reduced Miami's arrears with a shot from outside the area. That's how it stayed until time added on when Enoch Mushgalusa scored Hartford's third and there was still time for a Joseph Farrell own goal to make it 3-2 and put Athletic on a healthy 9 points from four games. Detroit City had played three, won three, before Saturday's visit of North Carolina FC to Keyworth Stadium, with new head coach Danny Dichio getting them playing attractive, pressing soccer. His opposite number in the North Carolina dugout - John Bradford - seemed to have the key to negate Le Rouge's system, though, and an own goal by Nelson Blanco in the ninth minute - which gave City their fourth win out of four - was all that separated the sides at the end, with just two shots registered on target all game. That certainly wasn't the case for the big 9pm kick-off in Kentucky, where Louisville City versus Indy Eleven became the first USL game to be televised on CBS nationwide. A bumper crowd of 11,330 flocked to the Lynn Family Stadium for the affair and were rewarded as early as the sixteenth minute when Wilson Harris finished a pressure play to give the home side the lead. Louisville boy Jack Blake was given the chance to equalise for the visitors eighteen minutes later when Jake Morris was adjudged to have fouled Younis Boudadi in the box and slotted the penalty home to silence the home fans, but City's advantage was restored four minutes before half-time when Jansen Wilson was put through by Harris for his first goal since turning professional in the winter. Five minutes into the second-half, that 2-1 lead was turned into a 3-1 lead when Elijah Wynder headed in from close range but Indy just wouldn't go away, Blake latching on to a long ball to fire home and reduce it to a one-goal game with his second goal. Anything Blake could do, Harris could match and he scored his second just three minutes later, finishing off a fast break started by Adrian Perez, and then went one better to secure his hatrick in the 71st minute. A Niall McCabe own goal finished off the scoring and made it 5-3 at the final whistle, a fine first game for CBS to bring to the soccer-curious everywhere. A few hundred miles south in Tennessee, Memphis 901 welcomed Orange County SC - one of a batch of sides sitting atop the Western Conference - to AutoZone Park and were quite handily beaten 2-0 in a game of just half a dozen chances for both sides. Scoreless until the hour, with just a yellow card for 901's Marlon to talk of in the first half, OC took the lead through a very close range effort from Brian Ilovski. Ilovski took a knock in the process but picked himself up to see out the game, which resumed with another OC goal on the break, this time from burly striker Thomas Amang. Noe Meza went close twice in stoppage time but the visitors saw the game out to take the 2-0 win. The next two games - Tampa Bay Rowdies at Pittsburgh Riverhounds, and Rhode Island FC at home to Charleston Battery, finished scoreless but weren't completely without incident. Riverhounds will be grateful of a point at last following three straight defeats to start the season, and Rhode Island - with an encouraging crowd of almost 4,000 in at Beirne Stadium - were unlucky to lose Conor McGlyn to a second yellow card midway through the second-half, their frustration of a lively Battery attack completed despite that disadvantage. Like Pittsburgh, Colorado Springs Switchbacks had begun the season with three straight defeats and the visit of Sacramento Republic on Saturday threatened to make that four. It took former Northern Colorado Hailstorm man Trevor Amann just five minutes to score on his return to the Centennial State, his fourth in five games, and strike partner Russell Cicerone made it 2-0 on 26 minutes to put the home side in real trouble. Despite half-chances for Tyreek Magee and Ronaldo Damus in the second-half, Switchbacks never really looked like troubling Republic and the 2-0 win put the visitors joint top of the Western Conference with Orange County. San Antonio FC could have joined them there with a win away at Las Vegas Lights, who were easy fodder last season but have completely rebuilt in the off-season under new owner Jose Bautista. After losing their first two games of the season, Lights added two wins over El Paso Locomotive and away at Oakland Roots, and withstood some decent pressure from the visitors to go into the break goalless. Eleven minutes into the second-half, and just after Bura had an effort saved by Raiko Arozarena in the Lights goal, Shawn Smart scored from outside the box to give the home side a lead they held on to until the final whistle, looking like a completely different side to last year's flimsy outfit. New Mexico United have looked good this season without attracting too much attention and a crowd of over 9,000 were at Isotopes Park on Saturday for the visit of El Paso Locomotive. Traditionally good travellers, Locomotive went close in the first two minutes but soon fell behind to a beautiful Marco Micaletto strike seven minutes in. Despite chances for both sides, that's how it stayed to half-time and actually how it stayed until the 81st minute when Joaquin Rivas fired home from inside the box to level the scores. That sparked a furious last ten minutes which saw Justin Dhillon fouled in the box by Zico Bailey, allowing Amando Moreno to give the visitors the lead with just three minutes of normal time remaining. Ample time, though, for Jacobo Reyes to head in an equaliser, setting up a grandstand finish that brought a breakaway winner for New Mexico when Nicky Hernandez finished off a move started by substitute Daniel Bruce. Saturday's final game was a Northern California derby from Hayward, where Oakland Roots hosted Monterey Bay FC in a game