Ironmen Hosting Two Games at Prudential Center this Weekend
January 8, 2009 - Xtreme Soccer League (XSL)
New Jersey Ironmen News Release
Newark, N.J. (Thursday, January 8, 2009) - As the 2008-09 Xtreme Soccer League season begins to hit full swing, the New Jersey Ironmen (1-2) will play host in a pair of home contests at Prudential Center this weekend. Following a Friday night match against the Chicago Storm (2-3), the Ironmen will take on the first-place Milwaukee Wave (3-0) in a Sunday afternoon showdown.
New Jersey picked up their critical first victory of the young XSL season this past Sunday when they defeated the Storm by a count of 13-7 at the Sears Centre Arena in Chicago. The implications of getting that proverbial monkey off their back is something that Ironmen front man Omid Namazi feels will play an important role in the resolution of his team.
"It raises the confidence of the team to get that first win," Namazi remarked. "We feel that this team is good enough to compete for a championship. You wouldn't think so after the first two games' results, but we know we are capable of winning when we do the right things."
Ironmen defender and Brooklyn native Oral Bullen also agreed with the thoughts of Namazi.
"Getting that first win gave us a huge confidence boost, and it showed this week at training," he commented. "Everyone is starting to click and get on the same page, and we now know that we have to get the ball to the feet of our go-to guys so we can be effective offensively."
Making his first professional indoor start on Friday will be goalkeeper Pat Hannigan. While he may be young in his indoor career, Namazi feels that his club will be in good hands with the Temple University graduate in net.
"Pat is a very good goalkeeper, and he has a lot of potential," Namazi stated. "As long as he keeps things simple and lets the game come to him, he will be fine. I have a lot of confidence in Pat."
Kickoff against the Storm on Friday is slated for 7:30 p.m. while the Sunday match against Milwaukee will start at 4:00 p.m.
Also on hand at Prudential Center this Friday will be former North American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League goalkeeper Shep Messing, who will put the ceremonial first kick into motion as Ironmen honorary captain. Messing has played a historical role in the history of soccer in this country, and he was the first dominating goalkeeper of professional indoor soccer. He was in net for the Cosmos when Pele won the 1977 North American Soccer League championship, and he was in net as the winning goalkeeper for the New York Arrows in the first-ever professional indoor soccer game that was played 30 years ago this past December. The current New York Red Bulls lead analyst is also a member of the New York Sports Hall of Fame, National Jewish Hall of Fame and the Nassau County Hall of Fame.
Xtreme Soccer League Stories from January 8, 2009
- Ironmen Hosting Two Games at Prudential Center this Weekend - New Jersey Ironmen
- Ignition And Detroit Medical Center Announce Partnership - Detroit Ignition
- Ironmen Ink Polish Defender David Topolski - New Jersey Ironmen
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
