USL Charleston Battery

Charleston Battery Will Face Barclays English Premier League Side Bolton Wanderers At Blackbaud

Published on May 13, 2010 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charleston Battery News Release


The Charleston Battery will face Barclays English Premier League side Bolton Wanderers at Blackbaud Stadium on Saturday, July 17. The match marks the first ever visit to Charleston by an EPL team. Bolton Wanderers have just concluded the 2009/10 EPL season that saw them compete against the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham & Liverpool; Bolton finished the season with a 2-1 win versus Birmingham City last Sunday and have secured Premier League status for next season - their tenth successive in the English top-flight.

Tickets for this special exhibition match will go on sale to the general public on Monday, May 17th. Tickets are priced starting at just $15 with discounts available for groups of ten or more. To purchase tickets or for more information please call (843) 971-GOAL (4625) or visit www.charlestonbattery.com.

"Bringing Bolton Wanderers to Charleston is a wonderful opportunity for the City and for the people in the surrounding area to see a Barclays Premier League team playing at our home, Blackbaud Stadium. Having this game shows the commitment of our ownership and will be a fantastic occasion for our fans and of course our players," said Charleston Battery head coach Mike Anhaeuser.

"We are looking forward to coming over as part of our preparations for the 2010/11 Premier League season and the game with Charleston is an integral part of those preparations. The players and staff will want to take advantage of the good training facilities to ensure we start the season fully prepared," said Bolton Wanderers representative Simon Marland.

Bolton Wanderers are founder members of the English Football League (formed in 1874)

And have spent 71 total seasons in the top flight of English football.

Bolton Wanderers are led by manager, Owen Coyle who joined Bolton in January from rival Club Burnley F.C. Coyle's first EPL win in charge of Bolton came on Jan 26th with a 1-0 victory over Burnley! Coyle has also managed St. Johnstone and Falkirk in the Scottish Premier League; his playing career included 669 games scoring 249 goals.

Bolton's roster includes several notable players including US international midfielder Stuart Holden. Holden has recently returned to full fitness following a leg fracture suffered while playing for the US versus Holland in March and has been named to the USA's preliminary World Cup roster. Holden has visited Charleston previously as a member of MLS's Houston Dynamo.

Bolton forward Kevin Davies is one of the most highly regarded strikers in the EPL and has scored 54 goals in 250 appearances for the Trotters. He has just finished as the club's top goalscorer for the second consecutive season.

Midfielder Chung-Yong Lee is a current member of the South Korean national team, and has been named in South Korea's preliminary squad for this summer's FIFA World Cup tournament. Nigerian defender Danny Shittu has been included in the Nigeria World Cup squad as has Slovakian striker Vladimír Weiss.

Other notable players include Jamaican defender Ricardo Gardener who has been capped over 100 times for Jamaica and made over 350 appearances for Bolton. Goalkeeper Jussi Jääskeläinen (Finland) retired from international football in 2009 to lengthen his Club career and is one of the most recognizable goalkeepers in the EPL. He has played more than 450 games for the Wanderers during his career with the club.

The Trotters, as they are also known, qualified for the UEFA Cup (now known as the UEFA Europa League) for the first time in their history in the 2005/06 season. A year later, they progressed to the final 16 of the same competition.

Four time winners of the FA Cup, their last trophy in England's fabled competition was in 1958. The victory took place at Wembley Stadium as they defeated Manchester United 2-0 with both goals coming from legendary player Nat Lofthouse.

The Charleston Battery and Bolton Wanderers have one former player in common. Midfielder Nicky Spooner played for Bolton from 1989 - 1998; he was a member of the Charleston Battery's 1999 squad.

Charleston Battery vs. international opposition

Although the match versus Bolton is the first that Charleston will have played against an English Premier League side it is not the Battery's first international exhibition. Charleston has a long tradition of hosting foreign clubs starting back in 1993 when the Battery played Jamaican Premier League side Constant Springs FC and Latvian team, FK-RAF Riga.

The Battery defeated then English Championship side Sunderland A.F.C by a score of two goals to one in 2004 and has twice hosted Mexican Primera opposition defeating Puebla F.C. and then losing a match versus Atlante FC. In recent years the Battery has also hosted Jamaican Premier League side Village United.

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 13, 2010


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