which - like the one in Albuquerque - didn't really come alive until the final minutes. There were chances earlier on but both goalkeepers were in good form to ensure it stayed 0-0 until Chase Boone shot home to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. There were no further goals but referee Gerald Flores issued four red cards at the final whistle after a bench-clearing contretemps between the sides, a detail sadly missing from many match reports because, despite the platitudes of commentators, fans very much do want to see this sort of thing... The USL Championship weekend was finished off in Alabama, where Loudoun United were the visitors to Birmingham Legion's Protective Stadium and had much the better of a scoreless first-half before taking the lead through Abdellatif Aboukoura three minutes after the break. The former DC United youth prospect went close a few minutes later but it was Legion who began to pile on the pressure, finally getting back on level terms when Dawson McCartney forced Yanis Leerman to put through his own net on 67 minutes. Tyler Pasher put Birmingham ahead seven minutes later and - after Zach Ryan had gone closest to equalising for Loudoun with a saved header - the job was finished in stoppage time by Mujeeb Murana, his first goal since moving from Houston Dynamo 2 i the off-season. USL League One round-up, April 6 With Chattanooga Red Wolves' home game with Charlotte Independence postponed due to issues with the Red Wolves' pitch, there were just three games in the third-tier USL League One on Saturday, beginning with Richmond Kickers home clash with Central Valley Fuego at City Stadium. A crowd of over 3,500 were given an early fillip when English striker Chandler O'Dwyer scored his second of the season in the eighteenth minute and it finally looked like Kickers might earn their first league win since the beginning of July 2023. Jermaine Jones has begun a rebuilding job at the visitors from Fresno, however, and they weren't going to go without a fight, drawing level just past the half-hour through Robert Coronado after a defensive mishap. Thirteen minutes into the second-half, Fuego went ahead through Zahir Vasquez's headed goal and this seemed to spark the home side into life, equalising three minutes later when Adrian Billhardt finished a smart move, and then taking the lead - and eventually the 3 points - through O'Dwyer's rebound effort eighteen minutes from time. Greenville Triumph have been having no trouble adding to the win column this season and, after knocking out One Knoxville in the US Open Cup last week, had the chance to leapfrog the Tennessee side to go top if they could beat Northern Colorado Hailstorm on home turf at Paladin Stadium on Saturday. Hailstorm traditionally build their sides from the back but have looked vulnerable there this season and are lacking the goal threat of Trevor Amann - rattling in the goals for Sacramento Republic in the USL Championship - to get them out of trouble. So it proved in Greenville as the home side took the lead through a Lyam McKinnon penalty just before the half, going 3-0 up early in the second-half through Leonardo Castro and a second for McKinnon. Hailstorm did get one back when Lucky Opara scored just past the hour but were unable to make further progress, the 3-1 win putting Triumph top of the pile in USL-1. The final game of the USL-1 weekend came from Statesboro where South Georgia Tormenta welcomed Lexington SC to town. Both sides had just one win from four games before kick-off but Tormenta had shown good form in the Open Cup and so were firm favourites going into the match. As it turned out, the odds checkers were spot on, as Tormenta scored three with no reply from a timid Lexington side, goals from Gabriel Rodriguez, Pedro Fonseca (a penalty), and Sebastian Vivas spread out between the eighth and 81st minute. NISA round-up, April 6 The third-tier National Independent Soccer Association finally got their 2024 season underway on Saturday with a pair of games hosted by two of their bigger names. Michigan Stars, fresh off cup heroics which saw them knock out MLS Next Pro's Minnesota United 2 last week, welcomed Savannah Clovers to Romeo High School Stadium on the outskirts of Detroit with the visitors in some disarray and now backed financially by the league itself. The Stars were ahead at the break due to a 32nd minute goal from Praise Maduekwe, his first for the club, but were tied again twelve minutes into the second-half when former Albion San Diego man Corey Lundeen notched. Lundeen then added a second to give Clovers the lead six minutes from time but a frantic finish saw Niels Lellouch and Elias McCloud give Michigan the win. Over on the West Coast, the season's first Los Angeles derby saw Los Angeles Force - now domiciled at Long Beach Community College - welcome new arrivals Irvine Zeta to NISA. Zeta have been in good form in their Open Cup match so far and were given an early break when Ronaldo Pineda - who moved from Albion San Diego in the winter - was shown a red card in the eighteenth minute, but the first-half ended goalless. That lasted until the 68th minute when Zeta found the net through Greg Stratton, doubling their lead four minutes later when Alex Culwell scored. At this point, Force looked dead and buried but Bryan Ortega pulled one back with ten minutes to go, allowing Mexican striker Jose Montes de Oca to tie the game at 2-2 with his 93rd minute strike. MLS Next Pro round-up, April 6-7 The two independent clubs in the third-tier MLS reserve league were not in action this weekend and so there is little to report from MLS Next Pro, save for Ventura County FC - Los Angeles Galaxy's young charges - making it four wins from four games by beating Whitecaps FC 2 on Sunday.
