Goal.com, a popular soccer oriented website, has recently compiled a list of its Top 10 favorite places to watch a soccer match in the United States. Both Charleston's beautifully intimate Blackbaud Stadium and Cary's slightly larger WakeMed Soccer Park made the Top 10 list which includes mainly MLS and Collegiate stadiums from around the country.

Here's what Goal.com had to say about the home of the RailHawks:

Officially, it only seats 7,000 people. But if you’ve ever been there for a U.S. National Team match or an NCAA Final Four doubleheader, you know that standing room-only is the only term to be applied. Nestled in a suburban town outside of Raleigh, this immaculate complex has several grass fields and is home to one of the top youth clubs in the country (CASL).

Connally Edozien's game winner, a cracking blast into the upper 90 after beating four Charleston defenders, was good enough to earn him a place in the USL Week 2 Team of the Week. Charleston defender Marco Reda, ironically one of the four players beaten by Edozien on his goal, was also included in the team of the week for his performance in Saturday night's match.

Many fans have been wondering about the status of midfielder Martin Nuñez after he knocked out of Saturday night's match against Charleston by a horrible tackle that resulted in a direct red card for the Battery's John Wlison. Tim Candon reports today in his RailHawks Notebook column that Martin is suffering no ill effects from the challenge.

“When I got hit, my leg went back and I felt like there was two tennis balls right in my hamstring,” Nuñez said after signing postgame autographs. “I couldn’t even get off the field. That’s why I was down so long. But I’m fine now, just cramping. I got scared when I got hit because it almost cracked my shin. But I’m fine.”

Candon's column also covers how Connally Edozien is reacting to the pressure of lots of new competition at the forward position with the signings of Coggins and Antoniuk as well as notes that Matthew Watson is finally slated to arrive in Cary this week after he and his Baltimore Blast won the MISL Championship this past weekend.

>> Read Tim Candon's full column at the CaryNews.com.

The U.S. Women’s National Team’s first domestic match of 2008 was nearly washed out by a pregame thunderstorm that dumped several inches of rain on the WakeMed Soccer Park field and delayed kickoff nearly an hour.

After the weather system passed and play got underway, the match was nearly a washout after the U.S. squandered a two-goal lead in the final four minutes, only to be rescued by Carli Lloyd’s stoppage-time winner that gave the U.S. a 3-2 victory over Australia on Sunday night.

“You’re 2-0 up, then 2-1 and 2-2 and you could see the body language, still we wanted to win,” said U.S. coach Pia Sundhage, whose team is now 11-0-1 since she became coach late last year. “And the fact when we got the free kick, you could feel it. That is so important because that feeling is contagious. The goal was just huge. Even though it’s a friendly game, that goal is huge, not only for Carli, but the whole team, including myself. You can win.”

>> Read Tim Candon's full story at CaryNews.com

Photo: Chuck Liddy (News & Observer)

Chris McClellan has now recorded four career shutouts against the Charleston Battery and Connally Edozien has scored 4 goals in the past two meetings between these Southern Derby rivals. Here are a few highlights of the two in action in the RailHawks 1-0 victory over Charleston on Saturday.

In keeping with the "fours theme", notice the four Battery defenders that Edozien beats on the goal...



This match, and all RailHawks' matches future and past can be watched online live and on-demand at USLLive.com.

Video courtesy of PlayON! Sports/USLlive.com

There’s something about the Charleston Battery that brings out the best in the Carolina RailHawks and forward Connally Edozien.

Edozien scored the game’s only goal in Saturday’s 1-0 win over the Battery at WakeMed Soccer Park, where 5,102 were on hand for the RailHawks' home opener. It was the RailHawks’ fourth win in as many all-time meetings with Charleston, and Edozien scored for the fourth time against the Southern Derby rival.

“You never know why you’re able to beat a team or why you have a team’s number,” said Carolina coach Scott Schweitzer. “They’re a much better team than they were last year, and they’re a much better team than they’ve been in a few years. … It’s just always good to win at home. It’s a big three points; we needed it.”

>> Read Tim Candon's full story at CaryNews.com.

