The Pittsburgh Riverhounds got some much needed help with some veteran presence in Friday morning’s practice: Rob Vincent.
Vincent, who was with the Riverhounds from 2013-15, is back in Pittsburgh on loan for one game. The Liverpool, England-born player, who is now signed with D.C. United, said he was eager to come back to the Riverhounds to get more minutes under his belt.
“I’m really enjoying (my time at D.C. United),” Vincent said. “It’s always been my dream to play in the MLS. I’m just trying to get better every day, and I just try to add minutes in the MLS.”
Minutes in the MLS haven’t been that plentiful for Vincent. He has only started one match for D.C. United — but he’s appeared in six matches. Vincent has totaled 128 minutes and has only one shot.
However, when Vincent was with the Riverhounds, he enjoyed a stellar career. In his three seasons, Vincent appeared in 88 matches and scored 28 goals. Eighteen of those goals came last season when Vincent was second in the USL in scoring — his scoring helped lead the Riverhounds to a playoff berth.
Even with Vincent’s time away from Pittsburgh, he said not much has changed and that the current members of the team have welcomed him back with open arms.
“It feels like I haven’t been gone,” Vincent said with a laugh. “Everything still looks the same, but it’s good to be back.”
Vincent will be joining a Riverhounds team that has seen some player turnover from the last time he was on the roster. Only Willie Hunt, Hunter Gilstrap, Mike Green, Lebo Moloto, Stephen Okai and Drew Russell played with Vincent during his time on the Riverhounds.
“This was my first session with them, but everyone has welcomed me in,” Vincent said after practice. “I think the most important thing is that I try to fit in and that we put on a good performance tomorrow. Hopefully, the addition of one player won’t cause too much, but everyone has been great. There’s a lot of good guys on this team.”
Someone else new that Vincent came in contact with during training was new Riverhounds head coach Dave Brandt. Brandt was hired by the Riverhounds on May 23 and coached his first game with the team last Saturday against the New York Red Bulls II (the Riverhounds lost that match 1-0.)
“I’ve tried to take in as much as I can with coach (Brandt),” Vincent said. “He’s got a very specific way of playing, so I’ve sat down with him, and we talked about it. Out on the training field today, we went over it a little more.”
“I love his intensity,” Vincent continued about Brandt. “The session today was very organized. He has a clear vision of what he wants it to look like. Already, you can see that guys are buying into it, so I’m sure in two to three weeks that it will look even better than it is now.”
Vincent admitted he has been watching the Riverhounds this season. He said, when he can’t watch, he has his phone send him game notifications.
“It’s a different team than it was two weeks ago, so hopefully that was for the better,” Vincent said with a smile.
The Riverhounds, with Vincent in tow, will take on the Charleston Battery this Saturday at Highmark Stadium. The match is slated to begin at 7 p.m., and tickets are still available. The last time the two teams met, the match ended in a 1-1 draw with the only Riverhounds goal being scored by former forward Romeo Parkes.
Image credit: TKO_Photos