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Apr 9, 2024 16:10
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USL Championship midweek preview There's a pair of midweek games in the USL Championship this week, the first of which - Charleston Battery versus Louisville City at Patriots Point - is televised on CBS tonight. The network will be hoping for another game like Saturday's Louisville versus Indy Eleven spectacular, which finished 5-3 to the home side, and if there are two teams with the firepower to do it in the USL-C Eastern Conference it's these two. Battery started quietly this season with two draws but then exploded into winning form, sweeping a decent New Mexico United aside 4-0 and then winning away at The Miami FC. They were held 0-0 by a spirited Rhode Island FC at the weekend but in Diego Gutierrez and Nick Markanich they have goal threats ready to pounce. Louisville have won four out of four this season and sit top of the Eastern Conference alongside the similarly perfect Detroit City. They've scored an average of three-and-a-half goals per game in doing so and conceded just four, three of them in that televised game on Saturday. Wilson Harris is in stunning form and it wouldn't be a surprise to see him on the scoresheet tonight. The second midweek game is the Florida derby on Thursday night, when Tampa Bay Rowdies travel down to The Miami FC for what is sure to be a spirited affair. Miami have rebuilt their side under new head coach Antonio Nocerino, but haven't always gotten the rewards their attacking play has deserved so far this season, with just one win from five games. Rowdies also have just the one win from their four outings so far, but have looked very lively in front of goal, with the mercurial Cal Jennings always in the thick of things.
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Apr 9, 2024 17:52
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Canadian Premier League Although there have been many attempts to organise a professional national soccer league in Canada, with the first coming as early as 1926 with the establishment of the (admittedly Ontario and Quebec focussed and mostly semi-professional) National Soccer League, the establishment of the Canadian Premier League in 2017 - to begin play two years later - was the first since the NSL collapsed in 1997. In between, the Canadian National Soccer League (1983) and Canadian Soccer League (1987-92) had both tried to bring professional soccer to the masses, with the NSL taking a back seat while those attempts were underway, but professional soccer in Canada has usually meant taking part in US leagues such as the North American Soccer League, A League, and Major League Soccer. Even with the existence of the CPL, Canada's top clubs still play in MLS, with a separate Canadian Championship the only time they cross paths with their CPL equivalents. Talk of a new league began as early as 2013, with Bob Young (owner of the Canadian Football League's Hamilton Tiger-Cats franchise) the prime mover for such a competition. After years of behind the scenes discussion, the league was tentatively agreed at the 2016 AGM of the Canadian Soccer Association, with its first employee hired in November that year. At the 2017 AGM, the Canadian Premier League was formally announced, with ownership groups ratified for Hamilton and Winnipeg, both in association with their cities' CFL operations. The league would operate at a division II level (with the Canadian clubs participating in MLS given division I status), and more teams were accepted in May 2018, with the first - York9 FC, based in the Toronto suburb of North York - unveiled on May 10th. They were followed a week later by Calgary, Alberta, club Cavalry FC, and then by HFX Wanderers (Halifax, Nova Scotia), Valour FC (Winnipeg, Manitoba), and FC Edmonton, an Alberta club who had formerly competed in the second NASL. Further announcements were made in subsequent weeks, with Forge FC (Hamilton, Ontario) and Pacific FC from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, completing the inaugural class of seven. The first match in CPL history took place at Tim Horton's Field in Hamilton, where Forge and York9 drew 1-1. The schedule was split into Spring and Fall seasons, with Cavalry winning and Forge finishing second in both, earning them a two-legged play-off final which was won by the Hamilton outfit. In January 2020, Atletico Ottawa - owned by Spanish club Atletico Madrid - were announced as the first expansion side and the 2020 season was to have kicked off with eight clubs, only for the COVID-19 pandemic to put a stop to things before it could start. A shortened 2020 season was played later in the year, however, with all games played on Prince Edward Island, again won by Forge, this time beating HFX Wanderers in the final. York9 rebranded as York United ahead of the 2021 season, which started late due to further COVID-19 protocols. A full season was played, however, resulting in Pacific beating Forge in a