Photo: Michael McLoone (Cary News)

When Charleston and Carolina last met, towards the end of the 2007 season, the Southern Derby Cup was on the line and a Connally Edozien hattrick secured the RailHawks' first piece of silverware for the trophy case. There must be something about gold and black that Connally loves.

Once again it was Edozien who lead the RailHawks to victory last night as Carolina secured their first win of the season 1-0 over the Battery to move to a record of 1-0-1 and a 3-way tie in second position of the USL-1 table.

Charleston did well to stretch the Carolina backline early, particularly through UNC-Greensboro alum Randi Patterson. It was only a fantastic double save from RailHawks' keeper Chris McClellan that kept the Battery off the board in the first half hour.

Edozien missed a golden opportunity at the other end of the pitch when he combined well with Dan Antoniuk inside the penalty area, but Connally would redeem himself on 32 minutes when he fired a Kupono Low pass into the upper 90 giving Battery keeper Dusty Huddock no chance to keep the RailHawks' off the scoreboard.

The RailHawks defense then managed to slow the game and control it much more, limiting Charleston's speed and counters with much better possession and midfield play. On 6o minutes, RailHawks fans were left distressed when speedy newcomer Martin Nuñez was knocked out of the game by a horrific studs-up challenge from John Wilson which earned him a direct red card for serious foul play.

With the man advantage for the final half hour, the RailHawks were content to absorb Charleston's attack and protect their one goal lead. After successfully killing off the game, a feat that the 2007 RailHawks often had difficulty doing, the team enjoyed their first win of the 2008 season with fans as celebratory fireworks lit up the night sky over WakeMed Soccer Park.

The RailHawks now travel to Miami for a match on Sunday, May 4th at 6pm where Carolina will look to move ahead of the 1-1-1 Blues in the USL-1 table.

This Saturday, April 26th, marks the home opener for the Carolina RailHawks' 2008 season. To celebrate the start of our team's second campaign, Triangle Soccer Fanatics will be hosting parties both before and after the match on Saturday.

Pre-match, TSF plans to christen the new Tecate Sports Zone at WakeMed Soccer Park. This season, fans will have access to a beer garden and BBQ picnic area in the southwest corner of the stadium. The RailHawks have invited the Triangle Soccer Fanatics to be among the first fans to enjoy their new party destination inside the stadium.

The pre-match festivities kick off at 6pm with local band Limelight providing the pre-match entertainment. TSF members can pick up their T-shirts and supporters flag at the event and new members are welcome to join now online or at the first match in person. Those new and existing members that arrive before 6:30pm Saturday will be treated to a free BBQ sandwich in the Sports Zone. The general public is welcome to join us for this party and all ages are admitted to the beer garden (must be 21 to purchase adult beverages, of course).

After the match, TSF members (and all RailHawks fans) are invited to join the RailHawks players and front office staff at the Hibernian Pub in Cary to celebrate what will hopefully be our first victory of the 2008 season. The Hibernian Pub is located at 1144 Kildaire Farm Rd. in Cary and all ages are invited to the post-match party.

Premier Soccer along with Adidas and the Capital Area Soccer League are proud to announce that the second all time leading scorer in U.S and world soccer history, is making a special guest appearance at the Premier Soccer store in the Cary Crossroads shopping center, ;ocated at 219 Crossroads Blvd Cary, NC 27511.

This Sunday, April 27th from 1:00 pm until 2:30 pm UNC graduate and 20 year veteran of the US Women's National Soccer Team, Kristine Lilly, will be signing autographs.

Meet the only player in history to play in five FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments and the world’s all‑time appearance leader; Kristine has 340 Caps for the US Women's National Team and has played in 85% of all Women's National Team games.

For more information please contact Premier Soccer at 919-851-8700.

The last time we saw the Carolina RailHawks play a meaningful game (the preseason doesn’t mean squat), they were trudging off a soggy field in Cary, down two goals on aggregate to the eventual league champion and about to embark on a 3,000-mile trip to Seattle, where their first USL First Division season ended.

A lot’s happened since then.

