For the first time in 10 years, an amateur club not named NTX Rayados will represent the city of Dallas in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. After a two year hiatus during the COVID-19 global pandemic, the Open Cup is back and there’s a new squad out of Dallas that’s ready to take up the mantle. D’Feeters Kicks Soccer Club (DKSC), in their first ever Open Cup qualification, will represent the DFW metroplex.
The D’Feeters Kicks Soccer Club (DKSC) was formed in 2018 when two youth clubs, one for girls (D’Feeters) and one for boys (Dallas Kicks), merged together. That was also the year program director Edgar Hernandez organized FC Harrington, an adult men’s team initially made up of players who regularly played pickup games at Harrington Park in Duncanville, a south Dallas suburb. Duncanville isn’t exactly “run down” but the southern portion of the Dallas metroplex tends to get overshadowed by many far more affluent neighborhoods and suburbs to the north. Hernandez saw an opportunity to shine some light on an underappreciated community.
“I began this program because I felt there was a lot of talent in the South Dallas area that was being overlooked and that never was given the opportunity to play at a higher level,” said Hernandez who handles administrative duties and also assists his father, Edgar, with coaching as well. “Why go play for other programs when you can play at home in front of your family and friends and still compete and train at a high level? Our community is so passionate for the game and I felt like our program brings everyone together to celebrate our community’s talent.”
In the summer of 2020, the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) imposed strict travel restrictions on it’s members during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hernandez’s side was pulled into a southern division and traveled to Houston, Texas where it managed to win the Central Conference Championship. This was all while missing several key players from Southern Methodist University (SMU), who had to quarantine and could not travel to Houston in order to prepare for their fall season.
It should be noted that despite technically being a “national” league, the UPSL is actually made up of multiple regional conferences/divisions. The league is currently in the process of gaining official “National League” status from U.S. Soccer and recently acquired associate member status at the recent AGM session. It should gain full status, and therefor automatic US Open Cup berths, at the end of 2023.
It wasn’t until 2021 that FC Harrington came under the D’Feeters Kicks banner. Prior to that, the team had started out in the 3rd division of the UPSL (as FC Harrington) and has since worked its way up to the Premier Division, the highest level of the league. Their new UPSL campaign will begin in April after the Open Cup gets underway.
DKSC has also expanded to other local leagues. The Roja League, which competes under US Club Soccer, started in 2020 as a local outfit for teams in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Kicks joined for the summer, also known as Verano, season and have enjoyed success in the competition. The team finished the 2021 Invierno season (winter) season in first place and reached the championship final. D’Feeters also entered US Open Cup qualifying as a member of the Roja League.
In terms of support, the team has plenty of experienced talent.
Miles Byass, who joins DKSC from another UPSL Premier Division side, Foro SC, is expected to lead the line. Byass was named an honorable mention all-Pac-10 selection at San Diego State and also featured for the Seattle Sounders Under-23 team in 2013. Byass isn’t the only newcomer either. Former FC Dallas and North Texas SC (the USL affiliate of FC Dallas) player Oscar Romero hopes to join D’Feeters but there are questions around his fitness that may limit his availability.
If all else fails, the club still has its all-time leading scorer Sebastian Mendez available to support Byass in attack. Mendez’s 85th minute converted penalty turned out to be the winner in their 2-1 Third Round qualifying win over Southwest FC. Prior to that, D’Feeters Kicks SC took down Houston Hotshots – Greenspoint FC in the Second Round of qualifying via an extra time penalty converted by captain Miguel Ojeda. This is the first year DKSC has attempted to qualify for the Open Cup and Hernandez is trying to maintain perspective going into their first match.
“We are 100 percent focused and locked in on our first round match up with Denton. We aren’t even thinking about the second round at the moment,” said Hernandez. “Of course, we would love to make a deep run but you can’t get lost in the bigger picture and that is why we are taking the Open Cup game by game.”
D’Feeters Kicks SC will travel north to UNT Soccer and Track & Field Stadium in Denton on Tuesday, March 22 where they will face the National Premier Soccer League’s (NPSL) Denton Diablos in Round 1.