one-off final in Hamilton, a 1-0 win thanks to an Alessandro Hojabrpour sending the title west for the first time. Forge regained their crown in 2022, goals from David Choiniere and new signing Hojabrpour enough to beat Atletico Ottawa 2-0 at TD Place in the nation's capital, but news broke in November that the league would be removing Edmonton from the competition, citing poor performance (they'd finished eighth, seventh, and eighth in their final three seasons), low crowds, and an outdated stadium as the reasons. Their place was taken for the 2023 season by Vancouver FC, a new expansion side based in the Vancouver suburb of Langley, and the eight teams played a regular schedule of 28 games (playing each team home and away twice), with the top five moving on to a complicated play-off series (which has been retained for 2024 and will be explained below). Forge once again made the play-off final, facing Cavalry in front of over 13,000 fans in Hamilton, and carried off their third title with a 2-1 extra-time win after the game had finished 0-0 after ninety minutes. Both Forge and Cavalry (as regular season winners) qualified for the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup as a result, alongside 2023 Canadian Championship winners Vancouver Whitecaps. Average crowds for the 2023 season varied between a low of 1,221 at York United to a high of 5,854 in Halifax, a total average of 3,716 fans per game. 2024 Canadian Premier League preview Eight teams will once again compete for the title of Canada's top team (sort of), with a regular season of 28 games consisting of each side playing their rivals home and away twice. After the end of the regular season in October, the top five will move forwards to the play-offs, which will begin with a clash between fourth and fifth. The winner of that game plays the third place side for the chance to play the loser of a game between first and second. The play-off final will be contested between the winner of the game between first and second, and the winner of the game between the loser of the the game between first and second and the winner of the game between third and fourth/fifth! Both Cavalry and Forge were eliminated in the first round of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup, with Cavalry losing both legs to Orlando City of MLS, going out 6-1 on aggregate, and Forge beaten by Liga MX side Chivas Guadalajara 3-1 at home and 2-1 away, earning more than a few plaudits from neutral onlookers in that second leg. With their overseas ownership and exotic name, Atletico Ottawa are one of those teams it's easy to dislike but they play some of the CPL's best soccer, even if they've only reached the play-offs once in their four-season history. They play at TD Place in Ottawa, formerly home to Ottawa Fury, who played in the second NASL and the USL Championship before US Soccer and CONCACAF outlawed Canadian sides at division II level in order to give the CPL a clean run at that level. Former Kuwait national team manager Carlos Gonzalez has been coach since the beginning of the 2022 season and oversees a team built around creative midfielder Ollie Bassett, a former Northern Ireland youth international who began his career with Yeovil Town in England. Goals chiefly come from Bassett and Canadian striker Samuel Salter, with former Darlington man Kevin dos Santos, Balou Tabla (returning to the club after a spell in Turkey), and last year's young player of the year Matteo de Briane (who has signed from Valour FC) the other players to watch. Calgary is a horse city, home to the famous Calgary Stampede, and Cavalry FC's home stadium at Spruce Meadows is possibly unique in professional soccer in that also hosts several equestrian events throughout the year. The club is owned by the Southern family's Spruce Meadows Sport & Entertainment Group and head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr - a Scouser who played for Swindon Town, Torquay United, and Yeovil Town before moving to the A League's Calgary Storm in 2002 - has been in charge for their entire history. The bulk of the side that finished top of the regular standings last season is still in place, including top scorer Myer Bevan, a New Zealand international, and his Somalian strike partner Ali Musse. Dutchman Daan Klomp, who came through the NAC Breda youth system, and goalkeeper Mario Carducci keep things tidy at the back. Big things are also expected from Diego Gutierrez, signed from Valour FC over the winter. Cavalry used to enjoy a healthy rivalry with FC Edmonton - known as the Al Classico - but since their provincial rivals were closed down they have transferred their main antagonism to Forge FC. Forge FC are the undoubted powerhouse of the CPL, ever-presents in the play-off finals and champions four seasons out of five. Their domination has brought welcome respite to owner Bob Young, whose Hamilton Tiger-Cats franchise haven't won a CFL title since 1999. As with Cavalry's Tommy Wheeldon, Bobby Smyrniotis has been in charge since