The league has one less team (down from 12 to 11) and the 2008 season will be two games longer (up to 30 from 28).

As for the local side, there’s a new name on their home field (from SAS to WakeMed Soccer Park). There’s a new sponsor on their jersey (from Novozymes to Saturn of Raleigh and Cary). And there are a lot of new faces.

Of the 25 players on the roster at the end of 2007, only 10 remain as the RailHawks enter their home opener Saturday at 7:30 p.m. against Charleston.

Despite all the changes, the expectations remain the same for Year 2: to contend for a championship. While that prospect was a tad too optimistic for a first-year team last season, it appears reachable this time around.

>> Read Tim Candon's full article on CaryNews.com and then check out his Meet the RailHawks featurette and his USL-1 storylines to watch column as well.

Photo: Tim Candon

The United Soccer Leagues announced Team of the Week honors for the first week of the 2008 season on Tuesday, and midfielder Steven Curfman was among the honorees. Curfman was named to the list for his beautiful set piece goal in the RailHawks season opener on Saturday, April 19th in Atlanta that resulted in a 1-1 draw.

“It was an excellent first goal,” said RailHawks Head Coach Scott Schweitzer. “It is always good to score on a free kick as it changes the way defenders play their game. Steven played the game intelligently and is a welcome addition to the team.”

Women's summertime soccer is returning to the Triangle.

The WUSA and the Carolina Courage shut down operations in 2003, but one year after men's professional soccer began a summer season at WakeMed Soccer Park (formerly known as SAS Soccer Park) with a team known as the Carolina RailHawks, the organization has now added a women's team.

This club will also be called the RailHawks, although it is more of a semi-pro team as this league consists of collegiate players and college graduates.

The men's team will play its second season at WakeMed Soccer Park as well. It consists of all professional athletes.

"The most fulfilling thing about putting this (women's) team together is the excitement of the players," said Jay Howell, head coach for the team. "When I started contacting these players, they were very excited about being able to play and be associated with the RailHawks organization. They were also excited about being able to train and play at a place like WakeMed, which is unbelievable.

>> Read Eddy Landreth's full article at The Chapel Hill News' website.

Elaine Carroll regularly shoots photos of the Atlanta Silverbacks and has posted a nice gallery from this past weekend's match against the Carolina RailHawks. Prints are available for purchase from Elaine's Digital Diva photography website.

For those that haven't had a chance to see it yet, here's Steve Curfman's excellent free kick goal from the Atlanta match this past weekend.



This match, and all RailHawks' matches future and past can be watched online live and on-demand at USLLive.com.

Video courtesy of PlayON! Sports/USLlive.com

The Carolina RailHawks started the 2008 campaign with a 1-1 road on the draw against 2007 USL playoff finalists the Atlanta Silverbacks.

The RailHawks began the match on the offensive, nearly getting on the score sheet in just the fourth minute of play. Carolina's Connally Edozien found space on the left side and hit the ball just wide, beating a frozen Ryan McIntosh in the Silverbacks' net. Twenty-two minutes later Jacob Coggins had the RailHawks second chance on the night, heading an in-swinging cross just over the bar.

The RailHaws took the lead just after halftime when some hard work from Edozien lead to a RailHawks free kick 19 yards from goal. With the Silverbacks' goalkeeper eyeing Kupono Low standing over the ball with his left foot, newcomer Steve Curfman struck a wicked right-footed shot that got up and over the 4-man Silverbacks wall and dipped under MacIntosh's crossbar.

As the Silverbacks' looked for an equalizer, coach Jason Smith inserted new signing Jason Monteiro in the 68th minute. Just four minutes into his debut, Monteiro got on the end of a ball played over the top of the RailHawks' backline by McLaughlin and took his shot in stride, driving the ball low and to the far post to level the score and earn the Silverbacks a point.

Full coverage of the match can be found on USLSoccer.com and the match, in its entirety, can be viewed on-demand (for a fee) at USLLive.com.

