On March 27th, the LA Galaxy held their home-opener at The Home Depot Center against the New England Revolution and officially began their quest to defend their 2009 Western Conference Championship! The Kicks for Kids groups arrived early in anticipation of cheering on the Galaxy to victory during their first game of the season. Dozens of kids from LA’s Best, People in Progress, and Orange County Teen Challenge participated in Soccer Fest and made certain that they were seated in Sections 227 & 228 by game time with their towels in hand ready to wave.
It is a good thing all the kids arrived early as the Galaxy found the back of the net six minutes into the game to take a 1-0 lead! Galaxy forward Landon Donovan took a free kick from 30 yards out and forward Edson Buddle weaved his way between defenders and made a spectacular play to dive and head the ball pass the Revolution goalie. Head coach Bruce Arena hinted in the preseason about the possibility of a break-out year for Buddle, and he certainly got off to a fast start scoring his first goal of the season.
The entire Kicks for Kids section was jumping with excitement after the early Galaxy strike and hoped that they could cheer on the defense to hold off the Revolution for the rest of the game. Buddle’s goal proved to be the game winner as the Galaxy would win 1-0 and Sections 227 & 228 applauded at the final whistle with the rest of the stadium as the Galaxy gained 3 points in the MLS Standings.
The Galaxy Foundation and its Kicks for Kids Community Partner organizations would like to thank all who participated in Saturday's Home opener and look forward to seeing everyone return for future home games!
