The Northern Virginia Royals (1-0-0) edged the defending regular season champion Hampton Roads Piranhas 1-0 on their home pitch.   A single flash of offensive brilliance combined with a sturdy defense allowed Northern Virginia to earn the first win of the season over a Piranhas team that earned a PDL best 14-0-2 record in 2007.

 

The season opener for both Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads, Saturday night’s match played out fairly even for most of the night.  Both sides found a couple of opportunities in the first half of play, but were unable to find the net and earning the scoreless draw at the half.

 

The match was ultimately decided late in the waning moments of second-half injury time.  A foul on Royal midfielder Oscar Berrios led to a quick restart to Adam Wilson down the left side.  The streaking Wilson touched the ball to Northern Virginia midfielder Max Griessbach.  Griessbach did not take long to find the foot of Royal forward David Atkinson on a slotted pass into the middle.  Atkinson sliced through the Piranhas box and fired true, giving the Royals the single goal lead in the 2nd minute of injury time.

The Northern Virginia Royals, in conjunction with Farrish Subaru, are pleased to announce admission to the May 17th home opener will be free to preregistered youth fans 16 years of age and under.   Continuing their commitment to youth soccer development in Northern Virginia, Farrish Automotive is sponsoring the first round match of the U.S. Open Cup as the Royals face the Vermont Voltage at Fairfax High School, Fairfax, VA.  Match time is scheduled for 7:00PM.

 

In order to receive free youth tickets to the home opener, interested fans must register via e-mail by sending a list containing names and ages of those youths planning on attending.  Tickets will be held at the will call gate and distributed on game day.  Free admission registration e-mails must be received prior to May 17th.  Registrations must be sent to royalsgm@novafc.org..

 

The Northern Virginia Royals and Northern Virginia Majestics also announce two additional youth group ticket specials for the 2008 season.  Opportunities to participate in a pregame youth match and also serve as ball boys or ball girls will allow for teams to gain free admission and more.  Click ’Continue’ for details.

 

 

The release of the list precedes the upcoming SYL North American Finals, where 21 of the clubs in the rankings will be competing for the 10 championships up for grabs November 16-20. The U14 Royals, U17 Royals, U16 Royals, and U16 Majestics all have previously qualified for the championship tournament and the chance at a North American title.