Photo: USLSoccer.com

Just a quick reminder that the Triangle Soccer Fanatics chat room is the place to go tonight during the RailHawks match to discuss the action as it unfolds in Atlanta. Click on the "Chat" link above or head to http://chat.trisoccerfan.com.

When the Carolina RailHawks open their 2008 season on Saturday against 2007 finalist Atlanta Silverbacks, 3 more names will be on the roster for the new look RailHawks. Both Ryan Solle (New England Revolution, Wake Forest) and Jamil Walker (DC United, San Jose Earthquakes) have now been confirmed to the roster after successful stints as trialist in camp. In addition, the RailHawks have just announced the signing of USL-1 All Star defender Mauricio Segovia (Puerto Rico).

Segovia's addition to the backline shores up the defense that will be without David Stokes and Joey Worthen who will miss Saturday's season opener due to yellow card accumulation from last season. Also unavailable on Saturday will be Matt Watson who is still involved in the MISL playoffs with the Baltimore Blast.

The RailHawks' first match of the 2008 kicks off at 7:55pm on Saturday at Silverbacks Park in Atlanta. USLSoccer.com previews both the Silverbacks' squad and the RailHawks' season as part of their season preview series.

Unfortunately for RailHawks fans, there will be no free streaming audio or local radio broadcasts of RailHawks games this year. However, for a small fee, RailHawks fans can follow the game live via streaming video at USLLive.com as well as free through a live stats tracker on USLSoccer.com.

Photo: USLSoccer.com

The Carolina RailHawks announced today that the following players will join the roster for the 2008 USL-1 season. Midfielders Chris Lemons, David Lilly and Ross Mackenzie, as well as versatile midfielder/forward Nathan Zuzga will don a RailHawks jersey this season.

“These are all players that have been around the USL for some time,” said RailHawks Head Coach Scott Schweitzer. “They will give us a lot of depth and versatility and all four really understand the concept of family that we are building here with the RailHawks.”

Chris Lemons is a graduate of Oklahoma Christian University and started his professional career with the Virginia Beach Mariners of USL-1 in 2003. From 2004 to 2006 he joined fellow RailHawk, Forward Jacob Coggins, at the Charlotte Eagles of USL-2 before spending the 2007 season between the Cleveland City Stars of USL-2 and the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. While at Cleveland, in 2007 he recorded 2 goals with 20 shots in 19 games played.

A native of Coatbridge, Scotland, David Lilly attended Milligan College in Tennessee where he was named Appalachian Athletic Conference Player of the Year Conference in 2005 and Conference and Regional Player of the Year in 2006. In 2007 he played for Mississppi Brilla of the PDL where he tallied four goals and two assists for a total of ten pts. In 15 games played.

Ross Mackenzie is also a native of Scotland. Hailing from Paisley he attended Old Dominion University from 2003-2006 where he where he captained and led his team to the sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament his senior year. He started his professional career with the Wilmington Hammerheads of the USL Second Division where he scored four goals, recorded four assists and was named to the USL-2 Team of the Week three weeks in a row.

Nathan Zuzga graduated from Catawba College in 2006. While at school, he picked up an impressive number of honors, he was a 3-time All-Region, 4-time All-Conference, 2-time All-State, 3-time SAC (Sun Athletic Conference) Tournament Team, 2-time team MVP, captained Catawba College, and set a school record for NCAA tournament goals and points. He ended his collegiate career on a high note scoring 13 goals and recording six assists while captain of the Catawba Indians.

Source: RailHawks press release

TSF is planning to field an indoor soccer team to play in the Adult Co-Ed B division at XL Soccer World during the Summer I Season (May 14-June 26). We'll play seven games on Wednesdays and/or Thursdays evenings (typically between 7pm and 10pm). Registration is open to all TSF members, regardless of age, gender, or soccer ability. If you are currently not a member of the club but would like to play with us, you can join the club and register for the team in one online transaction.

The focus of this team is the fitness and social aspects of having a fun kick around with our fellow club members. We may field a competitive team in a future season, but this summer it's all about having fun getting to know each other while playing our favorite sport. The cost for members to play on our team will be $40 per player per season -- that's almost 1/2 off the normal $75 registration rate for an individual player at XL Soccer World!

