One of the USL Championship’s premier derbies returns to Centreville Bank Stadium on Saturday as Rhode Island FC hosts regional rival Hartford Athletic at 7:30 p.m. The two closest neighbors in the USL Championship have already exchanged a pair of dramatic cup contests this season, and the Ocean State club will look to remain unbeaten vs. Hartford in 2026 as the two clubs clash in regular-season action for the first time. Both teams will enter Saturday’s contest separated by three points in the Eastern Conference standings, and will be hungry to return to regular-season action with a rivalry win. Ahead of RIFC’s 100th game in club history, here is everything you need to know.
TICKETS
Don’t miss your chance to witness history! Tickets for Rhode Island FC’s 100th game in club history, and one of the most exciting young rivalries in the USL Championship, are available here.
AT A GLANCE
Date | Saturday, July 18
Kickoff | 7:30 p.m. ET
Location | Centreville Bank Stadium – Pawtucket, R.I.
Broadcast | myRITV, NESN+, ESPN Select
Digital | WPRI 12+ App
Radio | 790 The Score (WPRV 790 AM)
Social | @rhodeislandfc (X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok)
Game Hashtag | #RIvHFD
Last Meeting | April 25, 2026: HFD 0(3)-0(4) RI – Prinx Tires USL Cup – Pawtucket, R.I.
HARTFORD ATHLETIC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (2): 1-Enzo Carvalho, 77-Antony Siaha
DEFENDERS (8): 2-Sebastian Anderson, 3-Matt Real, 4-Jordan Scarlett, 5-Baboucarr Njie, 15-Arturo Diz Pe, 19-Emmanuel Samadia, 22-TJ Presthus, 25-Britton Fischer
MIDFIELDERS (7): 6-Beverly Makangila, 8-Junior Moreira, 10-Samuel Careaga, 16-Barry Coffey, 18-Christos Hadjipaschalis, 20-Andres Hernandez, 24-Galen Flynn
FORWARDS (6): 9-Augi Williams, 11-Michee Ngalina, 17-Sadat Anaku, 27-Spencer Gordon, 29-Abdullah Taofeek, 81-Adewale Obalola
Breakout from Coffey
Barry Coffey leads Hartford Athletic with five goals across all competitions in 2026, three of which have come in his last two games. He began that stretch with a second-half brace that earned The Green and Blue a come-from-behind 2-2 tie vs. Orange County SC on July 8, before opening the scoring one week later in Hartford’s 2-1 win over USL League One side Westchester SC in the Prinx Tires USL Cup. Coffey is responsible for 25 percent of Hartford’s 12 league goals, leading the team with three regular-season tallies and ranking second with 14 shots.
Scoring Woes
In the regular season, Hartford Athletic currently ranks last in the USL Championship with 12 goals and is third-to-last with 4,546 attempted passes. Hartford has struggled to maintain consistency in its attack, playing eight scoreless games out of its 14 regular-season matchups so far. Hartford is 1W-1L-3T in its last five regular-season games, scoring three goals. On the defensive side, Antony Siaha, Hartford’s goalkeeper, is second in the league with 46 saves and has a league-leading seven clean sheets. Three of his seven clean sheets have come in the last five games. Outside of the regular season, Hartford has scored eight goals in the Prinx Tires USL Cup to advance to the knockout stage.
Last time Out
In its most recent regular season game on July 8, Hartford Athletic battled back from 2-0 down in the second half vs. Orange County SC to pick up a hard-fought 2-2 tie. Conceding two early goals going into the half, Hartford responded in the 69th minute when Barry Coffey found the back of the net to cut the deficit in half. In the 85th minute, Coffey completed a heroic brace with a game-tying goal to rescue a point for the hosts. Michee Ngalina provided the assist to Coffey’s second goal, officially reaching 30 career regular-season assists and 75 career goal contributions. In its last outing vs. Westchester SC, Hartford came away with a 2-1 win that secured its spot in the knockout stage of the Prinx Tires USL Cup, topping Group 5 with a 3W-0L-1T record. Hartford will look to use that momentum to pick up its first regular-season since June 13 and snap a three-game winless run in the league.
RHODE ISLAND FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Koke Vegas, 13-Will Meyer, 29-Jacob Castro
DEFENDERS (8): 2-Dani Rovira, 3-Aldair Sanchez, 4-Hugo Bacharach, 5-Grant Stoneman, 15-Frank Nodarse, 22-Nick Scardina, 24-Karifa Yao, 25-CJ Williams, 32-Hamady Diop
MIDFIELDERS (7): 7-Dwayne Atkinson, 10-Agustín “Pity” Rodríguez, 12-Clay Holstad, 17-Jojea Kwizera, 19-Kevin Vang, 21-Zachary Herivaux, 77-Amos Shapiro-Thompson
FORWARDS (4): 8-Leo Afonso, 9-JJ Williams, 11-Noah Fuson, 20-Jamin Gogo Peters
Building Momentum
Rhode Island FC closed out its Prinx Tires USL Cup with a dramatic penalty-shootout win last time out, defeating Brooklyn FC 4-3 in the shootout after a 1-1 tie in regulation on July 11. Despite not advancing in the cup, the win provided important momentum for RIFC, and an opportunity to show off its depth. Dani Rovira picked up his second start of the season across all competitions and put in a full 90-minute shift, while CJ Williams made his first appearance in the Prinx Tires USL Cup after returning from an injury that kept him out for 13 games. Agustín “Pity” Rodríguez also got the start, and notched his first career goal with RIFC to open the scoring in the first half.
Vegas Heroics
Koke Vegas was the hero on both ends of the ball vs. Brooklyn, keeping RIFC alive with five vital saves in regulation. After Brooklyn’s Juan Carlos Obregon Jr. scored a fantastic free kick to bag the equalizer in first-half stoppage time, Brooklyn’s attack did not stop. In the final minutes of regulation, Vegas stepped up and stopped multiple Brooklyn opportunities, including Obregón’s 93rd-minute shot that he heroically tipped over the net from point-blank range. In the penalty shootout, Vegas picked up a crucial save that gave RIFC an early 2-1 advantage, recording a save in his third-straight penalty shootout for Rhode Island FC. When it came time for the deciding kick, Vegas was the one to find the back of the net from the spot, scoring the first penalty of his professional career to secure the win for Rhode Island FC.
For the Recordbooks
Rhode Island FC and Hartford Athletic last met in the opening game of the Prinx Tires USL Cup on April 25, where Rhode Island FC prevailed in a 4-3 penalty-shootout win after a scoreless tie in regulation. Similarly to last weekend’s game vs. Brooklyn, Koke Vegas was the hero with three saves in regulation, preserving the scoreless tie before making a crucial save in the penalty shootout. In the only other meeting between the two squads this season on April 1, RIFC topped Hartford 2-0 in the Second Round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at Centreville Bank Stadium, handing Hartford its first loss of 2026 with goals from JJ Williams and Aldair Sanchez. In seven meetings across all competitions, RIFC currently has the advantage in the regional rivalry with an all-time record of 2W-1L-4T vs. Hartford. Although Hartford Athletic has never defeated RIFC in Rhode Island, the Ocean State club will enter Saturday’s game in search of its first regular-season win vs. Hartford since Aug. 10, 2024, when it dismantled the Connecticut club 3-0 at Beirne Stadium.
