Richmond, VA – (Monday, June 8, 2009) – The Richmond Kickers begin U.S. Open Cup play tomorrow, Tuesday, June 9th in Cary, North Carolina as they take on USL-1 powerhouse Carolina RailHawks in the First Round at 7:00 p.m. The winner of the match will advance to the Second Round the week of June 16th to face the winner of the Charlotte Eagles and Wilmington Hammerheads match. Should the Kickers and the Hammerheads win their respective games, Richmond will host Wilmington in the next round. Watch the First Round live from Carolina via USLLive.com tomorrow.
A total of 40 teams, including 24 professional and 16 amateur clubs will compete when the tournament kicks off for the 96th consecutive year. The Richmond Kickers received an automatic berth into the First Round of competition, alongside the seven other U.S.-based USL Second Division teams.
Kickers Versus Carolina
Tuesday’s match-up will be the second for the Kickers and the RailHawks this season. The two teams met in April during a preseason exhibition in Richmond, during which the Kickers handed a 1-0 decision to the USL-1 favorites. Kickers forward Matthew Delicâte celebrated his return to Richmond with a 90th minute game-winner. Goalkeeper Ronnie Pascale’s gallant efforts in the net earned the Kickers a clean sheet and a victory to kick off the 2009 campaign.
The Kickers and the RailHawks also met twice during the 2007 campaign when the then-expansion franchise suffered a 3-1 loss at the hands of the Kickers. Later that season, the two clubs met for a rematch in Cary during the 2007 US Open Cup Quarterfinals with the RailHawks edging the Kickers from Cup competition by a narrow 1-0 margin.
In league action, the RailHawks are currently in second place in the USL-1 standings, trailing by just one point, with a record of 7-2-1 and 22 points. The RailHawks should be well-rested this week, having not played a regular season match since a 1-0 win over the Cleveland City Stars on May 29th. Meanwhile, the Kickers ended a scoring drought with a 5-0 victory over the league-leading Harrisburg City Islanders last Saturday. The win boosted the Kickers into third place in the standings and just three points away from the top of the table.
Richmond Kickers and the Open Cup
The 2009 season marks the 11th time the Richmond Kickers have qualified for the U.S. Open Cup over the past 15 seasons and hold an overall record of 17-9 during tournament play. The Kickers claimed the U.S. Open Cup title the first year of the “Professional Era” in 1995 and have since made it to the quarterfinal round four times (1995, 2001, 2004, 2007), ousting three Major League Soccer teams along the way including Colorado Rapids in 2000, DC United in 2004 and LA Galaxy in 2007. With 59 total goals scored during the Open Cup, the Kickers set several franchise records, as well as a Professional Era U.S. Open Cup record, for most goals (12) during the 8-4 rout over the Ocean City Barons in 2005.
The Kickers received an automatic berth into last year’s tournament as the defending USL-2 Regular Season Champions and then cruised by the Fredericksburg Gunners (PDL) with a 3-0, First Round victory. The Second Round progressed when the Kickers ousted the Western Mass Pioneers in a hard-fought, 2-1 road win before a 3-0 loss to the then-defending U.S. Open Cup Champions New England Revolution in the Third Round. For all of the up-to-the-minute action, visit www.USOpenCup.com.
About the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, which is recognized as U.S. Soccer’s National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. The tournament has crowned a champion for 95 consecutive years dating back to 1914.
The single-elimination tournament, with games tied after regulation being decided in two 15-minute overtime halves. If the score is still tied after overtime, the winner is decided in a penalty kick shootout. The team that advances the furthest from each level except Division I will earn a $10,000 cash prize. The runner-up will take home $50,000, while the Champion will collect $100,000. The winner also will have the team’s name engraved on the historic Dewar Challenge Trophy, the oldest trophy in American team sports that is housed in the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta, NY.
