2016 Sacramento Republic FC season

The 2016 Sacramento Republic FC season was the club's third season of existence. The club plays in the United Soccer League (USL), the third tier of the American soccer pyramid. After off season expansion of the USL from 24 to 31 teams, Sacramento Republic FC moved to the new Western Conference. The season began in March 2016 and concluded in September 2016.

Sacramento Republic FC

2016 season
Owner	Warren Smith
Head coach	Paul Buckle
Stadium	Bonney Field
U.S. Open Cup	3rd Round
Top goalscorer	League: Cameron Iwasa (11) All: Cameron Iwasa (12)
Highest home attendance	11,569 (Multiple games)
Lowest home attendance	League: 10,745 (Jun. 8 vs. Real Monarchs) All: 10,240 (Feb. 13 vs. Colorado)
Average home league attendance	League: 11,451 All: 11,322
← 2015 2017 →

Background

2015 saw much growth in attendance with the expansion of Bonney Field, but this was not a sign of things to come for the club. In 2015, the Republic failed to produce on the field as they did the year before, dropping out of the playoffs in the first round. Their performance in the 2014 U.S. Open Cup was mirrored in 2015, once again losing to San Jose earthquakes in the 4th round. The 2015 season was riddled with emotional setbacks, MLS decided on Minnesota as its newest expansion over Sacramento. The Republic lost the head coach, Coach Preki, who they felt would be the one to propel the team to the MLS. At the end of the season, the player with the most MLS experience, whom some considered the star player, Rodrigo López announced he would return to Mexico and play for Celaya FC in the Ascenso MX.

The 2016 preseason, the club looked to turn things around. The club picked up Nike as their kit manufacturers, redesigned the team jersey and, on December 2, Sacramento city council approved the Republic's MLS stadium plan with a unanimous vote. Their hopes were once again revitalized three days later, when the MLS board announced its decision to once again expand the league from 24 to 28 teams.

Sacramento Republic F.C. continued their off season productivity by extending several players contracts, including fan-favorite, Octavio Guzmán and hometown hero, Cameron Iwasa. The club's Academy contributed to the off season's ambition with its U-16 and U-18 team both going undefeated in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.

Club

As of September 17, 2016.^[1]

No.	Position	Nation	Player
1	GK	USA	Dominik Jakubek
2	DF	EIR	Derek Foran
3	DF	USA	Mike da Fonte
4	MF	USA	Alfonso Motagalvan
5	DF	COL	Danny Barrera
6	MF	USA	Agustin Cazarez
7	FW	SLV	Joaquin Rivas
8	DF	USA	Chris Christian
9	FW	ENG	Harry Williams
10	FW	ENG	Carlton Cole
11	FW	USA	Max Alvarez
12	GK	USA	Evan Newton
13	DF	USA	Christian Chaney
14	FW	USA	Cameron Iwasa
15	DF	MEX	Carlos Rodriguez
16	MF	USA	Matt LaGrassa
17	MF	MEX	Octavio Guzmán
18	MF	ENG	Daniel Trickett-Smith
19	FW	CAN	Mackenzie Pridham
20	DF	USA	James Kiffe
22	MF	USA	Chase Minter
23	DF	MNE	Emrah Klimenta
24	MF	USA	J.J. Koval
26	DF	USA	Elliott Hord
28	MF	PUR	Jeremy Hall
29	FW	ENG	Wilson Kneeshaw

Technical Staff

As of June 25, 2015.

Position	Name
Technical director	Graham Smith
Head coach	Paul Buckle
Assistant head coach	Adam Charles Smith
Assistant coach	Chris Malenab
Assistant coach	Antonio Sutton
Goalkeeping coach	Simon Sheppard
Strength & Conditioning Coach	Luke Rayfield

Competitions

Preseason

Sacramento Republic FC v Colorado Rapids

February 13, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	0–1	Colorado Rapids	Sacramento, California
17:00 PST		Report	Cochran 86'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 10,240

Sacramento Republic FC v Burlingame Dragons FC

February 17, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	Postponed	Burlingame Dragons FC	Sacramento, California
				Stadium: Consumnes River College Stadium

Sacramento Republic FC v San Jose Earthquakes

February 20, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	1–2	San Jose Earthquakes	Sacramento, California
17:00 PST	Pridham 8'	Report	Amarikwa 51', 86' Godoy  81' Thompson  90'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,499

