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Richmond Kickers are an American soccer team, founded in 1993. The team is a member of the United Soccer Leagues Second Division, the third tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, which they joined in 2006 having spent the majority of their history playing at the second level in the USISL, A-League, and USL First Division. They currently play their home games at the University of Richmond Stadium in the city of Richmond, Virginia. The team's colors are red and white. The Kickers have two fan clubs, known as the Corner Kicks and the Side Kicks.
[edit] Current roster
| No. |
|
Position |
Player |
| 00 |
 |
|
Kickeroo |
| 2 |
 |
DF |
John Latting |
| 3 |
|
DF |
Kevin Knight |
| 4 |
|
DF |
Ray Goodlett |
| 5 |
|
DF |
Kelvin Jones |
| 7 |
|
DF |
Trevor McEachron |
| 8 |
|
MF |
Ed Hayden |
| 10 |
 |
FW |
Cristian Neagu |
| 11 |
|
DF |
Anthony Williams |
| 12 |
|
FW |
Brian Morris |
| 14 |
 |
FW |
Robert Ssejjemba |
| 15 |
 |
MF |
Tim Brown |
| 16 |
|
MF |
Steven Wolfe |
|
|
| No. |
|
Position |
Player |
| 17 |
 |
MF |
Ihor Dotsenko |
| 18 |
 |
MF |
Matthew Watson |
| 19 |
|
MF |
Michael Burke |
| 20 |
 |
MF |
Kofi Nti |
| 21 |
|
FW |
Cecil Lewis |
| 22 |
|
GK |
Ronnie Pascale |
| 23 |
 |
MF |
Sascha Gorres |
| 24 |
|
MF |
Andy Metcalf |
| 25 |
|
FW |
David Bulow |
| 26 |
|
MF |
Dennis Fenemore |
| 27 |
|
GK |
Steve Ankiel |
| 28 |
 |
FW |
Cephas McColm |
| 35 |
|
DF |
Eric Dutt |
|
[edit] History
The Kickers were founded in 1993, playing their first season in the USISL, playing in the league's amateur division. 1995 may have been the team's most successful year - the team not only won the USISL Premier League after a 15-3 regular season, they became the most recent team to win the U.S. Open Cup. In September 2005, Rob Ukrop's #6 jersey was retired. He was a well-liked soccer player on and off of the field, and particularly notable since he is the son of the influential Ukrop's grocery store CEO Robert "Bobby" Ukrop. In October 2005, the Kickers announced they would move down to the USL Second Division for the 2006 season, proclaiming it a cost-saving measure to save the franchise.
[edit] Titles and Accomplishments
- 1995 USISL Premier League Champions
- 1995 U.S. Open Cup Champions
- 1996 USISL Select League Runner-up
- 2001 USL Commissioners’ Cup
- 2002 USL First Division Runner-up
- 2005 USL First Division Runner-up
- 2006 USL Second Division Regular Season Champions
- 2006 USL Second Division Champions
[edit] Notable former players
[edit] Head coaches
[edit] Year-by-year
| Year |
League |
Reg. Season |
Playoffs |
U.S. Open Cup |
| 1993 |
USISL |
4th, Atlantic Division |
Divisional Semifinals |
Did Not Enter |
| 1994 |
USISL |
9th, Atlantic Division |
Did Not Qualify |
Did Not Enter |
| 1994 |
USISL Indoor |
2nd, Northern Division |
Did Not Qualify |
Did Not Enter |
| 1995 |
USISL Premier League |
2nd, Eastern Division |
Champions |
Champions |
| 1996 |
USISL Select League |
2nd, North Atlantic Division |
Runner-up |
Did Not Qualify |
| 1997 |
USISL A-League |
3rd, Atlantic Division |
Division Semifinals |
Third Round |
| 1998 |
USISL A-League |
1st, Atlantic Division |
Conference Semifinals |
Did Not Qualify |
| 1999 |
USL A-League |
2nd, Atlantic Division |
Second Round |
Did Not Qualify |
| 2000 |
USL A-League |
2nd, Atlantic Division |
Conference Semifinals |
Third round |
| 2001 |
USL A-League |
1st, Central Conference |
Quarterfinals |
Quarterfinals |
| 2002 |
USL A-League |
2nd, Southeast Division |
Runner-up |
Third Round |
| 2003 |
USL A-League |
3rd, Southeast Division |
Did Not Qualify |
Did Not Qualify |
| 2004 |
USL A-League |
2nd, Eastern Conference |
Quarterfinals |
Quarterfinals |
| 2005 |
USL First Division |
6th |
Runner-up |
Fourth Round |
| 2006 |
USL Second Division |
1st |
Champions |
Second Round |
[edit] James River Cup
The James River Cup is an annual competition held between the Richmond Kickers and the Virginia Beach Mariners (formerly Hampton Roads Mariners) in which the team with the most points at the conclusion of all scheduled matches between the two teams. The Cup has been held every year since 1996 with the exception of 1997 and 2001 when Virginia Beach did not field a team.
[edit] Winners
- 1996: Hampton Roads Mariners
- 1997: Not Held
- 1998: Richmond Kickers
- 1999: Richmond Kickers
- 2000: Richmond Kickers
- 2001: Not Held
- 2002: Richmond Kickers
- 2003: Richmond Kickers
- 2004: Richmond Kickers
- 2005: Richmond Kickers
- 2006: Virginia Beach Mariners
[edit] History vs. Major League Soccer
- 1997
- 3/15/97 – Exhibition – Richmond Kickers 3 vs. Columbus Crew 1 (UR Stadium)
- 6/17/97 – Exhibition – D.C. United 4 vs. Richmond Kickers 2 (UR Stadium)
- 7/23/97 – U.S. Open Cup (3rd Rd) – MetroStars 3 vs. Richmond Kickers 0 (UR Stadium)
- 2000
- 2001
- 2002
- 2003
- 4/5/03 – Exhibition – Richmond Kickers 1 vs. D.C. United 1 (UR Stadium)
- 2004
- 7/21/04 – U.S. Open Cup (4th Rd) – Richmond Kickers 2 vs. D.C. United 1 (UR Stadium)
- 8/4/04 – U.S. Open Cup (Quarterfinals) – Chicago Fire 1 vs. Richmond Kickers 0 (UR Stadium)
- 2005
- 8/3/05 – U.S. Open Cup (4th Rd) – Richmond Kickers 1 vs. D.C. United 3 (UR Stadium)
[edit] International Competition
[edit] Average Attendance
- 1993: 2,433
- 1994: 985
- 1995: 1,109
- 1996: 1,255
- 1997: 1,925
- 1998: 2,527
- 1999: 2,488
- 2000: 2,192
- 2001: 2,436
- 2002: 2,431
- 2003: 2,273
- 2004: 2,333
- 2005: 2,754
- 2006:
[edit] Farm Teams
The Kickers currently have two farm teams, Richmond Kickers Future and Richmond Kickers Destiny, the Future play in the Premier Development League and the Destiny play in the W-League.
[edit] External links
