New players. New home field. New year.
Entering its second season, Crystal Palace USA has undergone a number of changes, but the expectations remain the same – win.
“It is our team goal to qualify for the playoffs and win a championship,” Palace president/co-manager Pete Medd said. “We?re not afraid to put that out there. With the guys we?ve added to as solid base, once we got our feet under us in year one, we?re looking for big things. Anything short of a championship would be a little disappointing.”
Palace opens Year Two in the United Soccer Leagues? second division tonight against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. In a move that will undoubtedly boost attendance and interest locally, Palace will play at the more intimate UMBC Stadium this season, a better fit for the club than 35,000-seat Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.
Without even playing a game, the team has already sold more season tickets than it did in all of its inaugural season.
“The stadium is the right size for us,” Palace sporting director/co-manager Jim Cherneski said. “It?ll be an exciting atmosphere. You put three to five thousand [fans] in that atmosphere, it will be a buzzing atmosphere. And it?s got to be the most accessible facility of all of them.”
The team is improved as well, with the additions of former Towson University standout Pat Healey, former English Premier Leaguer Paul Robson, and USL veteran Val Teixeira, the team captain. After this weekend?s MISL Championship, Blast defender and Baltimore native Mike Lookingland will join the fold.
Add to the newcomers an established corps from last year – including goalkeeper Brian Rowland, midfielders Bryan Harkin, Matthew Mbuta and Shintaro Harada, and forward Gary Brooks – and Palace has the manpower to back up its lofty expectations.
Last year, Palace – which is a farm club for the English Premier League club – started 0-4 and just missed the playoffs with an 8-7-5 record.
This year, Palace is more organized and focused.
“We?re here to win a championship – nothing less,” Harkin said. “Anything less than that will be a disappointment. We just missed out on the playoffs, and starting as badly as we did last year, we think we could have won it. This year, we have the squad and players to do it.”
