Riptide to Take on All-Japan Samurai Warriors
January 21, 2005 - arenafootball2 (af2)
San Diego Riptide News Release
The Riptide will host its first international contest against the All-Japan Samurai Warriors at the San Diego Sports Arena at 7:00pm on Saturday, March 26.
"It's an honor to be the main event for the Japan Fiesta," said Coach Ponder. "By having this game, we are helping arena football become an international sport. Instead of having to build huge 65,000 capacity coliseums, they can host an indoor football game."
The pre-season scrimmage will be the fans first chance to see Coach Ponder's re-vamped Riptide roster. To date, San Diego has filled 11 of its allotted 35-man training camp roster, including âTide favorites Nakoa McElrath and Rico Curtis. The pre-season game gives the Riptide an advantage going into the regular season. As teams are in the middle of training camp, Coach Ponder will already see his team in action.
"Having a preseason game is a huge benefit for the team. It gives us a chance to rotate players in and out and truly evaluate their skills."
This marks the second time that the All-Japan Warriors have taken on an arena football team. Last year, the team traveled to Louisville Kentucky to take on the Fire. The game was close, but in the end, the more experienced arena players defeated the Warriors, 36-26. On January 25, Japan will announce the members of the 2005 All-Japan Samurai Warriors roster.
In addition to seeing an exciting intercultural exchange on the turf, fans will be treated to an all day Japanese Cultural Fiesta. The San Diego Sports Arena concourse will be divided into four different zones, each spotlighting an aspect of the Japanese culture.
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