FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Revolution will train at home this week for five days before departing on Saturday for a seven-day training trip in Cancun, Mexico. The Revs will practice at ForeKicks in Norfolk, Mass., Monday through Friday this week in advance of the trip, and then travel to the east coast of Mexico for seven days of training that will include exhibition matches against Pioneros de Cancun (Segunda Division) and Atlante FC (Primera Division). A full schedule for the next two weeks is below. NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION SCHEDULE: Feb. 25-March 9
Monday, Feb. 25 - Training at Forekicks (Norfolk, Mass.), 10 a.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 26 - Training at Forekicks (Norfolk, Mass.), 10 a.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 27 - Training at Forekicks (Norfolk, Mass.), 10 a.m.
Thursday, Feb. 28 - Training at Forekicks (Norfolk, Mass.) 12 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 29 - Training at Forekicks (Norfolk, Mass.), 10 a.m.
Saturday, March 1 - Travel to Cancun
Sunday, March 2 - Training at Universidad LaSalle Cancun (Cancun, Mexico), 10 a.m. CT (11 a.m. ET)
Monday, March 3 - vs. Pioneros de Cancun, Estadio 86 (Cancun, Mexico), 3:30 p.m. CT (4:30 p.m. ET)
Tuesday, March 4 - Training at Universidad LaSalle Cancun (Cancun, Mexico), 10 a.m. CT (11 a.m. ET)
Wednesday, March 5 - vs. Atlante FC, Andrés Quintana Roo (Cancun, Mexico), time TBA
Thursday, March 6 - Training at Universidad LaSalle Cancun (Cancun, Mexico), 10 a.m. CT (11 a.m. ET)
Friday, March 7 - Travel to Boston
Saturday, March 8 - OFF; Countdown to First Kick Event at Mansfield Sportsplex (3-6 p.m.)
Sunday, March 9 - OFF, Countdown to First Kick Events at Framingham's Suburban Athletic Club (9 a.m. - 12 p.m.) and Hingham's South Shore Sports Center (4:30-7 p.m.)
REVOLUTION NEWS & NOTES
Countdown to First Kick Tour Launches Wednesday
The Revolution will hold the first of four free, interactive fan events in its "Countdown to First Kick" tour this Wednesday, Feb. 27 ... the tour will stop at the Topsfield Sports Arena in Topsfield, Mass. ... the event will begin at 4:30 p.m. and run three hours until 7:30 p.m. ... the following members of the Revolution are scheduled to appear: Matt Reis, Adam Cristman, Wells Thompson, Gary Flood and Rob Valentino ... for more information, visit revolutionsoccer.net.
Revs Start 2-0 in 2008 Preseason
The Revs earned a 2-0 record in their first two games of the 2008 preseason, both of which were played in Bermuda against the island nation's national team, Feb. 16 and Feb. 20 ... in the team's first game, New England earned a 6-1 victory over the Bermuda National Team behind a hat trick (three goals) from Abdoulie "Kenny" Mansally and single strikes from Adam Cristman, Amaechi Igwe and Spencer Wadsworth ... in the second game, Mansally and Cristman scored both of the Revs' goals in the 2-0 shutout over the Bermudians.
Mansally Strikes White Hot
Kenny Mansally has scored four goals in two games already this preseason ... in the team's first game, he had a hat trick little more than 24 hours after arriving from Gambia following a 30-hour trip ... in the second game, he scored again to push his preseason total to four goals ... Mansally came off the bench in the first game, but entered after Spencer Wadsworth was injured in the 35th minute ... Mansally then started the second game and played all 90 minutes up top.
Cristman Nets a Pair
Adam Cristman, who led the Revs in preseason scoring in 2007 in his rookie season on his way to earning finalist honors for 2007 MLS rookie of the year, has also scored twice so far this preseason ... he has scored one goal in each of the team's first two games... in the first game against the Bermuda National Team, on Feb. 16, he scored the team's fourth goal of the night and its first of the second half ... in the second game against the BNT, Cristman scored just after halftime to push the score to the final 2-0 tally.
Remainder of Preseason Schedule Released
The Revs will play a total of seven preseason matches in 2008, with five remaining on the schedule ... in Cancun, the Revolution will visit Segunda Division squad Pioneros de Cancun on Monday, March 3, followed by a trip to reigning Mexican Primera Division Apertura chamion Atlante on Wednesday, March 5 ... the team will play three matches in its final trip, which will be to New Orleans, March 13-20 ... on Friday, March 14, the Revs will face reigning Honduran Apertura champion Marathon, before taking on the Premier Development League's New Orleans Shell Shockers on Sunday, March 16 and Wednesday, March 19.
Revs Sign Honduran Castro
The New England Revolution announced on Feb. 18 that the club has signed Honduran midfielder Mauricio Castro to a Major League Soccer contract to play for the Revs ... he will occupy one of the team's eight international spots on the roster ... Castro, 26, comes to the Revolution from CD Olimpia of Honduras' La Nacional - its top division - where he played in the Lions' midfield for the last year ... prior to Olimpia, Castro was a member of Honduras' Hispano (2005-07) and Universidad (2004-05) clubs ... Castro also earned four caps with the Honduras National Team during the 2007 UNCAF Nations Cup, the biennial regional championship of the seven Central American CONCACAF countries.
New England One of Four MLS SuperLiga Participants
Also on Thursday, Feb. 7, Major League Soccer announced that the Revolution is one of four MLS teams that will participate in the second-annual SuperLiga, the U.S.-Mexico club tournament featuring a $1 million grand prize for the winner ... the Revs will play just one MLS game in July to clear schedule room for SuperLiga ... MLS will release full details of SuperLiga, as well as the Mexican club-team participants, in the coming weeks.
CONCACAF Champions League Unveiled
The Confederation of North, Central American, Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) announced on Monday, Jan. 28, the new CONCACAF Champions League which will begin in August 2008 ... the new continental club championship will replace the CONCACAF Champions Cup ... 24 teams - including four from the U.S. - will participate in the event ... more information can be found at www.concacaf.com.
Fox Soccer Channel to Televise Season Opener
When the Revs host the Houston Dynamo in an MLS First Kick match on Saturday, March 29, Fox Soccer Channel will be the exclusive national television outlet for the game ... the game is a rematch of MLS Cup 2007, in which the Dynamo earned a 2-1 victory over the Revs to repeat as MLS champions ... the match on March 29 marks the first time that the Revolution has hosted a season-opening match in the club's now 13-year history.
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