The 1995 US Open Cup Quarterfinals are an all A-League vs. the USISL (United States Interregional Soccer League) affair. Three matches were scheduled on July 12 and the fourth featuring the Seattle Sounders hosting the Chico Rooks on July 21.
JULY 12, 1995
Atlanta Ruckus (A-League) at Richmond Kickers (USISL Premier League)
University of Richmond Stadium – Richmond, VA
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET
The Richmond Kickers had to work extra to get to the Quarterfinals. The USISL Premier League side had to beat the same opponent twice in the First Round. After knocking off USASA club Spartans SC 5-2 on June 11, the Spartans protested the result and it was upheld, forcing a replay on July 2. Then, Richmond would win the replay against a shorthanded Spartans team by the score of 6-1.
The Atlanta Ruckus’ path to the Quarterfinals was much more straight forward. The Ruckus held off a late comeback attempt from the USISL Pro League’s Tampa Bay Cyclones to win 4-2 in the opening round. Brian Moore scored a pair of goals and US National Team star Bruce Murray added a goal and an assist.
Atlanta are currently 9-7 and in second place behind the Seattle Sounders as the A-League heads into their All-Star break. Atlanta is set to host Mexico’s UNAM Pumas on July 15, two days before Pumas take on the A-League All-Stars in Atlanta. Atlanta’s new Norwegian forward Stale Soebye ranks second behind Seattle’s Peter Hattrup among the league scoring leaders with six goals and three assists. Atlanta’s offense have been struggling lately, having scored just one goal in their least six A-League games
The Kickers players recently voted to allow defender Brian Bates to re-join the team. Bates, a former All-American at the University of Virginia, was released by the club on June 22 for “attitude and conduct detrimental to the team”. Richmond recently saw its undefeated season come to an end with a 2-1 loss at the Greensboro Dynamo on July 7. The loss leaves the Kickers at 14-1 and in second place in the USISL Premier League Eastern Conference behind the 15-1 Cocoa Expos. Former national player of the year from Davidson College Rob Ukrop is among the scoring leaders of the USISL Premier League with 11 goals and 4 assists, and Jeff Causey leads all Premier League goalkeepers with a 0.92 goals against average over 13 games.
1995 US Open Cup Preview: The state of American soccer in 1995
1995 USOC Round 1 POTR: Carlos Llamosa
1995 USOC Q-Finals POTR: Ben Crawley
1995 USOC Semis POTR: Jake Arrambide
1995 USOC Final POTR: Jeff Causey
1995 USOC Player of Tourney: Rob Ukrop
1995 US Open Cup Results (click on the score of the game for a match report)
July 12, 1995
El Paso Patriots (USISL Pro) at Colorado Foxes (A-League)
Four Diamond Sports Complex – Colorado Springs, CO
Kickoff: 8 p.m. ET
Radio: KYBG 1090 AM (Aurora, CO)
The El Paso Patriots kicked off their 1995 US Open Cup with a 5-2 comeback win over 1989 Open Cup champs McCormick Kickers (Fla.). The Patriots scored five unanswered goals after falling behind 2-0 in the opening ten minutes. David Stewart led El Paso with a brace and Raul Gomez had a goal and an assist.
The Colorado Foxes had a much easier time with their amateur opponent, thrashing Flamengo SC of Salt Lake City, Utah, 6-1. Former US National Team player Jeff Hooker scored a hat trick to lead the Foxes.
The defending A-League champion Foxes have struggled a bit in the opening months of the season, sitting next to last in the six-team A-League with a 4-7 record. The Foxes are coming off of back to back losses to the Vancouver 86ers, 2-1 in Vancouver on July 7 and 3-2 in Denver on July 9.
After the second loss head coach Lorne Donaldson was not pleased. “We think we’re so much better than other teams that all we have to do is show up” he told the Denver Post. “We don’t play hard, and I think that stinks.”
