Charleston, SC. The Charleston Battery and Atlanta Silverbacks will renew one of the A-League's best rivalries on Saturday night at Blackbaud Stadium. The Battery have not faced the Silverbacks since the first two games of the season in April when they shut out the Atlanta team 2-0 on the road in the season opener and 1-0 in the Fortress Blackbaud home opener. Charleston will be looking to complete a weeklong three-game home stand with a perfect 3-0 record after two impressive five point victories (6-0 over Pro 40 last Saturday and 3-1 over A-League powerhouse Rochester Raging Rhinos on Wednesday). The Charleston Atlanta match up features the two highest scoring teams in the Eastern Conference and promises to be an explosive game at beautiful Blackbaud Park. The Battery leads the East with 46 goals behind useful strikers Paul Conway, Velko Iotov and Mac "Daddy" Cozier while the Silverbacks have notched 41 behind dangerous forwards Patrick Beech, Iggy Moleka and Josh Henderson. Charleston moved to within three points of first place Richmond in the Atlantic Division with the 3-1 victory over the 1999 A-League runners-up Rochester courtesy of a conference high10 bonus points for scoring three or more goals in a game. Depending on the outcome of a testy road game in Pittsburgh for the Kickers on Friday night, Charleston can move to the top with a win over Atlanta. The Kickers have been on a tear, winning a league high 11 straight games, but the Battery have responded with a barrage of five point wins to keep the Division title race interesting. The Atlanta Silverbacks pulled out of a three-game slump last weekend in emphatic fashion with two big five point wins of there own over the hapless Central Division Tennessee Rhythm, 4-1 in Nashville on Friday and 6-1 at home on Saturday. The Battery is on a four game win streak and will take the road for a three game road swing after Saturday, with the final regular season home game against Carolina rival Raleigh Express on Friday, September 1. Richmond faces a tough final seven games to hold off the Battery, including four more away dates coming up after the game in Pittsburgh on Friday.
Atlanta Preview: The Silverbacks feature two of the leagues leading scorers in Patrick Beech and Iggy Moleka. A dangerous duo at the spear head of the Silverback strike force, Jamaican Patrick Beech has scored 14 goals and added 4 assists (32 points, tied for third in A-League) and Iggy Moleka has 13 goals and 5 assists (31 points, fifth in league). Ex Duke star, Josh Henderson, is the other constant scoring threat for Atlanta where he has been productive out of an attacking midfield role to the tune of 5 goals and 5 assists. The Silverback midfield features a host of players with both pedigree and potential in the shape of nifty wide men Brian Piesner and Dutchman Joao Rodrigues and capable central midfielders Tony Soto and German Junue Corlic. Soto was a former USC Gamecock All-American before transferring to SMU his junior year, Corlic joined the 'Backs from Borussia Berlin in the German Div II. The Atlanta defense has been trying to recover from the mid-season departure of ex-QPR and Welsh International goalkeeper Tony Roberts. Roberts had formed a solid partnership with the Atlanta back four and was arguably one of the leagues premier keepers. Ex-Battery boss Nuno Pitiera has seemingly found an able replacement in ex-MLS back up David Winner. Winner will backstop a defense that features former Battery All Star sweeper Guy Norcott and two ex-Clemson Tigers, Danny Care and Sylvan Bednar. The Battery Silverbacks rivalry always brings the best out of a group of players that will be intent on evening the series score with the red-hot Battery.
Battery Team News: Battery captain Nicky Spooner will miss the Saturday derby game with Atlanta due to a suspension for gaining 21 points for five yellow cards. Spooner has been solid for the Battery all season and has helped tighten up the Charleston defense since moving back from a defensive midfield slot. He has started every game for the Battery this season along with goalkeeper Dusty Hudock and left-back Darren Warham. Battery All Star forward Paul Conway is now second in the A-League in scoring with 35 points (13 goals, 7 assists) in 21 games. He is only two points shy of league leader John Menyongar (Minnesota Thunder) who has played two more games. Conway is on pace to be an A-League Player of the Year candidate and has equaled the club goal of a combination of 20 goals or assists set for him pre-season with six regular season games remaining. Marquee off-season signing Velko Iotov is starting to pay dividends for the Battery. Iotov has tallied more than a point for every game that he has played behind 6 goals and 7 assists, good for 19 points in 13 starts. He is showing that he is one of the premier strikers in the A-League after missing almost the entire first half of the regular season with a series of frustrating injuries. 1999 first team all A-League forward Mac Cozier has also started to blossom with the Battery after also shaking off a serious hamstring tear that sidelined him for the first six weeks of the season. He has driven his season goal tally to 7 along with gifted Jamaican International Dean Sewell. Battery keeper Dusty Hudock leads the Battery in minutes played with 2034 and has found his way back into the top ten in the league with a 1.08 goals against average. Hudock is the all time leading goalkeeper in Battery history in terms of minutes played with 4,956 and is second all time in shutouts with 13. Rookie defender Alan Woods has quietly progressed this season in the Battery back line. His speed and aerial ability make him a very useful prospect with the experience and seasoning that he is gaining this year with the Battery. 1998 MVP Todd Miller has been another solid and consistent performer for Charleston this season, and with four seasons with the club is the longest serving starter currently on the 2000 Battery team.
What: Charleston Battery V Atlanta Silverbacks
When: Saturday August 12, 7:30pm.
Where: Blackbaud Stadium
Game Promotions. Tickets can be purchased in advance on the phone at 971-GOAL, at Lloyds Sports in Mt. Pleasant or online at www.etix.com. Tickets are also available at the gate. The West Stand ticket window will be open on Saturday from 12 noon for advance purchases. Gates open at 6:30pm with Kickoff scheduled for 7:30pm. This Saturday is "island Night" at the Battery. Wear your craziest Tropical gear and come on out early to enjoy the music of Sounds of Steel. This is your last chance to register for the FREE 7-Night Charleston to Bermuda Cruise giveaway provided by Cruise International (drawing will be held at halftime). Fans can enjoy the care Alliance Health Services halftime show that will feature the Palmetto Stars dance team on August 5, with the first 500 adults receiving a free Budweiser tee-shirt compliments of Pearlstine distributors. One fan will have a chance to win $10,000 in the T-Bonz Kick for Cash contest.
Next Game: The Battery take the road to play the surging Northeast Division Long Island Rough Riders in New York on Friday August 18 and the Connecticut Wolves in Hartford, Connecticut on Saturday August 19. It is the last back-to-back road trip of the season for the Battery.
