Pittsburgh Riverhounds U23

Pittsburgh Riverhounds U23
Founded 2013
Stadium Highmark Stadium
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Stadium
capacity		 3,500
Owner Tuffy Shallenberger
Manager James McCaig
League Premier Development League
2016 5th, Great Lakes Division
Playoffs: DNQ
Website Club home page

Pittsburgh Riverhounds U-23 is an American soccer team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania which began play with the 2014 PDL season. The team is affiliated with and will serve as a feeder team for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the USL. The team plays in the Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes Division.[1] The team plays their home games at Highmark Stadium.[2][3] The current manager of the team is James McCaig.[4][5]

History

Founding

On November 26, 2013 it was announced that the Pittsburgh Riverhounds had secured a Premier Development League franchise that would begin play during the 2014 PDL season. At the time, no official name was unveiled but it was indicated that team would play under the Riverhounds umbrella.[2] Riverhounds CEO Jason Kutney stated that the purpose of the team would be to provide standout local college players a place to play in the summer, something that they had not previously had. Kutney also believed that providing the opportunity to stay fit and play soccer in the region year-round would attract more players to the area in addition to providing players with the opportunity to be observed by USL and Major League Soccer scouts. At this time, it was also announced that the team would play their home matches at Highmark Stadium, likely as double-headers with their parent-club's matches[3]

2014

The club's first head coach was Oz Bakirdan who was also head coach of the Illinois Central College Cougars at the time.[6] The club's first match was scheduled for May 23, 2014 on the road against Chicago Fire Premier at Toyota Park.[7][8] The Riverhounds went on to lose the match 1-2.[9] The club played its inaugural home match at Highmark Stadium on June 4, 2013. The match ended in defeat also, with the Riverhounds losing 0-4 to the Michigan Bucks.[10] The Riverhounds U23 finished the season in last place in the Great Lakes Division with 7 points from 14 matches. For their inaugural season, Geordhy Pantophlet was the team's top scorer with 7 points (3 goals, 1 assist) in 10 matches played.[11] During the club's first season, at least 12 players from local colleges appeared on the 26-man roster.[12]

2015

Prior to the 2015 PDL season, Josh Rife replaced Oz Bakirdan as head coach.[5] Riverhounds U23 finished the season slightly improved over the previous with one more win and draw. However, the team again finished 6th in the Great Lakes Division and missed the playoffs.[13] Lucas Silva and Jason Twum led the team in scoring with two goals each.[14]

2016

In April 2016 it was announced that Rife was replaced as head coach by Englishman and former Arsenal F.C. youth coach James McCaig. Riverhounds U23 again competed in the Great Lakes Conference of the Central Division. The club opened its season on May 25, 2016 against the Michigan Bucks.[4]

Seasons

Season Division League Record (W-L-D) Points Regular Season Playoffs Open Cup Top Scorer(s) Reference
2014
4
 USL PDL
2-11-1
7
 6th, Great Lakes Did not qualify Not eligible Netherlands Geordhy Pantophlet (3)
[15]
2015
4
 USL PDL
3-9-2
11
 6th, Great Lakes Did not qualify Did not qualify Brazil Lucas Silva
England Jason Twum (2)
[13]
2016
4
 USL PDL
2-8-4
10
 5th, Great Lakes Did not qualify Did not qualify United States Anthony Virgara (3)

Stadium

Roster

Current roster

As of May 23, 2015 [16][17]
Number Position Player Nation
31 Goalkeeper Daniel Lynd      United States
33 Defender Kevin Fielden      United States
37 Midfielder Kai Marshall      United States
38 Defender Stephane Pierre      United States
39 Forward Lewis Osborne      England
40 Forward Carson Gray      United States
45 Midfielder Leighton Richards      United States
46 Midfielder Patrick Dixon      Australia
47 Defender Cody West      United States
48 Midfielder Zachary McNabb      United States
49 Midfielder Steven Munn      United States
50 Midfielder Andrew Herr      United States
55 Midfielder Matt Essig      United States
56 Defender Nigel Seidu      England
57 Midfielder Jason Twum      England
60 Midfielder Duncan Corbett      Scotland
— Defender Mark Ashby      United States
— Midfielder Romeo Charron       Switzerland
— Defender Bryce Cregan      United States
— Defender Arthur Duchesne      France
— Defender Francio Henry      Jamaica
— Midfielder Angelo Jack      United States
— Midfielder Jeffrey Kyei      Germany
— Midfielder Robbie Mertz      United States
— Goalkeeper Max Swartz      United States
— Forward Lucas Silva      Brazil
— Midfielder Brandon Walbert      United States
— Goalkeeper Mack Wheeler      United States

Managerial history

# Head Coach Seasons W L T App W L T W L Honors
PDL Regular Season PDL Playoffs U.S. Open Cup
1 Oz Bakirdan[15] 2014 2 11 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
2 Josh Rife[13] 2015 3 9 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 James McCaig 2016 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Notable former U23 players

Players who have signed for the Riverhound's first team:

Players who have signed for other professional clubs:

References

  1. ↑ "PDL 2014 Standings". United Soccer Leagues. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Riverhounds Add PDL Franchise". uslsoccer.com. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  3. 1 2 Veronica, Nick (26 November 2013). "Riverhounds become Major League Soccer affiliate". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  4. 1 2 "HOUNDS APPOINT MCCAIG TO LEAD PDL TEAM". Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  5. 1 2 Nightingale, Richard. "A MESSAGE FROM TEAM PRESIDENT RICHARD NIGHTINGALE". Steel Army. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Rife Appointed As Riverhounds U23 Coach". USL PDL. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  7. ↑ Snyder, Larry. "Pittsburgh Riverhounds Sign Six Before Heading To Houston For Preseason Camp". cityofchampionssports.com. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  8. ↑ "2014 PDL Schedule". United Soccer Leagues. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
  9. ↑ "Pittsburgh Riverhounds U23 at Chicago Fire U-23 1:2". PDL. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "RIVERHOUNDS U-23 TEAM DROPS INAUGURAL MATCH AT HIGHMARK STADIUM TO MICHIGAN BUCKS". Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  11. ↑ "2014 Stats". PDL. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  12. ↑ Powell, Mark. "Panthers become Riverhounds for the summer". The Pitt News. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  13. 1 2 3 "2015 PDL Standings". PDL. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
  14. ↑ "2015 Stats". USL PDL. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  15. 1 2 "2014 PDL Standings". PDL. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
  16. ↑ "2015 Roster". USL. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  17. ↑ "Current Roster". Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
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