Forge made their CPL debuts in April 2019, the young Canadian coach having cut his teeth as an assistant at the Olimpiacos academy in 2002-04 before managing League 1 Ontario side Sigma FC for fourteen years. Smyrniotis has an embarrassment of talents at his disposal, although two of last season's crop - young Canadians Manjrekar James and Woobens Pacius - have moved on to Costa Rica's Alajuense SC and MLS side Nashville SC, respectively. Forge have an extremely strong spine, from goalkeeper Triston Henry, through Haitain international centre-back Garven Metsuala, midfielder and captain Kyle Bekker, to top scorer Terran Campbell, and will be very hard to beat again this year. The Forge name comes from Hamilton's industrial past. Based far out east on Nova Scotia, HFX Wanderers are owned by Sports & Entertainment Atlantic, an event management company operated by Derek Martin. Martin was on board with the CPL idea as early as 2016 and got the backing of Halifax City Council a year later, partnering with them to build the Wanderers Grounds, their pop-up stadium in downtown Halifax. Head coach Patrice Gheisar arrived for the 2022 season having coached at League 1 Ontario Vaughn Azzuri for eight years and took Wanderers to a third-place finish last year, although they bowed out of the play-offs at the first hurdle. French midfielder Lorenzo Callegari, who grew up in the Paris Saint-Germain system and made one first team appearance, and centre-back Daniel Nimick both made the 2023 CPL team of the year and Gheisar will hope that Massimo Ferrin can find himself among the goals again. First mooted as Port City FC, Pacific FC are based at Starlight Stadium in Langford, on Vancouver Island, reputedly the third fastest growing city in Canada. Former Danish international midfielder was the man in charge when they took part in the inaugural CPL in 2019 but lasted just a year; current head coach James Merriman took over from ex-Norway international Pa-Moudou Kah in January 2022. The club's ownership is in the hands of SixFive Sports & Entertainment, a self-described football investment group, but Starlight Stadium is owned by the city of Langford and is also home to Rugby Canada. Outside of their title win in 2021, Pacific are usually there or thereabouts at season's end but lost Argentinian midfielder Manny Aparicio to Atletico Ottawa in the close season and will once again rely on the goals of ex-NEC Nijmegen man Ayman Sellouf and Welsh striker Josh Heard, with back-up from creative midfielders Sean Young and defensive rock Thomas Meilleur-Giguere, formerly of Ottawa Fury. Winnipeg isn't exactly a hotbed of soccer, with Manitoba not among the four Canadian provinces to have staged professional soccer in either the NASL or MLS days, but Valour FC are making a decent fist of things as a central Canadian outpost, buoyed by their connection to the CFL's Winnipeg Blue Bombers, twelve times Grey Cup winners, with whom they share the Princess Auto Stadium. The club are named for Valour Road, a street that was home to three Canadian soldiers who died in the First World War and became a memorial to the men, who all received the Victoria Cross, the club's maroon shirts matching the colour of the Victoria Cross ribbon. Head coach Philip Dos Santos has been in charge since 2021 and was formerly an assistant at Vancouver Whitecaps under his brother Marc. He lost goalkeeper Rayane Yesli and promising youngster Matteo de Brienne to Atletico Ottawa, and exciting midfielder Diego Gutierrez to Cavalry, in the winter, but kept hold of English midfielder Kian Williams, a former Leicester City player who spent much of his career in Iceland before signing with Valour last year. Dos Santos has made a number of signings, including former Vancouver man Shaun Hundal, midfielder Zachary Sukunda, and Australian striker Jordi Swibel, and the wholesale changes mean that Pacific could be the surprise team of the season. The league's newest side did not have a stellar first season, finishing one off the bottom and nine points from making the play-offs, but there were nonetheless encouraging signs for Vancouver FC in their debut campaign. They drew an average of 2,774 fans to Willoughby Community Park in Langley for each game, impressive for a side that is very much the second option for soccer fans in Gastown. Like their local rivals on Vancouver Island, the club is owned by SixFive Sports & Entertainment and overseen by former Canadian international Rob Friend, with head coach Afshin Ghotbi, a former Iran national team manager, in place since the formation of the club in November 2022. They lost striker Shaun Hundal to Valour over the winter but have retained the services of Lebanese international midfielder Gabriel Bitar and Haitian striker Mikael Cantave, as well as securing an extended loan deal for Mexican forward Alejandro Diaz. Possibly their most interesting acquisition in the off-season was Grady McDonnell, at sixteen-years-old the youngest Canadian ever to sign a professional deal and an