Know Your Enemy: Portland Hearts of Pine

After four straight league matches against expansion clubs, the Richmond Kickers return to a familiar opponent on Wednesday, traveling to face the Portland Hearts of Pine.

The clubs met twice during Portland's inaugural 2025 season. Their first meeting, in Portland, ended in a scoreless draw. Six weeks later, however, it was a very different story. A surging Hearts of Pine rolled into Richmond and handed the sliding Kickers a 5-2 defeat. Portland went on to make a surprising playoff run, while Richmond watched the postseason from home.

This season, neither club has been able to build much momentum. Portland enters Wednesday on a three-match losing streak, falling to Corpus Christi, Chattanooga and Westchester—all clubs currently outside the playoff positions. During that stretch, the Hearts of Pine conceded 10 goals, including five against Westchester.

Richmond's form has been even more concerning, with a winless streak that now stretches even longer than Portland's. Throw in injuries on both sides, and this feels like one of the more difficult matches of the season to predict. Both clubs are desperate for points as they look to climb out of the bottom third of the table.

In any case, here are four players on the Portland side that Kickers fans should keep an eye on this Wednesday.

Ollie Wright, Forward #10

A season and a half in, Ollie Wright has become the face of the franchise. He led Portland with 11 goals and eight assists in 2025, and he's on pace to do it again this season. At the halfway point, he leads the club with four goals and six assists while remaining a threat from the left wing and central attacking areas.

Wright is a roaming playmaker who finds pockets of space to dictate the attack. He excels in transition, an area that has troubled Richmond defensively over the past few seasons. If he's allowed to turn between the midfield and defensive lines, he'll create chances. Richmond's best bet is to deny him time on the ball and force Portland's attack into wider areas, where it becomes more predictable.

One thing Wright hasn't done yet? Score against Richmond from open play. His lone contribution in the 5-2 last season was a penalty.

Aboubacar Camara, Striker #9

With injuries, roster moves and tactical experimentation, Aboubacar Camara has emerged as Portland's go-to striker, earning the last five starts. During that stretch, he's scored twice to add to the goal he came off the bench to score in the season opener. He's rewarded Bobby Murphy's faith by providing the pace and directness that have become the focal point of Portland's attack.

Camara is quick and constantly looking to stretch the back line with runs behind the defense. Like Wright, a player like this thrives in transition, using his speed to attack open space before defenders can recover.

And just like with Wright, the challenge for Richmond will be preventing those opportunities from developing. If the Kickers can stay compact through midfield and deny Portland quick outlets in transition, they'll take away much of what makes Camara dangerous.

Diego González, Midfielder #16

After spending the first half of the season with Houston Dynamo 2, Diego González recently arrived in Portland on loan in search of more playing time. He made an immediate impact, scoring Portland's lone goal in his debut against Chattanooga with a long-range strike that took a fortunate deflection.

He followed that with a start against Westchester, where, despite the 5-1 loss, he showed flashes of his potential through his ball movement, passing accuracy and willingness to get forward. He also put one shot on target.

It's too early to know whether González will help turn Portland's season around, but he appears poised to play an important role in the attack while Masashi Wada remains unavailable. Richmond may still be learning what kind of player González is, but so are Portland and the rest of USL League One.

Josh Drack, Left Back #99

After seeing limited minutes with Westchester, left back Josh Drack transferred to Portland in late April. Despite falling out of favor at his previous club, he brought a wealth of experience to Portland and immediately became Portland's starting left back. 

The former first-round MLS SuperDraft pick fits neatly into Murphy's high-energy system. He isn't content to sit deep and defend, instead looking to get forward, support the attack and deliver service from wide areas.

While Wright tends to grab the headlines, Drack provides the type of two-way play that often goes unnoticed until it's missing. Richmond's wide players will need to be prepared for a defender who is just as comfortable joining the attack as making a recovery run.

If Richmond can pin Drack deep instead of allowing him to overlap freely, it'll remove another source of width from Portland's attack.

Portland Hearts of Pine vs. Richmond Kickers: How to Watch

If you're not making the weeknight trip to Portland, you can watch the match on ESPN+, or join the official watch party at Bingo Beer Co.

Kickoff is at 7:00 PM ET.