This weekend a pivotal Cup match will be taking place but it's not for a trophy that is officially sanctioned by the league. This Cup is for the winner of the Southern Derby that is winding up its second year of existence and is contested by Charleston, Atlanta, and new entrants, Charlotte. The Eagles took the place of the now defunct Raleigh squad, which just so happened to win last year's competition. This competition has also spawned similar competitions in the A-League and MLS.
This didn't see the last of John Dugan in the Southern Derby, though, as he now coaches an Atlanta squad, which will be trying to make a huge comeback in this season's edition. They are last in the group at this point but have only played in one match in this year's version of the competition. Dugan is almost certain to want to hang onto his trophy but it will be tough going as they have away games in Charleston and Charlotte to contend with. They get a single home game to gain ground on the other two clubs when they host Charlotte on August 31st. The return match comes in Charlotte on the last day of the regular season, September 8th, while the Battery will have an opportunity to wrap the trophy up with a win this weekend and a Charlotte loss at the end of August.
Needless to say, though, that John Dugan is not looking forward to possibly losing his trophy. He cites the fact that Raleigh's late season win in Charleston last year not only won them the Derby but also got that team into the playoffs as reasons for his fondness for this trophy. So far this year he says "We haven't had too much luck with the Derby teams and hope to finish strong."
With a win in Charleston on Saturday they set themselves up nicely for their two matches against Charlotte but winning against the Battery at Blackbaud Stadium has become a bit of a daunting task. Charleston is currently in the driver's seat but the Eagles and Silverbacks are definitely still within range. The biggest winners in this competition, though, are the fans.
The fans of Charleston and Atlanta started the competition with the fans in Raleigh. Unfortunately, the untimely demise of A-League soccer in Raleigh meant that those founding fans were left without a club to bring into the competition. This lead to the inclusion of the Charlotte Eagles who were "promoted" from the D3. Their fans have adapted quickly to the Southern Derby as their team has made a decent go of it in the competition so far.
The Charlotte fans aren't the only ones who are a bit new to the idea of a Cup competition instituted by the fans. In Pennsylvania, A-League and D3 fans got a look at this kind of competition with the first Keystone Cup. The fans in Reading, Hershey, and Pittsburgh saw their clubs use Open Cup qualifiers as a stage to compete for this trophy.
In Chicago and Dallas, Fire and Burn fans got together to introduce the Brimstone Cup this season, which will go to the winner of the season series between the two MLS clubs. If nothing else these kinds of competitions provide more incentive for the real fanatics to make it to the games against their rivals. It also gives the players more incentive to win these games because it increases the level of importance of what could be a normally pedestrian regular season match.
Of course the biggest thing going for a competition like this is the fact that it gets everyone more involved. The fans, the players, the coaches, and even the leagues take more notice of these competitions. So, to all whom have helped create these Cups, thanks and keep up the good work. However, we should also take a minute to thank the powers of good that these cups have come along after Kansas City changed their name to the Wizards. After all, just imagine the kind of names a cup competition between Dallas, Chicago, and K.C. could have had if they were still the known as the Wiz.
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