USL Charleston Battery

Charleston Battery Return Home

August 14, 2020 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charleston Battery News Release


CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Battery kick off against familiar foe Atlanta United 2 on Saturday, 8:00 PM at Patriots Point Soccer Complex. This is the first home match for the Charleston side since July 24 where they shut out Atlanta 3-0. In the restructured and shortened season format, Saturday's match is the fourth and final match against Atlanta, carrying big playoff implications for both sides. Full preview plus video assets below:

Charleston Battery return home for the first time since July 24 after a 3-game road stretch that saw the Black and Yellow dropping to Tamba Bay Rowdies and drawing both Atlanta United 2 and Charlotte Independence. The boys hit the home pitch at Patriots Point Soccer Complex Saturday night to face a familiar opponent in Atlanta United 2 for the fourth and final time this season. Saturday's match carries a lot of weight moving forward in the Group H standings as the Battery look to add some breathing room in their second place standing while the Atlanta side hopes to even things up with a win. While the Battery sit 9 points behind group leader Tampa Bay, a win on Saturday will secure 3 points, chip away at the Rowdies lead and add some padding in their playoff-qualifying second place spot for the group.

Saturday's Storylines

Last time home, Charleston put on their top performance for the year with 3 goals in a shutout against Atlanta. While it was the only game on the season the Battery mustered more than a single score in a match, they'll look to build, not only on that 3-0 home win, but also on two strong performances in their away draws against Atlanta and Charlotte. As the final of four matches this season against a young Atlanta side, Saturday's match could be the perfect opportunity for the offensive floodgates to finally open.

Atlanta visit Charleston after dropping their last two matches and failing to find the back of the net. But with a younger squad and evident 'next man up' mentality, the 2's will look to cause trouble in the Battery backline and create opportunities similar to the last time these two teams faced off. "They have young quality players and they work so hard. They don't quit. They're competing every single day," Battery Head Coach Mike Anhaeuser assessed of the Atlanta side. "They'll track 60 to 70 yards and not quit, fighting every minute of the game, even in that win when we were up 3-0."

Ones to Watch This Week

Atlanta - Phillip Goodrum

Goodrum has established himself as a creator for the 2's, leading the team in both assists (2) and shots taken (19). Having started in all eight of Atlanta's matches this season, he's a mainstay in the midfield and has potential to get his 2020 scoring campaign underway against Charleston Saturday if he exposes the Battery back line.

Charleston - Romario Piggot

Romario is one of just three on Charleston's roster that's started all games this season (Defender Leland Archer and Keeper Phil Breno the remaining two). As such, Piggot remains a constant and reliable threat up and down the pitch. With a team-leading 14 shots taken, Piggot has yet to score, even after several very close shots off the head in recent weeks that found the crossbar. He'll be looking to build on his solid offensive performances so far this year and kickoff a scoring campaign come Saturday.

Coach & Training Notes

After the away stretch that included over 30 hours of bus travel and three matches in nine days, the boys had their first one-week break between matches for August. After a day off Sunday, they got back to the pitch, but also had a quick trip to a 'new' training ground visiting the USS Yorktown at the Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum on Tuesday.

Discussing the return to home turf and considering the last home match was a 3-0 win over Atlanta, Coach Mike Anhaeuser noted, "We're going to try to reproduce it. It's not always that easy and really, you'd like to be better. Instead of getting 10 chances, let's get 12 or 15. Let's get 10 corner kicks instead of 8 and build upon that, be better. We want to try to utilize the same things that we did in that game. It's not always easy to do that, but I believe we have the ability to do that and be even better on Saturday."

As of posting, Jesus Ibarra and Kierron Mason are unavailable for Saturday's match. AJ Paterson and Nico Rittmeyer are listed as questionable.

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