Following Detroit City FC‘s victory over Rhode Island FC on Saturday night, the club honored two players for their contributions on the pitch. With the win, Le Rouge clinched a home playoff match for the first round of the USL Championship Playoffs, taking place between October 30 and November 1. Darren Smith scored the winner for Le Rouge in the 56th minute, his 14th USL Championship goal of the season, good for second in the league.
Haruki Yamazaki Named 2026 Black Arrow MVP
Detroit City FC defender Haruki Yamazaki was named the Black Arrow MVP award winner for the 2026 season following Saturday night’s regular season home finale.
Yamazaki, in his second season with Le Rouge, has drawn 108 fouls as of Saturday night, the most in the USL Championship. Yamazaki has been a steady hand in Detroit City FC’s lineup, appearing in 34 of Detroit City FC’s 35 matches to date, ranking second on the team in total minutes played with 2,818.
The 25 year old from Nara, Japan was recognized league-wide five times across the 2026 campaign, being named to the USL Championship Team of the Week in weeks 6, 12, 25 and 29. Yamazaki was also named to the Prinx Tires USL Cup Team of the Round for the second round following his game-winning goal against Forward Madison FC.
The Black Arrow award is named after Gil Heron, a Jamaican soccer trailblazer who became the first black player for Celtic FC in 1951. Heron, given the nickname “The Black Arrow” spent much of his career in Detroit, returning to the city following his playing career. Heron passed away in Detroit in 2008 and in 2012, Detroit City FC named their team MVP award in his honor.
Previous winners of the Black Arrow MVP award on the men’s side include: Keith Lough (2012), Josh Rogers (2012), Zach Myers (2013), Cyrus Saydee (2014), David Edwardson (2015), Tommy Catalano (2016), Tyrone Mondi (2017), Stephen Carroll (2018), Shawn Lawson (2019), Tendai Jirira (2020), Connor Rutz (2021), Nate Steinwascher (2022), Devon Amoo-Mensah (2023), Maxi Rodriguez (2024), and Michael Bryant (2025).
Ben Morris Honored as 11th Detroit City FC City Centurion
Detroit City FC Forward Ben Morris was honored following Saturday’s home finale as the 11th City Centurion in club history. The City Centurion tradition highlights players who have reached 100 career matches with Detroit City FC, honoring their commitment to Le Rouge as well as their on-field performance.
Morris reached the 100 match mark in July, scoring the game winner on the road against Birmingham Legion FC on July 2nd.
Throughout his four seasons with Detroit City FC, Morris has totaled 19 goals, good for sixth in Detroit City FC history.Morris also ranks seventh all-time with nine assists.
Morris joins Cyrus Saydee (2012-2021), Stephen Carroll (2017-2025), Nate Steinwascher (2016-2024), Connor Rutz (2020-Present), Maxi Rodriguez (2021-2024, 2026-Present), Yazeed Matthews (2019-2024), Abdoulaye Diop (2019, 2022-Present), Michael Bryant (2022-Present), Rhys Williams (2022-Present), and Devon Amoo-Mensah (2022-Present) in the exclusive club.
For more information about Detroit City FC, visit detcityfc.com and follow @DetroitCityFC on X, Facebook, and@detroitcityfootballclub on Instagram.
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