Match Preview: FC Motown (A)
Match Day Information
FC Motown vs FC Monmouth
Competition: National Premier Soccer League (NPSL)
Kickoff Date/Time: Saturday, May 19th, 2018 – 6 p.m. ET
Venue: Ranger Stadium, Drew University, Madison, NJ (Directions)
Live Updates: @WeAreMonmouth (No live stream of this match)
FC Monmouth will match up against FC Motown on the road this Saturday at Drew University in the second match of their inaugural NPSL season. Monmouth has not played a match since their season-opening 2-0 defeat to Atlantic City FC on Wednesday, May 9th.
FC Motown enters the match coming off of a loss suffered on Wednesday night. Penn FC, of the United Soccer League (USL), defeated Motown in the Second Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup by a score of 3-1. FC Motown advanced past the First Round of the cup for the first time in their history via a 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls U-23 squad just a week earlier.
For FC Motown, Saturday’s fixture is their first NPSL match of the season.
A key player to look out for on Saturday will be FC Motown’s Dilly Duka. A Major League Soccer journeyman and former United States Men’s National Team academy player, Duka has been hot in recent matches. The midfielder scored both a game-winning brace versus the Red Bulls U-23’s and the only FC Motown goal in the defeat to Penn FC.
Team News
The FC Monmouth squad that took on Atlantic City last week could be joined by some new faces on Saturday. Midfielders George Akampeke and Julian Valerio, who previously played for FC Motown, were unavailable to feature against Atlantic City but may be eligible for selection.
Defender Andy Martinez and Brian Hawkins are still recovering from injury, and will be unavailable for Saturday's match.
Julian Valerio for FC Monmouth. Credits: Mike Langish Photography
About FC Motown
Though they were founded in 2012, the match at home to FC Monmouth will kick-off FC Motown’s second season in the NPSL’s Keystone Conference.
In 2017, under the alias Clarkstown SC Eagles, FC Motown played their first season in the NPSL. They finished the regular season with a record of 6-2-2 and went on to win the Keystone Conference with a 3-1 victory over New Jersey Copa FC in the playoff final. A 6-3 win against Kingston Stockade FC saw Motown qualify for the Regional Final, where they were eventually defeated 3-1 by the NPSL 2017 Champions Elm City Express.
FC Motown is managed by former New York Red Bull defender Šaćir Hot.
Go further in previewing Saturday’s game versus FC Motown by listening to Episode #4 of the FC Monmouth Podcast!