Orlando City B vs. Richmond Kickers: Preview and How to Watch

Orlando City B (8-6-12, 36 points) takes the field again this afternoon as the young Lions kick off a doubleheader at Orlando City Stadium against the Richmond Kickers (5-13-8, 23 points) at 4:30 p.m. The young Lions will be looking to extend their undefeated streak to 13 while working to solidify their playoff position.

OCB has gone 12 consecutive games without a loss, dating back to June 23. While most of those early games were draws, the Lions have started to turn those draws into wins, and have won three of their last five. This run has lifted OCB into sixth place in the USL’s Eastern Conference. Most recently, the young Lions drew 1-1 against Bethlehem Steel FC.

The opponent today, the Richmond Kickers, have had an uncharacteristically bad year, having only gained 23 points from 26 games. That places them in 14th in the East and 12 points behind FC Cincinnati for the final playoff spot. After falling 1-0 to the Lions on Aug. 12, the Kickers won two straight, defeating Toronto FC II and the Charleston Battery. On Saturday night, they lost 3-0 to the Charlotte Independence.

OCB is 1-1-1 in three all-time meetings with Richmond. Last year, the Kickers and OCB faced off twice, resulting in a 1-1 draw in Melbourne and a 1-0 win in Richmond for the home side. Michael Cox scored the lone goal in the draw in Melbourne. Current OCB player Scott Thomsen scored the only goal for for Richmond in the young Lions’ loss while playing for the Kickers. Hadji Barry scored the goal of the meeting last month won by Orlando.

“[Richmond] was really good when we played up there a month ago. They’ve got some really good attacking players. Lots of mobility, lots of pace in forward areas,” OCB Head Coach Anthony Pulis said. “They’re a decent side. In my opinion, they’re a lot better than what their results have shown. We need to make sure we’re ready for them.”

The game was originally scheduled to be played tonight at 7:30 p.m. but, due to Hurricane Irma approaching Central Florida, the game has been moved up to 4:30 p.m. to make room for the Pride, whose game is moving from Saturday night to tonight at 8. Those holding tickets to either game are welcome to attend both. The OCB match is general admission, while ticket holders for the Pride match will get to sit in their seats for the nightcap.

The Lions will be without star midfielder Pierre Da Silva, who will be serving a one-game suspension. During first-half stoppage time last week against the Bethlehem Steel, Da Silva was booked for a rough challenge on Steel defender Aaron Jones. After reviewing the tackle, the Independent Discipline Panel decided to issue Da Silva a one-game suspension. This is the teenager’s second suspension this season after he served a three-game suspension for violent conduct during the closing minutes of the game against FC Cincinnati on July 1.

Most Recent Lineups

Orlando City B (8/31 vs Bethlehem Steel): Jake Fenlason; Zach Ellis-Hayden,Zach Carroll, Conor Donovan, Kevin Alston; Jordan Schweitzer, Lewis Neal, Fernando Timbo, Pierre Da Silva; Ben Polk, Albert Dikwa.

Richmond Kickers (9/2 at Charlotte Independence): Travis Worra; Alex Lee, Braeden Troyer, William Yomby, Mallan Roberts; Chris Durkin, Matt Bolduc, Oscar Umar, Yudai Imura, Luiz Fernando; Sunny Jane.

How to Watch

The 4:30 p.m. ET kickoff from Orlando City Stadium can be streamed from the official USL YouTube page or at orlandocitysc.com/live. For rapid reaction and live updates, follow @OrlandoCityB and @TheManeLand on Twitter.