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Riverhounds battle Richmond
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop can be reached via e-mail or at 412-320-7889.
“They are good again this season,” Riverhounds coach Kai Haaskivi said. “They tied the U.S. National Team, 2-2, on Thursday. That’s impressive.”
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at the University of Richmond Stadium in Richmond, Va. The two teams did not play against each other last year, and their most recent meeting was Sept. 2, 2000, when they played to a 1-1 tie.
Richmond (2-0-1, 9 pts) returns most of its starting lineup from last season, except for goalkeeper Mike McGinty, who is playing in the MLS. The Kickers will be without several of their key players tonight because of injury or suspension. Leading scorer Kevin Jeffrey will play, however. He scored 20 goals and had 10 assists last season.
The Riverhounds won’t have their full lineup either, but their biggest problem is getting their players who are coming off indoor seasons used to playing outdoors for 90 minutes.
“We have several players who aren’t yet match fit,” Haaskivi said. “We need to get them time in the lineup, but we can’t play them the entire time. So, we don’t have our full lineup yet.”
| Riverhounds (1-2-1, 5 pts) vs. Richmond Kickers (2-0-1, 9 pts) |
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Haaskivi plans to get forward Ali Ngon back in action. He hasn’t played this season because of a foot injury, but is expected to see some playing time tonight. That’s good news, because the Riverhounds need to get their offensive attack going.
“I realize it takes time to develop a cohesiveness on offense,” Haaskivi said. “That is part of the growing pains early in the season. This is just a tough part of the schedule with teams such as Richmond and Rochester and Charleston. But, it won’t get any easier, either.”
Despite that, it’s still too early to panic.
“I can’t even spell panic,” said Haaskivi, who is from Finland. “That’s the advantage to having English as my second language. I know it will take time. I am willing to be patient.”
A bright spot for Haaskivi has been his defense and the play of his midfielders, who have only allowed four goals in four games.
“I am happy with our defense,” Haaskivi said. “We haven’t let teams score much on us. The offense will come. I would be worried if we weren’t defending well, but I believe we have one of the most solid defenses in the league.”
