Southern West Virginia King's Warriors News Release -- www.wvkingswarriors.org
Saturday, February 8, 2014
BLUEFIELD, W.V. -- Dr. James Blume Jr. and the Nehemiah Group are pleased to announce that the Southern West Virginia King's Warriors' PDL team will be moving to Bluefield, W.V. for the 2014 season. The team will play at the main stadium at the East River Soccer Complex. The announcement was made at a Saturday morning news conference at the Quality Inn Hotel & Conference Center in Bluefield.
The King's Warriors will be strongly backed by the East River Soccer Association and its' President George Aiello. The team has played at the YMCA Paul Cline Memorial Youth Sports Complex in Beckley in its first two seasons in the PDL in 2012 and 2013.
"The East River Soccer Association and George Aiello have expressed interest in the King's Warriors playing at their facility for a long time," said Dr. Blume. "When we were informed in October, 2013, that the YMCA in Beckley would not be available for the 2014 season, we felt it was the perfect time to make this move.
"While it was not our initial desire to move from Beckley, all the circumstances came together for us to positively make this move. We want to thank the YMCA in Beckley for allowing us to start our PDL franchise there two years ago. But now we are excited to have the opportunity to play in Bluefield and represent all of Southern West Virginia, and we expect to continue to draw fans and support from all areas of the region."
"The enthusiasm and commitment that the East River Soccer Association has shown has been truly amazing. They have really stepped up to offer their support to help make the King's Warriors a success on and off the field. We look forward to the King's Warriors playing in Bluefield for many years to come."
Aiello expressed his delight at the King's Warriors move to Bluefield. "I'm also excited to have a PDL team come to the area with the positive impact it will mean to the different businesses," he said. "It will give them an opportunity to showcase what they have to offer to people from all over the PDL's South Atlantic Division. It's a great opportunity to have this partnership between the East River Soccer River Association and the King's Warriors for what it is going to bring to the local community of Bluefield, West Virginia, as well as Mercer County, Princeton and the folks of Bluefield, Virginia and Tazewell county. We can't wait for the first game."
The East River Soccer Complex is also the home of the Bluefield College Rams' men's and women's soccer teams, as well as the boy's and girl's high school soccer teams from Bluefield and Graham High Schools.
The East River Soccer Association boasts of 800 participants (U4 to high school age) from Mercer County in West Virginia, along with Tazewell and Wythe Counties in Virginia. The complex also annually hosts the Princeton - Mercer County Chamber of Commerce / East River Soccer Tournament, which attracts more than 25 teams from Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia.
Meanwhile the King's Warriors' various soccer programs attract participants from Monroe, Summers, and Mercer counties in West Virginia.
The Nehemiah group and the East River Soccer Association are also going to partner to make some significant upgrades in the future to the main stadium and soccer complex. Some of the upgrades will include new dressing rooms and showers, a new press box, new stadium lighting, and field improvements.
"Through the partnership we are going to have with the King's Warriors, we intend on making some fabulous upgrades," said Aiello. "We've had some initial plans put together and we're continuing to raise funds to make those enhancements happen. Bringing in quality teams like the King's Warriors and teams from the PDL are only going to help us with some of those enhancements."