Saturday, April 27, 2019
Hartford City FC vs. Boston City FC
Kickoff 7pm
Al-Marzook Field, University of Hartford, 200 Bloomfield Ave, West Hartford, CT, 06117
Boston City FC head coach Michael Bustamante (first season)
Hartford City FC head coach Nick Balistierri (first season)
- This is the 2019 opening match for both teams.
- This is the first time Boston City has opened a season away from home (2016, 2017 and 2018 were all played at Brother Gilbert Stadium in Malden vs. NY Cosmos).
- The Lions’ opening day record is 0-2-1.
- Boston City FC and Hartford City FC have met four times previously with Boston City edging the series 2-1-1.
- The teams met once in 2018 with goals from Rigoberto Jimenez and Isaac Addai earning a 2-0 win.
- Goalkeeper Jake Wagmeister made his Lions debut in that win.
- In 2017, the Colts knocked the Lions out of the NPSL playoffs with a 2-1 victory.
- During the 2018 regular season, Boston City won 3-1 at home on the back of an Isaac Addai hat-trick and drew 3-3 away with goals from Addai, Gabriel De Souza and Kevin Herrera.
- That draw is the only time the sides have met in Hartford with the other three matches played in Boston.
- Only four members of the current squad have played against Hartford City before and all in home matches: Jhonata Batista, Jake Wagmeister, Rigoberto Jimenez, Santi Cardona.
- Former Lions defender and occasional striker Filipe Dutra, who played 734 minutes in 10 matches for Boston City in 2017, scoring 2 goals, will line up for the Colts against his former team.
- This is one of two matches opening the NPSL Northeast Regional Conference North Atlantic Division season, along with New York Cosmos vs. New York Athletic Club.
