2020 North Carolina FC season

The 2020 North Carolina FC season is the 14th season for North Carolina FC and its second in the USL Championship, the second-tier professional soccer league in the United States.

North Carolina FC
2020 season
OwnerStephen Malik
Head coachDave Sarachan
StadiumSahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park
Cary, North Carolina
(Capacity: 10,000)
USLGroup G: 3rd
Conference: 10th
USL PlayoffsDid Not Qualify
Top goalscorerLeague: Fortune (6)
All: Fortune (6)
Highest home attendanceLeague/All: 3,515
(March 7 vs. Louisville)
Lowest home attendanceLeague/All: 432
(October 3 vs. Charlotte)
(six home games played without crowd because of COVID-19 pandemic)
Average home league attendance1,974
Biggest winNY 0–3 NC (September 30)
Biggest defeatNC 0–3 CHS (August 19)

The season was suspended March 12 after the opening week because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] It restarted July 11 with a restructured format and schedule, with NCFC's first game scheduled for July 17.[2]

The team partnered with rapper J. Cole's Dreamville Festival for kit sponsorship for the season.[3]

Roster

As of 26 April 2021[4]

No. Position Player Nation
7 MF Pecka  Brazil
10 MF Nazmi Albadawi  Palestine
11 FW Robert Kristo  Bosnia and Herzegovina
15 DF Malick Mbaye  Senegal
-- MF Luis Arriaga  United States
-- MF Nelson Blanco  El Salvador
-- MF Josh Coan  United States
-- DF Max Flick  United States
-- MF Malyk Hamilton  Canada
-- MF Jay Tee Kamara (on loan from Louisville City FC)  Sierra Leone
-- GK Damian Las (on loan from Fulham FC)  United States
-- MF Shermaine Martina  Curaçao
-- DF Nelson Martinez  United States
-- GK Jake McGuire  United States
-- MF Selmir Miscic (on loan from Philadelphia Union)  United States
-- MF Peter Pearson  United States
  1. ^
    North Carolina FC Youth Academy Contract

Competitions

Source:[5]

Friendlies

8 February North Carolina FC v Richmond Kickers Cary, NC
12:30 PM EST Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Note: Result not published.
15 February Charlotte Independence 1–1 North Carolina FC Matthews, NC
2:00 PM EST Report Miller 7' Stadium: Sportsplex at Matthews

USL Championship

Standings — Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts PPG Qualification
1 Charlotte Independence 16 8 4 4 24 22 +2 28 1.75 Advance to USL Championship Playoffs
2 Birmingham Legion FC 16 7 4 5 29 19 +10 25 1.56
3 North Carolina FC 15 6 1 8 17 21 4 19 1.27
4 Memphis 901 FC 15 4 4 7 24 31 7 16 1.07
Source: USL

Match results

All games broadcast on ESPN+ as part of the USL Championship's rights agreement with the platform.[6] Home games broadcast locally on WRAL-2.

