Greenville Triumph 1, Richmond Kickers 0
RICHMOND KICKERS | 0 | |
GREENVILLE TRIUMPH SC | 1 | 90′ Brown (Evans) |
GREENVILLE, S.C. — The Richmond Kickers (10-7-4, 34 pts) exchanged positions in a top-of-the-table clash with Greenville Triumph SC (10-6-5, 35 pts) after the hosts stole a 1-0 victory in the 90th minute of play.
The first half was a typical Greenville versus Richmond match-up as both sides looked to impose their will through physical play and counterattacking soccer.
Fitzgerald and the defense stood tall as Greenville was limited to only three of seven shots on target and Fitzgerald was there to stop them all.
The Kickers’ best chance to break the stalemate came in the 35th minute from a free kick. Nil Vinyals delivered a curling effort from the left wing to the box that Ethan Bryant got his head on frame, but the midfielder’s header caught too much air and was corralled by the keeper.
In the 47th minute, Zaca Moran launched a lofted cross to the box from near midfield toward Bolanos. Greenville cleared the cross but only so far as Emiliano Terzaghi who quickly chipped the ball back into the box to an open Bolanos. The forward looked to sneak a ball past the keeper as he crashed off his line, but Bolanos’ effort was saved.
Another close-range chance came for the Kickers in the 73rd minute. After winning a corner kick, Bryant served up a piercing cross to the near post where Terzaghi was there to redirect the ball toward goal with a clever flick, but the attempt went just over the crossbar.
The hosts found the breakthrough in the 90th minute. Venton Evans served an in-swinging cross from the right wing to the far post to Nico Brown. Brown caught the cross with the side of his head and deflected it into the net to take the lead.
Richmond had one final chance in the dying seconds of the match. After drawing a foul roughly 30 yards out from goal, Vinyals played a dangerous cross into the box and Bentley rose above his marker and delivered a powerful header on target. Unfortunately for the Kickers, Bentley’s attempt was saved by the keeper and the referee’s final whistle rang out soon after.
The Kickers are back on the road next week to face Central Valley Fuego FC on Saturday, Aug. 20 in Fresno, Calif. Following the match at Fuego, the Kickers will return home on Saturday, Aug. 27 to host defending USL League One champions, Union Omaha. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
During the match against Omaha, the Kickers will celebrate its 1995 Open Cup victory on the 27th anniversary of defeating the El Paso Patriots in the final. The first 500 fans will receive a t-shirt commemorating the win. Tickets are still available at richmondkickers.com/tickets.
Stay up to date with the latest news from the Kickers at RichmondKickers.com and on the official team app.