USL Richmond Kickers

Kickers Host FC Montreal Saturday

Published on June 12, 2015 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Richmond Kickers News Release


RICHMOND, VA - (Friday, June 12, 2015) - The Richmond Kickers return to City Stadium this Saturday, June 13 to host FC Montreal and Food Truck Fest at 7:00 p.m. Richmond's iconic food trucks will headline the event with local favorites such as Boom Boom Boca, Opa, Tikiz, Sticks Kebob Shop, Gregory's Grill, Rita's Water Ice and Mister Softee scheduled to attend. The gates open at 5:30 p.m. with live music by the Acoustic Roots and craft beer on tap and tickets are on sale now at RichmondKickers.com.

Saturday's match closes the two-game series between the Kickers and FC Montreal who met earlier this season in Montreal when the visitors edged the home side 1-0. The club's prolific goal scorer Matthew Delicate notched his 200th point in a Kickers uniform with the lone goal as a staunch defense weathered 13 shots to post their fourth shutout of the season.

The Kickers return to City Stadium on Saturday after a mid-week 1-1 draw on the road against the Charleston Battery Wednesday night. Conceding an early goal, the Kickers rallied for the equalizer just before the halftime break, courtesy of Samuel Asante to escape Blackbaud Stadium with a point on the road.

Also preparing for their second game in four days, FC Montreal travels to Richmond following a 2-0 loss to Louisville City at Stade Saputo earlier this week. The Bleu-blanc-noir could not recover from an early deficit after allowing a pair of goals before the half hour mark, as they slumped to a 1-8-1 record.

Rivals when the two clubs played in the USL First Division, the Kickers and Montreal met a decade ago when the Kickers dropped a 2-0 loss in Montreal on July 6, 2005. Montreal returned to USL prior to the 2015 season as the second of eight MLS owned and operated clubs, with a roster comprised predominantly of young Quebec players from the Impact U18 and U23 teams.

Players to Watch

Kickers: With his first goal of the season, midfielder Samuel Asante (#28) leveled the score in Charleston to salvage a critical point on the road earlier this week. Now in his second season with the Kickers, the native of Sunyani, Ghana spent the 2013 campaign with the Charlotte Eagles, making 21 appearances en route to the USL Championship match. Jason Yeisley (#17) posted his sixth goal of the 2015 season and added an assist to lead the Kickers to a 2-1 victory against Charlotte last weekend and earning USL Team of the Week honors for the second time. Signing with the Kickers in 2012, the former FC Dallas forward has amassed more than 5,000 minutes over four seasons. In his seventh season in Richmond, 2009 Defender of the Year William Yomby (#2) has started all 12 of 12 regular season games played, leading the team with 1,058 minutes while anchoring the backline in four shutouts. The native of Bafoussam, Cameroon has earned six consecutive USL All-League First Team nominations since his Kickers debut in 2009.

Montreal: Midfielder Fabio Morelli (#72) returned to the FC Montreal starting line up from suspension for Wednesday's match against Louisville. The 20-year old signed his first professional contract prior to the 2015 campaign after spending seven seasons with the Neuchatel Xamax youth academy in Switzerland and two seasons with the Montreal Impact Academy. Former Montreal Impact Academy player Alessandro Riggi (#49) made his professional debut with FC Montreal in the club's inaugural match in March. He has since made nine appearances with the USL newcomers and leads the team with three goals and six points. Louis Beland-Goyette (#58) led the attack that snapped the Charleston Battery's seven-game unbeaten streak when he posted the game-winning goal in the expansion side's first-ever win last month. On loan from the club's official MLS affiliate Montreal Impact, the homegrown midfielder played seven games with the Canadian U20 National Team, starting three of four games in the 2015 CONCACAF U20 Championship earlier this year.

Avery Spence Youth Community Service Award

The fifth annual Avery Spence Youth Community Service Award will be presented at halftime during the Richmond Kickers versus FC Montreal game this Saturday, June 13th. Established to honor Kickers youth player, Avery Spence, who was tragically killed in an automobile accident on May 1, 2011, the Avery Spence Youth Community Service Award recognizes one deserving youth soccer player each year based on criteria including exemplary volunteer involvement, commitment, leadership and athletic and academic achievements.

Kickers President, Board of Directors Rob Ukrop presented the inaugural award to the Spence family on July 8, 2011, to honor Avery's commitment to the Richmond community. A longstanding member of the Richmond Kickers youth club, she started with the Kickers rec program when she was nine years old, progressing with arguably the best girls team in the Kickers Girls Elite program over seven seasons. A committed volunteer, Avery donated countless hours throughout the Richmond community, was in the academic top ten in her class at Manchester High School and was heading to Virginia Tech in the fall to pursue a career in dentistry. Avery had a love for life, sharing her time and talent with kids of all ages.

Past award recipients include former Kickers players Ashley Riefner (University of Richmond), Blayne Fink (Virginia Tech) and Peter Coiley (Virginia Tech).

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from June 12, 2015


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