The Hounds improved to 2-0-1 in the preseason by knocking off their lone MLS opponent of the exhibition schedule, FC Cincinnati.
For more on the 2-1 win, check out the Match Recap.
The team (as well as the preseason blog!) will take a day off Sunday before training resumes to start Preseason Week 3 on Monday.
Departure time was noon sharp for the Hounds, who left Highmark Stadium and will be spending the night in Cincinnati ahead of tomorrow’s preseason matchup with MLS club FC Cincinnati at 1:30 p.m.
Before hitting the road, the Hounds got in an abridged, 90-minute session on the field that looked more like a regular pre-match walkthrough. The team wrapped with a short-field, 11-on-11 game, but keeping everyone healthy and fresh for Cincinnati was the clear priority.
One new trialist, center back Christian Dean, joined practice. Dean previously played for the Vancouver Whitecaps and Chicago Fire of MLS, as well as in USL with the Vancouver Whitecaps 2. He was among the players traveling to Cincinnati, having cleared league-mandated quarantine protocol before participating in training.
The Hounds made it back onto the training field for the hottest day of preseason yet, with temperatures rising into the 80s (and possibly hotter on the Highmark turf).
Perhaps that factored into the decision that there would be no full-field work, but more likely it was preordained as part of the coaching staff’s focus for the day on maintaining possession and making smart decisions.
The team spent a large part of the session working in a half-field setting on just those things, with the team building from the back and keeping control of the ball in anticipation of being challenged with pressure Saturday in Cincinnati. Training did conclude with some 4-on-3 moves on goal, again with an emphasis on decision making in where to move the ball in attack.
The team will log a final, morning session tomorrow to get in their last workout before boarding the bus to cross Ohio for the first road preseason match of 2021.
After training, new Hounds center back Mekeil Williams stuck around for a quick chat about the team, adjusting to Pittsburgh, and a few non-soccer topics, as well:
As usual, the team had a recovery day off from training after playing yesterday afternoon. Even so, a number of players made their way out to the field for some light jogging and to kick the ball around on their own after team meetings concluded.
Next up is the team’s only scheduled meeting with an MLS opponent when they travel to FC Cincinnati for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff Saturday. It will be a role reversal for the Hounds, who on Tuesday were the “big club” against NISA opposition from Detroit City FC. This time, they will be the team trying to punch up a weight class facing a top-division team, and head coach Bob Lilley acknowledged as much.
“I don’t think we underestimated (Detroit City). They’ve won in their league, and they’ve been going at it a little longer than we have; we were a little bit late starting (preseason). For sure, you get a really good effort because they’re stepping up,” Lilley said.
The coach continued: “I know our guys may bring a little more intensity to Cincinnati, just to be able to compete. Hopefully, our quality of play goes up, as well. … Our job is to go to Cincinnati and get ourselves into the game the way Detroit City did here. Work hard, be competitive, fight to get into the game, and then anything could happen, even though we’re early in our preseason and Cincinnati, it will be their final prep game.”
Lilley was generally pleased after the Detroit City match, though his biggest disappointment was the team’s inability to “step on the throat” of the opposition when they had clear control of the match in the first half.
Still, that didn’t cloud the coach’s big-picture view of preparing for the May 8 season opener. Recognizing that his team is just two matches into a six-game preseason slate, he made clear the expectation isn’t for the team to be firing on all cylinders now, but to continue making progress over the next 30 days.
The Hounds’ second preseason match ended in a 0-0 draw against NISA Fall Champion Detroit City FC this afternoon at Highmark Stadium.
For more from the game, visit the Match Recap.
A new week — and the only two-game week — of the preseason saw the Hounds hit the field for a session slightly less than the scheduled two hours with Detroit City FC of the NISA arriving tomorrow for a match at Highmark Stadium.
Intensity picked up to begin the second week, and that came as no surprise to the players who are familiar with playing for Bob Lilley. Many of those are returners to the Hounds. But Alex Dixon, a newcomer to Pittsburgh, played for Lilley in Rochester and has the perspective to compare playing for the coach then and now.
“He’s evolved quite a bit, but the principles are still the same,” Dixon said. “Everybody attacks. Everybody defends. We’re all expected to work from the first guy on the team sheet to the last guy. It doesn’t matter who it is. That stays the same, and that’s what I expected coming here.”
Dixon drew Lilley’s ire at one point for taking a bad approach to the ball during an attacking drill, showing that neither veteran nor newcomer is immune to criticism. But Dixon’s next ball served across drew praise, as the experienced attacker made the fine-tuning necessary to make the next play.
That sort of attention to detail is standard for Lilley’s teams, and tomorrow’s preseason match will show how quickly the players can put their instructions into practice.
“I think the team’s coming along pretty quickly. The guys are still getting to know each other and learn our different styles of play and different personalities. It’s going to take some time, but I think we’re off to a good start,” Dixon said.
Also of note was the introduction of recently signed forward Russell Cicerone, who was lively on the field after missing the first few days of preseason. He is expected to play against Detroit City. Defender Rennico Clarke, formerly of the Charleston Battery, also has joined the Hounds on trial, bringing the totals on the field to 18 players under contract and seven working to earn a roster spot.
Miss any of the posts from the first week of preseason? Check out the Week 1 Preseason Blog here.
