RICHMOND, VA – (Wednesday, July 14, 2010) – The Richmond Kickers (6-4-5, 23 points) will begin a home and away series with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds (3-4-5, 14 points) this Thursday, July 15th at 7:00 p.m.  The contest will take place at Chartiers Valley High School, as the clubs prepare for the first of two confrontations set to take place in brief succession.  The teams swap home field advantage on Saturday, July 24th when the Kickers host the Riverhounds at City Stadium.

Trailing the current table leaders, Charleston Battery, by four points with just five matches remaining, every fixture left on this season’s slate is of extreme importance for the Richmond Kickers.  By obtaining a valuable mid-week road victory, the defending champions can pull within a single point of the Battery, who also owns a game in hand. 

Last time out, the Kickers earned a share of the match treasures on the road in a 1-1 stalemate against the Charlotte Eagles.  Edson Elcock maintained his positive scoring form, placing Richmond in front with a first half tally.  The visitors saw their hard earned lead later evaporate in the second half as the Eagles were able to discover an equalizer.  On the other hand, the Riverhounds have not played a league game in nearly two weeks, falling to the Charlotte Eagles, 2-1, at home in their last bout.

In their earlier Pittsburgh expedition, the Kickers relied on a Matthew Delicâte goal at the death to even the contest at one apiece.  The second encounter of the campaign took place at City Stadium where the Riverhounds earned their first victory of the year in a 3-1 decision.  An early penalty put the Riverhounds out in front and the Kickers were unable to erase the deficit as Delicâte found the back of the net once again.

The Kickers and Riverhounds will be familiar foes over the next few weeks as they round out the four-game series in Richmond on Saturday, July 24th.  Richmond owns the overall series lead, 10-5-3.

Team of the Week
The Richmond Kickers placed two players on this week’s USL-2 Team of the Week, following a back-to-back road trip to Charleston and Charlotte.  Luke Vercollone was recognized following a strong all around performance, while Edson Elcock earned a nod after notching the Kickers lone goal of the weekend in the 1-1 draw against the Eagles.