Memphis 901 FC Rides Momentum into Friday Night Match vs. Charleston
September 15, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Memphis 901 FC News Release
Memphis, Tenn. – After a playoff-clinching 4-0 victory over Atlanta United 2 at Fifth Third Bank Stadium on September 7, Memphis 901 FC returns to AutoZone Park to host Charleston Battery on Friday, September 16 at 7 p.m.
Memphis moved to 17-7-4 and guaranteed their second consecutive USL Championship Playoff appearance last Wednesday thanks to forward Phillip Goodrum’s first career hat trick along with a late game goal from Nashville SC transfer Handwalla Bwana in his first start with the club.
Memphis sits at second in the Eastern Conference Standings with 55 points, five points behind No. 1 Louisville City FC with six matches remaining in the regular season.
The Charleston Battery have been eliminated from playoff contention with a 6-17-6 record the season, but are coming off a 2-1 home victory over the third place Tampa Bay Rowdies.
The Beale Street Boys look to use the momentum from last week’s convincing victory to earn the series sweep over Charleston. Memphis previously defeated the Battery 2-0 on May 6 with goals from Luiz Fernando and Jeremy Kelly.
Even with the playoffs clinched, Memphis 901 FC will look to keep their foot on the gas in the home stretch of the season with the top four spots in the Eastern Conference still tightly contested.
Quotables
“We have to make sure we’re reset. Charleston is coming off of back-to-back huge wins. Against Tampa Bay, it wasn’t just a smash-and-grab fluke. They dominated the game. And Tampa is, for my money, one of the best teams in this league and they deserved to win. It’ll be a very difficult game. They’re good, they’re organized, they have high energy, they press well and they transition well. We just need to make sure we’re prepared and ready to go and try to push and get three points at home.” – Ben Pirmann
“The motivation will be there. What we need to play for is, we’re at home. We need to right that ship at home and have a really complete performance and push for the three points. The second piece is we are in the playoffs, but our next goal is we want to get a home playoff game. We’re far from achieving that. We’ve got six matches left to do it. You have to win just to keep stability in our division. We just want to keep pushing and get as many points as possible.” – Ben Pirmann
History in the Making..
Memphis 901 FC is currently enjoying their best season since its start in the Bluff City in 2019. After a playoff appearance last season, the club has established itself as a title contender. The battle at the top of the Eastern Conference has only intensified entering the final stretch of the season. 901 FC sits at second in the Eastern Conference with six matches remaining in the regular season, including a September 23 rematch against No. 1 Louisville City FC.
The Race for the Golden Boot…
Phillip Goodrum has been the jet fuel as the man up top for one of the most dangerous attacking teams in the league. The forward has netted 17 goals this season, currently sitting in second in the usl championship and has been named player of the week twice this season. Memphis is unbeaten in 13 of the 14 matches Goodrum found the back of the net, including his first career hat trick in a 4-0 victory over atlanta united 2. The Tennessee native scored five goals in two matches against his former club this season.
Goals Scored Leaderboard:
1 – Milan Iloski – 19
2 – Phillip Goodrum – 17
3 – Hadji Barry – 16
T4 – Ottar Magnus Karlsson – 15
T4 – Leo Fernandes – 15
The Distributors…
Memphis 901 FC boasts one of the league’s most dynamic duos in the midfield with Aaron Molloy and Jeremy Kelly. Molloy has made his hay as the squad’s primary kicktaker, leading the USL with 10 assists. Kelly has been at the center of the 901 FC attack since moving from the back line this season, currently tied for fourth most assists in the USL with eight. Kelly was tabbed as the USL Championship Player of the Month in May after a stretch of three goals and three assists in four victories for 901 FC.
Assists Leaderboard:
1 – Aaron Molloy – 10
T2 – Cameron Lindley – 9
T2 – Kenardo Forbes – 9
T2 – Hadji Berry – 9
T2 – Antoine Hoppenot – 8
T6 – Jeremy Kelly – 8
Set Piece Superstar…
Aaron Molloy has made his name as one of the most dangerous legs from the set piece in the USL championship. Seven of the midfielder’s 10 assists this season have come off of the set piece, but not before scoring his first goal of the season on a free kick strike from 20 yards out against Oakland roots on march 19. Molloy currently sits fourth in chances created with 64 this season and first in the league standings with his 10 assists.
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