SANDY, Utah (Thursday, September 21, 2017) – Real Monarchs SLC (17-5-5, 56 points, USL #1 / West #1) return to action this weekend with a Friday night regular-season contest at Rio Tinto Stadium with kickoff set for 7:00 pm MT against Orange County SC.
For the first time in 2017, Head Coach Mark Briggs’ side come into the match on a three-game winless skid as the club looks to return to winning ways after a home loss to San Antonio, a scoreless draw with last place Timbers 2 before falling 0-2 at Phoenix last weekend. Despite the three-game winless streak, the Monarchs remain in the driver’s seat for the club’s first-ever USL Regular Season Championship, sitting four points clear at the summit of the West standings with five matches remaining, and two points ahead of East leader Louisville City.
In the first meeting of the season between the Monarchs and Orange County SC, the Monarchs earned itself a gritty 1-0 road win on June 3, thanks to a first minute strike from FW Chandler Hoffman, a staunch defensive effort and a first half-stoppage time penalty kick save from GK Connor Sparrow.
The Monarchs enter Saturday with a league-best 11-1-1 home mark at Rio Tinto Stadium, where the team has outscored its opponents 32-12 in 2017. This weekend’s match against Orange County will be the first at Rio Tinto Stadium in two weeks, after travelling to Portland and Phoenix on previous weekends. After Friday’s match, the Monarchs will travel to Sacramento Republic FC on Wednesday and at Reno 1868 FC next Saturday, Sept. 30 to close out the 2017 road slate, before returning home for the final two Saturdays of the 2017 USL reg. season at home against Vancouver Whitecaps 2 and LA Galaxy II on Oct. 7 and 14, respectively.
The Monarchs still have several marks within reach during the final five games of the 2017 campaign, including clinching the No. 1 overall seed in the 2017 postseason, as well as seeking to establish new USL records for wins (22), points (70) and goals (62+, as Reno broke all-time mark in Wednesday’s 3-0 win). The Monarchs currently hold the chance to eclipse the points total by one, with 71 points still available if the club were to win its remaining five contests.
How to Follow Real Monarchs SLC vs Orange County SC – Fri., Sept. 22, 2017
• Coverage Begins: 7:00 p.m. MT
• Local Stream:www.RSL.com or www.USLsoccer.com w/ Landon Southwick and Taran Meyer
• English Radio: n/a
• Spanish Radio: n/a
• Online: The @RealMonarchs Twitter feed provides updates
Game Notes for Friday’s Monarchs vs Orange County SC game Available Online
The link to the Adobe PDF version of the Game Guide in advance of Friday’s contest between Real Monarchs SLC and Orange County SC is available HERE.