international at under-15, under-16, and under-17 levels with the Republic of Ireland. York United are in a tough spot, the league's least-supported side in the country's most crowded soccer market. Not only do they have to contest with Toronto FC of MLS but there are several well-established amateur and semi-professional sides in the city that compete for their attention. Still, they squeaked into the play-offs last season and won plaudits from neutrals when head coach Martin Nash dropped Mo Babouli, Markiyan Voytsekhovskyy, and Brian Wright when they protested against having to wear rainbow numbers on their shirts in support of the LGBTQ+ community. All three were brought back and Babouli was joint top scorer at the end of the season, alongside Osaze de Rosario and Kevin dos Santos, both of whom left the club over the winter. They also lost Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare to HFX Wanderers but Nash has brought in a trio of new players from overseas in the shape of Mexican centre-back Oswaldo Leon, Chile-born former Canadian international Juan Cordova, and winger Dennis Salanovic, a Liechtenstein international who played in the Spanish fourth tier last season. An honest appraisal of their chances might bring slim pickings but the club are under new, ambitious owners based in Mexico and shouldn't be counted out just yet.
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Apr 10, 2024 17:41
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USL Championship midweek round-up Tuesday's game in the USL Championship between Charleston Battery and Louisville City was televised in prime-time on CBS, the second game of a new deal signed by the league for this season. In Saturday's first TV game, City had beaten Indy Eleven 5-3 in a game with plenty of incident, and with the two teams in action on Tuesday being two of the league's more accomplished outfits, there was plenty of expectation for another cracker at Patriot's Point. A decent midweek crowd were quietened early on when Jorge Gonzalez headed in from a corner to give the visitors the lead, but that lasted for only a minute before Matt Myers equalised after Chris Allan had hit the post. The state of parity lasted for just twelve minutes before the ball hit Kyle Adams's outstretched arm in the box and the referee had little choice but to award the home side a penalty, Nick Markanich dispatching the spot-kick for his second goal of the season. Louisville had played four, won four, before meeting the Battery and so it must have been a great shock when Markanich scored a second, firing into the bottom corner to give Charleston a 3-1 lead. It could have been even worse but City withstood some heavy pressure to make it to half-time with no further incident, and they came out after the break much the better side, going close through Wilson Harris before Taylor Davila restored a one-goal game seven minutes into the half. Rather than sit back, Charleston piled forward in search of a fourth and were awarded a penalty in the 84th minute when goalkeeper Damian Las was late to cut out a cross and collided with Emilio Ycaza. With Markanich having been subbed off, Aaron Molloy stepped up to take the kick but Las guessed right and turned the effort away for a corner. Davila went close towards the end, and Harris fired a free-kick over, but Battery held on to inflict City's first defeat, go top of the Eastern Conference, and give CBS exactly what they were after. Even for a game played at Florida International University's soccer stadium rather than their cavernous football arena, the sub-1,000 crowd at The Miami FC last night for their Florida derby with Tampa Bay Rowdies has to be disappointing and you question the wisdom of playing it on a Thursday night. Still, that didn't affect the Rowdies too much, sustained early pressure resulting in an own goal by Samuel Biek to give the visitors the lead in the 21st minute, although the goal looked to result from trying to keep it away from an offside Cal Jennings and VAR probably would have ruled it out. Jennings himself found the net on 39 minutes, heading home a Blake Bodily cross, and then Bodily shot home from distance in stoppage time, a top corner thwacker giving the Rowdies a 3-0 half-time lead. Miami, who made some roster moves this week with the aim of improving their misfiring new side, grabbed one back two minutes after the break when Rocco Genzano tapped in, but Jennings scored his second from a fast breaking move to restore the three-goal advantage just five minutes later. To their credit, Miami never gave up and Allen Gavilanes scored an almost indentical goal to Bodily's effort to make it 4-2 with thirty-five minutes still to play, but a howler from home 'keeper Danny Gagliardi allowed Manny Artega in to put Rowdies 5-2 up on 62 minutes. There was still plenty of soccer to play but a second yellow card for Miami's Manuel Botta ended the home side's hopes of getting back in the game, which ended 5-2 after Gagliardi made some smart saves.
