by Marissa Blackman
The
Hammerheads and the Kickers meet again. Just two weeks after the Hammerhead’s
home opener against Richmond, the Wilmington club will travel up to City Stadium
for the second match in the three game series between the two clubs.
Since
the two clubs last played each other, both teams had one match. Wilmington drew
1-1 against Charlotte Independence while Richmond drew 1-1 against Louisville
City FC.
At
the risk of sounding like a broken record, I must note that this occurrence only
solidifies my theory that Richmond is the most evenly matched competitor for
Wilmington. The two teams are so similar! Neither of these clubs are horrible or
significantly better than the other. For the second time this season,
spectators have the treat of watching two worthy opponents battle for ninety
minutes. The last time these two teams played, there were only twenty two
minutes between the second Hammerheads goal and the first Kickers goal when it
was easy to predict a clear winner. After that, one play could’ve changed
everything.
Friday’s
game will be the third of the season for both clubs, and neither team has won a
game yet. They’ve both drawn twice. Although it seems premature to say a
pattern is developing, in both of their respective matches, the Hammerheads
captured the lead early on only to lose it later and the Kickers trailed behind
in the beginning yet equalized before the final whistle. Will either club break
the cycle and take home the first 2015 regular season victory?
A
victory this week would be a golden opportunity for either club to advance
significantly in the eastern conference standings. All clubs in the conference have
played between one and three games so far. Charleston Battery has yet to lose
and sits atop the table with nine points. Louisville, New York, and Rochester
are all tied for second with four points each. Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and
Toronto are all third with three points. Richmond and Wilmington are both
fourth with two points. Fifth place Charlotte has only one point, and
Harrisburg and Montreal both sit in sixth with no points. Since the Richmond
Wilmington game is the only one in the league happening on Friday, the winning
team, assuming there will be a winner, would be in second place with five
points for at least a day.
Author’s
note: Due to the fact that I will most likely be travelling during the game, it’s
very unlikely that I’ll be posting a post-game analysis this week,
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