3 Days to Home Opener
April 15, 2015 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Penn FC News Release
HARRISBURG, PA- On Saturday, April 18th, the Harrisburg City Islanders (0-2-0) will host FC Montreal (0-2-0) at Skyline Sports Complex. The home crowd will welcome the Islanders back to City Island for the first time since the Isles' magical run to the 2014 USL PRO championship match.
Harrisburg is off to a rocky start after falling to their in-state rival Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the first leg of the Keystone Derby by a 5-2 line before mustering just one shot on goal in a shutout loss to the Charleston Battery last week.
FC Montreal, one of eight new teams to the USL this season is comprised of the U-18 and U-23 teams of the Montreal Impact. The match on Saturday will be their first and only trip to Skyline Sports Complex this season.
FC Montreal will hit the road for the first time this season after dropping a pair of decisions on their home turf-the first a 2-0 loss to fellow Canadian side Toronto FC II followed by a 3-0 defeat to the Rochester Rhinos. The biggest question mark for Montreal is whether they can develop scoring chances on their opponent's half of the field, where they have only challenged the keeper twice this season, failing to put a shot on goal against Toronto.
The Islanders failed to score in a 1-0 loss at Montreal last season, though this will be their first meeting as league foes as FC Montreal joined USL as an expansion club this year. Nick Noble, the Islanders veteran goalkeeper, will be key in getting the defense back on track; while Midfielder Yann Ekra, who has produced half of the Islanders' scoring output this season, will be determined to create opportunities for the home side this weekend.
There is good news for the Islanders, however, as Felipe Martins, who netted the lone goal in last year's meeting, was traded to the New York Red Bulls in January. Martins' 19th minute tally proved to be enough as the Isles struggled to find scoring opportunities until the 73rd minute, when Jimmy McLaughlin's potential equalizer hit the far post.
"After playing twice on the road and not getting the results we wanted we are looking forward to playing our first home match this Saturday" Islanders Head Coach, Bill Becher added, "Montreal will be a good opponent, but we are ready and excited to get a big win in front of an even bigger crowd on the Island."
This USL showdown will kick off Saturday, April 18 th at 7:00 PM and the gates will open at 5:30 PM, where fans will help honor former Islander, Jason Pelletier and enjoy a Capital Blue Cross schedule magnet giveaway to the first 1,000 fans.
Additionally, stop by the Beer Garden for Happy Hour from 5:30 p.m. until kickoff! Enjoy Coors Light and Heineken for $3 ($4 at kickoff) and Blue Moon for $4 ($5 at kickoff).
Faulkner Subaru will be hosting the Islanders first "Bark in the Park" featuring the Speranza Animal Rescue and kids can enjoy the FREE Tiki's Kids Cove where they can get their face painted and jump on Tiki's Jumping Jungle sponsored by Walter's Services.
Finally, don't forget to join us post game at the Federal Taphouse (234 N. 2nd Street Downtown Harrisburg) and meet the Islanders coaches and players shortly after the match!
Season tickets for the 2015 City Islanders' season are still available! For information and to buy tickets for this match and all other City Islanders' matches visit CityIslanders.com or call 717-441-GOAL(4625).
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