Palace Seek Semi-Final Upset In Charlotte

Published on August 15, 2008 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Crystal Palace Baltimore News Release


Baltimore, MD - Crystal Palace FC USA make the long trek down to Charlotte this weekend for their USL2 Playoff semi-final against the top-seeded Eagles of North Carolina ("The Eagles" is also the nickname of Crystal Palace.) This is Palace's first experience of the playoffs having missed out in their inaugural season last year. The winner of this contest will earn a berth in the Championship Final on Saturday August 23rd at 7:30pm against the winner of the other semi-final in which Richmond hosts Cleveland.

Charlotte has dominated Palace this season, winning both home and away encounters by the same score of 3-0. "To be completely honest, it should have been heavier," admitted Co-Manager Jim Cherneski, referring to Palace's most recent defeat in Charlotte on July 26th. "They're undoubtedly the best team we've faced this year - including MLS teams in the Open Cup - so if we can beat them, it speaks volumes to how far we've come since last season." Cherneski accentuated the positives to be taken from the poor results against their hosts: "We played poorly in both matches, but hopefully that will set their expectations at an inappropriately high level. We feel very prepared, very confident that we can win... if we compete hard."

"All you can ask for as a pro is a chance to win a championship," said Palace center back and Baltimore native Mike Lookingland. "We're excited to go out there and give it everything."

Palace will be missing a key player for this crucial game. Paul Robson is still nursing a hamstring injury that he picked up two games ago. This means Andrew Marshall will slide over to the right back position as he did against Harrisburg on Wednesday, with Shintaro Harada moving to center back to partner Lookingland. "You'd like to keep a steady line-up at the back, but these things happen," remarked Lookingland. "We've had a lot of injuries and cards, affecting not just the defense but the whole team." As for playing their third game in seven days: "We may be a little tired, but it's just a matter of digging deep and if any of the starters can't go the distance, it's up to the guys coming of the bench to ensure we don't miss a beat."

"I like playing right back," explained Marshall. "It gives me a chance to get up-field and contribute to the attack. But I'm happy at center back too because it really plays to my strengths, like getting my head to the ball. With Paul out, I expect to be at right back again tomorrow night." The Palace sophomore revealed the mood among the players was good: "Pete said it at practice - it's nice to have the opportunity to face a team that beat you when you can make amends for it in a big game that means a lot. Everyone's ready to compete."

According to Co-Manager Pete Medd, Palace are quite happy to play the role of underdog: "We're fine with that. They've earned the right to be in first place, to have home field advantage - they've had a tremendous year. But we've played our best in big games. We rise to the occasion."

"They beat us by three goals in the first game last season, but we made some adjustments and came out on top at home the following game," Medd added. "We've really looked hard at our last two performances against Charlotte and we've made some changes that we think will help us win tomorrow night."

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from August 15, 2008


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