7 March 1 North Carolina FC 0–1 Louisville City FC Cary, NC
2:30 PM EST Kristo  88'
Taylor  90+3'
Report Lancaster 63' Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Attendance: 3,515
Referee: Adam Kilpatrick
17 July 2 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–2 North Carolina FC St. Petersburg, FL
6:45 PM EDT Guenzatti 7'
Fernandes 22'
Mkosana  40'
Report Fortune 56'
Kristo 83'
Stadium: Al Lang Stadium
Attendance: 141
Referee: Gabriele Giusti
1 August 3 North Carolina FC 1–0 Birmingham Legion FC Cary, NC
7:00 PM EDT Donovan  29'
Fortune 51',  90+2'
Kristo  87'
Report Akinyode  33'
Brett  45'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: Kevin Broadley
Note: Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic
8 August 4 Memphis 901 FC 0–1 North Carolina FC Memphis, TN
5:00 PM EDT Paul  65' Report Ward  15', 38'
Fortune  21'
Stadium: AutoZone Park
Attendance: 901
Referee: Matthew Thompson
15 August 5 North Carolina FC 0–2 Birmingham Legion FC Cary, NC
8:30 PM EDT Donovan  48' Report Servania 18'
Brett 21' (pen.)
A. Crognale  42'
Akinyode  46'
Van Oekel  59'
Lopez  60'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: Matthew Franz
Note: Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic
19 August 6 North Carolina FC 0–3 Charleston Battery Cary, NC
7:00 PM EDT Pecka  73'
Donovan  90'
Fortune  90+6'
Report Kelly-Rosales  29'
Piggott 56'
Daley 69'
Zarokostas 81'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Attendance: 0
Referee: John Griggs
Note: Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic
26 August 7 Charlotte Independence 1–0 North Carolina FC Matthews, NC
7:00 PM EDT Ortiz 59' Report Ward  42'
Pecka  68'
Stadium: Sportsplex at Matthews
Attendance: 0
Referee: Kevin Broadley
Note: Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic
29 August North Carolina FC v Memphis 901 FC Cary, NC
TBA PM EDT Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Note: Postponed as part of the protests over the shooting of Jacob Blake.[9][10] Rescheduled for September 10.[11]
2 September 8 Birmingham Legion FC 1–2 North Carolina FC Birmingham, AL
7:00 PM CDT Kobayashi  45+1'
Kasim 59'
Brett 90'
Report Albadawi 24'
Fortune 62' (pen.)
Stadium: BBVA Field
Referee: Lukasz Szpala
5 September 9 Charlotte Independence 3–1 North Carolina FC Matthews, NC
7:00 PM EDT Kelly 10', 20',  43', 79'
Lacroix  18'
Martínez  51'
Report Smith  35'
Taylor  60'
Fortune 90+1'
Stadium: Sportsplex at Matthews
Referee: Jonathan Bilinski
Note: Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic
10 September 10 North Carolina FC 2–3 Memphis 901 FC Cary, NC
7:00 PM EDT Pecka  45+1'
Fortune  64'
Kristo 86'
Taylor 90+1',  90+7'
Report Mentzingen 30'
Baxter  36'
Paul  55'
Hundley 75', 90+8'
Jennings  89'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Referee: John Matto
Note: Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic
13 September 11 North Carolina FC 3–2 Memphis 901 FC Cary, NC
6:00 PM EDT Barry  29', 58'
Donovan 55'
Ward  65'
Albadawi 89'
Report Jennings 24', 35'
Carroll  45+1'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Referee: John Griggs
Note: Originally scheduled for September 12. Rescheduled to accommodate for rescheduling of previous game.[11] Played in empty stadium because of COVID-19 pandemic.
19 September 12 North Carolina FC 0–1 Charlotte Independence Cary, NC
7:00 PM EDT Albadawi  45+1'  67'
Taylor  50'
Donovan  69'
Fortune  73'
Report Kelly  44'
Miller  45+1'
Martínez  45+1'
Maund 51'
Lacroix  66'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Referee: Matthew Franz
23 September Memphis 901 FC Canceled North Carolina FC Memphis, TN
7:00 PM CDT Stadium: AutoZone Park
Note: Postponed after a member of the Memphis 901 FC organization tested positive for COVID-19.[12] Game was not rescheduled after both teams were eliminated from playoff contention.
26 September 13 Birmingham Legion FC 1–2 North Carolina FC Birmingham, AL
7:00 PM CDT Cromwell  23'
Servania 67'
Williams  87'
Report Perez 7',  37'
Fortune 26' (pen.)
Kristo  90+6'
Stadium: BBVA Field
Referee: Jonathan Bilinski
30 September 14 New York Red Bulls II 0–3 North Carolina FC Richmond, VA
5:00 PM EDT Cummins  44'
Hot  88'
Toure  90+3'
Report Fortune 12' (pen.),  28'
Speas 26'
Tolkin 45+3' (o.g.)
Stadium: City Stadium
Referee: Matthew Franz
Note: Neutral site game scheduled after both teams had upcoming games against Loudoun United FC canceled because of COVID-19 outbreak.[13]
3 October 15 North Carolina FC 0–1 Charlotte Independence Cary, NC
7:00 PM EDT Report Haakenson  45+1'
Kelly  88'
Gebhard  90+1'
Sabella 90+4',  90+5'
Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Attendance: 432
Referee: John Griggs
Note: Rescheduled from September 30 to accommodate for newly scheduled match against New York Red Bulls II.[13]
4 October Loudoun United FC Canceled North Carolina FC Leesburg, VA
11:00 AM EDT Stadium: Segra Field
Note: Match cancelled due to multiple positive COVID-19 tests in Loudoun United FC organization and a lack of rescheduling windows.[14]

U.S. Open Cup

As a USL Championship club, North Carolina FC was scheduled to enter the competition in the second round, which was to be played April 7–9.[15] Pairings for that round were announced on January 29.[16] The first three rounds of the tournament were postponed on March 13, 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.[17] On August 17, the tournament was canceled.[18]

