History
Real Maryland was launched in July 2007 as an expansion franchise joining the USL Second Division in 2008. The club's majority owner, Victor Moran, named the club Real Maryland because he intended "to create a REAL event, not just a soccer game", and hired former Northern Virginia Royals head coach Silvino Gonzalo to lead his team in its inaugural campaign.
The Monarchs played their first official game on April 20, 2008, a 1-0 loss to the Western Mass Pioneers, but secured their first ever victory the following week with a 2-0 win over the Pittsburgh Riverhounds; the first goal in franchise history was scored by Bill Brindley. Unfortunately, the Monarchs' first season in USL2 was a difficult one, despite the on-field presence of former Salvadoran internationals Dennis Alas and Ronald Cerritos. They secured two more victories in May, 3-2 over the Cleveland City Stars and 2-1 over the Wilmington Hammerheads, but after conceding a last minute goal to lose 2-1 at home to Cleveland on June 8, fell apart thereafter, and by mid-season were already adrift at the bottom of the standings. Head coach Gonzalo was replaced by Antonio Carlos Vieira in July, but he could do nothing to halt the slide. They suffered several embarrassing defeats towards the end of the regular season, losing 4-0 to the Harrisburg City Islanders, 5-2 to the Wilmington Hammerheads, 6-0 to the Richmond Kickers, and 8-0 to the Charlotte Eagles, their worst result of the season. A 1-1 tie with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds on the last day of the regular season did little to brighten the mood at the Maryland Soccer Plex, as the Monarchs finished dead last in the division; to make matters worse, the team was then docked a point by the league for rules infringement, leaving them seven points adrift of their closest rivals, the Bermuda Hogges. Nilson Perez was the team's top scorer in its debut season, with six goals.
In 2010, it was announced that the Monarchs would move from the USL Second Division to the USL Premier Development League (PDL).
Read more about this topic: Real Maryland F.C.
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