UKROP ALMOST LEFT KICKERS FOR RHINOS ... 25 YEARS AGO

 

Keep asking … you might learn something, like … ROB 

UKROP, the Richmond Kickers career leader in goals (70) and 

assists (30), almost left the team for the Rochester Rhinos in 

1999. “It was all worked out … I was going … I wanted to go,” 

Ukrop, now Kickers president and chairman said last week … 

At the time the Rhinos were a player’s best opportunity to 

move up to Major League Soccer which kicked off in 1996, the 

year after Richmond won the U.S. Open Cup … So what kept 

Ukrop, a former All-American at Davidson, from leaving for 

upstate New York? “Colin wouldn’t let me go,” he said ...

 COLIN CLARKEwas Richmond coach for two seasons 

(1998-99), compiling a 38-18 record. The former Northern 

Ireland international, the fourth of seven coaches since the 

Kickers were founded in 1993, left to join the A-League’s San 

Diego Flash in a similar capacity … and was replaced by

 LEIGH COWLISHAW, like Ukrop one of the original 

players enrolled by founder BOBBY LENNON. Cowlishaw 

remained in charge for 19 seasons before leaving the sidelines 

to become director of the wildly-successful Kickers Youth 

Club, a position the University of Richmond alumnus still holds 

… Meanwhile, Clarke, 62, has coached several teams among 

them MLS Dallas as well as Puerto Rico’s national side. He 

apparently retired in 2018 after seven seasons (91-84-58) as 

coach of the North American Soccer League’s North Carolina 

RailHawks.

In their 2024 season-opener Saturday (March 17), the Kickers 

dropped a 2-1 decision on the road to the expansion Spokane 

(Wash.) Velocity … Down by two goals after 14 minutes, 

Richmond got one back before halftime on a 15 yard strike by 

recent signee ADRIAN BILLHARDT, a midfielder from 

Germany by way of the University of South Florida, then pretty 

much controlled the game from there before a crowd 

announced as 5,105 ... A handball by the Velocity in the box, 

that should have given the visitors a penalty shot, was recorded 

by USL-TV cameras but missed by the game officials midway 

through the second half. Then, as time was winding down, and 

the Kickers were applying the pressure throughout seven 

minutes of stoppage time, a strike clanged off the crossbar, 

leaving Spokane with its first-ever victory … following a 3-1 

season-opening loss at Greenville, S.C., a week ago … The 

Kickers played without three-times USL League One leading 

scorer and MVP EMILIANO TERZAGHI, sidelined with an 

injured hand … Billhardt, 26, was League One Comeback 

Player of the Year in 2022 with South Georgia Tormenta FC. 

He played last year with Detroit City of the USL Championship 

League, scoring three goals in 13 games … Kickers have a U.S. 

Open Cup date Wednesday (March 29) with Christos FC, 

sponsored by and named after a liquor of the same name, at 

City Stadium then play South Georgia in their league home 

opener Saturday.

Until next time ...