USL-1 Richmond Kickers

Two Crucial Home Games For The Kickers This Week

Published on June 29, 2004 under USL First Division (USL-1)
Richmond Kickers News Release


RICHMOND, VA – (Tuesday, June 29, 2004) – The Richmond Kickers (8-4-3, 27 points) will take on the 2002 and 2003 defending Premier Development League Champion, Cape Cod Crusaders (8-3-0, 24 points) this Wednesday, June 30th at 7:00 p.m. at Sports Backers Stadium in the third round of the 2004 U.S. Open Cup. The last and only previous time the Kickers and Crusaders met on the field was August 3, 1996 where the Kickers came away with a 2-1 win.

The winner of this single elimination match will advance to the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup and will play D.C. United from Major League Soccer. If the Kickers defeat the Crusaders then Richmond will host D.C. United at the University of Richmond Stadium on Wednesday, July 21st at 7:00 p.m.

"This will be a refreshing change from league play," says Richmond Kickers head coach, Leigh Cowlishaw. "The Open Cup is a very important competition for us and we look forward to hosting the reigning PDL champion."

Following the Open Cup match on Wednesday, the Richmond Kickers will take on the undefeated, third-ranked Montreal Impact (8-0-4, 28 points) on Saturday, July 3rd at 7:00 p.m. at the University of Richmond Stadium. The Kickers look for revenge as Montreal defeated Richmond 2-0 on June 6th in Montreal; however, the Impact has recently come away with a series of three ties. Montreal will travel to battle the Virginia Beach on Friday, July 2nd, prior to the Kickers match-up on Saturday.

Under Suspension

Kickers forward Rob Ukrop is ineligible to play in this Wednesday's Open Cup match due to a red card suspension carried over from the Kickers last third round Open Cup game on July 17, 2002 versus the Columbus Crew. Ukrop will re-join the lineup on Saturday, July 3rd when the Kickers take on the Montreal Impact.

Weekend Update

Both teams played two back-to-back games on the road last weekend. The Richmond Kickers brought home three points after a 2-1 victory over the Syracuse Salty Dogs last Friday in Syracuse, but suffered a 1-0 loss to the first ranked Rochester Raging Rhinos 24 hours later. Cape Cod recorded two shutouts over Northeast Division rivals, the Brooklyn Knights (PDL) and the New Jersey Stallions (PDL) by a margin of two goals and three goals respectively.

Players to Watch

Kickers: The dangerous former VCU tandem Matthew Delicâte and McColm Cephas have recently taken control on the field. Delicâte had a successful weekend in New York, earning Team of the Week honors this week with the game-winning goal against Syracuse following an assist on a goal by Cephas. Delicâte is currently leading the Kickers in points with 14. Cephas has earned points in three of the past four games, including a game-winning goal over Milwaukee.

Crusaders: Forward David Bulow is leading Cape Cod in goals with eight and points with 17. Goalkeeper David Mahoney is tied for second in the Premier Development League in shutouts with five and is ranked seventh for his goals against average of .871.

Check out the Richmond Kickers Statistics

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USL First Division Stories from June 29, 2004


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