When Kenardo Forbes arrived in Pittsburgh in 2018 from the Rochester Rhinos, he was already an established USL Championship player with a championship and a pair of All-League honors to his name.
Fast forward to 2024, the Jamaican midfielder known as “King Kenny” is the most decorated player in Riverhounds history. And on April 6 this year against the Tampa Bay Rowdies, he claimed a record seven years in the making — the Riverhounds’ all-time appearances mark.
Forbes already held records for assists and most all-league honors coming into the season, but the year kicked off knowing he needed only three appearances to match the 18-year-old record of 195 set by David Flavius. He got those in the team’s first three matches, meaning the home match against the Rowdies would be the night he had a chance to make the record his own.
So with the Highmark Stadium crowd ready to salute the club legend and with Flavius in attendance, there was little chance coach Bob Lilley — the coach who brought Forbes to Pittsburgh after moving from Rochester himself — was going to leave Forbes out of the lineup.
“I still think he has a lot to give to the organization as a player, a coach and in other capacities,” Lilley said in an interview prior to that match. “He’s just a class person.”
The result was a pregame ceremony that could be viewed as a passing of the torch. Flavius, still the club’s goal scoring leader, a Hall of Fame and a former St. Lucian international who continues living in Pittsburgh, was all smiles as he shook hands with Forbes, another former international from a Caribbean nation who has made a home in the Steel City.
Though the match itself finished as a 0-0 draw, there was vintage form on display from Forbes in his 74 minutes of the field. He connected on 47 of 58 passes (81 percent), including 13 of 15 in the attacking third. He also created three chances and won possession 10 times in a complete box-to-box effort from the player who would turn 36 later in the season.
After the match, Forbes was hailed by the Steel Army and other longtime supporters for his new record. He would go on later in the season to also establish the USL Championship record for appearances, and by season’s end, Forbes had run the club record to 226 matches.
And whether there is more to come in Forbes’ decorated career — he helped bring the Players’ Shield to Pittsburgh in 2023 but said he still wants a championship for his adopted home — King Kenny is proud of his milestones.
“That was not on my list coming here, but it’s nice to get those two (records),” Forbes said. “Coming here, we wanted to take (the club) to a new level, and I think we did that.”
Riverhounds’ Best of 2024
#5: Down Goes Detroit
#4: Fantastic Hall of Fame Week
#3: Another Crown for the King
#2: Coming Dec. 29
#1: Coming Dec. 30
