Match Info
Riverhounds (2-0-0) vs. Detroit City FC (1-1-0)
Date: Saturday, March 26
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Keyworth Stadium, Hamtramck, Mich.
Odds: Hounds -110 / Draw +230 / Detroit +260 (BetRivers.com)
TV: 22 The Point
Streaming: ESPN+
Live statistics: USL Championship Match Center
Live updates: @RiverhoundsSC on Twitter
Match hashtag: #DETvPIT
HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (March 26, 2022) — The Hounds go on the road for the second time this season and make their first-ever trip to Keyworth Stadium, where USL Championship newcomers Detroit City FC await for an afternoon matchup at 4 p.m.
It will be the first competitive meeting between the two sides, who did meet at Highmark Stadium early in the 2021 preseason when Detroit City was still a member of NISA. The then-lower-division side acquitted itself well, as the teams played to a 0-0 draw in a match that featured heavy squad rotation by both teams.
Fast-forward a year later, and Detroit has already shown it belongs in the Championship, hanging tough in a 1-0 loss to Western contenders San Antonio and picking up their first USL win last week in their home opener, 1-0 against the Charleston Battery. Antoine Hoppenot netted the winning goal against Charleston, and the veteran will try once again to be a Hounds’ nemesis, just as he has been previously in his career with stops in Harrisburg, Cincinnati, Tampa Bay and Louisville.
The Hounds, on the other hand, boast a record of two wins from two games, but coach Bob Lilley has been the first to admit that while points are nice, the performances have been far from convincing. Though the Hounds did manage to hold 61.5 percent of possession in their last match, a 2-1 win over Hartford, they still managed just four shots on goal for the second straight game. Add in that both of the first two opponents, Memphis and Hartford, finished the game with 10 men, and the Hounds were left expecting more.
One positive for the Hounds has been the distribution of scoring, with five players — Dane Kelly, Russell Cicerone, Albert Dikwa, Robby Dambrot and Kenardo Forbes — each having one goal. That serves as an indicator of how dangerous the team can be, but they need to remain dynamic in their movement to keep the opposing defense off balance.
Lastly, the Hounds have a chance to begin a year 3-0-0 for the first time in 23 seasons of competition. The team’s last attempt to do so came in 2020, but a late Tyler Pasher goal sent the Hounds to a 1-0 defeat against Indy Eleven early in the pandemic-shortened season.
The game will be televised locally on 22 The Point (WPNT) and streamed via ESPN+. Temperatures are expected to be chilly, maxing out around 40 for the day, but early morning show showers should have pushed out of the Detroit area well before kickoff.