Sacramento State Hornets v Sacramento Republic FC

February 24, 2016	Sacramento State Hornets	0–1	Sacramento Republic FC	Sacramento, California
15:00 PST		Report	Williams 13' Barrera  77'	Stadium: Hornet Stadium Attendance: 907

Sonoma County Sol v Sacramento Republic FC

February 27, 2016	Sonoma County Sol	0–4	Sacramento Republic FC	Santa Rosa, California
19:00 PST		Report	Stewart 5' (pen.), 62' Klimenta 51' Kiffe 86'	Stadium: Nevers Field Attendance: 1,200

Fresno Fuego v Sacramento Republic FC

March 3, 2016 Highway 99 Derby	Fresno Fuego	1–1 (3–5 p)	Sacramento Republic FC	Fresno, California
18:30 PST	Blanco 27'	Report	Pridham 86'	Stadium: Chukchansi Park

UC Santa Barbara Gauchos v Sacramento Republic FC

March 5, 2016	UC Santa Barbara Gauchos	1–6	Sacramento Republic FC	Santa Barbara, California
		Summary		Stadium: Harder Stadium

Ventura County Fusion v Sacramento Republic FC

March 6, 2016	Ventura County Fusion	1–0	Sacramento Republic FC	Ventura, California
15:10 PST	Mackenna 43' Gonzalez  71'	Summary		Stadium: Ventura College Sportsplex

Sacramento Republic FC v UC Davis Aggies

March 13, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	Postponed	UC Davis Aggies	Sacramento, California
15:30 PST		Postponement		Stadium: Consumnes River College Stadium
Note: Postponed due to weather. Match will be rescheduled

USL

Further information: 2016 USL season

Seattle Sounders FC 2 v Sacramento Republic FC

March 25, 2016 1	Seattle Sounders FC 2	0–1	Sacramento Republic FC	Tukwila, Washington
19:30 PST		Report	Cazarez  60' Stewart 63' (pen.) Thompson  67'	Stadium: Starfire Sports Complex Attendance: 1,277 Referee: Baboucarr Jallow

Sacramento Republic FC v Arizona United SC

April 2, 2016 2	Sacramento Republic FC	1–0	Arizona United SC	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Christian  45' Iwasa 84' Guzmán  85'	Report		Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Joseph Dickerson

Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 v Sacramento Republic FC

April 10, 2016 3	Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2	0–0	Sacramento Republic FC	University Endowment Lands, British Columbia, Canada
15:00 PST	Seymore  57' Flores  86'	Report	Alvarez  89'	Stadium: Thunderbird Stadium Attendance: 3,057

Portland Timbers 2 v Sacramento Republic FC

April 17, 2016 4	Portland Timbers 2	1–0	Sacramento Republic FC	Portland, Oregon
14:00 PST	Belmar 45' Belmar  58' Brett  90'		Christian  12' Jahn  76'	Stadium: Merlo Field Attendance: 1,649 Referee: Ramy Touchan

Sacramento Republic FC v Saint Louis FC

April 23, 2016 5	Sacramento Republic FC	0–1	Saint Louis FC	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Foran  90'	Report	Musa  24' Ambersley 59' Dixon  74' Mclain  90'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Michael Zapata

Sacramento Republic FC v Orange County Blues FC

April 30, 2016 6	Sacramento Republic FC	0–1	Orange County Blues FC	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Foran  44' Iwasa  56' Barrera  69' Guzmán  72'	Report	Popara 16' Mirković  34' Popara  88'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Farhad Dadkho

LA Galaxy II v Sacramento Republic FC

May 7, 2016 7	LA Galaxy II	0–2	Sacramento Republic FC	Carson, California
19:30 PST	McBean  81' Nathan Smith  90'	Report	Klimenta 16' Williams  34' Iwasa  56' Williams 62' Stewart  90'	Stadium: StubHub Center Attendance: 1, 604 Referee: Alex Chilowicz

Sacramento Republic FC v Seattle Sounders FC 2

May 14, 2016 8	Sacramento Republic FC	2–0	Seattle Sounders FC 2	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Thompson 32', 47' Guzmán  33' Christian  36'	Report		Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Luis Guardia

Sacramento Republic FC v Swope Park Rangers

May 28, 2016 9	Sacramento Republic FC	1–1	Swope Park Rangers	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Foran  33' Cazarez  67' Iwasa 76'	Report	Pasher  57' Oliveira 73' Ualefi  86'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Joseph Dickerson

