PORTLAND, Ore. –
The Portland Timbers head back to the East Coast to face the Carolina RailHawks on Saturday at SAS Soccer Park. They face a Carolina team that is fighting for one of the final playoff spots in the USL First Division. Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. (Pacific).
A broadcast of the match against the RailHawks is available at
www.portlandtimbers.com
. A video webcast of the match is available through USL Live at www.usllive.com.
Portland is 0-0-1 all-time against Carolina. In their first meeting, the Timbers could not take advantage of a one-man advantage, as the match ended in a 0-0 draw at PGE Park on May 27. On the road this season, Portland is 5-5-2; Carolina is 4-3-6 at home.
Timbers midfielder
Neil Dombrowski
suffered a knee injury against Puerto Rico and is expected to miss the next 2-4 weeks. Midfielder
Andrew Gregor
, Portland’s leading scorer, is questionable for Saturday’s match with a quadriceps injury.
Last week, the Timbers (13-5-8, 47pts) captured six points from three matches and currently sit in second place in the USL First Division – one point behind the Seattle Sounders. After back-to-back wins over the Charleston Battery and Miami FC, Portland suffered just its fifth loss of the season to the Puerto Rico Islanders on Aug. 26.
The Timbers continue to lead the league in fewest goals allowed this season. In 26 matches, the backline has allowed only 18 goals and paces the league with 13 shutouts.
ABOUT CAROLINA RAILHAWKS
The RailHawks are currently on a three-game unbeaten streak and have won their last two matches to help them move into the eighth and final playoff spot. In their last match, midfielder Kupono Low scored a penalty kick to defeat the Montreal Impact 1-0 at SAS Soccer Park.
Carolina plays its regular-season home finale against the Timbers on Saturday before finishing the season with two road matches against the Minnesota Thunder and California Victory. The RailHawks will also make a trip to the Northeast for a U.S. Open Cup semifinal match against Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution on Sept. 4.
On Saturday, the RailHawks will play without midfielder
Jonny Steele
, who is serving the final match of a two-game, league-imposed suspension for yellow card accumulation. Steele was also ejected in the 38th minute during Carolina’s match against Portland earlier in the season.
