PORTLAND
, Ore.
–
The Portland Timbers continue their run of four-games in eight days with a two-game road trip against the Rochester Rhinos on Saturday at 4:35 p.m. (Pacific) and Montreal Impact Monday at 4:30 p.m. (Pacific).
The Timbers play two of their final three road fixtures of the season against a Rochester and Montreal side who have each won its last three matches. Both games of the road trip will be broadcast live through USL Live at www.usllive.com. There will be no audio broadcast available at
www.portlandtimbers.com
.
With two wins in their last three matches, the Timbers (7-9-10, 31pts) remain in the hunt for a playoff berth. Portland secured a 4-0 win over the Miami FC Blues on Thursday with two goals from forward
Chris Brown
and moved into a two-way tie for eighth place with the Minnesota Thunder at 31 points. Both the Timbers and Thunder are one point behind the Atlanta Silverbacks who hold the final playoff spot in seventh place.
The Timbers match on Saturday against the Rhinos marks the first time the two clubs have met since they were involved in a three-team trade that saw the exchange of goalkeeper
Chase Harrison
and forward
Jamil Walker
for midfielder
Andrew Gregor
. The Timbers are 0-1-1 against the Rhinos this season and were handed a 2-1 loss in Rochester on May 30. The two clubs played to a scoreless draw at PGE Park on May 8. Since joining the USL First Division in 2001, Portland is 1-7-2 all-time against Rochester, including a 0-4-1 mark on the road.
Portland makes its final regular-season trip to Montreal on Monday to face in the Impact. The Timbers have captured wins in each of their two previous matches against the Impact this season, including a 1-0 result in Montreal on May 30. In Portland, the Timbers capitalized on goals from forward
Bryan Jordan
and Brown to earn a 2-1 win at PGE Park. The Timbers are unbeaten against the Impact in four games in Montreal (3-0-1) and are 5-2-2 against the Impact since 2001.
Portland’s match on Monday is the result of a rescheduled game due to Montreal’s entry into the CONCACAF Champions League tournament.
The Timbers return to PGE Park for the regular-season home finale on Sept. 11 and play host to the Charleston Battery at 7 p.m. on Fan Appreciation Night, including the club’s annual Jersey-Off-Our-Back auction presented by Fred Meyer. Tickets, starting at $11, are available through the PGE Park box office, area Ticketmaster outlets, online at
www.ticketmaster.com
or by phone at (503) 224-4400.
ABOUT ROCHESTER RHINOS
Rochester (10-8-8, 37 pts)(-1) enters Saturday’s contest against the Timbers having won their last three matches. The Rhinos have out-scored their opponents 6-1 while on their three-match winning streak and have recorded two shutouts. They currently sit in a two-way tie for third with Charleston. Midfielder Luke Kreamalmeyer ranks second in the league with eight assists and midfielder Johnny Menyonger leads the team in scoring with 16 points. Rochester will play host to the Puerto Rico Islanders on Sept. 12, before finishing their final two games of the season on the road.
ABOUT MONTREAL IMPACT
Since its loss to the Timbers in Portland on Aug. 16, Montreal has won its last three league matches heading into Friday’s contest with the Minnesota Thunder at Saputo Stadium. The Impact have also been busy with the CONCACAF Champions League tournament, in which they advanced to the group stage by defeating Real Esteli of Nicaragua in a two-game, aggregate-goal preliminary round. Montreal plays its first CONCACAF Champions League group match on Sept. 17 against Joe Public FC of Trinidad & Tobago. The Impact plays six USL First Division matches in September – more than any other club in the league.