Sacramento Republic FC v LA Galaxy II

June 4, 2016 10	Sacramento Republic FC	2–2	LA Galaxy II	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	Kiffe  12' Foran  45' Barrera 51' Trickett-Smith 81' Trickett-Smith  88'  90'	Report	Zubak  21' Villarreal  45' Villarreal 57', 58' Sorto  75' Smith  90'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Levi Rippy

Sacramento Republic FC v Real Monarchs SLC

June 8, 2016 11	Sacramento Republic FC	1–0	Real Monarchs SLC	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	Jahn 47' Klimenta  48' Kiffe  74' H. Williams  85' Motagalvan  88'	Report		Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 10,745 Referee: Malik Badawi

Real Monarchs SLC v Sacramento Republic FC

June 11, 2016 12	Real Monarchs SLC	1–2	Sacramento Republic FC	Reno, Nevada
TBD PST	Velazco 41'	Report	Iwasa 47' Jahn 55' Stewart  78'	Stadium: Aces Ballpark Attendance: 5,182 Referee: Victor Rivas

Sacramento Republic FC v Rio Grande Valley FC Toros

June 18, 2016 13	Sacramento Republic FC	3–2	Rio Grande Valley FC Toros	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	Iwasa 1', 54' da Fonte  36' Jahn  50' Christian  77' Klimenta 87'	Report	Me. Rodriguez 14' Bird 71'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Reyna Fonseca

Arizona United SC v Sacramento Republic FC

June 25, 2016 14	Arizona United SC	1–1	Sacramento Republic FC	Peoria, Arizona
19:30 PST	Blackwood 54' Rooney  76' Kelly  90'	Report	Alvarez  66' Pridham 90'	Stadium: Peoria Sports Complex Attendance: 1,145 Referee: Alexandro Mariscal

Sacramento Republic FC v Seattle Sounders FC 2

July 2, 2016 15	Sacramento Republic FC	2–1	Seattle Sounders FC 2	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	H. Williams 5' da Fonte 78' Christian  83' da Fonte  83' Motagalvan  90'	Report	Nelson  49' Mathers 70'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Andrew Musashe

Sacramento Republic FC v Real Monarchs SLC

July 6, 2016 16	Sacramento Republic FC	2–3	Real Monarchs SLC	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	da Fonte 53' Barrera 58'	Report	Lachowecki  38' Kavita  66' Velazco 72' Torres  79' Frater 82' Foran 90' (o.g.)	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Michael Zapata

Orange County Blues FC v Sacramento Republic FC

July 10, 2016 17	Orange County Blues FC	3–3	Sacramento Republic FC	Irvine, California
16:00 PST	Crettenand 51', 81' Mirković  56' Caesar 72' Pluntke  88'	Report	da Fonte 21' Motagalvan  27' Guzmán  38' Iwasa 79' da Fonte  80'  87' Pridham 83' Barrera  83'	Stadium: Anteater Stadium Attendance: 980 Referee: Ramy Touchan

Colorado Springs Switchbacks v Sacramento Republic FC

July 16, 2016 18	Colorado Springs Switchbacks	1–0	Sacramento Republic FC	Colorado Springs, Colorado
18:00 PST	Argueta  53' J. J. Greer  71' J. J. Greer 83'	Report	Guzmán  86'	Stadium: Sand Creek Stadium Attendance: 3,401 Referee: Malik Badawi

Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 v Sacramento Republic FC

July 24, 2016 19	Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2	2–1	Sacramento Republic FC	University Endowment Lands, British Columbia, Canada
14:00 PST	Bustos 22' Edgar  45' Sanner 90'	Report	J.J. Koval  6' Iwasa 14' Barrera  45' Kiffe  50' LaGrassa  69'	Stadium: Thunderbird Stadium Attendance: 1,948

Rio Grande Valley TC Toros v Sacramento Republic FC

July 30, 2016 20	Rio Grande Valley TC Toros	0–0	Sacramento Republic FC	Edinburg, Texas
17:30 PST	Malki  79'	Report	Foran  25' da Fonte  41' Alvarez  55'	Stadium: RGVFC Stadium Attendance: 1,920 Referee: Tyler Mitcham

Oklahoma City Energy FC v Sacramento Republic FC

August 2, 2016 21	Oklahoma City Energy FC	0–1	Sacramento Republic FC	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
17:30 PST	Hyland  54'  90' C. Andrews  71' König  90'	Report	Kiffe 84'	Stadium: Taft Stadium Attendance: 3,753 Referee: Luis Guardia

