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USL Charleston Battery

Preview: Battery to Face New York Cosmos on Saturday

March 16, 2016 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charleston Battery News Release


CHARLESTON - For coaches Mike Anhaeuser and Giovanni Savarese, Saturday's preseason exhibition between the Charleston Battery and the New York Cosmos is a chance to test their emerging 2016 squads against a quality opponent.

But maybe there's just a little bit more on the line, too - like a palpable sense of history. Saturday's match (MUSC Health Stadium, gates at 6 p.m., kickoff at 7:30 p.m., tickets available here or over the phone at 843.971.GOAL) will be the first-ever meeting between the teams.

After all, both the Cosmos and the Battery are iconic American clubs. One is the symbol of the sport's first glamour limelight in the 1970s, the other a leader among the gritty pioneers of soccer's quiet comeback in the early 1990s. Blue-collar teams in Charleston, Richmond, Rochester and other smaller markets survived the game's American dark age and laid the groundwork for the modern era.

Anhaeuser - a Hoosier kid who went on to win a National Championship with Indiana University as a freshman in 1988 - grew up watching and reading about the Cosmos. With Major League Soccer just a dream until 1996, there would be no top-division American league for Anhaeuser to play in when he graduated in 1991. The Battery wouldn't even exist for another two years.

For Anhaeuser's generation, the Cosmos of Pele, Chinaglia and Beckenbauer were American soccer's brightest memory.

"This is Charleston Battery and New York Cosmos," Anhaeuser said. "The first time we've played. That's a big deal! I mean, I grew up with the Cosmos, and a lot of people did. That was one of the biggest clubs in the world. Everybody remembers the Cosmos. It's a big name."

It was still a big name when was resurrected in for the 2013 season in the new NASL. But the Cosmos have since proven to be more than just a brand. The club, which plays most of its matches on Long Island, NY, has been league's most dominant team ever since its inception. They've won the NASL title twice, including last year - when the team went undefeated in the Spring Season, earned hardware for the league's best overall Regular Season record, and then won Soccer Bowl for the second time.

"Yes, they're a historic club, but what they are now is a great team in their league," Anhaeuser said. "They've been there right in it. Not only are they getting the international players, they're also getting some young players who are making them a good team. Giovanni has done a great job as a coach. They seem to get it right every season."

The Cosmos has a solid defensive corps, most of which returns for 2016. But last year's championship roster was led by two players - former Real Madrid superstar Raul, and rising MLS prospect Leo Fernandes - who each finished tied for the team lead in goals with eight, while chipping in an identical three assists. Both have since departed - the 38-year-old Raul to retirement, the 24-year-old Fernandes to the Philadelphia Union, who had sent him to New York on loan last season.

In their place, Savarese - a former Venezuela international - has brought in a platoon of interesting new prospects. Most are successful mid-to-late career professionals from foreign leagues.

Attacking mids Juan Arango, 35, and Yohandry Orozco, 24, arrive from the Venezuela National Team. Forward Yasmani Duk, 28, is an intriguing prospect from Bolivia. Midfielder Andres Flores captains the El Salvador National Team, and 32-year-old Costa Rica forward Jairo Arrieta brings years of MLS experience.

"Playing the Battery presents a variety of challenges for us, which is a good thing," said Savarese. "Those challenges will give us the chance to continue our maturation process. The challenges will help us further understand in what areas we need to grow as a team. Ultimately, it is a great game to prepare us for the start of our NASL season on April 3."

Like the Cosmos, the Battery return a sturdy defense and are in the hunt for a replacement to departed leading scorer Dane Kelly. Kelly accounted for about a quarter of the team's offensive production.

So far this preseason, defense has been the key for Charleston (4 wins, 1 loss, 3 draws; 13 goals for, 7 goals allowed). If anything, the unit shows signs of improving on a performance that made it the second-most effective defense in USL. Only record-shattering Rochester was better than the Battery's one-goal-allowed-per-game average in 2015.

The back line of fullbacks Quinton Griffith, Emmanuel Adjetey, Obi Woodbine and center backs Shawn Ferguson, Taylor Mueller and Forrest Lasso returns intact. The biggest competition in camp has been at goalkeeper, where returning keepers Odisnel Cooper (Battery MVP, USL Goalkeeper of the Year finalist),Kevin Corby (eight starts) and Robert Beebe are all improved. But Greek/American goalkeeper Alex Tambakis, who arrived on loan from Atlanta United FC in January, has been getting the lion's share of minutes in recent friendlies.

Trinidad and Tobago holding mid Neveal Hackshaw, 20, appears to have stepped into the vacancy left by the departures of 2015 midfielders Jarad van Schaik and Sebastien Thuriere. Forward Ricky Garbanzo returns for a second year as the Battery's energetic second-striker, but fourth-year forward Heviel Cordoves must stay healthy if he's to replace Kelly's production and minutes in the lead No. 9 role.

Without giving any specifics, Anhaeuser says he anticipates that more attacking help might soon be on the way. Even if it isn't, he said, the Battery can score and win with the group he's had in camp.

"Right now I'm feeling pretty comfortable, the way we play," Anhaeuser said. "Our depth isn't there, and forwards get knocks. But you pick up (one more), and we're sitting there at four."

The Battery kicks off its 30-match USL regular season on March 26 at MUSC Health Stadium on Saturday, March 26, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available here or over the phone at 843.971.GOAL (4625).

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