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KICKERS HOME OPENER THIS SATURDAY

By Patrick Wood, 03/23/18, 2:00PM EDT

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USL Newcomers Indy Eleven Come to City Stadium for a 5PM Kickoff

RICHMOND, VA – (Friday, March 23, 2018) – The Richmond Kickers (0-1-0) will host their 26th Home Opener, presented by Woodfin this Saturday night, March 24, as USL newcomers Indy Eleven (0-0-0) makes their first trip to City Stadium at 5:00 p.m. The party starts at 3:30 p.m. with live music from Pretty Ugly, RVA food trucks and over 20 craft beers on tap, followed by the Kickers battling Indy at 5:00 p.m. Woodfin will be giving away free scarves to the first 500 fans through the gates. The match will be available live on the Kickers official television partners WTVR CBS 6 on their main 6.1 channel (Comcast 9/212, Verizon FiOS 6/506), as well as streaming online through the USL Match Center. Tickets for the Home Opener are on sale now at RichmondKickers.com.
 
Saturday will mark the first meeting between the Kickers and Indy Eleven since Indy joined the USL during the offseason. Indy Eleven will be the 119th different opponent the Kickers will face over their 26-year history as a club. The Kickers are 14-7-4 all-time in their 25 previous home openers.
 
Richmond will be seeking their first win of the season after falling on the road to Bethlehem Steel FC last Sunday afternoon. Steel FC got on the scoreboard early with Eric Ayuk netting the first goal of the match in the 24th minute from a cross by Matthew Mahoney. Derrick Jones doubled the Bethlehem lead in the 40th minute as he broke through the Kickers defense and took a low shot to the right of a diving Travis Worra. Kickers midfielder Oscar Umar scored his first professional goal in the 57th minute, pulling a goal back for the Kickers. Brian Shriver controlled the ball in the midfield, turning to find Umar in the center of the field with plenty of space. After taking a touch, Umar let a rocket of a shot go to the upper left corner of the goal from about 30 yards out. A second half brace from Brandon Allen sealed the victory for Steel FC as the Kickers dropped the season opener, 1-4.
 
Indy Eleven will be playing their first-ever USL match when they come to Richmond, having joined the league over the off season, moving over from the North American Soccer League (NASL). When they take the field Saturday, it will be with almost an entirely different look as new Head Coach Martin Rennie completely revamped the roster that finished with a 3-9-4 record in the 2017 NASL Fall Season. Only three players were held over from the previous season: Justin Braun, Brad Ring and Ben Speas.
 
The Kickers will host another USL newcomer, North Carolina FC next Saturday night, March 31 for at 5:00 p.m. for Bike Night. This match will also be available live on the Kickers official television partners WTVR CBS 6 on their main 6.1 channel (Comcast 9/212, Verizon FiOS 6/506), and streaming online through the USL Match Center. Tickets for the match next Saturday are on sale now at RichmondKickers.com.
 

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Richmond: Midfielder Oscar Umar (#17) scored his first professional goal Sunday in the 57th minute in the 1-4 loss on the road at Bethlehem Steel FC, playing 62 minutes in the season opener. The Right to Dream Academy attendee joined the club in July of 2017 after a four-year collegiate career at Villanova University. Forward Brian Shriver (#21) earned his first assist of the season on Umar’s goal last Sunday, while also making his first start for the Kickers playing 78 minutes. A former NASL Golden Boot winner and NASL Best XI honoree, Shriver joined the Kickers after making 11 appearances with the Jacksonville Armada following a midseason trade in 2017. Making his professional debut after four seasons at George Washington University, midfielder Koby Osei-Wusu (#24) came off the bench to play in the final 12 minutes of the Kickers road loss at Bethlehem Sunday. Osei-Wusu signed with the Kickers before the start of the season after a successful preseason trial that saw him score three goals in five matches during preseason. Making 63 appearances with the Colonials over four seasons, the native of Bowie, Maryland amassed more than 3,000 minutes while contributing four goals and seven assists.
 
Indy: A familiar face to long-time Kickers fans signed with Indy in the offseason in their roster overall. Midfielder Matt Watson (#8) joined Indy after spending the 2017 season with Phoenix Rising FC, where he made 30 appearances and scored one goal. The Redditch, England native was with the Kickers during the 2006 and 2007 seasons, playing in 47 matches and finding the back of the net on 14 occasions while adding seven assists over those two seasons. A high-profile signing for Indy in the offseason, forward Jack McInerney (#99) signed with Indy after a season with the LA Galaxy in 2017. Since 2010, McInerney has made 175 appearances in MLS, playing with the Philadelphia Union, Montreal Impact, Columbus Crew SC, Portland Timbers and the Galaxy, scoring 43 goals during that time. Forward Soony Saad (#14) comes to Indy following a second stint with Sporting Kansas City in 2017, seeing him split time between the first team and the USL-side Swope Park Rangers, where he made 14 appearances and scored one goal between both clubs.
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