Richmond Kickers News Release -- www.richmondkickers.com
Thursday, July 7, 2011
RICHMOND, Va. – The Richmond Kickers are pleased to host the Charlotte Eagles this Friday night live on FOX Soccer from Richmond City Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 8 p.m. and admission is just $7 per person before 7:30 p.m. The first 1,500 fans through the gate will receive a free red Kickers t-shirt, courtesy of Northwestern Mutual. The Kickers and the Eagles swap home-field advantage 24 hours later as the two teams face off at Charlotte Christian Stadium on Saturday night at 8 p.m.
The Kickers take on their long-time rivals back-to-back this weekend for the first time since a 1-1 stalemate in Charlotte exactly one year ago. The two clubs split the four game series last season 1-1-2, exchanging three points at City Stadium early in the season before battling to a pair of draws in Charlotte.
With an all-time series advantage of 18-8-9 over the Eagles, the Kickers’ extensive rivalry dates back to the club’s inception in 1993. In addition to heated regular season matches, the perennial championship contenders have a long history of battling in high stakes games. The two clubs met in the 2007 USL-2 semifinals when the Kickers came away with a 2-1 overtime win, boosting Richmond to their third consecutive appearance in the finals. In 2006, the Kickers hosted Charlotte in the championship when the same scoreline fell to the home side in regulation, granting the Kickers their third league title in franchise history. Three years later, the rivals met again in the title match, when the Kickers rallied from a one-goal deficit to reclaim the USL-2 crown, 3-1, against the Eagles in 2009.
A race for playoff position has begun in the competitive USL PRO American Division with just six points separating five of the division’s six teams. Charlotte currently resides in fifth place in the standings with a 6-5-3 record and 21 points and are on the heels of the second-place Richmond, who have posted an 8-4-3 record and 27 points.
Overcoming an early season slide, the Eagles have since gone 6-1-2 in their last nine outings, allowing just seven goals. Most recently, they handed F.C. New York a 3-1 decision on the road on July 4th with midfielder Jorge Herrera leading the charge, notching his first goal and fourth assist of the season.
Meanwhile, the Kickers returned to winning ways with a 3-1 scoreline of their own against the Dayton Dutch Lions over the holiday weekend. Conceding a first half penalty kick, the Kickers recovered from the early deficit when midfielder Ryan Heins notched the equalizer before the break. Kickers midfielder David Bulow gave the home side the lead when he converted a second-half penalty before Edson Elcock sealed the victory in the 74th minute.
Players to Watch
Kickers: Midfielder David Bulow burst onto the scoring scene during U.S. Open Cup play, notching five goals during this year’s tournament. Adding his fourth regular season goal against the Dayton Dutch Lions earlier this week, the fan favorite resides in second place on the team in scoring with nine goals and one assist for 19 points overall this season. Midfielder Nozomi Hiroyama recorded his first goal in a Kickers uniform during the Kickers historic 2-1 win over the Columbus Crew in the U.S. Open Cup third round. The Japanese international’s experience extends to four continents, and also includes a pair of caps with the full Japanese National Team. Defender William Yomby shores up the Kickers backline and earned USL PRO Team of the Week honors for the third time this season following the Kickers scoreless tie in New York last week. The menacing Cameroonian has also contributed to the attack, registering an assist on the game-winning goal against Pittsburgh in April.
Eagles: Seasoned goal-scorer Jorge Herrera notched his first goal of the season during the Eagles 3-1 win against F.C. New York on Monday. He added his fourth assist of the campaign on the game-winning goal and is tied for third on the team in scoring with six points overall. Forward Sallieu Bundu leads the Eagles with four goals and one assist for nine points on the season. A native of Sierra Leone, Bundu currently plays for the Carolina RailHawks and is on loan to the Eagles for the 2011 season. In his ninth season with the Eagles, veteran Josh Rife continues to anchor the defense for the Eagles, allowing the least number of goals (13) in the league during the 2011 season. Rife has received All-League honors multiple times, and was named the USL-2 Defender of the Year in 2005.
Avery Spence Youth Community Service Award
The Kickers will present the inaugural Avery Spence Youth Community Service Award to the Spence family during halftime of Friday’s match against Charlotte. What will become an annual award has been established to honor Avery Spence, a devoted Kickers youth soccer player who was tragically killed in an automobile accident on May 1st. The first 1,500 fans through the gate will receive a free Richmond Kickers t-shirt, featuring Spence’s number seven, courtesy of Northwestern Mutual and Ukrop’s Dress Express. In Avery's honor, admission will be $7 per person, youth and adult, before 7:30 p.m. at the gate.
A longstanding member of the Richmond Kickers youth club, Avery Spence started with the Kickers rec program when she was nine years old, progressing with arguably the best girls team in the Kickers Elite girls program over the past seven seasons. A committed volunteer since the age of 13, Spence donated countless hours throughout the Richmond community, participating in over 50 youth soccer clinics, Meals on Wheels, caroling to senior citizens, as well as working with the Kickers ADP program for six and seven year olds. She was in the academic top ten in her class at Manchester High School and was heading to Virginia Tech this fall to pursue a career in dentistry. She had a love for life, sharing her time and talent with kids of all ages.
Each year, the Richmond Kickers will present the Avery Spence Youth Community Service Award to the Kickers youth player that has demonstrated outstanding commitment to the youth community in Richmond. Criteria will be based on volunteer involvement, commitment, leadership and athletic and academic achievements.