RICHMOND, VA – (Wednesday, April 15, 2015) – The Richmond Kickers are pleased to announce that all three Richmond United Academy players, Chris Durkin, Drew Romig and Nick Taitague, currently under Academy contracts with the Kickers pro team, have been called up to their respective national teams.
Durkin and Taitague were selected to the 20-player U.S. U15 Boys National Team roster that will travel to Gradisca d’Isonzo, Italy April 21-May 2 to compete in the 12th Tournament Delle Nazioni. The team will first depart to Italy, one of the three host nations for the tournament to train before heading to Slovenia for its opening-round match on April 25 against Costa Rica. Drawn into Group C alongside Slovenia, Costa Rica and Croatia, the USA will play all of its group matches in various cities across Slovenia.
Durkin, who turned 15 on February 8, recently returned from the U.S. U15 Boys National Team Camp in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. A sophomore at Glen Allen High School, he has played on Kickers teams since the age of eight. Following a stint with the D.C. United Academy, he currently represents Richmond United on the U16 Academy team.
Sixteen-year old Taitague is a veteran on the U.S. U15 Boys National Team, and has also seen time with the U.S. U17 Men’s National Team. The former FC Richmond midfielder is currently among 28 players spending the spring semester at the U.S. U17 Residency Program in Bradenton, FL.
Meanwhile, Romig has been invited to train with the U.S. U17 Men’s National Team in Bradenton, FL, April 19-25. He will participate in seven days of training and evaluation in front of the U.S. National Team coaching staff, including former Kickers player and U.S. U17 Men’s National Team Head Coach, Richie Williams. The invitation marks the third call-up for Romig, who also attended the February camp in 2014 and a domestic training camp in Carson, CA in July 2013.
Richmond United U16 Academy goalkeeper, Romig returned for his second season on the Kickers pro roster in 2015. At the age of 16, he made the 18-man game day roster on 10 occasions in 2014, backing up Ryan Taylor. Participating with the Kickers youth programs since U9, the 17-year old junior at St. Christopher’s School committed to the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill for the fall of 2016.
Also expected to sign an Academy contract and join the Kickers pro team this season is Richmond United U16 Academy goalkeeper, William Pulisic, upon his return from the U.S. U17 Residency Program.
As of the 2013 season, expanded roster sizes allow teams to carry as many as five Academy players in USL competition. To qualify for an Academy spot, players must be younger than 21 at the start of the current season; they can’t have competed collegiately; they must never have signed as a professional and the player must either be from a club’s region, an affiliate youth team or from an MLS affiliate.
