After a late penalty save secured a shutout draw at Loudoun United FC, Rhode Island FC returns home this weekend to conclude the month of August with its second and final regular season meeting vs. Birmingham Legion FC. The last time the two teams met at Protective Stadium, Noah Fuson scored the fastest goal in club history and Zachary Herivaux became the first-ever RIFC substitute to score a brace as the Ocean State club came away with a 3-1 win. Now, the two clubs sit just one point separated from each other in a tight Eastern Conference table. Ahead of Saturday’s intraconference matchup, here is everything you need to know.
AT A GLANCE
Date | Saturday, August 31
Kickoff | 7:30 PM ET
Location | Beirne Stadium, Smithfield, RI
Broadcast | NESN+, ESPN+
Social | @rhodeislandfc (X, Instagram, Facebook)
Match Hashtag | #RIvsBHM
BIRMINGHAM LEGION FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (2): 1-Matt Van Oekel, 18-Trevor Spangenberg
DEFENDERS (6): 3-Phanuel Kavita, 4-Ramiz Hamouda, 13-Jake Rufe, 20-AJ Paterson, 21-Alex Crognale, 33-Moses Mensah
MIDFIELDERS (7): 5-Mikey Lopez, 8-Kobe Hernandez-Foster, 11-Dawson McCartney, 17-Matthew Corcoran, 19-Enzo Martinez, 28-Miguel Perez, 47-Finn Calloway
FORWARDS (6): 7-Diba Nwegbo, 10-Prosper Kasim, 15-Tyler Pasher, 23-Preston Tabort Etaka, 29-Stéfano Pinho, 77-Mohamed Buya Turay
Looking to Rebound
After being shutout in two straight losses at home against Eastern Conference opponents who are in the thick of the playoff race, Birmingham Legion FC will be desperate to return to form on Saturday against an RIFC side who sit just one point behind The Three Sparks in the Eastern Conference standings. In total, Tommy Soehn’s side has amassed just one point in its last three home matches, and has earned just one win in five tries at Protective Stadium dating back to the club’s first meeting with RIFC on July 17. In its latest match, despite outshooting Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC 14-11, Birmingham allowed three goals in the final 15 minutes of the first half and was unable to dig its way out and ultimately fell to its second-straight shutout defeat. The match marked only the third time Birmingham has suffered back-to-back losses, and the first time this season it has happened at home.
Success on the Road
Luckily for the Alabama club, the road has been more kind. Birmingham has picked up 21 of its 35 points, six of its 10 wins and just three of its 10 losses this season away from Protective Stadium, and is unbeaten in eight of its last nine road matches dating back to early April. The last time the Eastern Conference side was on the road, it came away with a gritty 2-1 road win in a cross-country trip to Monterey Bay F.C., holding onto a narrow one-goal lead in the late stages despite being down a man for the final 26 minutes of the match. Against RIFC, Birmingham will need to find a way to tap into its road success and get on the right end of the first-half score sheet for the first time since the win in Monterey Bay, after letting up four goals in the first 45 minutes across its last two matches.
Pinho Party
Stéfano Pinho not only leads Birmingham with six goals this season, but his name on the scoresheet is synonymous with winning for the Alabama club. In total Pinho has netted four of his six total goals in Birmingham’s last three wins. The forward bagged his first brace of the season in a 3-0 win over Orange County SC on July 27, and found the scoresheet again two matches later in the win over Monterey Bay. So far this season, The Three Sparks are unbeaten in six matches when the 33-year-old Brazilian veteran has scored or assisted.
RHODE ISLAND FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Koke Vegas, 22-Jackson Lee, 30-Nate Silveira
DEFENDERS (7): 2-Nathan Messer, 3-Stephen Turnbull, 4-Collin Smith, 5-Grant Stoneman, 6-Morris Duggan, 15-Frank Nodarse, 16-Gabriel Alves, 24-Karifa Yao
MIDFIELDERS (11): 12-Clay Holstad, 17-Jojea Kwizera, 18-Joe Brito, 19-Kevin Vang, 20-Zachary Herivaux, 21-Kofi Twumasi, 23-Marc Ybarra, 25-Kevin Orduy, 28-Conor McGlynn, 77-Amos Shapiro-Thompson, 80-Isaac Angking
FORWARDS (4): 9-JJ Williams, 10-Chico, 11-Noah Fuson, 14-Mark Doyle
Brick Wall in the Back
Despite putting on a dominant attacking display in the first half that saw Rhode Island FC outshoot Loudoun United FC 9-2, including three shots on target to Loudoun’s one, a large part of the reason the Ocean State club was able to protect its seventh clean sheet of the season was due to a Team of the Week performance from goalkeeper Koke Vegas. The Spaniard made several highlight-reel saves during the match, including a 58th-minute goalmouth scramble where he managed to swat what looked to be a certain goal off of the line, and an 80th-minute curling ball that he denied with a full-stretch diving save. The most important stop, however, came in the first minute of second-half stoppage time, when Vegas’ diving save denied Loudoun’s leading scorer, Zach Ryan, from taking a late lead from the penalty spot. The stop was Vegas’ first penalty kick save for RIFC, and complimented a performance that matched his season-high five saves during RIFC’s inaugural 1-1 draw vs. New Mexico United on March 16.
Keeping the Momentum Going
Since RIFC took down Birmingham in Alabama on July 17, Head Coach Khano Smith’s side has continued its historic momentum, falling to only one loss in six matches since. The club has maintained an unbeaten record in 11 of its last 12 matches dating back to June 12. Saturday’s scoreless draw at Loudoun marked the second shutout in three matches for the Ocean State club, who has not conceded more than one goal since its 3-2 win at Miami FC on July 13. In total, RIFC has conceded more than once in just eight of its 25 matches, playing to five scoreless draws, keeping seven clean sheets and conceding just one goal in its last three matches. On the other end, RIFC’s 37 goals scored ranks fifth in the USL Championship. During Saturday’s match, RIFC leading scorer Albert Dikwa “Chico” fired off five shots, tying the season-high for a single match in club history.
The Playoff Race Continues
Once again, Rhode Island FC finds itself in the thick of an intense Eastern Conference playoff race after a valuable point in its last match kept Kahno Smith’s men in the hunt for a top four finish. Although the Ocean State club is yet to break into the top four teams in the Eastern Conference, it remains just three points out of the final playoff hosting spot heading into another crucial matchweek. RIFC has been within touching distance of fourth place for the better part of a month after a successful summer stretch launched the club up from as low as 11th on the table to as high as sixth. Currently, RIFC sits just one point back from sixth-place Birmingham and three points back from fourth-place Detroit City FC. If other results on the weekend go its way, RIFC could see itself leapfrog Birmingham and finish the weekend in fourth place with three points at home against its Eastern Conference counterpart.