UPDATE 4/26: The roster is essentially full for the Summer 1 Session. We can probably still accept one more female player. If you're a female member of the club and would like to play, or would like to join the club and the team together ($65 total), then email us at indoor@trisoccerfan.com for more details.

2008 Summer Season 1 Co-Ed B Roster

• Jarrett Campbell
  
• Richard Coull
  
• Gregoire Humbert
  
• Marc Larance
  
• Brandon Gadwah
  
• Haroun Azizi
  
• Phillip Russell
  
• Carlos Arteta
  
• Michael Hendrix
  
• Mark Hendrix
  
• Javier Gillette
  
• Victor Gillette
  
• Rachel Smith
  
• Kristin Solli
  
• Jason Woodburn
  
• Fred Medlin
  
• Greg Larance
  

The Carolina RailHawks and the Minnesota Thunder battled to a 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon at WakeMed Soccer Park. Trialist Jamil Walker scored the RailHawks only goal when a Chris Lemons' long throw-in cleared the Minnesota backline and Walker ran onto the loose ball and calmly slotted the ball home inside 6 minutes. Pictures from the match, and the TSF pre-season pizza party, are posted online at Flickr and Tim Candon's got full coverage of the match over at CaryNews.com.

ESPN's Soccernet published a USL season preview earlier this week and reporter Anne Ramzy has concluded that the RailHawks, who finished 8th out of 12 teams in their inaugural season last year, will do no better than 10th (out of 11 teams) this season.

With the amount of turnover in a league like USL from year-to-year, I find it interesting that anyone would even attempt to pick the places of the teams until results start to come in at the beginning of the season. In addition, it appears that Ramzy is fairly new to covering USL, as the only other article I can find she has written on the league for ESPN is dated the day before her predictions were posted.

The only other reference I can find to Miss Ramzy's expertise on USL is a short bio on the blog The Offisde stating that she writes about the now defunct California Victory. There I found a reference to Joel Bailey as Carolina's "Super Striker" from her article on the RailHaws v. Vics match last August. (not sure she watched many of our games last year!)

I applaud Anne's efforts as a freelance writer to get some attention for the USL on ESPN's Soccernet. But I'm not sure I'm going to put a lot of stock in her predictions until I see her writing a lot more about the league and some of her predictions coming true. If she had gone more in depth into the large number of changes in the RailHawks offense (Coggins, Nuñez, Curfman, Watson) instead of banking our whole season on the addition of Antoniuk, I give more credence to her prediction.

There's no doubt the league is going to be very tough this season, but I believe the RailHawks' front office has really improved our side in the offseason. Based on what I've seen in camp so far, what I'm expecting from Watson & Antoniuk, and the rumors I'm hearing about one more BIG signing of a USL veteran, all-league defender before the season starts next weekend, I fancy our chances of not only defending our Southern Derby title but finishing in the top half of the table (5th) in 2008.

Matthew Watson's Baltimore Blast defeated Dan Antoniuk's New Jersey Ironmen last night 6-4 in Game Two of the MISL first round playoffs.

With the win, the Blast advance to the MISL semifinals which conclude on April 20th meaning Watson won't make his first appearance for the RailHawks until at least the Charleston match on April 26th pending a playoff loss to Milwaukee. With New Jersey concluding their playoff campaign last night, Dan Antoniuk is expected to report to RailHawks' camp promptly making them available for the season opener next weekend at Atlanta.

The first official Triangle Soccer Fanatics T-Shirts have arrived!

Members can pick up their T-shirts (and supporter's flag) at Sunday's Pizza Party/Man Utd v. Arsenal viewing at XL Soccer World or at the RailHawks v. Minnesota exhibition at WakeMed Soccer Park, either one. Non-members can join the club right now on the web or tomorrow at either event and get your T-Shirt and supporters flag tomorrow as well.

Special thanks go out to Premier Soccer, the official merchandise partner of the Carolina RailHawks, for providing the shirts for TSF this year.

