Jäger Cup Preview: Hounds at Detroit City FC

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USL Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC

Jäger Cup Preview: Hounds at Detroit City FC

April 24, 2025 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC News Release


For the first time ever, the Riverhounds will contest three official competitions in the same calendar year, and the team's opening match in the 2025 USL Jägermeister Cup will come on the road against an all-too-familiar foe, Detroit City FC.

This is the first of four Group Stage matches for the Hounds in the Jägermeister Cup; and our Cup primer has all the information fans need about this new competition. But even in a match that doesn't count in the USL Championship standings, the Hounds are looking to get a road win, something they have done just once in five away matches thus far in all competitions.

Detroit's Keyworth Stadium has been the site of some hard-fought matches between the hosts and Hounds, and all three have resulted in low-scoring draws: 1-1 in 2022 and 0-0 in each of the past two seasons.

For the Hounds, simply having a full week between matches was a luxury after a number of players continue their recovery from injuries. Bertin Jacquesson remains questionable but could once again be in the 18 as he comes back from a preseason hamstring injury, as head coach Bob Lilley tries to manage his players' workload with key league and Open Cup matches looming to begin May. Luke Biasi also is available, as his one-match suspension for being sent off last week against Loudoun will be served in the next league match, May 3 vs. North Carolina.

Detroit has been off to another strong start this season behind a prolific start for South Africa striker Darren Smith. The Cape Town native, who signed with Detroit in the offseason after playing the top divisions in Finland and Morocco, has six goals in seven matches to share the USL Championship scoring lead with Loudoun's Abdellatif Aboukoura, who scored the winning goal in the Hounds' loss last Saturday.

In their second season being coached by former Premier League striker Danny Dichio, Detroit is off to a 5-1-2 start with the lone loss coming on the road at Louisville. Like the Hounds, Detroit also advanced to the U.S. Open Cup Round of 32, meaning Dichio also will have considerations of player workload management to consider entering a busy May.

The 4 p.m. kickoff will be shown live on SportsNet Pittsburgh ahead of their late-night coverage of Pittsburgh Pirates baseball on their West Coast swing. ESPN+ will have the live stream of the match, and fans who can't catch it live will be able to catch replays at 3 a.m. and 1 p.m. Sunday on SportsNet Pittsburgh, as well as multiple re-airings on SportsNet Pittsburgh Plus over the weekend.

Match Info

USL Jägermeister Cup Group Stage

Riverhounds vs. Detroit City FC

Date: Saturday, April 26

Time: 4 p.m.

Location: Keyworth Stadium, Hamtramck, Mich.

Odds: Not available

TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh

Streaming: ESPN+

Live statistics: USL Championship Match Center

Live updates: @RiverhoundsSC on X/Twitter

Match hashtags: #DETvPIT and #Grittsburgh

Check out the Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Statistics

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