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Apr 12, 2024 11:09
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USL Championship preview, April 13-14 The second-tier USL Championship weekend looks a little light this week, with just nine games thanks to two fixtures being moved to midweek. They resulted in wins for Charleston Battery over Louisville City in prime-time on CBS, and for Tampa Bay Rowdies away at The Miami FC, lighting the touch paper at the top of the Eastern Conference, although the unbeaten Detroit City have a week off and will have to keep their powder dry for next week's match with Oakland Roots. The USL-C weekend kicks off at 9pm (BST) in Leesburg, Virginia, where Loudoun United face a Memphis 901 side yet to get into any kind of rhythm this season. The home are packed with exciting young talent, with Zach Ryan and Kalil ElMedkhar always lively and dangerous up front, and on paper it looks like a solid home win. Next up is Indy Eleven versus Charleston Battery at midnight, with the visitors having gone top of the Eastern Conference by beating the previously imperious Louisville City on Tuesday night. Indy have brought in a clutch of new players up front but it's yet to have any concrete effect and they should be very wary of a Battery side that look like they're just getting started. Rhode Island FC have made a cautious start to existence at Beirne Stadium, their home in suburban Providence and will be looking at the 2024 record of visitors Pittsburgh Riverhounds with some confusion ahead of their 0.30am kick-off on Saturday. The Riverhounds have not coped well at all with the loss of five key players over the winter and with two of those - 2023 MVP Albert Dikwa and midfielder Marc Ybarra - having joined the expansion side, it's sure to be spirited affair in New England. 2022 champions San Antonio FC have started the season well but were beaten at a revitalised Las Vegas Lights last week. This week they welcome high-lfying Orange County SC to Toyota Field at 1.30am for a clash of two sides that you would expect will be among the top four in the Western Conference come season's end. Unfortunately, with the Texans wearing a black and grey striped home shirt, it's unlikely we'll get to see OC's amazing black strip this week... All the USL games are shown live on YouTube but it's unlikely that the viewing figures for the visit of Oakland Roots to El Paso Locomotive will trouble the view-counter too much, given the home side's dreadful record at their Southwest University Park stadium, even against an Oakland team that have scored just three goals in give games this season. That's a 2am kick-off and there are two games starting an hour later in northern California, where Monterey Bay FC welcome Las Vegas Lights, and FC Tulsa visit Sacramento Republic. I write it every week but the Lights have completely turned things around under new owner Jose Bautista and new head coach Dennis Sanchez, while Monterey just look okay. Sacramento look much more than okay, especially with Trevor Amann in great form up front, his partnership with Russell Cicerone paying the dividends you'd expect from a pair of top finishers. Tulsa's season hasn't really gotten started yet but if ever there was a time to make an impact, it's this match. Saturday's final game in USL-C sees reigning champions Phoenix Rising welcome Colorado Springs Switchbacks to Arizona for a 3.30am kick-off. While Rising haven't exactly gotten their defence of the title off to a running start, their visitors are enjoying a rotten season so far, with four defeats from four games. They've only managed to score one goal in those outings so it's clear where the problem lies; what's not so clear is if they have the firepower in the squad to arrest the slide, especially having lost last season's top scorer Romario Williams to Hartford Athletic over the winter. The USL Championship weekend finishes on Sunday with the visit of Birmingham Legion to North Carolina FC. Both club are still feeling their way into the 2024 season but the home side can be reasonably content with their start after being elevated from USL League One in the off-season, and Legion managed a good win at home to Loudoun United last week. Canadian Premier League preview, April 13-14 It's opening day in the Canadian Premier League, a nominally division II tier league north of the border but whose relative qualities to the USL Championship are yet to be conclusively tested. The first day fixtures are an interesting bunch, with an Ontario derby at 6pm (BST) as Atletico Ottawa face York United, and the 9pm clash of last season's top two in Hamilton, where Forge FC welcome Cavalry FC, the standouts. Ottawa have recruited heavily over the winter and seem to be building something of a superclub (or at least attempting to), while York are one of the league's lesser lights. Otaawa are always worth watching due to the mercurial talents of Ollie Bassett and it's hard to see past a home win here. The same might be true