Photo by ISIphotos.com
By FRANCO PANIZO
HANOVER, N.J. — The New York Red Bulls have planned a Supporters’ Shield celebration for just before their home opener this Saturday, and head coach Mike Petke is not all that keen on it.
A long-time member of the club who knows exactly the kind of struggle the Red Bulls went through to capture their first piece of silverware, Petke admitted after practice on Wednesday that he is not too thrilled about the banner presentation that will precede New York’s home opener vs. the Colorado Rapids this weekend. The celebration will happen while the players are in the locker room and prior to them coming out on the field for the national anthem, but Petke is still not fond of it and thinks it could serve as an unnecessary distraction for his players.
“To be quite honest with you, I think we really need to move on,” said Petke. “I’m very happy that it happened, I’m very happy that they’re having a celebration, but it’s in the past. We can’t rest on that. I know it’s great for the fans, the supporters, the organization, but I want my players focused on Colorado and that’s it.”
While Petke might not be completely on board with the idea, the Red Bulls (0-1) have planned the presentation of the banner as a way for the fans to celebrate the capture of last season’s Supporters’ Shield and the end of an 18-year trophy-less drought one last time.
The club is also planning to include a Red Bull component in the pre-game celebration, but specifics have not been made public.
New York raised the Supporters’ Shield trophy and celebrated with its fans last year following a 5-2 win over the Chicago Fire in their regular-season finale.
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Agree with Petke that this celebration could serve as a distraction and the Red Bulls need to move on? Think there is no harm in it seeing as how the players will be in the locker room when it happens? Was the 2013 celebration enough to commemorate the milestone?
Share your thoughts below.