FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – On Monday, January 16, the New England Revolution will open its first preseason training camp under new head coach Jay Heaps to begin training for the upcoming 2012 season.
During their seven-week preseason schedule, the Revs will make two training trips to Arizona to prepare for the upcoming campaign. Included in the schedule is the FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup, a four-team preseason tournament in Tucson, Ariz., that also features the 2011 MLS Cup champion LA Galaxy, the New York Red Bulls and 2011 CONCACAF Champions League finalist Real Salt Lake.
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“Preseason training is crucial to get prepared for the upcoming season,” Heaps said. “The strides we make in January and February will write the blueprint for the season. We plan to use the time to establish our style of play on a tactical level, with an emphasis on strength and conditioning.
“The first trip will be all about us, the Revolution,” Heaps said. “We’ll be training and playing at excellent facilities in Casa Grande, and will be a bit removed from distractions. The trip will be about getting to know each other, especially our new players, training hard, and creating the team’s identity. The second trip to Tucson will be about preparing ourselves for MLS competition and establishing match fitness.”
Full coverage of the team’s preseason training and game schedule will be available at the team’s official web site, revolutionsoccer.net, and through social media channels Facebook (fb.com/NERevolution), Twitter (twitter.com/NERevolution) and YouTube (youtube.com/nerevolutionsoccer).
Revs players will arrive back in market no later than Sunday, Jan. 15, with entrance physicals and preliminary conditioning testing scheduled at Gillette Stadium’s facilities for the following day, on Monday, Jan. 16.
Five days later on Saturday, Jan. 21, the team will depart for Casa Grande, Ariz., located south of Phoenix. The Revs will spend 11 days at Grande Sports World to train outdoors while playing intra-squad scrimmages and several games, which are still to be scheduled.
After returning to Foxborough on Tuesday, Jan. 31, the Revs will spend the next two-and-a-half weeks training indoors at Gillette Stadium’s facilities.
The team will return to Arizona on Monday, Feb. 20, heading to Tucson, Ariz., for the FC Tuscon Desert Diamond Cup at the Kino Veteran Memorial Stadium, hosted by the Tucson-based independent club. Three of the top teams in MLS in 2011 – MLS Cup champion and Supporters Shield winner LA Galaxy, New York and Real Salt Lake – will also base in Tucson for the two-week tournament.
The FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup will feature four doubleheader matches on Wednesday and Saturday nights during the two-week span from Feb. 22 through March 3, with kickoffs set for 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET. The round-robin tournament will be scored by point accumulation, and championship and consolation matches will be played on Saturday, March 3.
“We believe the Desert Diamond Cup will be the premier preseason tournament this year,” Heaps said. “We’re looking forward to facing the Galaxy, Red Bulls and Real Salt Lake, which will be a tremendous final preparation for us just before we start the MLS season in early March.”
After returning to Boston on Sunday, March 4, the team’s focus will shift to regular-season training as the 2012 MLS season is scheduled to begin on Saturday, March 10.
New England’s complete preseason schedule follows.
Sunday, Jan. 15
Training camp opens
Monday, Jan. 16
Entrance physicals and conditioning testing at Dana Farber Field House at Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Tuesday, Jan. 17 through Friday, Jan. 20
Indoor training at Dana Farber Field House at Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Saturday, Jan. 21
Depart for Casa Grande, Ariz.
Sunday, Jan. 22 through Monday, Jan. 30
Training at Grande Sports World (Casa Grande, Ariz.)
Training and game schedules to be finalized
Tuesday, Jan. 31
Return to Boston
Wednesday, Feb. 1 through Sunday, Feb. 19
Indoor training at Dana Farber Field House at Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, Mass.)
Training schedule to be finalized
Monday, Feb. 20
Depart for Tucson, Ariz.
Tuesday, Feb. 21 through Saturday, March 3
Training at Kino Sports Complex (Tucson, Ariz.)
Training schedule to be finalized
FC Tuscon Desert Diamond Cup:
Wednesday, Feb. 22: vs. LA Galaxy, 8 p.m. ET (Kino Veteran Stadium)
Saturday, Feb. 25: vs. New York Red Bulls, 10 p.m. ET (Kino Veteran Stadium)
Wednesday, Feb. 29: vs. Real Salt Lake, 8 p.m. ET (Kino Veteran Stadium)
Saturday, March 3: Championship and Consolation matches, 8 p.m. / 10 p.m. ET (Kino Veteran Stadium)
Sunday, March 4
Return to Boston
