WHO: Bethlehem Steel, 5W-4D-10L, 19 points, 12th place Eastern Conference

WHAT: A regular season USL Championship match

WHEN: Saturday, July 20, 2019, 7:00 p.m.

WHERE: The center of the earth’s core, Louisville Slugger Field, 401 E. Main Street, Louisville, Kentucky 40202

WATCH: I know it’s gonna be hot, y’all. I know. But you should go anyway. Kids get free popsicles (while supplies last, which, knowing my own kids, probably won’t be very long!)! Plus, if Nuestros Morados can actually play a physically demanding game like soccer in that kind of weather, we owe it to them to watch it happen. But if you can’t make it because you’ve literally melted into the pavement like the Nazis in Raiders of the Lost Ark, then you can still watch it on TV on WBKI, listen on some AM radio station, and stream it on ESPN+.

MARCH:

Join us and the Lou City Tailgaters for all your pre-match festivity needs! Tailgating typically starts around four (4) hours prior to kickoff but you may find a few die-hards out there earlier. The tailgate is supporter run and supporter funded. We recommend BYOB and food contributions. If you do partake we ask that you contribute to the general fund. The main tailgate is located at the corner of N Preston St and E Witherspoon St in the Riverside Parking Cobalt Lot. The Coopers are joined here by several other SGs, so come say hello to everyone!

About 30-40 minutes prior to kickoff we’ll start the March to the Match. Join us as we march around the tailgate lot, up Preston St, and into the east entrance. Flags will be waving, smoke will be popping, and we’ll be chanting and singing the whole way!

After the match concludes, we have beers at Against the Grain which is conveniently located right outside the Slugger Field gate. Make sure you ask for a pint of the Coopers rotating charity tap! $0.50 from every pour (on home match days) goes to Shirley’s Way, a most excellent local charity helping families of those afflicted with cancer.

WHO, AGAIN? Bethlehem Steel, which is a team made up of one angry Irishman and a continuously revolving cast of Philadelphia Union Academy kids and ne’er-do-wells from their MLS roster. The Union are away in Chicago this weekend so I don’t expect to see as many of their bottom-of-the-roster players as we saw up in Chester the last time these two clubs met.

Bethlehem have never won at Slugger, and they shouldn’t win tomorrow. That said, Chevany Willis and Issa Rayyan are players that need to be accounted for. Brendan Burke tends to do a very good job given the situation he’s in, so the team will be ready to play. The Steel have also had a nice 10 or so day break since they melted down in the last 10-15 minutes last Wednesday against New York Red Bulls 2 and gave up a 2 goal lead to lose 3-4.

Louisville City frankly needs these three points. They’re ten points out of first place, and four points out of fourth. The top four spots, you’ll remember, get home playoff games. Yes, there are still 15 games left in the season, and things could change, but at this point City has got to start beating the teams that it should beat, and Bethlehem is a team City should beat.

They’ll be without Paolo DelPiccolo, of course, whose status hasn’t really been addressed by the club as far as I know but he’s reportedly out until probably September. Napo wasn’t in the 18 last week in Ottawa but I can’t imagine he’s dispensable anymore, and should partner well with Niall McCabe or Magnus Rasmussen and Speedy Williams in midfield, assuming that’s the look we’re going to see. Shaun Francis needs to have a better game on the wing. I’ll be more than a little surprised if Antoine Hoppenot doesn’t start this game. Morados’ ethos is to score early and often, and it would make sense to me to put the guys who are best at scoring goals on the field so that can happen. Antoine, Luke Spencer and Brian Ownby should be those guys, even if Maggie is the guy leading the charge in that category this season.

City needs this win, and need to keep winning to make things interesting in the East. Let’s show up, be loud, and make it happen.

VAMOS MORADOS