Richmond, VA – (Thursday, May 28, 2009) – The Richmond Kickers Destiny and Hampton Roads Piranhas have announced that the two teams will battle for the 2009 James River Cup title. A local derby that existed between the Richmond Kickers pro team and the Hampton Roads/Virginia Beach Mariners (USL-1), the James River Cup competition was reinstated last season between the Kickers and the Piranhas amateur teams.
The Destiny and the Piranhas will face off twice over the 2009 regular season, meeting first in Richmond on Saturday, June 6th. The series will conclude on Wednesday, July 15th to close out the campaign in Hampton Roads. The Piranhas are the defending James River Cup Champions after claiming the title after a five-game series last season. Although both clubs split the series with seven points each following a 2-2-1 record, the Cup currently resides with the Kickers I-64 rivals based on goal differential.
At stake is the James River Cup title, which is based on the total number of points at the end of all matches played between the two clubs. With three points awarded for a win and one point awarded for a tie, the winner of the James River Cup will be decided following the conclusion of the home and away matches between the two clubs.
Beginning in 1996, the James River Cup competition has been in existence for twelve seasons as a local derby between the two clubs (the Mariners did not field a team in 1997 or 2001). The Kickers pro team held the James River Cup consistently for seven seasons (1998-2000, 2002-2005) before the Mariners were able to capture the title prior to the 2006 campaign. The competition was on hiatus since the demise of the Virginia Beach Mariners (USL-1) prior to the 2007 season but was revised prior to the 2008 season to include the amateur clubs in Richmond and Hampton Roads.
With just two games on the line, a total of six points is up for grabs. Should the series end in a tie, the Champion will be determined by three potential tiebreakers. First, goal differential will be used to break the draw, followed by the total number of points in all regular season league games to date. Should a third tiebreaker be necessary, the winner will be decided based on total number of goals scored in all league games per club to date. Finally, if a resolution is still not found, the Cup will remain with the previous year’s winner.
Destiny versus Piranhas
The Destiny hold a 7-3-0 advantage over the Piranhas since 2004. Leading a seven-game win streak, the Destiny last suffered a loss to Hampton Roads on May 14, 2005 in a 2-0 road defeat. Most recently, the Destiny swept the two-game series against their local rivals in 2008, claiming a 2-1 victory against the Piranhas during the home leg before edging the Piranhas, 1-0 on the road. Hampton Roads concluded the 2008 campaign in fourth place in the Atlantic Division standings with a 7-6-1 record and 22 points. The Destiny finished three points behind the Piranhas with a 6-8-0 record and 18 points.
Previous Winners
1996: Virginia Beach Mariners (0-3-0, 3 Shootout losses)
1997: Cup not held
1998: Richmond Kickers (3-1-0)
1999: Richmond Kickers (4-1-0)
2000: Richmond Kickers (3-1-0)
2001: Cup not held
2002: Richmond Kickers (3-1-0)
2003: Richmond Kickers (2-0-2)
2004: Richmond Kickers (3-0-1)
2005: Richmond Kickers (3-1-0)
2006: Virginia Beach Mariners (0-1-1)
2008: Hampton Roads Piranhas (2-2-1)
