With Playoff Hopes Fading, Saint Louis FC Needs To Beat San Antonio FC This Saturday

Saint Louis FC is back at World Wide Technology Soccer Park this weekend to face San Antonio FC with the playoff hopes for both clubs on the line. Kickoff for the Saturday August 27th match is scheduled for 7:30 pm.

With six games remaining in the USL season for Saint Louis FC, it is strange that they will face conference foe San Antonio FC for the first team this Saturday at World Wide Technology Soccer Park. Even stranger, the local lads will travel to San Antonio for another meeting in two weeks.

The USL West

Saint Louis FC has fallen into a tie for 11th place with Real Monarchs SLC in the USL West after earning just three points over the last four games. The good news, however, is a win this weekend could put STLFC (7-9-8, 29 points) back in the playoff picture. San Antonio FC is currently sitting in 8th place with 31 points. Swope Park Rangers and Arizona United SC are sitting just behind with 30 points.

Real and Arizona United face each other this weekend. Swope Park takes on LA Galaxy II.

Last Time Out For Saint Louis FC

The start of the Tim Leonard era last week in Kansas City saw Saint Louis FC play more of an attacking style against Swope Park. Patrick Doody made his return to the club while Sam Fink made his return to the starting lineup. Vince Cicciarelli came on for Irvin Herrera up top in the 74th minute and scored the game’s 1st goal five minutes later. Mike Ambersley sent a long ball into Swope Park territory that Cicciarelli ran down when a Ranger defended misplayed the ball back to his own goalkeeper. Cicciarelli took the ball and slipped it past the keeper from the top of the box.

 

How cool was @VinnyyChase with this finish last night? 😎 pic.twitter.com/kHTZ5J7xVI

— Saint Louis FC (@SaintLouisFC) August 22, 2016

Saint Louis FC was unable to secure the three points for the win as Swope Park equalized in the 89th minute after a scramble in front of Ryan Thompson. Thompson made several point-blank saves in the game’s closing minutes to secure the draw.

Who Is San Antonio FC?

If there are any Saint Louis FC fans that need a primer on how important dropped points are in the USL West, they can look to San Antionio FC’s last week of action. SAFC was 14th in the 15-team conference last week. Wins over Seattle Sounders 2 and Arizona United in the last week have the club in sole position of the 8th and final playoff spot as of today.

 

Match Preview: @dpowell6 and @SamMcBride17 talk about the importance of Saturday night’s tilt with @SaintLouisFC. pic.twitter.com/d7EUxH0DyP

— San Antonio FC (@SanAntonioFC) August 25, 2016

Rafa Castillo and Franck Tayou lead San Antonio is scoring with four goals apiece. Tayou’s scoring output has come in the team’s last ten games after the club signed him in June. Tayou led the Major Arena Soccer League in scoring during the 2015-16 season with 47 goals in 20 games was named the league MVP. A native of Cameroon, Tayou represented the United States in two games recently for the U.S. Futsal National Team. For SAFC, Franck was worked into the lineup slowly, coming on as a substitue in eight of his ten games played this season. In the last two matches, he has become a fixture on the field, playing 73 and 87 minutes, respectively.

Midfielder Rafa Castillo has played in 22 of SAFC’s 23 games this season, including all but one minute of the team’s last 720 minutes on the field. Aside from his four goals and an assist on the season, Castillo also leads the club with 50 shots on the season, 20 of them on goal.

It was announced today that SAFC midfielder Sebastien Thuriere was selected to represent Haiti in World Cup 2018 qualifiers against Costa Rica and Jamaica. He will join the Haitian team after this weekend’s match.

What To Expect From Saint Louis FC

With this being the second game in the Tim Leonard era for Saint Louis FC, it’s hard to say what to expect from the club on Saturday night. With another week of training under his belt, it’s likely we see Patrick Doody on the pitch for the opening kickoff. Could Sam Fink see himself starting again? It’s highly possible.

Leonard has emphasized his desire for the team to get things accomplished in the “front third” while taking care of things in the “back third.”

Saint Louis FC coach Tim Leonard talks about his team

 

The window for Saint Louis FC to make the USL playoffs is quickly closing as the regular season winds down. A win on Saturday would be HUGE in the quest to reach that goal.

Irvin Herrera still leads the team, and is third in the USL, with 11 goals on the season. While he hasn’t scored a goal in the team’s last two matches, he did record an assist against Sacramento. After Saturday’s contest, he’ll miss games against Oklahoma City and Cincinnati while representing El Salvador in their attempt to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

With Herrera’s absence approaching, will Leonard try to give more minutes to a different option up top? That will probably depend on how the first 45 minutes on Saturday go.

Goalkeeper Ryan Thompson will also miss the games against Oklahoma City Energy FC and FC Cinncinnati. He will play for Jamaica in World Cup qualification games against Panama and Haiti. Thompson could face SAFC midfielder Sebastien Thuriere in that game against Haiti.

Catch The Action Live

As was the case last season, the better weather towards this part of the USL schedule makes for a hotter Saint Louis FC ticket. 5,453 fans were on hand for STLFC’s last home match against Sacramento.

The weather forecast calls for cloudy skies and a temperature of 84 degrees for game time on Saturday,

Tickets still remain for this Saturday’s match and the club has two great packages for fans. The Sunglasses & Suds pack features 4 General Admission tickets and 4 bottles of beer for $49. The Sun & Family Fun package features 4 General Admission tickets, 4 hot dogs and 4 soft drinks for the same $49. The first 25 fans that purchase the Sun & Family Fun package receive two tickets for a Gateway Arch Sightseeing Cruise.

Already have your tickets to the match? Ride the free Pub 2 Park shuttle from one of four locations in the St. Louis area. Shuttles leave from Smugala’s Pizza, International Tap House in Soulard and Amsterdam Tavern at 6 pm on Saturday night. The shuttle from Hot Shot’s Fenton leaves at 6:45 pm. Shuttle service is presented by JED Transportation and Country Club Limousine.

Watch the Action On Youtube

Every USL match is streamed live through YouTube. Be part of the virtual action through the USL Match Center.

Saint Louis FC vs San Antonio FC 8-27-16

 

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