Pali To Host Western Championship

Pali Blues News Release - www.bluessoccerclub.com

Friday, July 13, 2012

LOS ANGELES, CA – The Pali Blues are excited to announce that the Western Conference Championship match will be held at Cal State Fullerton’s Titan Stadium on Sunday, July 22 at 1 p.m. PT. As the No. 1 seed at the end of the regular season, the Blues took advantage of the opportunity to host the playoff match on the same day that brother club, USLPRO’s LA Blues, will host Guatemalan giant C.S.D. Municipal in an international friendly.

“We are excited about winning the regular season Western Conference title, but winning the playoff game is all that matters and we feel great about hosting [the Western Conference Championship],” said Pali Blues head coach Charlie Naimo.

The Blues will face the Seattle Sounders in the playoff match exactly one week after the two play each other in what is both teams' last match of the regular season. Heading into the final regular season game, the Blues and Sounders will end the season as the top two teams in the Western Conference.

The Pali Blues carry an outstanding 12-0-1 record that is good for first place on the conference table, while the Sounders stand in second place with an 8-2-1 record. The outcome of the last regular season match-up will have no effect on the standings, meaning that the Blues have arranged to host the Western Conference championship match as the top team in the conference.

Naimo offered his thoughts on hosting the Sounders for the Western Conference title.

“Seattle is great team that is well coached, and we will do our homework on them to see what kind of changes they’ve made since we last seen them. We will be rested and healthy,” he said.

The winner of next Sunday's game will head to Canada to represent the Western Conference at the W-League Championship, which begin in Ottawa, Ontario on July 27. The semi-finals are set to take place on Friday, July 27. Teams will be seeded one through four based on final regular season standings. Point percentage and USL tiebreakers will be applied as needed. The winners of these matches will move on to the final on Sunday, July 29 for the 2012 W-League title. A consolation match will also be played prior to the championship game.

The Pali Blues will first finish the regular season against the Sounders on Sunday, July 15 at Palisades High School’s Stadium by the Sea, at 3 p.m. PT. They will then have six days to gear up for the Western Conference Championship on Sunday, July 22 at 1 p.m. PT at Titan Stadium before the LA Blues host Municipal at 5 p.m. PT.

For tickets visit bluessoccerclub.com/tickets or call 714-738-8011.