To put it mildly, it’s been a chaotic week for the Orange & Blue of FC Cincinnati. A midweek match at the Southern tip of the continental United States that never was, leave the guys in an odd position ahead of one of the biggest league matches of the year.
So what can you expect from tomorrow’s derby match down river? Read on to find out.
WHEN
Saturday, July 15th, at 7:30pm
TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE
Traveling supporters are encouraged to sit in the away supporter section at Louisville Slugger Field, and can purchase tickets through the group portal above using group code “FCC2017”.
OPPOSITION
We’ll be renewing the heated River Cities Cup rivalry with downstream rivals Louisville City FC this weekend.
VENUE
Louisville Slugger Field, Louisville, Kentucky
DIRECTIONS
With the Forecastle Festival also taking place Saturday in downtown Louisville, traveling supporters are encouraged to plan ahead and arrive early to Louisville Slugger Field. Parking in the stadium lot on the East side of the stadium will be limited for entry to only those patrons with a game ticket. The lot will open at noon, with cost to park $6. Spaces will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, and fans are asked to have their tickets ready to show a parking lot attendant upon entry.
The lot West of Slugger Field typically used for the LouCity supporters’ tailgate will not have reserved parking for the LouCity-FC Cincinnati game. A $15 Forecastle Festival parking rate will be in effect.
Should fans arrive at Slugger Field after the East side lot fills — a large crowd is expected for Saturday’s rivalry matchup — several other parking options are available downtown, including the Nucleus Parking Garage on Preston Street, between Market and Jefferson streets. Brandished with a University of Louisville logo, the Nucleus Garage will also require showing a LouCity ticket for entry. Cost is $7, and it opens at 1pm.
Click here for a full map of other off-street garages and lots in downtown Louisville.
FORM
FCC: Despite having to deal with the stress of the travel to and from Miami for a match that ultimately never took place, the postponed Cup match in the midweek did provide some much needed respite for a team that’s played 14 times in two months. And things – for the most part – have been trending upward during that spell. The team has gone 8-3-3 in all competitions during the busy streak. However, as written in previous previews: the struggles have come on the road. FCC will be looking for just our second win on the road this weekend in 8 tries. Heading into the weekend rivalry match, we lie in the playoff spots in 6th place.
LCFC: Thanks to us dumping them out of the Open Cup back in the third round, Louisville’s schedule since we last met has been considerably lighter. That’s come as a further benefit to a team that was already flying high in the league, and currently find themselves in second place in the East with upwards of four matches in-hand compared to those around them in the table. Louisville’s form remained solid, going 3-1-1 over their last five and hold a 13-match undefeated run at the baseball diamond they call home.
COACH
"We are looking forward to playing our regional rivals. We have had two good battles against them already this season, and we expect the same thing this weekend. Our guys are motivated to put in a good performance and we look forward to embracing the derby."
- Head Coach Alan Koch
PLAYERS
FCC: All eyes will fall on one player this weekend: Djiby. The Senegalese striker has added some bite to already hotly contested rivalry between the two regional enemies. And given that he was rested for the botched trip to Florida, he should also be well-rested. For those hoping to see some of the new signings this week – forward Kyle Greig looks the most likely of the trio, but his inclusion remains up in the air. Defensively, question marks will again return to whether centerback Harrison Delbridge will participate given his lack of involvement as of late.
LCFC: Louisville’s solid league position often conceals a fact that they’re not a terribly high-powered attacking side, having scored just 22 goals in 17 matches this year with a 13% conversion rate – not far off from our 20 and 11% -- though they do spread the offensive load around the squad. Nine different players have scored this campaign, led by the trio of Cameron Lancaster (#9), Brian Ownby (#10) and George Davis IV (#22) who all have scored four goals. Also watch out for former FCC striker Luke Spencer (#12), who has added three on the season thus far.
HISTORY
Tomorrow’s River Cities Derby will be our sixth all-time meeting with Louisville, by far the most of any club we’ve faced thus far. And so far, we can lay claim to the edge. Including the Open Cup, we’ve gone 2-1-2 against Louisville and claimed last year’s River Cities Cup on goal differential. So far this year, we drew 1-1 with them at home back in April thanks to an Aodhan Quinn finish against his old side. And we topped them in the Open Cup 1-0 at the end of May on a Djiby finish.
WEATHER
After a rain-drenched trip to Florida in the midweek, our traveling supporters will be happy to see sunny skies in Kentucky tomorrow. Temperatures should hover around 80°F for most of the match, with a near-0% chance of rain expected.
WATCH
This weekend’s match will be broadcast live on Star 64 (WSTR). Most local providers’ station information can be found below:
Over the Air: Channel 64
Cincinnati Bell Fioptics: Channel 11 (SD) or 511 (HD)
Spectrum/TWC (OH): Channel 11 (SD) or 1011 (HD)
Spectrum/TWC (KY): Channel 11 (SD) or 915 (HD)
DirecTV: Channel 64
DISH: Channel 8354
Not in the local viewing area? No problem! Every match in the USL is available to stream as well, and this match is available for free on YouTube.
LISTEN
There will be no away radio broadcast for this weekend's match.
SOCIAL
As is the case every match, you can follow along with the action on our Twitter feed at @fccincinnati. For live looks from before, during and after the match, follow us on Instagramand Snapchat by following 'fccincinnati', too. Halftime and full time updates will also be available on Facebook.
