Battery v. Eagles preview

The Charleston Battery take on the Charlotte Eagles Saturday at Blackbaud Stadium to start off the 2011 USL Pro season.  Kick off at 7:30pm.

Charleston will be looking for a win to start the season but Charlotte is returning a majority of their 2010 squad.  The Battery defeated the Eagles three times, lossing once in 2010 but will be without the services of the attack duo of Tommy Heinemann (MLS-Columbus) and Lamar Neagle (MLS-Seattle).

The biggest question going into the 2011 campaign is will the Battery be able to replace attacking tandem?

It will be up to Coach Auggie to find the right mix between Levi Coleman, Seedy Bah, Dane Kelly, Brandon Massie and JC Mack.  All five played up top throughout the preseason with Kelly scoring a couple goals.  But all of them have looked dangerous and have the potential to put a few in the net.  Coleman scratched his eye during the match Tuesday against Puerto Rico and unsure if he will ready for Saturday's match up.

No Quarter expects the Battery to line up to look close to Tuesday's night, with a back line of Zaher, Wilson, Falvey and Marples and Dykstra in goal.  In the middle; Armstrong, Jackson, Evans, Prince and up top; Kelly and Coleman.  Bah will replace Coleman if he isn't ready.  We probably could start three or four different line ups and I would feel comfortable with either one.  Fortunately we have a deep squad and there are a couple other players I feel that could step. 

Give us your guess at the starting line up in the comment section.

The Regiment will be hosting a tailgate near the East Stand entrance and will be grilling up some shrimp and brats.  Feel free to come on by and join us.  Bring a side dish, or if you want, some meat for the grill.  Also bring some beverages for the community cooler.  We'll be setting up around 4:30 and imagine we'll start grilling around 5:00.