USL Birmingham Legion FC

Legion FC Defeats Memphis in Front of Record Crowd of 10,177 at Historic Legion Field

May 15, 2021 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Birmingham Legion FC News Release


Ryan James of Birmingham Legion FC vs. Memphis 901 FC at Legion Field
Ryan James of Birmingham Legion FC vs. Memphis 901 FC at Legion Field
(Birmingham Legion FC)

BIRMINGHAM, AL - 'Legion at Legion' proved to be a resounding success as Birmingham Legion FC knocked off its rivals from Memphis, 1-0, on a beautiful Saturday afternoon at Legion Field. The official crowd count of 10,177 stands as Legion FC's highwater mark and sets an attendance record for a professional soccer game in the state of Alabama.

The home side came out fired up and put the visitors under pressure early but were not able to capitalize on a couple Junior Flemmings and Neco Brett chances in and around the 901 FC box. Legion FC got off seven shots and earned seven corners just in the first half, but the halftime whistle blew with the score knotted up at zero.

Legion's breakthrough came via breakaway in the 60th minute, as goalkeeper Matt VanOekel's long ball over the top bypassed every Memphis player on the field, hitting Brett perfectly in stride as he sprinted into the area and scored with a shot that eked under the 901 FC 'keeper.

"It was wonderful [at Legion Field]," said Brett. "I liked the atmosphere. I haven't played in a crowd like this before. We got extra energy from the fans and that's what we always want as the home team, you know what I mean? We want to use our fans as the 12th player. The fans help us to get extra energy when we need it."

VIDEO OF NECO'S GOAL HERE

The game was free flowing throughout, and Memphis had a few dangerous attacking moments that tested VanOekel. He proved to be up to the task, registering five saves, on the afternoon. Left back Ryan James paced the team with four tackles and four clearances, and center back Ben Ofeimu finished with four clearances to go along with three interceptions.

When asked about the historic event and record crowd, Legion FC Head Coach Tommy Soehn said, "It was incredible. It was an electric atmosphere, the pitch played really well, and you could tell our guys enjoyed it by the way they were knocking the ball around. We created tons of chances, and I wish we had scored a few more to make it easier on ourselves. But we got the three points, and I think we gave our fans a pretty good show along the way."

Box Score:

1st Half 2nd Half

BHM 0 1

MEM 0 0

Goals:

BHM - 60' - #11 Neco Brett (assisted by #1 Matt VanOekel)

Starting Lineups:

BHM - #1 Matt VanOekel; #13 Jake Rufe, #22 Ben Ofeimu, #3 Phanuel Kavita ©, #7 Ryan James; #6 Anderson Asiedu, #10 Prosper Kasim (30' - #12 Eli Crognale); #23 JJ Williams, #8 Bruno Lapa (72' - #17 Jaden Servania), #77 Junior Flemmings; #11 Neco Brett (90+1' - #16 Daigo Kobayashi)

MEM - #13 John Berner; #2 Mark Segbers ©, #3 Zach Carroll, #33 Skylar Thomas, #8 Raul Gonzalez; #18 Dominic Oduro, #30 Laurent Kissiedou (83' - #7 Mitch Guitar), #19 Dre Fortune, #16 Rashawn Daly (67' - #10 Kadeem Dacres); #14 Francis Atuahene (73' - #9 Kyle Murphy), #11 Michael Salazar

Legion FC hits the road next weekend to take on San Antonio FC on Saturday, May 22 at 7:30pm CT. Fans can tune in to watch the match on My68 or ESPN+.

Then the club is back home next Wednesday, May 26 at 7:00pm to face OKC Energy FC at BBVA Field. Everybody Wins on Wednesdays with Legion FC, so join us for $1 hot dogs, $2 Coors Lights, and a post-game firework show.

Get your tickets now!

For all club news and updates, be sure to follow @bhmlegion on social media and keep an eye on bhmlegion.com and the Legion FC app.

Check out the Birmingham Legion FC Statistics




Images from this story

Junior Flemmings of Birmingham Legion FC vs. Memphis 901 FC at Legion Field
Junior Flemmings of Birmingham Legion FC vs. Memphis 901 FC at Legion Field
 Ryan James of Birmingham Legion FC vs. Memphis 901 FC at Legion Field
Ryan James of Birmingham Legion FC vs. Memphis 901 FC at Legion Field
  



United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 15, 2021


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