Roo Report: Can they do it on a cold night in Richmond?
VENN
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Over 2,800 Richmond supporters braced the cold Wednesday night as the Kickers (3-2-0, 9pts) defeated Union Omaha (1-2-0, 3pts) 1-0 at City Stadium.
Fans arrived bundled up for the 7 p.m. kickoff for the unseasonably chilly tilt. With a quick turnaround for Saturday’s match at league-leading FC Naples (3-0-2, 11pts), claiming three points at home against defending champions was a must.
Richmond came out firing, as a 2nd minute cross from Matt Bolduc found Josh Kirkland, leading to a quality chance on goal. Union Omaha Goalkeeper Rashid Nuhu parried the shot away for a corner.
Richmond dominated early, as they attacked down the right side with ease. Kirkland and Simon Fitch both put chances on goal, but to no avail. Following multiple set pieces and moments of offensive pressure, James Vaughn had a strong effort that just eclipsed the crossbar and went out for a goal kick in the 12th minute.
From there, Union Omaha began to find their legs. In the 19th minute, a corner led to a strong retrieval from Richmond Goalkeeper and Co-Player of the Match James Sneddon. Just minutes later, a quick Union Omaha counterattack led to a chance in front of the net for Forward Aaron Gomez, but the back heel flick bled just wide of the far post.
Omaha wouldn’t stop there. In the 32nd minute, a free kick from beyond the box appeared to be headed on goal before Sneddon leaped and parried the chance off the bar.
For the next half hour of gametime, midfielders battled for possession and jockeyed for positioning. It wasn’t just the air feeling nippy. The game picked up in physicality in search of an opener.
In the 77th minute, a yellow card was issued to Union Omaha after a free kick was launched into Omaha Midfielder Mark Bronnik, who would not distance himself from the spot in an effort to delay a Kickers counterattack. The display of gamesmanship was returned just 10 minutes later when Richmond Defender Hayden Anderson was issued a yellow of his own.
It was then that Richmond found the winner. Simon Fitch waded through the midfield to fire off a shot from beyond the box, which was parried away by Nuhu. Forward Emiliano Terzaghi chased down the loose ball and connected with Darwin Espinal for a sliding effort that found the back of the net. Putting the Kickers ahead 1-0 in the 81st minute, which would end up being the final score.
The theme of the night was the strong Richmond back line. Co-Player of the Match Griffin Garnett played a strong 90 minutes, winning physical tackles and using his upbringing as a midfielder to facilitate play through the middle. Postgame, Garnett mentioned that an emphasis on communication was key to keeping the Roo’s first clean sheet of the season.
Head Coach Darren Sawatzky was similarly pleased with the squad’s communication. After last week’s match, Sawatzky mentioned that the Kickers had to do a better job of keeping other teams off the score sheet. His club responded, and Richmond picked up their first win against the Owls since 2022. The defending champs could not do it on a cold night in Richmond.
Sawatzky has a tall order ahead of him. FC Naples is enjoying early success after joining USL League 1 this season. So far, the club has only conceded one goal over five matches. Naples is yet to lose with a record of 3-2-0, and the team did not play on Wednesday. The league leaders will be well-rested, as the Kickers have just two days to travel and ready themselves after a hard-fought victory.
The Kickers will return to City Stadium on April 19 to take on Westchester SC at 6 p.m.
