Louisville City FC coach and sporting director John Hackworth met with reporters Monday to preview the week leading up to Saturday’s matchup with Group E-leading Indy Eleven. Ahead of kickoff at 8 p.m. inside Lynn Family Stadium, here’s what we learned from the conversation…
A moment to reflect
Four days after defeating Sporting KC II by a 1-0 score, LouCity was dealt a 2-1 defeat. A weekend without a game followed, allowing time for the boys in purple to more closely scrutinize their performances having going 1-3 since the USL Championship restarted play.
“We just tried to evaluate where we were and work on the things that we felt like we had to, coming into this game versus Indy,” Hackworth said. “Sometimes you want a game right away, but in this case, we used the time wisely to do a little bit of reflection and hard-core looking at ourselves.”
With six points and a -2 goal differential, LouCity sits fourth of four teams in the Group table, with the top two advancing to the playoffs. Both Indy (15 points) and Saint Louis FC (9 points) suffered defeats over LouCity’s weekend off. The boys in purple also have a pair of games in hand on the Eleven.
“Look, you just have to stay steady,” Hackworth said. “Trust your process and reinforce that what we do and how we do it on a daily basis is so important. That’s what we’ve been doing. The guys are mature and experienced players and they know it as well, but it is difficult.”
Praying to the ‘soccer gods’
The boys in purple are frustrated. And that’s understandable for an organization that in five seasons of play has never finished short of the conference final.
“You can’t be the club that we are, and have the results go against us the way they have, and not feel frustration at not only our own performance, but some of the fortune that comes in sports in general,” Hackworth said. “We certainly haven’t had the soccer gods on our side so far and we hope to bring them back.”
Possession and shots taken have leaned heavily LouCity’s way in its recent defeats. The common culprit is some head-scratching turnovers, including one in the 83rd minute of the last Sporting KC II game that led directly to the game-winning goal.
A familiar foe
The Eleven and LouCity have met in friendlies and cup play since their earlier days. Beginning in 2018, the Louisville-Indianapolis Proximity Association Football Contest was born when Indy shifted to the USL, with the rivalry peaking in the 2019 Eastern Conference final won in come-from-behind fashion by LouCity.
All four meetings between LouCity and Indy — two home, two away at Lucas Oil Stadium — will occur between Saturday and Sept. 16 in a key stretch that could determine a playoff spot. It’s a new chapter in LIPAFC lore.
“At the end of the day, we’re all going to all have a really good knowledge of each other and that just makes for tricky tactical contests,” Hackworth said. “Can you make a slight tweak here or there in tactics or do you believe in what you’re doing so strongly that if you do it the right way, you’re going to come out on the positive end of it?”
Two stellar strikers
The star power starts up top for both LouCity and Indy Eleven as on Saturday, the visitors bring to town the USL’s top scorer, Tyler Pasher, who offers a devastating left foot with six goals already in 2020.
On LouCity’s side is the former Golden Boot winner, Cameron Lancaster, who has accounted for all his club’s scoring in its last two games. A leaping header defeated Sporting KC II in the first meeting, and he buried a beautiful free kick to equalize before the boys in purple conceded in the loss to end the doubleheader.
“They’re different types of goal scorers for sure,” Hackworth said. “Pasher likes to check into the midfield and then looks to get behind. He’s good at combination plays and he’s just been a really good finisher this year… Whereas Cam is more of a goal scorer’s goal scorer. Around the box, he’s deadly.
“…They’re different kinds of goal scorers, but certainly there will be a lot of focus on those players coming into this matchup.”