Sacramento Republic FC v San Antonio FC

August 6, 2016 22	Sacramento Republic FC	1–1	San Antonio FC	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	Kiffe  81' Guzmán 90' p.k.	Report	Elizondo 15' McCarthy  66' Alvarez  84' Salazar  90'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Victor Rivas

Saint Louis FC v Sacramento Republic FC

August 13, 2016 23	Saint Louis FC	3–4	Sacramento Republic FC	Fenton, Missouri
17:30 PST	Ambersley 26' J. Roberts 74' Dixon  87' Bond 90'	Report	J.J. Koval 5' Iwasa 11', 57' Guzmán 17' T. Thompson  83' Newton  90'	Stadium: World Wide Technology Soccer Park Attendance: 5,453 Referee: John Freemon

Sacramento Republic FC v Portland Timbers 2

August 20, 2016 24	Sacramento Republic FC	4–0	Portland Timbers 2	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	da Fonte 4' LaGrassa  22' Iwasa 45' Thompson 48' Thompson  67' Kneeshaw 82'	Report	Farfan  25' Besler  37'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569 Referee: Michael Zapata

Orange County Blues FC v Sacramento Republic FC

August 24, 2016 25	Orange County Blues FC	0 - 1	Sacramento Republic FC	Irvine, California
19:30 PST	Ivan Mirković  27' Campbell  39' Valimaa  80'		Koval  11' Iwasa 76'	Stadium: Anteater Stadium Attendance: 463

Sacramento Republic FC v Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2

August 27, 2016 26	Sacramento Republic FC	0 - 0	Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2	Sacramento, California
20:00 PST	Christian  58'			Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569

Sacramento Republic FC v Orange County Blues

September 3, 2016 27	Sacramento Republic FC	2 - 1	Orange County Blues	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Hall  36' LaGrassa 48' Williams 85'		Crettenand 45' Cortes 66' Ajeakwa  87' Watson-Siriboe  88'	Stadium: Bonney Field Attendance: 11,569

LA Galaxy II v Sacramento Republic FC

September 10, 2016 28	LA Galaxy II	1 - 1	Sacramento Republic FC	Carson, California
19:30 PST	Amaya  29' Lassiter 38' Villarreal  65' Villarreal  85'		LaGrassa  33' Kneeshaw 83'	Stadium: StubHub Center Attendance: 1,417

Sacramento Republic FC v LA Galaxy II

September 17, 2016 29	Sacramento Republic FC	1 - 1	LA Galaxy II	Sacramento, California
19:30 PST	Barrera  69' Iwasa  74' Kneeshaw 80' Kiffe  90'		Zubak 44' Rebellón  62'  75' Smith  65'	Stadium: Bonney Field

Tulsa Roughnecks FC v Sacramento Republic FC

September 24, 2016 30	Tulsa Roughnecks FC	0 - 4	Sacramento Republic FC	Tulsa, Oklahoma
17:30 PST	Kaleemullah  34' Lee  50'		Pridham 10' Iwasa 19' Barrera 35' Guzman  83' Williams 90'	Stadium: ONEOK Field

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
25	12	7	6	35	24	+11	43	6	3	3	19	12	+7	6	4	3	16	12	+4

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
Stadium	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	H	H	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	A	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A
Result	W	W	D	L	L	L	W	W	D	D	W	W	W	D	W	L	D	L	L	D	W	D	W	W	W

Updated to match(es) played on June 5, 2016. Source: ^{[citation needed]}
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Standings

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Sacramento Republic	30	14	10	6	43	27	+16	52	Conference Playoffs
2	Rio Grande Valley Toros	30	14	9	7	47	24	+23	51
3	Colorado Springs Switchbacks	30	14	7	9	37	27	+10	49
4	Swope Park Rangers	30	14	6	10	45	36	+9	48
5	LA Galaxy II	30	12	11	7	52	42	+10	47

Source: 2016 USL Standings
Rules for classification: 1) total wins; 2) total goal differential; 3) total goals scored; 4) points earned against top four Conference finishers; 5) disciplinary points; 6) coin toss or drawing of lots

U.S. Open Cup

Sacramento Republic FC v CD Aguiluchos USA

May 18 Second round	Sacramento Republic FC	5–0	CD Aguiluchos USA	Sacramento, California
7:30 PM	Motagalvan 24' Pridham 36' Rodriguez 44' Stewart 45' Alvarez 92'	Report	Bengy Ruiz  20' Morales  48' Ricardo Guerra  67' Ross Middlemiss  81'	Stadium: Bonney Field

