Wednesday, April 16, 2008

The 2007 Season
Bermuda took a few weeks to notch their first USL Second Division victory in 2007, but with their 2-1 win over the visiting New Hampshire Phantoms on Monday, June 25, the Hogges put together an eight-game stretch in which they went 3-3-2. During that middle stretch of the season, Bermuda picked up eight of the 12 points they collected in their inaugural campaign – not bad for a club comprised entirely of Bermudians with little USL experience.

Despite their disappointing 2007 record of 3-14-3, Bermuda lost six of their matches by just one goal. That record includes two compelling battles with the league’s best – Harrisburg City Islanders. Bermuda also played evenly with Crystal Palace Baltimore in two of their three matches on the season. In perhaps their best result of last season, Bermuda drew 0-0 with the Cleveland City Stars on Wednesday, July 18.

The 2008 Season
Six of the 11 starters, and 12 of the 18 players on Bermuda’s National Team roster that competed in CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying in late March had ties to the Hogges 2007 squad.

Tied at 1-1 after their home leg, Bermuda headed to the Cayman Islands in a series they were expected to advance from. The heavily-USL filled squad lived up to its expectations in the second fixture with a 3-1 victory on a pair of goals from Hogges midfielder Devaun DeGraff in the 19th and 23rd minutes of the match. Captain Kwame Steede provided the third after scoring just once in 17 games in USL-2 last season.

Both Steede and DeGraff will return for the 2008 USL-2 season, as will two of the club’s top three scorers in Stephen Astwood (4 goals, 1 assist) and Damon Ming (1 goal, 4 assists). The one piece of the offensive triangle Bermuda lost in the offseason was former Manchester City star and co-founder of the Hogges, Shaun Goater (3 goals).

The First Five
A three-game home stand with Wilmington, Pittsburgh and Crystal Palace Baltimore highlights Bermuda’s first five matches of the season. Those games are sandwiched between road trips to Charlotte (Saturday, April 19) and Western Mass (Tuesday, May 27). If Bermuda can capitalize on their home-field advantage, a benefit they utilized in 2007, they could be among the league-leaders heading into week six.