Thursday June 12, 2008
ATLANTA—The Silverbacks continue their grueling three-games in five days  road swing Thursday night, traveling to PGE Park, the site of last year's dramatic semifinal shootout to face the Portland Timbers. Kickoff is at 10:00. The match can be seen live or on demand at www.USLLive.com.

(Photo Caption: David Hayes converted two penalty kick Tuesday night to help the Silverbacks advance to the U.S. Open Cup second round. Photo by Ron Holt)

Thursday will be the first meeting between the two clubs since the Silverbacks knocked Portland out of post season in penalty kicks after playing to a pair of draws.

The Silverbacks are coming off another dramatic penalty kick shootout, this time in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup First Round Tuesday night against PDL side Austin Aztex. In Tuesday's single-elimination match, the Silverbacks came from behind twice, had a penalty kick saved, and went down a man after a rather dubious straight red card, before advancing to the second round from the penalty spot over a PDL side littered with professional caliber players. After going down a goal just before the half time whistle, Mac Kandji leveled the score in the 83rd minute, three minutes after David Hayes—who would prove to be the hero of the night—had a penalty kick saved.

After a scoreless second half, the Aztex again took the lead only moments after substitute Chris Mahaffey was inexplicably shown a straight red card for a 50-50 challenge with the Axtex goalkeeper. With the Silverbacks throwing everything forward, Hayes earned himself a second chance from the penalty spot in the 113th minute, coolly slotting home the leveling penalty  kick. In the shootout, the first four Silverback shooters converted their attempts. With one Austin miss, the weight of the match again fell on Hayes' shoulders. He calmly stepped up and put the Silverbacks into the second round. The Silverbacks will travel to face the Miami FC Blues on June 24.

In league play, the Silverbacks (3-3-3, 12 points, seventh place), are coming off a difficult 1-1 draw versus the Puerto Rico Islanders last Friday at Silverbacks Park. Ansu Toure tallied his second goal of the year to draw the Silverbacks level in the 36th minute. Toure did not play in Tuesday's USOC fixture due to a one-game suspension he picked up in last year's tournament while playing for Minnesota. He will be available for selection on Thursday.

The Timbers did not fare as well in its USOC first round tie, falling to amateur side Hollywood United 3-2 at PGE Park. The Timbers' Chris Brown and Arsene Oka scored for Portland in the first round's only upset.

In league play, the Timbers (4-4-5, 17 points, third place) are winless in its last three, including a 3-1 loss to league-leading Vancouver at Swangard Stadium last Thursday. Scot Thompson scored the  Timber's lone goal in the loss.

Notes

Back in Black—and Red (or White)
Thursday will be the first meeting between the the Silverbacks and Portland since the semifinal penalty kick shoot out that sent the Silverbacks to the post season finals and the Timbers on vacation. The home and away series produced of 210 minutes without a winner until Ryan McIntosh swatted away the Timbers' final penalty attempt to put the Silverbacks through.

Back in Black—and Red (or White), 2.0
Defender Zach Kirby will again be available for selection Thursday after sitting out the Silverbacks last three matches due to suspension. Kirby replaced Martyn Lancaster in Tuesday's USOC match at Austin after Lancaster suffered a gaping head wound that required medical attention.

Seeing Red
Ansu Toure will also be available for Thursday's match, after a suspension that carried over from last year's USOC while playing with Minnesota kept him out of Tuesday's match.

Road Warriors
Thursday's match is the second of three in a span of five days. The Silverbacks travel to Minnesota to face the Thunder on Saturday.

Battle Wounds
Following Tuesday's match, the Silverbacks had to take a side trip on their way back to the airport—to the hospital. After coming on in the second half, Martyn Lancaster suffered a gash on his head in a mid-air collision. Lancaster was replaced, the bleeding stopped for the most part, and the wound was stitched closed after the match. He is listed as probable for Thursday's match.

Next Up
The Silverbacks next face the Minnesota Thunder at the National Sports Center Saturday. Kickoff is at 7:00 p.m. It had originally been scheduled for 8:35.

Availability Report

Injury:
Mike Ambersley—(knee) Out for remainder of season
Warren Ukah—(knee) Out for remainder of season
Martyn Lancaster—(head) Probable for Thursday

Suspensions:
None