The Patriots on the other hand have a firm grip on the USISL Pro League South Central Conference at 12-2. Rito Delgado sits atop the USISL Pro League scoring chart with 21 goals and 9 assists in those 14 games. The Patriots will be without Sal Mercado, who was unable to travel with the team while awaiting his immigration papers. Mercado joined the Patriots after playing for Mexican club Celaya, which won the 1994-95 Primera División A (second division) championship. The Patriots will find themselves right back in Colorado Springs on July 15 for a USISL game against the Colorado Springs Stampede
New York Centaurs (A-League) at Chicago Stingers (USISL Pro League)
Forest View Park – Arlington Heights, IL
Kickoff: 8:30 p.m. ET
In the opening round, the first-year New York Centaurs had a brief bright moment in a somewhat disappointing season. They defeated the USISL’s Connecticut Wolves 3-0 despite playing with 10 men for most of the game. After Lee Tschantret was sent off in the 15th minute, the Centaurs defense managed to keep the Wolves off the scoresheet while getting goals from Sadri Gjonbalaj, Carlos Llamosa, and Marcelo Carrera.
The Chicago Stingers, on the other hand, needed an extra 30 minutes to get past 1990 Open Cup champion AAC Eagles 2-1. In an all-Chicago matchup, Jean Jacques Gregoire put the Stingers ahead in the 62nd minute, only to see the amateurs equalize two minutes later with Janusz Gurgul. Chicago’s Steve Morris, who plays indoors for the Milwaukee Wave of the National Professional Soccer League in the offseason was the hero for the Stingers scoring the game-winning goal in the 99th minute.
The Centaurs, in last place in the A-League at 3-10, come into the Quarterfinals with a new head coach, former New York Cosmos standout Vladislav “Bogie” Bogićević. The New York Daily News reported on July 11 that head coach Len Roitman could be fired should the Centaurs lose in the Open Cup, and the next day it was announced that Roitman would step down as head coach. Roitman would retain his position as general manager, and Bogićević would take over the head coaching duties, with team captain Dan Calichman serving as his assistant.
This is just the second head coaching job for Bogićević and the all-time NASL assist leader admitted that he had a lot to learn.
“I’m still learning,” Bogićević told Michael Lewis of the New York Daily News. “On a scale of one to ten, I have a one.” Bogie’s only previous coaching gig was a three-week stint with the USISL‘s New York Fever at the end of the 1994 season.
The Chicago Stingers are in second place in the USISL Pro League Midwest Conference East Division, but their 8-8 record leaves them miles behind the 17-1 Minnesota Thunder. A 4-1 win over St. Louis on July 7 by the Stingers was sandwiched between heavy losses in USISL play to Columbus on July 1 (4-1) , and to Minnesota on July 8 (5-0).
The Stingers will be without team captain Teddy Kraft, who recently went down with a knee injury. However, on the positive side, they welcome back Michael Richardson, who will look to make his season debut after recovering from knee surgery for an injury suffered while playing indoor soccer with the Milwaukee Wave.
JULY 21, 1995
Chico Rooks (USISL Pro League) at Seattle Sounders (A-League)
Juanita High School – Kirkland, WA
Kickoff: 10:05 p.m. ET
The Seattle Sounders cruised into the Quarterfinals with an easy 9-2 win over the Everett BigFoot of the USISL. Shawn Medved had a hat trick for Seattle and the Sounders even pulled players off the field for the final 10 minutes of the match to avoid running up the score.
Chico eliminated fellow USISL Pro League side San Fernando Valley Golden Eagles 2-0. Both goals came in the first half. Jeremy Gunn assisted on Lance Welker’s bicycle kick goal in the 22nd minute and then the former NCAA Division II All-American from Cal State Bakersfield scored a goal of his own in the 31st minute.
Some fans of the 17-1 Minnesota Thunder in the USISL Pro League might disagree, but many would argue Seattle may be the class of American pro soccer at the moment. The Sounders are sitting atop the A-League at 10-3, with Peter Hattrup (7 goals, 5 assists) and Chance Fry (6 goals, 2 assists) claiming the No. 1 and No. 3 spots respectively among the leading A-League scorers. Seattle have not lost outright in six games, their only “loss” in that run coming via shootout after a 1-1 draw with Atlanta on June 29.
Chico are coming off back-to-back wins over the Shasta Scorchers on July 15 (3-0) and CCV Hydra on July 16 (3-1), locking up second place in their division and clinching a playoff spot. The Rooks have rescheduled their final USISL regular season match against the division leading Monterey Bay Jaguars from July 22 to Aug. 4 due to the Open Cup game vs. Seattle.
Chico not only will fly into Seattle the day of the game, it will also be the first time they’ve ever played on artificial turf, something the Sounders are used to.