Sacramento Republic FC v Kitsap Pumas

June 1 Third round	Sacramento Republic FC	1–3	Kitsap Pumas	Sacramento, California
8:00 PM	Iwasa 61' Klimenta  71'	Report	Joel Waterman  31' Castro 60', 65' Mike Ramos 63' Darius Madison  90'	Stadium: Bonney Field Referee: Victor Rivas

Friendlies

Sacramento Republic FC v Liverpool FC U-21

May 21, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	2–1	Liverpool FC U-21	Sacramento, California
7:30 pm	Cazarez 30' Kiffe 86'	Report	Kent 75' Stewart  76'	Stadium: Bonney Field

Sacramento Republic FC v Liverpool FC U-21

May 25, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	2–2	Liverpool FC U-21	Reno, Nevada
7:00 pm	Trickett-Smith 40' Williams 90'		Kent 5' Jones  38' Brannagan 77'	Stadium: Greater Nevada Field Attendance: 6,287 Referee: Joseph Dickerson

Sacramento Republic FC v CD Guadalajara

October 5, 2016	Sacramento Republic FC	1–1	CD Guadalajara	Sacramento, California
7:00 pm	Barrera 36' Jakubek  90'		Bueno 18'	Stadium: Bonney Field

Transfers

In

No.	Pos.	Player	Transferred from	Fee/notes	Date	Source
12	GK	Evan Newton	Oklahoma City Energy FC		December 9, 2015
3	DF	Mike da Fonte	New York Red Bulls II		December 21, 2015
8	DF	Chris Christian	Colorado Springs Switchbacks		January 25, 2016
16	MF	Matt LaGrassa	Cal Poly		February 2, 2016
15	DF	Carlos Rodriguez	Cesifut		February 2, 2016
19	FW	Mackenzie Pridham	Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2		February 23, 2016
9	FW	Harry Williams	Cheltenham Town FC		February 24, 2016
22	MF	Chase Minter	Ventura County Fusion		March 16, 2016
24	MF	J.J. Koval	San Jose Earthquakes		March 23, 2016
18	MF	Daniel Trickett-Smith	Liverpool FC U-21s		May 19, 2016
11	FW	Wilson Kneeshaw	Blyth Spartans		August 11, 2016
13	FW	Christian Chaney	Fresno Fuego		August 12, 2016
26	DF	Elliott Hord	Fresno Fuego		August 19, 2016

Out

No.	Pos.	Player	Transferred to	Fee/notes	Date	Source
17	FW	Justin Braun	Indy Eleven		January 19, 2016
12	DF	Nemanja Vuković	Indy Eleven		January 19, 2016
24	GK	Patrick McLain	Chicago Fire		January 19, 2016
18	MF	Ivan Mirković	Orange County Blues FC	Loan	April 1, 2016
42	FW	Adnan Gabeljic	San Francisco City FC		April 18, 2016
10	FW	Thomas Stewart	Ottawa Fury FC		July 12, 2016
10	FW	Carlton Cole	Persib Bandung		October 19, 2016
18	MF	Ivan Mirković	St. Louis FC		November 10, 2016
22	MF	Chase Minter	Real Monarchs		November 17, 2016
17	MF	Octavio Guzman	St. Louis FC		November 22, 2016
16	DF	Matt LaGrassa	Reno 1868 FC		December 20, 2016
19	FW	Mackenzie Pridham	Reno 1868 FC		December 21, 2016
24	MF	JJ Koval	Retirement		December 21, 2016
11	MF	Max Alvarez	St. Louis FC	Option Waived	December 31, 2016
7	FW	Joaquin Rivas	Tulsa Roughnecks		December 31, 2016
2	DF	Derek Foran	Bray Wanderers FC		December 31, 2016
14	FW	Cameron Iwasa	Sporting Kansas City		December 31, 2016

Loan in

No.	Pos.	Player	Loaned from	Fee/notes	Date	Source
21	MW	Tommy Thompson	San Jose Earthquakes		March 24, 2016
13	FW	Adam Jahn	San Jose Earthquakes		March 24, 2016
26	FW	Mark Sherrod	San Jose Earthquakes		April 1, 2016
27	FW	Kip Colvey	San Jose Earthquakes		April 29, 2016
28	MW	Jeremy Hall	Tampa Bay Rowdies		July 24, 2016