Cary, NC (September 17, 2020)- North Carolina FC will face Charlotte Independence on Saturday, September 19 at Sahlen’s Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park at 7 p.m. as part of 919 Soccer Saturday. The date of the match 9/19 matches the Raleigh area code, 919, on a day where NCFC takes on the team’s biggest North Carolina rival. Ahead of the NCFC match, the North Carolina Courage will play the Orlando Pride at 1 p.m. at Sahlen’s Stadium on CBS. North Carolina FC’s match will air on ESPN+ and WRAL-2.
Dave Sarachan’s team will look to build off of the momentum from their win against Memphis 901 FC on Sunday and defeat the Independence for the first time this season. The last time the two teams met, USL all-time leading goal scorer and Charlotte Independence striker Dane Kelly secured a hat-trick which helped the Independence take all three points.
Nazmi Albadawi led his team in a night of resilience on Sunday when NCFC came from behind to win the match. Albadawi scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute thanks to an assist from Steven Miller. Conor Donovan and Hadji Barry each scored a goal in the match, both of which were the player’s first goal in an NCFC uniform.
“Our key to success against Charlotte will be keeping our shape and being clinical in front of goal,” said NCFC Youth Academy product, DJ Taylor. “These are two main things we have struggled to do during this whole season, but we are getting better at it, as we saw in our last result. As long as we keep our shape and score goals, we can win against Charlotte.”
Players to Watch Presented by Aetna:
North Carolina FC- #11 Robert Kristo
The tallest man on the field for North Carolina FC has proven to be difficult to mark on set pieces and crosses. Using his height to the team’s advantage could result in more goals for NCFC. Kristo also assisted an important goal in his team’s last match to Hadji Barry.
Charlotte Independence- #9 Dane Kelly
The USL’s all-time leading scorer did what he does best against North Carolina FC, scoring three goals to earn a hat-trick. Already known as a dangerous striker, the Jamaican keeps proving his talent with 10 total goals this season. Alex Tambakis and the NCFC backline will need to mark this talented forward.
Cary, NC (September 17, 2020)- North Carolina FC will face Charlotte Independence on Saturday, September 19 at Sahlen’s Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park at 7 p.m. as part of 919 Soccer Saturday. The date of the match 9/19 matches the Raleigh area code, 919, on a day where NCFC takes on the team’s biggest North Carolina rival. Ahead of the NCFC match, the North Carolina Courage will play the Orlando Pride at 1 p.m. at Sahlen’s Stadium on CBS. North Carolina FC’s match will air on ESPN+ and WRAL-2.
Dave Sarachan’s team will look to build off of the momentum from their win against Memphis 901 FC on Sunday and defeat the Independence for the first time this season. The last time the two teams met, USL all-time leading goal scorer and Charlotte Independence striker Dane Kelly secured a hat-trick which helped the Independence take all three points.
Nazmi Albadawi led his team in a night of resilience on Sunday when NCFC came from behind to win the match. Albadawi scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute thanks to an assist from Steven Miller. Conor Donovan and Hadji Barry each scored a goal in the match, both of which were the player’s first goal in an NCFC uniform.
“Our key to success against Charlotte will be keeping our shape and being clinical in front of goal,” said NCFC Youth Academy product, DJ Taylor. “These are two main things we have struggled to do during this whole season, but we are getting better at it, as we saw in our last result. As long as we keep our shape and score goals, we can win against Charlotte.”
Players to Watch Presented by Aetna:
North Carolina FC- #11 Robert Kristo
The tallest man on the field for North Carolina FC has proven to be difficult to mark on set pieces and crosses. Using his height to the team’s advantage could result in more goals for NCFC. Kristo also assisted an important goal in his team’s last match to Hadji Barry.
Charlotte Independence- #9 Dane Kelly
The USL’s all-time leading scorer did what he does best against North Carolina FC, scoring three goals to earn a hat-trick. Already known as a dangerous striker, the Jamaican keeps proving his talent with 10 total goals this season. Alex Tambakis and the NCFC backline will need to mark this talented forward.
