Memphis 901 FC @ Birmingham Legion preview: Southern Harm – US Open Cup Edition

It’s not just geography that makes a great rivalry. It’s not just a series of intense regular season games that makes a great rivalry. It takes more than that. In many cases it takes match-ups in competitions where something is on the line. In the bulk of professional American sports those match-ups take place in the playoffs (think Boston Celtics vs Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA or in the NHL Detroit Red Wings vs Colorado Avalanche in the 90’s). Memphis 901 FC has never played the Birmingham Legion in a playoff game but get their chance to knock them out of a cup competition as they take a trip down I-22 for a US Open Cup edition of the best-named rivalry in all of the USL: Southern Harm.

901 FC’s road to the Round of 32 in this year’s US Open Cup has been quite dramatic and the momentum it has generated has spilled over into the Beale Street Boys regular season play (unbeaten in seven consecutive games across all competitions). Their game in the Second Round was a dramatic one away to One Knoxville that saw 901 FC take the lead, concede in the second half, and finally win it with the last kick of the game in the 124th minute from Jeremy Kelly. With the win they advanced to the Third Round and earned a road contest against the 2019 US Open Cup champions, Atlanta United. Things in Georgia started poorly as Memphis conceded mere minutes into the game but following the opening goal, completely played Atlanta United off the field. In stoppage time they finally found the equalizer on the foot of Philip Goodrum from the penalty spot and in extra time, duly found the winner on a wonderful volley from Nighte Pickering. With the win they advanced to the Round of 32 and now prepare to face a familiar foe in the Birmingham Legion.

Birmingham’s road to the Round of 32 in the edition of the Open Cup has not been as dramatic as 901 FC’s but there have still been fireworks. They opened up in the Second Round on the road against the Chattanooga Red Wolves of USL League One and showed they were the much better side with a resounding 4-1 victory. Their match-up in the Third Round was quite different. They got to play at home but only drew 150 people to the brand new Protective Stadium as they took on Chattanooga FC out of the NISA. Unlike their previous game this one was tense and went to extra time at 1-1 and eventually needed penalties to decide a winner.

Getting a chance to renew a rivalry in a cup competition is always something special and gives off that feeling that anything can happen. There have been some great games in the history of Southern Harm, most notably the September 2021 game down at AutoZone Park which saw Memphis 901 score two goals in stoppage time to go from 2-1 down to 3-2 ahead for the win. And of course no mention of that moment is complete without remembering Raul Gonzalez’s bicycle kick to win it. One additional factor adding to the spice of this rivalry was the signing of Bruno Lapa by Memphis 901 FC during the offseason, as Lapa had been the star man for Birmingham for three seasons.

When, Where

Date: Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Venue: Protective Stadium

City: Birmingham, Alabama

Time: 7pm CT

TV: YouTube

All-Time Series

Memphis 901 FC trails 3-5-4

Last Meeting

Date: Saturday, August 20, 2022

Venue: AutoZone Park

City: Memphis, Tennessee

Attendance: 3,759

Result: Memphis 901 FC 2-4 Birmingham Legion

Next Game

Date: Saturday, May 13, 2023

Competition: USL Regular Season

Match-Up: Memphis 901 FC vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks

Venue: AutoZone Park

City: Memphis, Tennessee

Time: 7pm CT

TV: WMC 5.2, ESPN+