of the latter clash, especially with the visitors missing last season's top scorer Myers Bevan, who has opted to return to New Zealand instead of reporting for duty. Forge have won four of the five CPL titles so far and they'll be keen to lay down a marker against their nearest (historical) rivals. Over on Vancouver Island, a midnight kick-off sees Pacific FC take on HFX Wanderers, a journey of almost 4,000 miles for any intrepid away fans. The visitors from Nova Scotia look to be one of the league's best organised clubs and will be looking to make their on-field results match that this season, but Pacific - the only club other than Forge to have won the CPL - can never be underestimated, especially on home turf. The opening weekend's final game also comes from British Columbia, with Vancouver FC home clash with Winnipeg's Valour FC kicking off at midnight on Sunday. The home side managed to finish one off the bottom in their debut season and have lost their top scorer over the winter. They have a clutch of new arrivals, however, and are quite the unknown quantity. Their season-opener against a club who are usually there or thereabouts come season's end will be a good test of their future ambitions. USL League One preview, April 12-13 The third-tier USL League One weekend kicks off tonight in Tennessee as One Knoxville welcome Union Omaha to Regal Stadium for an 11.30pm (BST) kick-off. The home side won their first three league games before their US Open Cup loss to Greenville Triumph, who subsequently leapfrogged them in the USL-1 table (although with a game more played). The visitors also have a perfect league record this season, although they have played just one league game so far. An hour later, Greenville Triumph put their unbeaten record on the line when they visit near-neighbours Charlotte Independence. The home side have won one and lost one so far this season and welcome USL Championship expansion side Rhode Island FC to American legion Memorial Stadium in the Open Cup on Tuesday but first they have to get past Rick Wright's table-toppers who have so far only been frustrated by a solid Forward Madison defence. The Wisconsin side are involved in the first of Saturday's games when Richmond Kickers travel to Forward Madison having won their first league game for nine months last week. Madison are yet to lose this season, with a win and two draws, but bowed out of the Open Cup in their last fixture and so will look ripe for the taking by a Kickers side never short on attacking flair. The weekend's final game in USL-1 comes from California, a 3.30am kick-off showcasing the questionable talents of Central Valley Fuego and Chattanooga Red Wolves. The visitors are having a difficult season so far, with their CHI Memorial Stadium out of use for the time being, but they will travel with some confidence to Fresno to face a Fuegos side that hasn't clicked yet under new head coach Jermaine Jones. NISA preview, April 13-14 he NISA news this week was dominated by revelations about the low pay structure found in that league, a story which has some way to run. On field, week two begins tonight in Atlanta, where Georgia FC - already renamed and under new management since their unveiling as Georgia Lions over the winter - face Daytona beach side Club de Lyon at Silverbacks Park, a 10pm (BST) kick-off if you fancy tuning in on NISA+. There are two games on Saturday, the first of which sees another crisis club in Savannah Clovers (for whom the league have pledged to cover the wage bill) at home to Maryland Bobcats, a league mainstay and probably worth better than this competition. Los Angeles Force drew 2-2 with new local rivals Irvine Zeta last week and will welcome another expansion side to Long Beach Community College at 3am on Saturday in the shape of Arizona Monsoon. Monsoon lost their first ever game - a US Open Cup defeat to fourth-tier Lubbock Matadors three weeks ago - but are an unknown quantity, with a side made up laregly of local amateur and college recruits. The weekend's final game is another of the many Los Angeles derbies that will take place this season and sees Irvine Zeta - who share the Championship Soccer Stadium with USL Championship side Orange County SC - welcome another new club, Capo FC. Like Arizona, Capo lost their first match to fourth-tier opposition (the Sasha Kljestan-enhanced Des Moines Menace), but build on almost two decades of organisation as a youth and amateur organisation. Zeta have looked impressive so far, though, and a home win looks a banker.
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Apr 12, 2024 11:20
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Forge FC are fuckfaces and their owner is a league founder/primary investor, so they get way more concessions than everyone else. Al Classico was a one-sided rivalry; the eddies could only score 1 goal in all of their matchups.
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Apr 13, 2024 21:09
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