Real Salt Lake Adjusting to Argentina
After a full day of travel last weekend, Real Salt Lake settled into its third and final training camp of the 2008 preseason last Saturday in Rosario, Argentina, a visit that marks the Utah's club's first-ever visit to the South American continent. Only four current players on the RSL roster did not make the trek for RSL, as DF Nik Besagno stayed behind in Utah to rehab from surgery on the meniscus in both knees he underwent in late January, while the troika of FW Robbie Findley, GK Chris Seitz and M/D Nathan Sturgis have an excused absence as they shoot for their spots on the U.S. Under-23 squad at their Florida-based training camp.
The two-week stay will kick into full gear tomorrow, when Real Salt Lake will split its squad for a pair of scrimmages against Newell's Old Boys, which currently sits tied for fifth place four games into the Primera Division Argentina 2008 Clausura season. RSL will continue its exhibition slate in Argentina with matches against Jockey Club Rosario and Central Cordoba before closing out with another First Division squad, Rosario Central. An updated RSL preseason calendar reflecting the new Argentina match schedule is listed below.
Real Salt Lake 2008 Preseason Schedule
Feb. 29-March 13: Preseason Trip #3 to Rosario, Argentina
- Wednesday, March 5: Scrimmages (first-team and reserves) v. Newell's Old Boys - 10:00 a.m. & 12:00 p.m. local<br>
- Sunday, March 9: Scrimmage v. Jockey Club Rosario - 4:00 p.m. local<br>
- Tuesday, March 11: Scrimmage (reserves) v. Central Cordoba - TBD<br>
- Wednesday, March 12: Scrimmage (first-team) v. Rosario Central - 10:00 a.m. local</p>
March 14-21: Training schedule TBA
March 22: 2008 Saturn Challenge Cup - RSL v. K.C. Wizards in Norman, Okla. - 5:00 p.m. MT
March 24: Kick-Off Cup - RSL v. Lobos PFC at Skyline H.S. in Salt Lake City - 7:00 p.m. MT
March 29: MLS First Kick 2008 - RSL v. Chicago Fire at Rice-Eccles Stadium - 4:00 p.m. MT
RSL Passes on MLS Waiver Draft after Releasing Four Players
After waiving four players on Monday, Real Salt Lake took a pass on the 23 other players that were made available in this afternoon's MLS Waiver Draft. Real Salt Lake met the League's roster and salary budget compliance deadlines yesterday after officially waiving FW Kyle Brown, MF Duke Hashimoto, DF Ritchie Kotschau, and DF Chris Lancos. Only three players were selected in today's draft, including the 24-year-old Brown, as the native Texan was picked up by the Houston Dynamo.
Olympic Qualifying Just a Week Away for Hopeful RSL Trio
The Real Salt Lake trio of FW Robbie Findley, GK Chris Seitz and M/D Nathan Sturgis joined up with the U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team in Bradenton, Fla. last Saturday to kick off the training camp that will determine the team's final roster for the 2008 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Tournament, which kicks off one week from today. After wrapping up the nine-day camp this Sunday, March 9, U.S. U-23 head coach Peter Nowak will release the final 20-man roster that will travel that day to Tampa, the location of the first-round games in the qualifying tournament for Group A.
The U.S. squad will spend two days in Tampa before opening the qualifying tournament against Cuba next Tuesday, March 11 (6:00 p.m. MT), at Raymond James Stadium before facing Panama on Thursday, March 13 (6:00 p.m. MT), and Honduras on Saturday, March 15 (5:00 p.m. MT). LP Field in Nashville will host the semifinals on Thursday, March 20, and the championship match and third-place game on Sunday, March 23. The tournament will send its two finalists to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
The U.S. U-23's road through 2008 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying will be broadcast live on Fox Soccer Channel, the tournament's exclusive English-language provider. Fox Soccer Channel will show a total of seven qualifying matches, including all three of the USA's first-round matches, semifinals, third-place and championship match. ESPN Deportes will broadcast all 16 matches of the tournament as the exclusive Spanish-language rights holders. Along with ESPN Deportes, ESPN360.com will also show all 16 games live online, and will have a replay of each game available on demand for 48-hours following its completion.
For continuous updates from training camp via the U.S Youth National Team (YNT) Blog and all the latest news on the build-up to Olympic qualifying, visit www.ussoccer.com.
Individual Game Tickets, Mini-Flex Plans for RSL's 2008 Campaign Now on Sale
With Real Salt Lake's 2008 debut against the Chicago Fire less than a month away, now is the time to purchase single-game tickets for that and any of the club's 15 home MLS contests during the upcoming season. Tickets for individual games for the 2008 season will remain the same as last season, with prices ranging from $17 (North Goal) to $40 (west side VIP).
In addition, Real Salt Lake has also announced the introduction of a new Mini-Flex Plan for the 2008 season, which will consist of one ticket to four fixed dates - D.C. United (April 12), LA Galaxy (May 3), San Jose Earthquakes (June 18), and Toronto FC (July 28) - and allow for the buyer to add up to four of the other RSL regular season games for the same per-game rate (option only available at time of purchase). The RSL Mini-Flex Plan will be offered at two pricing levels - $55 per package for North Goal (bleacher seats) section tickets and $85 per package for Premium (chair-back / midfield seat) section tickets.
2008 RSL Royal Club memberships, single-game tickets and Mini-Flex Plans are available for purchase by calling the RSL Ticket Office at 801-924-8585, visiting the RSL Front Office in the Trolley Corners building in Salt Lake City (515 S. 700 East, Suite #2R), or going online to www.RealSaltLake.com, and clicking on the "TICKETS" link. To see Real Salt Lake's full 2008 regular season schedule, click on the "SCHEDULE" link at the official online home of RSL, www.RealSaltLake.com.
RSL Around the Town: March 4-10
With Real Salt Lake's preseason calendar taking the squad to beautiful Argentina, it's once again up to the team's popular mascot, Leo the Lion, to represent the club throughout Utah in the team's absence. Leo will be able to mark down plenty of miles on his expense report this weekend, as he'll ride all the way over to Wendover on Friday for a school assembly appearance before greeting attendees of the AYSO Region 2/9/12 Conference this Saturday at the Salt Palace Convention Center.
Who: RSL mascot Leo the Lion
What: School Assembly appearance
When: Friday, March 7 from 12:30-1:30 p.m. MT
Where: Anna Smith Elementary School; 731 N. Aria Blvd. in Wendover, UT
Who: RSL mascot Leo the Lion
What: AYSO Section Conference
When: Saturday, March 8 from 2:00-3:00 p.m. MT
Where: Salt Palace Convention Center; 100 S. West Temple in Salt Lake City
