On Wednesday, The Richmond Kickers announced their first off-season signing: Rivendi Melvin Pierre-Louis.
Little was known about the 24 year old Haitian winger outside of Richmond’s announcement. He didn’t even have a profile on Transfermarkt at the time of the announcement (he does now).
The announcement shared some details: he last played FC Motown, and helped the Summer 2024 squad to the NPSL national championship. Then, he trained with Richmond for the remainder of the 2024 season. And prior to his stint with FC Motown, Pierre-Louis played for Lansdowne Yonkers FC and NY International.
With plenty of questions, Alex Ashton and Yogi Barr set out to learn more, speaking to a former coach and the man who brought him to Richmond, Darren Sawatzky.
Frightening and Efficient
Image provided by New York International | Credit Jordan Bank
First up was Nick Platt, First Team Manager at New York International, a club competing in the Cosmopolitan Soccer League. Platt told us first that Pierre-Louis goes by Mel or Melvin. He then called him a “wonderful, humble guy, with an amazing dedication to the sport.”
With reliable public statistics hard to find in the adult amateur leagues, Platt shared that Pierre-Louis helped NY International win the 2023-2024 league and cup double, and was the top scorer in the league with 24 goals and 15 assists in 24 matches.
As for his technical skills, Platt said he plays at a “frightening pace,” and is a skillful and “very efficient finisher.”
“He’s one of the best dribblers I’ve seen in a one vs one against a full back,” he said.
Pierre-Louis mostly played left wing and left attacking midfield for NY International.
“He was brilliant with either foot, which allowed him to take on players to get crosses into the box, or cut inside to shoot,” said Platt, “he was both a finisher and a creator.”
Pierre-Louis was known to score with either his foot or his head, and was “very effective around the box.”
However, Platt said his biggest improvement while with NY International was his defensive impact, “ensuring he got back to cover when we were out of possession and ensuring that our formation was solid in a transition.”
Earned His Opportunity
Image provided by New York International | Credit Liam Winn
In a statement from the team, Richmond Head Coach and Chief Sporting Officer Darren Sawatzky called Pierre-Louis “a dynamic winger with the ability to score goals and get behind defenses,” with a locker room presence that is “confident and calming.”
Pierre-Louis got connected with Richmond through his agent, and was invited to train for two weeks mid-Summer.
"We liked what we saw, and believed he could develop into a dangerous weapon in USL League One," Sawatzky told us, "so we invited him to stay and train through the end of the year."
"He earned his opportunity," said Sawatzky.
We asked if Sawatzky could shed some light on where Pierre-Louis might fit into the team and its vision for the future, one in which the club is attempting to become more sustainable and develop youth talent. He was coy on the details, but said "we have a plan for 2025 and beyond."
"As we get close to pre-season and into training, you will see where we are going," he said, "we want to win here and win a certain way."
He repeated the often communicated vision of building and selling a club full of young players from Virginia. This is something we've been hearing from Sawatzky and team President Rob Ukrop since at least mid-season 2024.
However, Sawatzky hinted at some more big signings to come.
"Having the right veteran players matters, and we are working to fill those spots."
