Lansdowne Yonkers FC Clinch Eastern Premier Soccer League Playoffs Spot

April 12, 2024

On Sunday April 8th, Lansdowne Yonkers defeated Zum Schneider on the road at Jack McManus Field on Roosevelt Island to become the first team from the Metropolitan Conference to book a ticket to the Eastern Premier Soccer League playoffs. Matt Kane’s bhoys fought to keep control against a talented Zum Schneider side for 85 minutes before breakthrough goals from Joseph DeVivo and Eddie Speed gave Lansdowne the go ahead. This result was significant as it was Yonkers’ first away win against Zum Schneider since they joined the EPSL in 2020. ESPN and Sirius XM soccer pundit Tommy Smyth was the guest commentator on the livestream for the milestone occasion to help bring them some luck.

This now extends Yonkers’ streak to 6 consecutive victories (13W-3D-0L), and maintains their table lead over title rivals NY Pancyprian Freedoms (12W-2D-1L) , who defeated 3rd place NY Greek Americans (8W-5D-3L) by a scoreline of 4-0 on Wednesday night. It’s only going to get harder from here. Lansdowne Yonkers are only ahead by a single point if Pancyprians continue to win their own matches, so Lansdowne pretty much have to win 5 more consecutive games, including against Greek Americans and the Pancyprians, in order to clinch the conference title without any assistance. Both the Pancyprians and the Greek Americans are two of the most historically successful cup sides in American soccer history, predating Major League Soccer by decades (1946 and 1974 respectively), winning a combined 7 U.S. Open Cups (trophies never won by the New York Cosmos, New York Red Bulls, or New York City Football Club). The Greeks have 4 titles to their name, the joint record for most by a currently active American soccer club alongside MLS teams Chicago Fire, Seattle Sounders, and Sporting Kansas City.

Lansdowne Yonkers’ in comparison was founded in 1997 out of The Lansdowne Bar in Riverdale, by Irish American immigrants. Playing mostly as a recreational side for most of their history, they emerged as a powerhouse in pre-professional soccer when they first won the Cosmopolitan Soccer League in 2014, followed by the National Amateur Cup in 2017 and 2021. They host and have hosted the talents of many former League of Ireland players as well as Irish-American and international talent local to the NYC area. Lansdowne’s emergence in the 2010’s created a three-way battle for regional supremacy with the Greek Americans and Pancyprians, with the Bhoys being the leading voice for the Irish community in American soccer. Since 2014, Lansdowne Yonkers have won the league title and/or conference title for 5 of the last 9 seasons.

Lansdowne Yonkers will travel to Carle Place on Long Island on Sunday to take on NY Greek Americans, with whom they had a pair of tough matches against in the Fall. In their league home opener in September, Lansdowne originally lost 2-1 to the Greek Americans, before it became apparent that the transfer of goalkeeper David Greczek from Lansdowne to the Greeks was not compliant with state roster rules before their match. Greczek had signed for Lansdowne, but in a last minute move, rostered for their rivals and featured in goal for the Greek Americans for the game. After review, the original match was nullified and a replay was required to be played a month later, which ended in a 2-2 draw. While the Greek Americans have struggled to win more than 1 match in 2024, it is still hard to predict what kind of game they will play against Lansdowne Yonkers. It was in March 2022, when the Greek Americans were struggling for a playoff spot in the EPSL but managed to end Yonkers’ historic 486 day unbeaten streak and at the same time their National Amateur championship reign. In 2023, after the Greek Americans had a slow end to their regular season, they still managed to end Lansdowne’s EPSL playoff run in the first round with a 3-0 result.

Optimism is high in Lansdowne’s camp, but not without a strong regard for focus. After Lansdowne Yonkers broke their away winless streak at Zum Schneider, consistency will be their key to victory on Sunday. Matt Kane before training on Thursday emphasized this while the players were soaking in the heavy rain at the training ground. “It’s important mentally we are focussed and not allow the recent run of results to create complacency.”

With a variety of players creating and scoring goals, Lansdowne can brag about a +16 goal differential in 2024, while the Greek Americans only have +1. Kickoff is at 5 PM EDT at Carle Place HS in Carle Place, NY. Admission is free, but those who cannot attend can watch the game for free online on New Logical Sports on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Twitch. A continuation of Lansdowne Yonkers’ good run of form will move them closer to their 2nd conference title in 4 years.