The Carolina RailHawks got back on the winning side of their pre-season friendlies with a 1-0 victory over the Virginia Cavaliers. The RailHawks' lone goal came in the 64th minute when RailHawks' midfielder Martin Nuñez served in a free kick to the Wahoos' back post to Jamil Walker. Walker was just out jumped by Virginia defender Matt Poole, but Poole could not redirect the dangerous cross out of harm's way and ended up putting the contested header into his own net.

Walker, who just joined the RailHawks' camp this week, livened the game considerably when he entered in the second half for Connally Edozien. The Virginia backline had difficulty with Jamil's pace and some excellent service from both flanks created several scoring chances for Walker, including the game winner. Walker joins the RailHawks camp after stints in MLS with both the San Jose Earthquakes and DC United.

A few photos from today's match are posted at Flickr.

The RailHawks continue their pre-season tomorrow with their final exhibition before the regular season begins. Carolina hosts USL-1 foe Minnesota Thunder at 1pm on Sunday, April 13th at WakeMed Soccer Park. Admission is $5 and parking is free.

The Carolina RailHawks have invited the public to enjoy a free pre-season match against the Cavaliers of the University of Virgnia at noon on Saturday, April 12th at WakeMed Soccer Park.

Here's an update for those of you following the RailHawks still playing in the MISL playoffs...

Last night, the Baltimore Blast beat the New Jersey Ironmen 22-10. The series will be decided Saturday evening in New Jersey.

UNC 4 - 0 RailHawks...

Someone that was present, please use the comments section to tell us what happened!

This was the same UNC that didn't make the NCAA's, right? OUCH!

When UNC takes on the RailHawks in a pre-season exhibition on Wednesday, several of their players will be returning to the familiar surroundings at WakeMed Soccer Park. The game on Wednesday will be played on Field 2, the same pitch that UNC midfielders Michael Callahan (pictured, foreground) and Garry Lewis (background) honed their skills on last summer as members of the Cary RailHawks U23s PDL side. Now they get a chance to test their development against the senior men's side with a friendly on April 9th at 7pm.

Tickets for this event are $5 and fans are encouraged to come and see how the RailHawks are preparing for the 2008 Season.

“We’ll be playing a lot of our starters now that we are three weeks into pre-season,” said RailHawks Head Coach Scott Schweitzer. “We are going to build on continuity and flow of play as well as taking our last couple of looks at some of the players still at training camp.”

Good news RailHawks fans! One or more of the RailHawks players still playing indoor soccer are guaranteed to be available for the season opener at Atlanta on April 19th.

Over the weekend, the MISL playoffs were set and the first round features a home-and-away aggregate series between the #3 Baltimore Blast and the #6 New Jersey Ironmen. Based on the head-to-head matchup, either Matt Watson (Baltimore) or Dan Antoniuk and Matt Maher (New Jersey) will end their season on April 12th and report to Carolina in time for the start of the regular season.

On Sunday, April 13th, the Carolina RailHawks play their final preparation match for the 2008 season against Minnesota at 1pm at WakeMed Soccer Park. I expect a few of the players that made that long trip to the Twin Cities back in September only to suffer a humiliating drubbing will be highly anticipating this pre-season matchup.

Another highly anticipated matchup will also occur that same day when the English Premier League Top-of-the-Table clash between Manchester United and Arsenal kicks off at 11am.

Triangle Soccer Fanatics will be hosting a RailHawks pre-game party at XL Soccer World (5600 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh) starting from 11am. This will be a great chance for new members to meet the rest of the 204 Depot crew and for non-members to join us and learn more about the club. While getting to know our fellow club members, we'll also be watching one of the biggest marquee matches in the EPL on the big screen in the newly refurbished XL Soccer World concessions area.

Pizza will be served for lunch free to TSF members (join now). Non-members and guests of members can purchase lunch for $5. Beer and soda will be available for purchase from the XL Soccer World concession area.

After the EPL match, we'll head over to WakeMed Soccer Park for the kickoff of the RailHawks v. Thunder match and cheer our boys on to a little payback for our last trip to Minnesota. Tickets for the pre-season match are $5 and parking is free.


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