Squad statistics

Source: Match reports

Appearances and goals

No. Pos Nat Player TotalUSL Championship Regular Season
AppsGoalsAppsGoals
1 GK  GRE Alex Tambakis 140140
2 MF  USA Manny Perez 14111+31
3 DF  USA Caleb Duvernay 2020
4 DF  CAN Alex Comsia 1109+20
5 DF  NZL Sam Brotherton 11010+10
7 MF  BRA Pecka 14013+10
8 MF  TRI Dre Fortune 14611+36
9 MF  NED Marios Lomis 1208+40
10 MF  PLE Nazmi Albadawi 1228+42
11 FW  BIH Robert Kristo 1526+92
15 DF  SEN Malick Mbaye 100+10
16 MF  USA Graham Smith 1407+70
17 MF  USA Ben Speas 1418+61
20 DF  USA Conor Donovan 141141
21 FW  ITA Daniele Proch 1101+100
24 GK  BRA Paulo Pita 1010
27 DF  USA D.J. Taylor 151151
30 DF  USA Akeem Ward 11110+11
31 MF  USA Steven Miller 1106+50
92 FW  GUI Hadji Barry 15111+41

Goal scorers

Place Position Nation Number Name USL Championship Regular Season Total
1 MF 8 Dre Fortune 6 6
2 FW 11 Robert Kristo 2 2
MF 10 Nazmi Albadawi 2 2
4 MF 2 Manny Perez 1 1
MF 17 Ben Speas 1 1
DF 20 Conor Donovan 1 1
DF 27 D. J. Taylor 1 1
DF 30 Akeem Ward 1 1
FW 92 Hadji Barry 1 1
Own goals by opponent 1 1
TOTALS 1717

Disciplinary record

Number Nation Position Name USL Championship Regular Season Total
8MFDre Fortune6060
20DFConor Donovan4040
27DFD.J. Taylor4040
7MFPecka3030
11FWRobert Kristo3030
30DFAkeem Ward3030
10MFNazmi Albadawi2121
2MFManny Perez1010
16MFGraham Smith1010
92FWHadji Barry1010
TOTALS261261

References

  1. "USL Championship Temporarily Suspends Play". uslchampionship.com. March 12, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  2. "North Carolina FC Set to Return to Play with Schedule Announcement". North Carolina FC. July 2, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  3. "North Carolina Football Club Announces Dreamville Festival as NCFC Front-of-Jersey Partner". North Carolina FC. February 27, 2020.
  4. "North Carolina FC 2020 Roster". North Carolina FC. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  5. "North Carolina FC Announces Preseason Schedule". North Carolina FC. January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  6. "USL Reaches New Rights Agreement with ESPN, ESPN+". USLSoccer.com. August 27, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  7. Birkedal, Morgan (July 24, 2020). "North Carolina FC Match Against Charlotte Independence Postponed Until August 26". NorthCarolinaFC.com. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  8. Scott, David (July 24, 2020). "Coronavirus concerns move Charlotte Independence vs. North Carolina FC match to August". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  9. "Memphis 901 FC considering skipping Saturday's game vs. North Carolina FC". WREG.com. WREG. August 27, 2020. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
  10. "Saturday's NCFC home match with Memphis 901 postponed". WRALSportsFan.com. WRAL. August 28, 2020. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  11. "North Carolina FC Sets New Dates for Matches Against Memphis 901 FC". NorthCarolinaFC.com. September 2, 2020.
  12. "North Carolina FC Match Against Memphis 901 FC Postponed". NorthCarolinaFC.com. September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  13. "NCFC to Play New York Red Bulls II on Wednesday, Match Against Charlotte Rescheduled for Saturday". NorthCarolinaFC.com. September 28, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  14. "Remaining Loudoun United FC Games Cancelled". USLChampionship.com. September 25, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  15. "Restructured Competition Format For 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Provides Opportunity For More "David vs. Goliath" Matchups In 107th Edition Of U.S. Soccer's National Championship". U.S. Soccer Federation. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  16. "2020 U.S. Open Cup Second Round Pairings and Host Scenarios" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. January 29, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  17. "U.S. Soccer Temporarily Suspends 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Due To COVID-19 Outbreak" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  18. "2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Cancelled Due to COVID-19" (Press release). United States Soccer Federation. August 17, 2020.
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