Who are these Kickers from Richmond? Three Questions with an ally: Adam Soucie

It's that time before game time when we look for some insider perspective on the latest opponent of the Chicago Fire. We usually locate an enemy to exchange barbs with but in this case we found an ally: Adam Soucie, Director of Communications for Orlando City Soccer. Orlando City dispatched the Richmond Kickers 3-0 in the USL PRO Semi-Finals this past Saturday. In addition to becoming a frequent league opponent of Richmond, Soucie hails from Illinois and has been a Fire fan for quite some time. He'd be rooting for Chicago either way but when the game kicks off tomorrow night at 7:30 PM CST streaming live from www.chicago-fire.com, Adam will have an extra reason to be cheering for Chicago even though he doesn't need it. Soucie's answer to my six questions are after the break.

Hot Time In Old Town asks Adam Soucie

1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I'm originally from Frankfort, in the Southwest suburbs, so I've been a Chicago guy all my life. I moved to Orlando after going to college here, to work at EA Sports Tiburon on Madden. After getting out of the game development industry, I went back to school to be a teacher.

I was paying the bills in part as a freelancer for the Orlando Sentinel and a blogger covering the UFL. That got me noticed by the Orlando Predators, the Arena Football team here, and was offered their Director of Communications job. Soccer has been my passion for quite some time, so when the opportunity arose to join Orlando City in the same capacity, I jumped at it.

2. Now in what way does that qualify you as an expert on the Richmond Kickers?

I' m an expert of sorts on the Kickers as we've played them three times this season, twice in Orlando. This past Saturday we stomped the Kickers 3-0 in a playoff game. The first 15 minutes aside, we controlled the game completely.

3. Your team, Orlando City, beat the Richmond Kickers on Saturday 3-0. Where did Richmond fail on Saturday where they have succeeded before?

Where Richmond really struggled was dealing with our possession-oriented play style. Head Coach Adrian Heath has a very attack-minded mentality, and I mean that in the truest sense. Our left and right backs are expected to spend most of their time in the attacking half of the pitch, and Richmond really struggled with that. Two of our three goals came from defenders, none of which were on set pieces.

4. Matthew Delicate is Richmond's best goal scorer. What kind of a forward is he?

Deli is a crafty forward, but he relies on quality service. We held him to just one shot all match by keeping him isolated. Richmond tried a 4-5-1 against us, and it left Deli out to dry. It didn't matter how many off-ball runs he made, because the service never reached him.

5. Who else is dangerous for Richmond?

There are two players that make me nervous for Richmond: Edson Elcock and David Bulow. Both are capable of scoring and driving the Richmond offense. Bulow is one of the all-time leading scorers in USOC history for a reason. He's been on a hot streak in Open Cup play this year as well, so he's someone to look out for. It appeared that Richmond was resting Bulow on Saturday night as he only played 32 minutes.

6. Closing thoughts on Richmond, the U.S. Open Cup and/or the Chicago Fire?

As a Fire supporter (my Section 8 scarf hangs over my desk at the office), I'm firmly behind the Fire in this match. I'm pulling hard for a Brimstone Cup final as well, as I'll be making the trip to Chicago for the match. We are the Kings of the Cup, and we're going to prove it to Richmond.

Our thanks to Adam Soucie for answering our questions and following HTIOT on Twitter. For Fire and soccer fun, give him a follow at... wait for it... @AdamSoucie