SANDY, Utah (Wednesday, March 15, 2017) – Real Monarchs’ 2017 preseason closes down Wednesday in Southern California with a 1:00 p.m. MT scrimmage at Orange County SC, the final of three scrimmages in the last week for Head Coach Mike Petke’s USL side. Today’s game can be followed LIVE on the @RealMonarchs twitter feed.
Real Monarchs SLC – which added four players to its 2017 USL roster last week – have now added dynamic Haitian FW Jonel Desiré, who scored two goals in three games for the Haitian U-20 side in the most recent CONCACAF Under-20 Qualifiers, as well as one goal for Haiti’s senior team in January’s Gold Cup qualifier – as Petke readies his club for its third season in the USL. The addition of Desiré, pronounced “JOE-nell de-ZIRE” (pending league and federation approval and receipt of P-1 visa and ITC) brings the club’s USL roster to 19 players.
REAL MONARCHS 2017 PRESEASON SCHEDULE
Preseason Segment #1 – Sandy/Provo, UT
Saturday, Feb. 25 – Monarchs 3 : 0 BYU – (Milne, Minter, Brody)
Friday, March 3 – Monarchs 2 : 0 BYU – (Besler, Brody)
Preseason Segment #3 – Southern California
Wednesday, March 8 – Monarchs 2 : 1 Ventura County Fusion – (Minter, Adams)
Saturday, March 11 – Monarchs 3 : 2 LA Galaxy II – (Haber, Minter, Holness)
Wednesday, March 15 – Monarchs @ Orange County SC – 1 p.m MT
Preseason Segment #3 – Sandy, UT
Monday, March 20 – Friday, March 24 – Training at AFF daily 1:00 p.m.* (subject to change)
Sat., March 25 – Monarchs @ Portland Timbers 2 – 8:30 p.m. MT – 2017 USL Opening Weekend
Sat., April 1 – Monarchs v. Phoenix Rising FC – 4:00 p.m. MT @ Rio Tinto Stadium
Petke’s current 2017 roster of 19 players includes a group of eight players along with several members of the USL club’s technical staff – including Petke and Assistants Mark Briggs and Matt Glaeser – who spent the Arizona portion of preseason with RSL. The Monarchs preseason now includes new assistant coach Jamison Olave, the former MLS Best XI member and Defender of the Year w/ RSL and New York Red Bulls, also an RSL analyst on the club’s Spanish-language radio broadcasts on 102.3 FM.
The Monarchs 2017 USL schedule was recently released; please visit www.RSL.com/Monarchs for dates, times, opponents and ticket information for the club’s third USL campaign, which kicks off at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday, April 1, at 4:00 p.m. MT against regional rival Phoenix Rising FC.
Season Tickets for both Real Salt Lake and Real Monarchs' 2017 campaigns are now on sale; please visit www.RSL.com/tickets/royalty or call 844.Real.Tix for more information, including “Crown Club” discounts for those who pledge loyalty to both Claret-and-Cobalt professional sides. The Rio Tinto Stadium box office is open Mon.-Fri., 10a-6p; more information can be found online at www.RSL.com/Tickets. Current or interested RSL Royalty Season Ticket Members can purchase extra tickets at preferred pricing or gain assistance via the Fan Relations Hotline at 801-727-2702.
Coming in late Summer, 2017, the Real Monarchs / RSL training center opens in Herriman, Utah, approximately 20 minutes southwest of Rio Tinto Stadium. The $60 million facility will serve as the daily training home beginning in 2018 for both of the club's professional teams – RSL (MLS) and Real Monarchs (USL) – while centralizing the club's U-18, U-16 and future U-14 development academy youth selections. The Herriman facility will provide adjacencies for an on-site charter school opening this Fall, with STEM disciplines (Science/Technology/Engineering/Math) for nearly 300 boys and girls.
In mid-November in North Logan, Utah, RSL Owner Dell Loy Hansen broke ground on the first of a half-dozen regional training centers across Utah and Arizona to be built in the next 2-3 years. Each $5 million RTC houses a classroom, as well as an indoor and outdoor field, dedicated to fulfilling a curriculum dedicated to the club's vision and mission for youth soccer training and education, and the continued development of both recreational and competitive pre-Academy (ages 7-12) initiatives across Utah and Arizona.
