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Palace Baltimore Kick Off New Season Friday Vs. Tampa Bay

April 15, 2010 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Crystal Palace Baltimore News Release


Baltimore, MD - This Friday see's Crystal Palace Baltimore kick off their 2010 USSF D-2 Pro League season when they host FC Tampa Bay Rowdies at UMBC Stadium, 7pm EST kickoff. Tampa are one of many new teams Palace will face this year after making the step up to the second division and everyone involved with the Baltimore club is looking forward to the game with excitement and anticipation.

President Pete Medd spoke about the club's rise to the second tier: "Our quest here at the club is to provide the best soccer experience we can for the people of this area and we are just proud to be offering this level of soccer to the fans. I think you will see some very exciting players; you'll see things that you can't see going out watching college soccer or watching anything else locally. It is going to be a very high level. It is something that is going to be worth spending your time watching and spending your money watching and we are just proud to bring that to Baltimore".

With the opening game just over 24 hours away, Head Coach Jim Cherneski spoke about the team's preparation: "Oddly enough we've been hit with an injury bug this week; several players will be out for Friday. But with that being said we have a very deep roster and I think we will still have a very strong team going out. We're prepared; we are very organized. The players are ready to go. I know they are all excited and we hope to open this campaign with a win."

FC Tampa Bay formed in 2008 and, like Palace, they are a founding member of the new NASL. The season opener will be Tampa's inaugural regular season match and they will be looking to get off to the best possible start. The Florida outfit has brought in players with MLS experience such as Erik Ustruck and Julian Valentin and will almost certainly be aiming for a playoff place.

The Tampa team's name may sound familiar - they are named after the original Tampa Bay Rowdies who played in the original North American Soccer League. They will wear the same green and gold hoops that made the Rowdies so iconic in the 1970's and 1980's. The club's crest is also designed to invoke the past as it includes a gold star for the 1975 NASL Championship won by the Rowdies.

Tickets for the season opener between Baltimore and Tampa Bay will be available at the UMBC Stadium gate, which opens one hour before the 7pm kickoff. For those who are not able to attend the match, the game will be video streamed live at http://live.palacebaltimore.com

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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.

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